Yorkshire Men's League
| Sport | Rugby league |
|---|---|
| Instituted | 2011 |
| Country |  England |
| Holders | Fryston Warriors |
| Most titles | 2012 |
| Related competition | Rugby League Conference |
The Yorkshire Men's League is a rugby league competition for clubs in Yorkshire. It is a successor league for the Rugby League Conference also comprising clubs from the CMS Yorkshire league, Pennine League and Hull & District League.
History
The Yorkshire Men's League comes from the merger of elements from two strands of rugby league: the British Amateur Rugby League Association and Rugby League Conference.
The British Amateur Rugby League Association (BARLA) was created in 1973 by a group of enthusiasts concerned about the dramatic disappearance of many amateur leagues and clubs. BARLA merged the vast majority of the district leagues into larger regional leagues and created an elite National Conference League, this saw a revitalisation of the game in heartland areas of Yorkshire.
In contrast, the Rugby League Conference (RLC) was born in 1997 as the Southern Conference, a 10-team pilot league for teams in the South of England and English Midlands taking place in the summer time rather than the traditional winter season. It led to the creation of many new teams in non-traditional areas; Rotherham Giants became the first Yorkshire-based team to join in 2000. Other Yorkshire teams, mostly non-traditional parts of Yorkshire such as North Yorkshire and South Yorkshire followed playing in the North East and North Midlands divisions until a Yorkshire division was created in 2004.
By 2008, there were enough sides for a higher level Yorkshire Premier division to be created and in 2010, a Yorkshire & Humber Merit League was created out of existing merit leagues. The Conference in Yorkshire thus had a three tier structure with the Yorkshire Premier division at the top and the Yorkshire regional division and the Yorkshire & Humber merit league below.
With the RLC growing rapidly, some BARLA sides chose to leave traditional winter leagues and join the summer-based RLC. However, in 2011, the National Conference League, voted to switch to a summer season and most of the reserve teams followed. There was a short season from September to November in 2011 with teams from British Amateur Rugby League Association leagues CMS Yorkshire league, Pennine League and Hull & District League playing in four regional groups under the name Yorkshire Men's League. [1]
The Rugby League Conference was replaced in 2012 by a series of locally administered leagues. This saw the Yorkshire Men's League merge with the RLC Yorkshire Premier and regional divisions as well as the Yorkshire & Humber merit league to create a three-tier structure.
Yorkshire Men's League Pyramid
- National Conference League
- Yorkshire Men's League Premier division
- Yorkshire Men's League groups
- Yorkshire Men's League merit league
2011 structure
Group 1
- Bradford Dudley Hill A
- Ovenden A
- Siddal A
- Elland A
- Milford Marlins A
- Stanningley A
Group 2
- Hunslet Warriors A
- East Leeds A
- Oulton Raiders A
- York Acorn A
- Stanley Rangers A
Group 3
- Heworth A
- Featherstone Lions A
- Moorends & Thorne Marauders A
- Rotherham Roosters
- North Yorkshire Stallions
Group 4
- West Hull A
- East Hull A
- Skirlaugh A
- Hull Dockers A
NB:
- Shaw Cross Sharks did not enter their A team into the interim season, they entered the Pennine League but pulled out before the season started and will now play in the Yorkshire Men's League. Castleford Lock Lane, Castleford Panthers, Normanton Knights and Eastmoor Dragons will run their A team in winter in the CMS Yorkshire league and Myton Warriors will run their A team in winter with the Hull & District League
- Elland A, Stanley Rangers A, Rotherham Roosters and Moorends & Thorne Marauders A failed to complete the interim season. Group 3 was subsequently abolished with Featherstone Lions A joining group 1 and North Yorkshire Stallions and Heworth A joining group 2.
2012 divisions
Premier Division
- Cutsyke Raiders (failed to complete season, results stood)
- Bradford Dudley Hill A (failed to complete season, results stood)
- Siddal A (failed to complete season)
- Fryston Warriors
- West Hull A
- Skirlaugh A
- Shaw Cross Sharks A (initially group 2; failed to complete season)
- Oulton Raiders A (initially group 2)
- NB: Dewsbury Moor entered this division but failed to start the season
Group 1
- Hunslet Warriors A
- Ovenden A (failed to complete season, results stood)
- East Leeds A
- Milford Marlins A
- Stanningley A
- Featherstone Lions A (initially group 2; failed to complete season, results stood)
- North Yorkshire Stallions (initially group 2; failed to complete season, results stood)
- Heworth A (initially group 2)
Group 3
- York Acorn A
- York Lokomotive (failed to complete the season, results stood)
- Holderness Vikings
- East Hull A (failed to complete the season, results stood)
- Hull Dockers A (failed to complete the season, results stood)
Group 4
- Leeds Akkies
- West Bradford Barbarians
- Sheffield Hillsborough Hawks
- Rotherham Roosters (failed to complete the season, results stood)
- Scarborough Pirates
- NB: Scunthorpe Barbarians withdrew
Group 5
- Walton Warriors
- Knottingley Rockware Stolze
- Normanton Knights A
- Stanley Rangers A
- Westgate Wolves
Group 6
- Bradford Dudley Hill B (failed to complete season, results stood)
- Greetland Allrounders
- Slaithwaite Juniors
- Dewsbury Celtic A
- NB: Siddal B withdrew
Merit League
- Scarborough Pirates A
- South Humber Rabbitohs
- Myton Warriors A
- Haworth Park Rangers
- Barnsley Broncos
- Elland A
- Eastmoor Dragons A
- Heavy Woollen Donkeys
- Moldgreen
- Knaresbrough
- York Lokomotive (on resigning from group 3)
- Birstall Victoria
- NB:Premier division and groups 1-3 were meant to play a full season but came to an end with play-offs in September. Groups 4-6 and the merit league play a short season. Initially cross-division games were supposed to be between groups 1-3 only; and groups 4-6 only but they ended up between all combinations of groups 1-6. Many clubs opted out of remaining fixtures but results stood, thus the final tables had very uneven amounts of games. Whilst groups 1-3 and groups 4-6 were meant to have separate play-offs they ended up with semi-finals collectively between them.
2013 Divisions
Premier Division
- Bramley Buffaloes
- Kippax Knights
- Hunslet Warriors A
- Milford Marlins A
- Oulton Raiders A
- Stanningley A
- York Acorn A
- Skirlaugh Bulls A
- West Hull A
Group 1
- Birstall Victoria
- Moldgreen
- Walton Warriors (failed to start the season)
- Thornhill Trojans
- Scarborough Pirates
- Bradford Dudley Hill A
- Normanton Knights A
- East Leeds A
Group 2
- Holderness Vikings
- York Lokomotive
- West Bradford Barbarians (failed to start the season)
- Beeston Broncos
- Elland A
- Shaw Cross Sharks A
- Heworth A
- Scarborough Pirates A
- Stanley Rangers A (late entry to replace West Bradford Barbarians)
Entry League
- Leeds Akkies
- Batley Boys DMR
- Dearne Valley Bulldogs
- Selby Warriors
- Slaithwaite Saracens
- St Josephs
- Heavy Woollen Donkeys
- Methley Royals
- Dewsbury Celtic A
- Stanley Rangers A (called up to division 2 after one game)
- Sheffield Hillsborough Hawks
- The Gate LS14
- Hunslet Parkside Academy
- Knaresbrough
- Barnslet Broncos
- Lock Lane A
- Myton Warriors A
Past winners
Premier Division
- 2012 Fryston Warriors
Groups play-off
- 2011
- 2012 Normanton Knights A
Merit League
- 2012 Myton Warriors A
Teams entering a winter league in 2012/13
Many teams (re-)entered a winter league for various reasons after this season.
- Pennine League: Shaw Cross Sharks A, Siddal A, Eastmoor Dragons A, Greetland Allrounders, Knottingley Rockware Stolze, Westgate Wolves
- Hull & District League: Hull Dockers A, Skirlaugh A, West Hull A, Myton Warriors A, Scarborough Pirates, Haworth Park Rangers