Regional 1 South West (formerly South West Premier and National League 3 South West) is a level five league in the

English rugby union system Men's Rugby union in England consists of 106 leagues, which includes professional leagues at the highest level, down to amateur regional leagues. Promotion and relegation are in place throughout the system. Women's Rugby union in England c ...

. It is one of six leagues at this level. When this division began in 1987 it was known as South West Division 1. The format of the league was changed at the beginning of the 2009–10 season following reorganisation by the

Rugby Football Union The Rugby Football Union (RFU) is the national governing body for rugby union in England. It was founded in 1871, and was the sport's international governing body prior to the formation of what is now known as World Rugby (WR) in 1886. It pro ...

, and the name change from National League 3 to South West Premier was introduced for the 2017–18 season by the RFU in order to lessen confusion for what is a series of regional leagues. Regional 1 South West, is the highest regional rugby union league covering

South West England South West England, or the South West of England, is one of nine official regions of England. It consists of the counties of Bristol, Cornwall (including the Isles of Scilly), Dorset, Devon, Gloucestershire, Somerset and Wiltshire. Cities ...

. The club finishing in first place is automatically promoted to National League 2 West. Relegated teams drop down to either Regional 2 South West or Regional 2 Severn depending on location.

Exeter University , mottoeng = "We Follow the Light" , established = 1838 - St Luke's College1855 - Exeter School of Art1863 - Exeter School of Science 1955 - University of Exeter (received royal charter) , type = Public ...

are the current champions.

Format

The season runs from September to May and comprises twenty-two rounds of matches, with each club playing each of its rivals, home and away. The results of the matches contribute points to the league as follows: * 4 points are awarded for a win * 2 points are awarded for a draw * 0 points are awarded for a loss, however * 1 losing (bonus) point is awarded to a team that loses a match by 7 points or fewer * 1 additional (bonus) point is awarded to a team scoring 4 tries or more in a match

Current season

Participating teams and locations

2021–22

The first matches were played on 4 September 2021 and the final league matches on 23 April 2022. Exeter University (as champions), Old Redcliffians (as runner-up) and Hornets (3rd) are all promoted to National League 2 West (formerly National League 2 South). The RFU will announce the format of the tier 5 leagues during the summer of 2022.

Participating teams

Nine of the fourteen teams participated in the previous competition (2019–20). The champions,

Barnstaple Barnstaple ( or ) is a river-port town in North Devon, England, at the River Taw's lowest crossing point before the Bristol Channel. From the 14th century, it was licensed to export wool and won great wealth. Later it imported Irish wool, bu ...

were promoted to National League 2 South, while Newbury and

Bracknell Bracknell () is a large town and civil parish in Berkshire, England, the westernmost area within the Greater London Urban Area and the administrative centre of the Borough of Bracknell Forest. It lies to the east of Reading, south of Maiden ...

were both relegated to South West 1 East.

Maidenhead Maidenhead is a market town in the Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead in the county of Berkshire, England, on the southwestern bank of the River Thames. It had an estimated population of 70,374 and forms part of the border with southern Bu ...

have been level transferred to

London & South East Premier Regional 1 South East (up until 2022-23 known as London & South East Premier and up until 2016-17 known as National League 3 London & South East) is a level five league in the English rugby union system. It is one of six leagues at this level. ...

. The teams coming into this seasons competition are

Old Redcliffians Old Redcliffians Rugby Football Club is an English rugby union team based in Brislington, a suburb of Bristol. The club runs four senior sides and a sevens team as well as a ladies side and the full range of junior teams. The first XV currently ...

and

Bournemouth Bournemouth () is a coastal resort town in the Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole council area of Dorset, England. At the 2011 census, the town had a population of 183,491, making it the largest town in Dorset. It is situated on the English ...

, both relegated from National League 2 South in 15th and 16th position respectively. Teams promoted into this seasons competition are

Hornets Hornets (insects in the genus ''Vespa'') are the largest of the eusocial wasps, and are similar in appearance to their close relatives yellowjackets. Some species can reach up to in length. They are distinguished from other vespine wasps by ...

, champions of

South West 1 West Regional 2 South West, (formerly known as South West 1 West) is an English, level six, rugby union league for clubs based in the south-west of England; i.e. Cornwall, Devon, Dorset and Somerset. It is one of twelve leagues at this level in Eng ...

, and two teams from South West 1 East, Royal Wootton Bassett and

Old Centralians Old Centralians Rugby Football Club is an English rugby union club based at Saintbridge Sports Center in Gloucester. The club operates three senior sides with the first XV playing in South West Premier, a level five league in the English rugby ...

(1st and 2nd respectively).

Final league table

2020–21

Due to the ongoing pandemic, the 2020–21 season was cancelled.

2019–20

The season ended before all the matches were completed because of the

coronavirus pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identifie ...

and the RFU used a best playing record formula to decide the final table.

are the champions.

Participating teams

Ten of the thirteen teams participated in last season's competition. They are joined by three promoted sides; Launceston, Newbury Blues and

Okehampton Okehampton ( ) is a town and civil parish in West Devon in the English county of Devon. It is situated at the northern edge of Dartmoor, and had a population of 5,922 at the 2011 census. Two electoral wards are based in the town (east and w ...

were promoted to National League 2 South, while relegated sides included

Newton Abbot Newton Abbot is a market town and civil parish on the River Teign in the Teignbridge District of Devon, England. Its 2011 population of 24,029 was estimated to reach 26,655 in 2019. It grew rapidly in the Victorian era as the home of the So ...

and Cleve (both

), and Old Patesians ( South West 1 East). Initially,

Bromsgrove Bromsgrove is a town in Worcestershire, England, about northeast of Worcester and southwest of Birmingham city centre. It had a population of 29,237 in 2001 (39,644 in the wider Bromsgrove/Catshill urban area). Bromsgrove is the main town in th ...

were due to be level transferred from

Midlands Premier Regional 1 Midlands (until 2022–23 known as Midlands Premier and up until 2016–17 known as National League 3 Midlands) is a level five semi-professional league in the English rugby union system. It is one of six leagues at this level. When ...

but the withdrawal of Birmingham & Solihull from the league system meant that they stayed put, leaving South West Premier with just thirteen teams.

Final league table

2018–19

Participating teams

Nine of the fourteen teams participated in last season's competition. They are joined by

, who were relegated from National League 2 South, and by three promoted sides; Drybrook,

and Old Patesians. Dings Crusaders (last seasons champions) were promoted to National League 2 South, while

and

Lydney Lydney is a town and civil parish in Gloucestershire, England. It is on the west bank of the River Severn in the Forest of Dean District, and is 16 miles (25 km) southwest of Gloucester. The town has been bypassed by the A48 road since 199 ...

were both relegated to

, and Newbury Blues relegated to South West 1 East.

Final league table

Promotion play-off

Each season, the runners-up in the South West Premier (formerly National League 3 South West) and London & South East Premier (National League 3 London & South East) participate in a play-off for the third promotion place to National League 2 South. The team with the best playing record, in this case Westcliff, hosted the match and beat their opponents Barnstaple 44 – 5 to win promotion to National League 2 South for the first time. This was Westcliff's first appearance in the play-offs and Barnstaple's second; in 2016 Barnstaple beat Tonbridge Juddians 31 – 30 at Tonbridge. The home team have won fifteen out of 19 play-off matches and the south-east team have won the play-off thirteen times. ----

2017–18

Participating teams

Ten of the fourteen teams participated in last season's competition (when it was known as National League 3 South West). They are joined by

Exmouth Exmouth is a port town, civil parish and seaside resort, sited on the east bank of the mouth of the River Exe and southeast of Exeter. In 2011 it had a population of 34,432, making Exmouth the 5th most populous settlement in Devon. Hi ...

, who were relegated from National League 2 South, and by three promoted sides;

Weston-super-Mare Weston-super-Mare, also known simply as Weston, is a seaside town in North Somerset, England. It lies by the Bristol Channel south-west of Bristol between Worlebury Hill and Bleadon Hill. It includes the suburbs of Mead Vale, Milton, Oldmix ...

and Newbury Blues.

(champions) were promoted to National League 2 South, while Launceston were relegated to (

Salisbury Salisbury ( ) is a cathedral city in Wiltshire, England with a population of 41,820, at the confluence of the rivers Avon, Nadder and Bourne. The city is approximately from Southampton and from Bath. Salisbury is in the southeast of ...

to ( South West 1 East) and

to (

Midlands 1 West Midlands 1 West is an English level 6 rugby union regional league for rugby clubs in the western region of the Midlands, including sides from Herefordshire, Shropshire, Staffordshire, Warwickshire, Birmingham and the West Midlands, Worcester ...

Final league table

Promotion play-off

Each season, the runners-up in the South West Premier (formerly National League 3 South West) and London & South East Premier (formerly National League 3 London & SE) participate in a play-off for the third promotion place to National League 2 South. The team with the best playing record, in this case Guernsey, hosted the match and beat their opponents Bournemouth 38 – 23 to win promotion. This was Guernsey's first appearance in the play-offs and Bournemouth's second. Bournemouth's previous appearance was in 2011 when they lost to

Hertford Hertford ( ) is the county town of Hertfordshire, England, and is also a civil parish in the East Hertfordshire district of the county. The parish had a population of 26,783 at the 2011 census. The town grew around a ford on the River Lea, n ...

23 – 22. ----

2016–17

Nine of the fourteen teams participated in last season's competition. They are joined by Launceston who were relegated from National League 2 South, and by two promoted sides:

Camborne Camborne ( kw, Kammbronn) is a town in Cornwall, England. The population at the 2011 Census was 20,845. The northern edge of the parish includes a section of the South West Coast Path, Hell's Mouth and Deadman's Cove. Camborne was former ...

and

(champions) and

(play-off) were promoted to National League 2 South, while

Chippenham Chippenham is a market town in northwest Wiltshire, England. It lies northeast of Bath, west of London, and is near the Cotswolds Area of Natural Beauty. The town was established on a crossing of the River Avon and some form of settlement i ...

were relegated to

, and Old Patesians and

to South West 1 East. To address a league imbalance due to only one team coming down from National League 2 South, both

and

have been level transferred into the league from National League 3 Midlands and National League 3 London & SE respectively, Bromsgrove having finished 9th and Bracknell 11th.

Final league table

Promotion play-off

Each season, the runners-up in the

National League 3 London & SE Regional 1 South East (up until 2022-23 known as London & South East Premier and up until 2016-17 known as National League 3 London & South East) is a level five league in the English rugby union system. It is one of six leagues at this level. ...

, and National League 3 South West participate in a play-off for the third promotion place to National League 2 South. The team with the best playing record, in this case Wimbledon, hosted the match and destroyed their opponents Dings Crusaders 55 – 5 to win promotion. ----

2015–16

Nine of the fourteen teams participated in last season's competition. They are joined by two teams relegated from National League 2 South, Dings Crusaders and Lydney; and by three promoted teams Cleve, Chippenham and Ivybridge. The teams leaving the league were the 2014–15 champions, Redingensians who were promoted to National League 2 South and the relegated teams,

Chard Chard or Swiss chard (; ''Beta vulgaris'' subsp. ''vulgaris'', Cicla Group and Flavescens Group) is a green leafy vegetable. In the cultivars of the Flavescens Group, the leaf stalks are large and often prepared separately from the leaf blade; ...

and

to play in South West 1 West, and Oxford Harlequins to South West 1 East.

, who finished 3rd last season, transferred to National League 3 London and SE.

Participating teams

Final league table

Promotion play-off

Each season, the runners-up in the National League 3 London and SE, and National League 3 South West participate in a play-off for promotion to National League 2 South. The team with the best playing record, in this case Tonbridge Juddians, host the match and their opponents were Barnstaple, who won the match 30 – 31, scoring the winning points with a penalty in the last seconds of the match. ---- ----

2014–15

Participating teams

Final league table

Promotion play-off

Each season, the runners-up in the National League 3 London and SE, and National League 3 South West participate in a play-off for promotion to National League 2 South. The team with the best playing record, in this case Exmouth, hosts the match; their opponents were Barnes and the match was played on 25 April 2015. At the end of full-time the match score was 22 – 22, and Barnes scored the only points in extra-time, to win the match 27– 22. After extra time (80 mins: 22 – 22)

2013–14

* Amersham & Chiltern RFC *

Avonmouth Old Boys Avonmouth Old Boys Rugby Football Club is an England, English rugby union team based in Shirehampton in Bristol. The club run three men senior teams, a vets side, a ladies team, a colts side and a youth section featuring the full range of age-gro ...

(promoted from South West 1 East) *

Brixham Brixham is a coastal town and civil parish, the smallest and southernmost of the three main population centres (the others being Paignton and Torquay) on the coast of Torbay in the county of Devon, in the south-west of England. Commercial fish ...

(relegated from National League 2 South) *

(promoted from South West 1 East) * Old Patesians *

(promoted from

) * Redingensians *

Worcester Wanderers Worcester Wanderers are an English rugby union team and part of the club known as Worcester Rugby Football Club. The club was born in 1871 and from it rose former English Premiership (rugby union), Gallagher Premiership team Worcester Warriors. ...

(promoted from

)

League winners

(promoted to National League 2 South)

Relegated

(relegated to

) *

(relegated to South West 1 East) *

(relegated to

)

Transferred

* Amersham & Chiltern RFC (transferred to

)

Final league table

2012–13

* Amersham & Chiltern RFC *

London Irish Amateur London Irish Amateur Rugby Football Club, also known as London Irish Wild Geese, is an amateur English rugby union club based in Sunbury-on-Thames, Surrey, who play their rugby in Regional 2 Thames – a league at tier 6 of the English rugby u ...

(transferred from

) *

(promoted from South West 1 East) * Malvern *

* Old Patesians * Oxford Harlequins * Redingensians *

2011–12

* Amersham & Chiltern RFC *

Bridgwater & Albion Bridgwater & Albion Rugby Football Club is an English rugby union team based in Bridgwater, Somerset and run two senior teams, a newly formed senior women's team, a colts side and a youth section featuring the full range of age-groups. The first ...

Chinnor Chinnor is a large village and civil parish in South Oxfordshire about southeast of Thame, close to the border with Buckinghamshire. The village is a spring line settlement on the Icknield Way below the Chiltern escarpment. Since 1932 the civ ...

* Newbury Blues (relegated from National League 2 South) *

* Old Patesians *

* Oxford Harlequins * Redingensians *

2010–11

Cheltenham Cheltenham (), also known as Cheltenham Spa, is a spa town and borough on the edge of the Cotswolds in the county of Gloucestershire, England. Cheltenham became known as a health and holiday spa town resort, following the discovery of mineral s ...

* Cleve * Coney Hill *

Hartpury College Hartpury University and Hartpury College, formerly Hartpury College, is a provider of further and higher education which describes itself as specialising in the "agriculture, animal, equine, sport and veterinary nursing" sectors. The university a ...

* Old Patesians * Oxford Harlequins * Redingensians *

2009–10

The first season as a national league *

* Cleve * Coney Hill *

(promoted from South West 1 East) * Old Patesians * Oxford Harlequins *

Reading Reading is the process of taking in the sense or meaning of Letter (alphabet), letters, symbols, etc., especially by Visual perception, sight or Somatosensory system, touch. For educators and researchers, reading is a multifaceted process invo ...

* Redingensians *

Taunton Taunton () is the county town of Somerset, England, with a 2011 population of 69,570. Its thousand-year history includes a 10th-century monastic foundation, Taunton Castle, which later became a priory. The Normans built a castle owned by the ...

2007–08

Final league table

Original teams

When league rugby began in 1987 this division contained the following teams: *

Clifton Clifton may refer to: People *Clifton (surname) *Clifton (given name) Places Australia * Clifton, Queensland, a town **Shire of Clifton *Clifton, New South Wales, a suburb of Wollongong *Clifton, Western Australia Canada *Clifton, Nova Scotia ...

High Wycombe High Wycombe, often referred to as Wycombe ( ), is a market town in Buckinghamshire, England. Lying in the valley of the River Wye surrounded by the Chiltern Hills, it is west-northwest of Charing Cross in London, south-southeast of Ayl ...

Oxford Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to the ...

Redruth Redruth ( , kw, Resrudh) is a town and civil parishes in Cornwall, civil parish in Cornwall, England. The population of Redruth was 14,018 at the 2011 census. In the same year the population of the Camborne-Redruth urban area, which also inc ...

* St Ives *

* Torquay Athletic *

South West Premier honours

In the first season of the English rugby union league pyramid, sponsored by Courage, there was four, tier five leagues. The geographical area for teams in South West Division One covered an area of south-west England from

Oxfordshire Oxfordshire is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the north west of South East England. It is a mainly rural county, with its largest settlement being the city of Oxford. The county is a centre of research and development, primarily ...

and

Berkshire Berkshire ( ; in the 17th century sometimes spelt phonetically as Barkeshire; abbreviated Berks.) is a historic county in South East England. One of the home counties, Berkshire was recognised by Queen Elizabeth II as the Royal County of Berk ...

in the east to

Cornwall Cornwall (; kw, Kernow ) is a historic county and ceremonial county in South West England. It is recognised as one of the Celtic nations, and is the homeland of the Cornish people. Cornwall is bordered to the north and west by the Atlantic ...

in the west. There were eleven teams in the league and they played each team once, giving each team ten matches. The other tier five leagues were London 1, Midlands 1 and North 1. This system prevailed for five seasons, and in 1992–93 the number of teams increased from eleven to thirteen. The following season (1993–94) the league was reorganised and the four tier five leagues became two; National 5 North and National 5 South. After three seasons, in 1996–97, a further reorganisation occurred, and there was a return to four, tier five leagues; with South West Division One covering the area of south-west England from Berkshire westwards. This system prevailed until 2009–10 when the number of teams was increased from twelve to fourteen and renamed National League Three South West. There was a name change for the beginning of season 2017–18 when the division was renamed the South West Premier.

South West 1 (1987–1993)

The original South West 1 was a tier 5 league with promotion up to Area League 2 South and relegation down to South West 2 (presently split into two leagues known as South West 1 East and

South West 1 (1993–96)

The top six teams from South West 1 and the top six from

London 1 Regional 1 South East (up until 2022-23 known as London & South East Premier and up until 2016-17 known as National League 3 London & South East) is a level five league in the English rugby union system. It is one of six leagues at this level. ...

were combined to create National 5 South. South West 1 dropped to become a tier six league and was one of two feeder leagues for National 5 South. Relegation continued to South West 2 (currently South West 1 East and

South West 1 (1996–2009)

At the end of the 1995–96 season National 5 South was discontinued and South West 1 returned to being a tier 5 league. Promotion was up to National 4 South (now known as National League 2 South), while the splitting of South West 2 into two regional divisions, meant that relegation was now down to either South West 2 East or South West 2 West (currently South West 1 East / South West 1 West).

National League 3 South West (2009–2017)

The division was renamed National League 3 South West following a restructuring of the national leagues which led to changes at all levels. It remained a tier 5 league with promotion up to National League 2 South (formerly National League 3 South) and relegation to either South West 1 East or

(formerly South West 2 East / South West 2 West).

South West Premier (2017–2022)

For the 2017–18 season all divisions at tier 5 were renamed from National League 3 to Premier meaning that National League 3 South West became known as South West Premier. Promotion continued to National League 2 South and relegation to either South West 1 East or

Promotion play-offs

From 2000–01 season there has been a promotion play-off game between the runners-up of

and South West Premier for the third and final promotion place to National League 2 South, with the team with the superior league record having home advantage. As of the 2018–19 season, the London and south-east teams have been most successful with thirteen wins to the south-west teams six, while the home side have won fifteen of the nineteen ties. The last play-off was in 2018–19, with the next two seasons cancelled due to the

COVID-19 pandemic in the United Kingdom The COVID-19 pandemic in the United Kingdom is a part of the worldwide pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). In the United Kingdom, it has resulted in confir ...

and following the increase of leagues at this level to three, only the champions are promoted.

Number of league titles

(2) *

(2) * Dings Crusaders (2) *

(2) *

(1) * Berry Hill (1) *

(1) *

Cinderford Cinderford is a town and civil parish on the eastern fringe of the Forest of Dean in Gloucestershire, England. The population was 8,777 at the 2021 Census. The town came into existence in the 19th century, following the rapid expansion of Cind ...

(1) *

(1) * Henley (1) *

(1) * Launceston (1) *

(1) *

Mounts Bay Mount's Bay or Mounts Bay may refer to: *Mount's Bay, Cornwall UK * Mounts Bay RFC, a defunct rugby club formerly based in Penzance * Mounts Bay Road, Perth, Western Australia *Mounts Bay, in the Swan River Estuary, Perth, see Swan River (Western A ...

(1) * Newbury (1) * Old Patesians (1) *

(1) * Penzance & Newlyn (1) * Redingensians (1) *

(1) *

(1)

Note

References

External links

Rugby union in the South West

South West Premier fixtures at the RFU
{{Rugby union in England 5 Recurring sporting events established in 1987 Sports leagues established in 1987

Format

Current season

Participating teams and locations

2021–22

Participating teams

Final league table

2020–21

2019–20

Participating teams

Final league table

2018–19

Participating teams

Final league table

Promotion play-off

2017–18

Participating teams

Final league table

Promotion play-off

2016–17

Final league table

Promotion play-off

2015–16

Participating teams

Final league table

Promotion play-off

2014–15

Participating teams

Final league table

Promotion play-off

2013–14

League winners

Relegated

Transferred

Final league table

2012–13

2011–12

2010–11

2009–10

2007–08

Final league table

Original teams

South West Premier honours

South West 1 (1987–1993)

South West 1 (1993–96)

South West 1 (1996–2009)

National League 3 South West (2009–2017)

South West Premier (2017–2022)

Promotion play-offs

Number of league titles

Note

See also

References

External links