New rugby league format explained

THE first of Oldham’s 11 home games in the new Kingstone Press League One is against Coventry Bears on April 12.

Latest newcomers in the RFL’s expansion plan, the Bears have already been beaten twice at Whitebank in the iPro Sport Cup and the Ladbrokes Challenge Cup.

The sport’s third tier this year is expanded from nine to 14 and is a mix of traditional and development clubs. The former are represented by Oldham, Rochdale, Barrow, Keighley, York and Swinton and the latter by Coventry, South Wales, London Skolars, Gloucester All Golds, Newcastle Thunder, North Wales, Oxford and Hemel Stags.

Two promotion spots are up for grabs, but there is no automatic promotion: the teams finishing first and second will battle for the promotion place. The losers will enter the play-offs and take on the fifth-placed finishers, while team three will play team four.

To earn the second promotion spot, the two play-off winners will advance to the League One play-off final on the first weekend in October.

Clubs will each play 22 league games — home and away against nine clubs on a geographical basis, and either home or away against the remaining four clubs.

Oldham’s once-only quartet are Coventry and York City Knights, who will visit Whitebank, and South Wales Scorpions and Hemel Stags, whom Roughyeds play away.

In 2013, clubs played only 16 games in Championship One, increased to 20 in 2014. This year’s 22 games, coupled with a later start, gives clubs a full programme from early April to mid-September without many blank weekends.


Oldham fixtures:

(all 3pm unless stated)



APRIL

3 Rochdale Hornets A

12 Coventry Bears H

19 South Wales A

26 London Skolars H



MAY

3 Gl’cester All Golds H

9 Barrow Raiders A (6.30pm)

17 Newcastle Thunder H

31 Keighley Cougars A



JUNE

7 North Wales Crusaders H

14 Oxford H

21 Swinton Lions A

27 Gl’cester All Golds A



JULY

5 York City Knights H

12 Rochdale Hornets H

19 London Skolars A

26 North Wales Crusaders A (2.30pm)



AUGUST

2 Keighley Cougars H

9 Hemel Stags A

16 Newcastle Thunder A

23 Barrow Raiders H



SEPTEMBER

6 Swinton Lions H

13 Oxford A