The 2010–11 RFU Championship was the 2nd season (of the professionalised format) of the
second division of the English domestic
rugby union
Rugby union football, commonly known simply as rugby union in English-speaking countries and rugby 15/XV in non-English-speaking world, Anglophone Europe, or often just rugby, is a Contact sport#Terminology, close-contact team sport that orig ...
competitions, played between August 2010 and May 2011. New teams to the division included
Worcester Warriors
Worcester Warriors are a professional rugby union club based in Worcester, England. They most recently played in Premiership Rugby, the top division of English rugby union, before being suspended by the Rugby Football Union, RFU in September 2 ...
who were relegated from the
Guinness Premiership 2009–10 and
Esher
Esher ( ) is a town in the borough of Borough of Elmbridge, Elmbridge in Surrey, England, to the east of the River Mole, Surrey, River Mole.
Esher is an outlying suburb of London, close to the London–Surrey border; with Esher Commons at its ...
who were promoted from the
2009–10 National League 1. The league maintained the three stage system with the league including promotion/relegation pools and playoffs to determine the champion and promoted team.
Worcester Warriors
Worcester Warriors are a professional rugby union club based in Worcester, England. They most recently played in Premiership Rugby, the top division of English rugby union, before being suspended by the Rugby Football Union, RFU in September 2 ...
topped the regular season league table, their play-off group table and then won the Championship after they defeated
Cornish Pirates
The Cornish Pirates () are a professional rugby union team who play in the RFU Championship, Championship, the second level of the English rugby union pyramid, and are the premier Cornish rugby club. The Cornish Pirates team are the 'First XV' o ...
over two legs in the Championship final at
Sixways Stadium
Sixways Stadium is a stadium in Worcester, England. It is currently used for rugby union and association football matches and is the home stadium of Premier 15s side Worcester Warriors Women, football side Worcester Raiders F.C., Worcester Ra ...
(46–32) on 18 May 2011 to make an instant return to the
Premiership.
Birmingham & Solihull were relegated to the
2011–12 National League 1 at the end of this season.
Participating teams
Stage 1 league table
Results
Round 1
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Round 2
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Round 3
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Round 4
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Round 5
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Round 6
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Round 7
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Round 8
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Round 9
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Round 10
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Round 11
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Round 12
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Round 13
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Round 14
*Postponed. Game rescheduled to 25 January 2011.
*Postponed. Game rescheduled to 15 December 2010.
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Round 15
*Postponed. Game rescheduled to 15 December 2010.
*Postponed. Game rescheduled to 14 December 2010.
*Postponed. Game rescheduled to 19 January 2011.
*Postponed. Game rescheduled to 18 January 2011.
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Round 14 & Round 15 (rescheduled games)
*Game rescheduled from 4 December 2010.
*Game rescheduled from 27 November 2010.
*Game rescheduled from 4 December 2010.
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Round 16
*Postponed. Game rescheduled to 9 February 2011.
*Postponed. Game rescheduled to 2 February 2011.
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Round 17
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Round 18
*This fixture would double up as a league and
2010–11 British and Irish Cup game after the corresponding cup game was postponed.
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Round 15 (rescheduled games)
*Game rescheduled from 4 December 2010.
*Game rescheduled from 4 December 2010.
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Round 14 (rescheduled game)
*Game rescheduled from 27 November 2010.
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Round 19
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Round 16 (rescheduled game)
*Game rescheduled from 12 December 2010.
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Round 20
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Round 16 (rescheduled game)
*Game rescheduled from 12 December 2010.
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Round 21
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Round 22
Stage 2 - Play-offs
Group A (Promotion)
Round 1
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Round 2
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Round 3
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Round 4
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Round 5
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Round 6
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Group B (Promotion)
Round 1
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Round 2
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Round 3
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Round 4
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Round 5
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Round 6
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Group C (Relegation)
Round 1
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Round 2
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Round 3
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Round 4
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Round 5
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Round 6
Stage 3
Semi-finals
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Final
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Total Season Attendances
*Includes playoff games.
Individual statistics
*Player stats include playoff games as well as regular season games. Also note that points scorers includes tries as well as conversions, penalties and drop goals.
Top points scorers
Top try scorers
Season records
Team
;Largest home win — 68 pts
81 - 13 Worcester Warriors at home to Bristol on 16 April 2011
;Largest away win — 46 pts
68 - 22 London Welsh away to Moseley on 16 October 2010
;Most points scored — 81 pts
81 - 13 Worcester Warriors at home to Bristol on 16 April 2011
;Most tries in a match — 12
Bedford Blues at home to Rotherham Titans on 16 April 2011
;Most conversions in a match — 10 (x2)
Bedford Blues at home to Rotherham Titans on 16 April 2011
Worcester Warriors at home to Bristol on 16 April 2011
;Most penalties in a match — 7 (x5)
Nottingham at home to London Welsh on 29 August 2011
Nottingham away to Doncaster Knights on 2 October 2011
Esher at home to Birmingham & Solihull on 1 January 2011
Rotherham Titans at home to Doncaster Knights on 5 February 2012
Plymouth Albion at home to Birmingham & Solihull on 25 March 2012
;Most drop goals in a match — 3
Worcester Warriors away to Bedford Blues on 16 October 2010
Player
;Most points in a match — 30
James Pritchard for Bedford Blues at home to Rotherham Titans on 16 April 2011
;Most tries in a match — 4 (x2)
James Short for Bedford Blues at home to Moseley on 25 September 2010
Josh Drauniniu for London Welsh away to Moseley on 16 October 2010
;Most conversions in a match — 10
James Pritchard for Bedford Blues at home to Rotherham Titans on 16 April 2011
;Most penalties in a match — 7 (x5)
James Arlidge
; born 11 August 1979) is a Japanese international rugby union player. He plays primarily at fly-half.
Club career
Unusually, he made his Super Rugby debut for the Auckland Blues, prior to making his first start in provincial rugby, making the ...
for Nottingham at home to London Welsh on 29 August 2011
James Arlidge
; born 11 August 1979) is a Japanese international rugby union player. He plays primarily at fly-half.
Club career
Unusually, he made his Super Rugby debut for the Auckland Blues, prior to making his first start in provincial rugby, making the ...
for Nottingham away to Doncaster Knights on 2 October 2011
Sam Ulph for Esher at home to Birmingham & Solihull on 1 January 2011
Juan Pablo Socino for Rotherham Titans at home to Doncaster Knights on 5 February 2012
Alex Davies for Plymouth Albion at home to Birmingham & Solihull on 25 March 2011
;Most drop goals in a match — 3
Andy Goode
Andrew James Goode (born 3 April 1980) is an English sports pundit and former rugby union player. Goode had an 18-year professional career playing over 400 games and scoring over 4,000 points. He played professionally in England, France and S ...
for Exeter Chiefs away to Bristol on 26 May 2010
Attendances
;Highest — 12,024
Worcester Warriors at home to Cornish Pirates on 18 May 2011
;Lowest — 317
Birmingham & Solihull at home to Doncaster Knights on 9 January 2011
;Highest Average Attendance — 6,524
Worcester Warriors
;Lowest Average Attendance — 590
Birmingham & Solihull
References
External links
Official siteFixtures & Results
{{DEFAULTSORT:Championship
2010–11 in English rugby union leagues
2010-11