The 2023–24 National League 1 is the 36th season of the
third tier of the
English domestic rugby union competitions.
Chinnor
Chinnor is a large village and civil parish in South Oxfordshire, England, about southeast of Thame and close to the border with Buckinghamshire. The village is a spring line settlement on the Icknield Way below the Chiltern escarpment. Sinc ...
claimed the league title on 13 April with one game still to play following a resounding away win at
Birmingham Moseley. Runners up
Rams
In engineering, reliability, availability, maintainability and safety (RAMS)2024–25 RFU Championship
The 2024–25 RFU Championship was the sixteenth season of the RFU Championship, the professional second tier of rugby union in England. It featured twelve English teams. Ealing Trailfinders were the reigning champions, having been refused promo ...
- the highest level the club had reached in its history.
The relegation race was very tight and went to the last game of the season, with four sides possibly going down. In the end
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 the ...
and
Taunton Titans were the relegated teams. In Taunton's case they would feel particular hard done by having won the final four games of the season but in the end missing out on survival by just one point. Both sides would drop down to the
2024–25 National League 2 West, with Taunton returning to tier 4 for the first time in three seasons and Cinderford in six.
Structure
The league consists of fourteen teams, with all the teams playing each other on a home and away basis, to make a total of twenty-six matches each. There is one promotion place, with the champions promoted to the
RFU Championship
The RFU Championship is an English rugby union competition comprising twelve clubs. It is the second level of men's English rugby and is played by both professional and semi-professional players. The competition has existed since 1987, when Eng ...
, and typically there are three relegation places to either,
National League 2 East
National League 2 East is a rugby union league at level four in the English rugby union system and provides semi-professional competition for teams in London, South East England and the East of England. The remainder of England is covered by t ...
,
National League 2 North
National League 2 North is one of three level four leagues in the English rugby union system and provides semi-professional competition for teams in Northern England. The remainder of England is covered by the two counterpart leagues National L ...
or
National League 2 West, depending on the geographical location of the team.
Due to the liquidation of RFU Championship side
Jersey Reds
Jersey Reds was a rugby union club based in Jersey, Channel Islands. On 28th September 2023, the club ceased trading and shortly thereafter went into liquidation following the withdrawal of financial support from a key investor.
Until seaso ...
in September 2023 and the knock on effect on the league system, there will only be two teams relegated from National League 1 at the end of the 2023–24 season.
The results of the matches contribute points to the league table 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.
Participating teams and locations
League table
Fixtures & results
Fixtures for the season were published by the RFU on 12 June 2023.
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
*Postponed due to frozen pitch. Game to be rescheduled for 6 January 2024.
*Postponed due to frozen pitch. Game to be rescheduled for 6 January 2024.
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Round 13
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Round 14
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Round 12 (rescheduled games)
*Game rescheduled from 2 December 2023.
*Game rescheduled from 2 December 2023.
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Round 15
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Round 16
*Postponed due to frozen pitch. Game to be rescheduled for 3 February 2024.
*Postponed due to frozen pitch. Game to be rescheduled for 3 February 2024.
*Postponed due to frozen pitch. Game to be rescheduled for 3 February 2024.
*Postponed due to frozen pitch. Game to be rescheduled for 3 February 2024.
*Postponed due to frozen pitch. Game to be rescheduled for 3 February 2024.
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Round 17
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Round 16 (rescheduled games)
*Game rescheduled from 20 January 2024.
*Game rescheduled from 20 January 2024.
*Game rescheduled from 20 January 2024.
*Game rescheduled from 20 January 2024.
*Game rescheduled from 20 January 2024.
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Round 18
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Round 19
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Round 20
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Round 21
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Round 22
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Round 23
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Round 24
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Round 25
*Chinnor are champions.
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Round 26
*Taunton Titans are relegated.
*Cinderford are relegated.
Attendances
Individual statistics
Top points scorers
Top try scorers
See also
*
2023–24 National League 2 North
*
2023–24 National League 2 East
*
2023–24 National League 2 West
References
External links
NCA Rugby
{{DEFAULTSORT:2023-24 National League 1
3
National League 1 seasons