2002–03 National Division Three North
The 2002–03 National Division Three North was the third season (fifteenth overall) of the fourth division (north) of the English domestic rugby union competition using the name National Division Three North. New teams to the division included Preston Grasshoppers and Waterloo who were relegated from the 2001–02 National Division Two while promoted teams included Broadstreet who came up as champions of Midlands Division 1 while Halifax (champions) and Hull Ionians (playoffs) came up from North Division 1.[1][2][3] The league system was 2 points for a win and 1 point for a draw with the promotion system changing for this season with a playoff system being introduced. The champions of both National Division Three North and National Division Three South would automatically go up but the runners up of these two divisions would meet each other in a one off match (at the home ground of the side with the superior league record) to see who would claim the third and final promotion place to National Division Two for the following season.
| 2002–03 National Division Three North | |
|---|---|
| Countries |  England |
| Champions | Nuneaton |
| Runners-up | New Brighton |
| Relegated | Scunthorpe, Hull Ionians, Broadstreet, Bedford Athletic |
| Attendance | N/A[a 1] |
| Top point scorer | Tony Handley (Waterloo) 293 points |
| Top try scorer | Jody Peacock (Nuneaton) Gary Marshall (Nuneaton) 21 tries |
By the end of the season Nuneaton would finish as champions, just edging out runners up New Brighton by virtue of an extra win and gaining promotion to the 2003–04 National Division Two.[4] New Brighton would go into a promotion playoff away at the 2002–03 National Division Three South runners up Lydney but were unable to join Nuneaton as Lydney won 21 - 7 to claim the final promotion slot.[5] At the other end of the table, Scunthorpe were the first team to be relegated with just one win all season while Hull Ionians, Broadstreet and Bedford Athletic were the other teams to go down at a later date with Bedford Athletic just one point off safety.[4] Hull Ionians would drop to North Division 1 while Scunthorpe, Broadstreet and Bedford Athletic would drop to Midlands Division 1.[6][7]
Participating teams and locations
Locations of the 2002-03 National Division Three North teams
| Team | Stadium | Capacity | City/Area |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bedford Athletic | Putnoe Woods | 500 | Bedford, Bedfordshire |
| Blaydon | Crow Trees | 2,000 (400 seats) | Swalwell, Tyne and Wear |
| Broadstreet | Ivor Preece Field | 1,500 (250 seats) | Coventry, West Midlands |
| Darlington Mowden Park | Yiewsley Drive | Darlington, County Durham | |
| Dudley Kingswinford | Heathbrook | Kingswinford, Dudley, West Midlands | |
| Halifax | Ovenden Park | Halifax, West Yorkshire | |
| Hull Ionians | Brantingham Park | 1,500 (240 seats) | Brantingham, East Riding of Yorkshire |
| Liverpool St Helens | Moss Lane | St Helens, Merseyside | |
| New Brighton | Hartsfield | 2,000 | Wirral, Merseyside |
| Nuneaton | Liberty Way | 4,314 (514 seats) | Nuneaton, Warwickshire |
| Preston Grasshoppers | Lightfoot Green | 5,000 | Preston, Lancashire |
| Scunthorpe | Heslam Park | Scunthorpe, Lincolnshire | |
| Tynedale | Tynedale Park | 2,000 (400 seats) | Corbridge, Northumberland |
| Waterloo | St Anthony's Road | 9,000 (200 seats) | Blundellsands, Merseyside |
Final league table
| |||||||||||||||||
| Club | Played | Won | Drawn | Lost | Points For | Points Against | Points Difference | Points | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Nuneaton (C) | 26 | 23 | 0 | 3 | 802 | 406 | 396 | 46 | ||||||||
| 2 | New Brighton | 26 | 22 | 0 | 4 | 812 | 441 | 371 | 44 | ||||||||
| 3 | Waterloo | 26 | 21 | 0 | 5 | 888 | 458 | 430 | 42 | ||||||||
| 4 | Halifax | 26 | 17 | 0 | 9 | 666 | 588 | 78 | 34 | ||||||||
| 5 | Darlington Mowden Park | 26 | 14 | 0 | 12 | 688 | 491 | 197 | 28 | ||||||||
| 6 | Liverpool St Helens | 26 | 12 | 1 | 13 | 612 | 574 | 38 | 25 | ||||||||
| 7 | Tynedale | 26 | 12 | 1 | 13 | 561 | 582 | -21 | 25 | ||||||||
| 8 | Blaydon | 26 | 12 | 0 | 14 | 568 | 645 | -77 | 24 | ||||||||
| 9 | Preston Grasshoppers | 26 | 11 | 1 | 14 | 617 | 625 | -8 | 23 | ||||||||
| 10 | Dudley Kingswinford | 26 | 10 | 1 | 15 | 502 | 596 | -94 | 21 | ||||||||
| 11 | Bedford Athletic (R) | 26 | 10 | 0 | 16 | 497 | 625 | -128 | 20 | ||||||||
| 12 | Broadstreet (R) | 26 | 8 | 1 | 17 | 477 | 795 | -318 | 17 | ||||||||
| 13 | Hull Ionians (R) | 26 | 6 | 1 | 19 | 515 | 747 | -232 | 13 | ||||||||
| 14 | Scunthorpe (R) | 26 | 1 | 0 | 25 | 343 | 975 | -632 | 2 | ||||||||
| Reference Rugby Statbunker: Updated 19-04-2003 | |||||||||||||||||
Results
Round 1
Round 2
| 7 September 2002 |
| Dudley Kingswinford | 23 - 18 | Darlington Mowden Park |
| Report |
| Heathbrook Referee: Andrew Vertigan |
Round 3
| 14 September 2002 |
| Darlington Mowden Park | 11 - 28 | New Brighton |
| Report |
| Yiewsley Drive Referee: Brendan Fitzmaurice |
| 14 September 2002 |
| Scunthorpe | 12 - 13 | Dudley Kingswinford |
| Report |
| Heslam Park Attendance: 250 Referee: David Drury |
Round 4
| 28 September 2002 |
| Preston Grasshoppers | 18 - 34 | Darlington Mowden Park |
| Report |
| Lightfoot Green Referee: Llyr Apgeraint-Roberts |
Round 5
| 12 October 2002 |
| Scunthorpe | 15 - 29 | Preston Grasshoppers |
| Report |
| Heslam Park Attendance: 350 Referee: Greg Garner |
Round 6
| 19 October 2002 |
| Dudley Kingswinford | P - P | Halifax |
- Postponed. Game rescheduled to 28 December 2002.
| 19 October 2002 |
| New Brighton | P - P | Bedford Athletic |
- Postponed. Game rescheduled to 28 December 2002.
| 19 October 2002 |
| Nuneaton | P - P | Darlington Mowden Park |
- Postponed. Game rescheduled to 28 December 2002.
| 19 October 2002 |
| Waterloo | P - P | Scunthorpe |
- Postponed. Game rescheduled to 28 December 2002.
Round 7
Round 8
Round 9
| 9 November 2002 |
| Broadstreet | 26 - 20 | Preston Grasshoppers |
| Report |
| Ivor Preece Field Referee: Llyr Apgeraint-Roberts |
| 9 November 2002 |
| Halifax | P - P | Dudley Kingswinford |
- Postponed. Game rescheduled to 15 February 2003.
| 9 November 2002 |
| Liverpool St Helens | P - P | Blaydon |
- Postponed. Game rescheduled to 28 December 2002.
| 9 November 2002 |
| Scunthorpe | P - P | Waterloo |
- Postponed. Game rescheduled to 15 February 2003.
Round 10
| 16 November 2002 |
| Preston Grasshoppers | 41 - 6 | Scunthorpe |
| Report |
| Lightfoot Green Referee: Brendan Fitzmaurice |
Round 11
| 23 November 2002 |
| Darlington Mowden Park | 38 - 14 | Preston Grasshoppers |
| Report |
| Yiewsley Drive Referee: David Drury |
| 23 November 2002 |
| Scunthorpe | P - P | New Brighton |
- Postponed. Game rescheduled to 8 March 2003.
Round 12
| 30 November 2002 |
| New Brighton | 34 - 0 | Darlington Mowden Park |
| Report |
| Hartsfield Referee: Brendan Fitzmaurice |
| 30 November 2002 |
| Halifax | P - P | Liverpool St Helens |
- Postponed. Game rescheduled to 8 March 2003.
Round 13
| 7 December 2002 |
| Darlington Mowden Park | 20 - 11 | Dudley Kingswinford |
| Report |
| Yiewsley Drive Referee: Chris Seeley |
Round 14
Round 15
| 21 December 2002 |
| Blaydon | P - P | Tynedale |
- Postponed. Game rescheduled to 22 March 2003.
Rounds 6 & 9 (rescheduled games)
- Game rescheduled from 19 October 2002.
- Game rescheduled from 9 November 2002.
- Game rescheduled from 19 October 2002.
| 28 December 2002 |
| Nuneaton | 37 - 15 | Darlington Mowden Park |
| Report |
| Liberty Way Referee: Llyr Apgeraint-Roberts |
- Game rescheduled from 19 October 2002.
- Game rescheduled from 19 October 2002.
Round 16
| 4 January 2003 |
| Bedford Athletic | P - P | Scunthorpe |
- Postponed. Game rescheduled to 22 March 2003.
| 4 January 2003 |
| Broadstreet | P - P | Liverpool St Helens |
- Postponed. Game rescheduled to 15 February 2003.
| 4 January 2003 |
| Halifax | P - P | Darlington Mowden Park |
- Postponed. Game rescheduled to 22 March 2003.
Round 17
| 11 January 2003 |
| Blaydon | P - P | Halifax |
- Postponed. Game rescheduled to 5 April 2003.
| 11 January 2003 |
| Darlington Mowden Park | P - P | Bedford Athletic |
- Postponed. Game rescheduled to 15 February 2003.
| 11 January 2003 |
| Liverpool St Helens | P - P | New Brighton |
- Postponed. Game rescheduled to 22 March 2003.
| 11 January 2003 |
| Nuneaton | P - P | Hull Ionians |
- Postponed. Game rescheduled to 15 February 2003.
| 11 January 2003 |
| Preston Grasshoppers | P - P | Dudley Kingswinford |
- Postponed. Game rescheduled to 8 March 2003.
| 11 January 2003 |
| Waterloo | P - P | Tynedale |
- Postponed. Game rescheduled to 8 March 2003.
Round 18
| 18 January 2003 |
| Scunthorpe | 20 - 39 | Liverpool St Helens |
| Report |
| Heslam Park Attendance: 250 Referee: Greg Garner |
Round 19
Round 20
| 1 February 2003 |
| Bedford Athletic | P - P | Waterloo |
- Postponed. Game rescheduled to 5 April 2003.
| 1 February 2003 |
| Darlington Mowden Park | P - P | Liverpool St Helens |
- Postponed. Game rescheduled to 5 April 2003.
| 1 February 2003 |
| Halifax | P - P | Preston Grasshoppers |
- Postponed. Game rescheduled to 19 April 2003.
| 1 February 2003 |
| Hull Ionians | P - P | New Brighton |
- Postponed. Game rescheduled to 5 April 2003.
| 1 February 2003 |
| Scunthorpe | P - P | Blaydon |
- Postponed. Game rescheduled to 19 April 2003.
Round 21
Rounds 9, 16 & 17 (rescheduled games)
- Game rescheduled from 4 January 2003.
| 15 February 2003 |
| Darlington Mowden Park | 22 - 12 | Bedford Athletic |
| Report |
| Yiewsley Drive Referee: Alan Hughes |
- Game rescheduled from 11 January 2003.
- Game rescheduled from 9 November 2002.
- Game rescheduled from 11 January 2003.
- Game rescheduled from 9 November 2002.
Round 22
| 22 February 2003 |
| Scunthorpe | 0 - 60 | Darlington Mowden Park |
| Report |
| Heslam Park Attendance: 275 Referee: David Drury |
Round 23
| 1 March 2003 |
| Darlington Mowden Park | P - P | Broadstreet |
- Postponed. Game rescheduled to 8 March 2003.
Rounds 11, 12, 17 & 23 (rescheduled games)
- Game rescheduled from 1 March 2003.
- Game rescheduled from 30 November 2002.
- Game rescheduled from 11 January 2003.
- Game rescheduled from 23 November 2002.
- Game rescheduled from 11 January 2003.
Round 24
Rounds 15, 16 & 17 (rescheduled games)
- Game rescheduled from 4 January 2003.
- Game rescheduled from 21 December 2002.
- Game rescheduled from 4 January 2003.
- Game rescheduled from 11 January 2003.
Round 25
Rounds 17 & 20 (rescheduled games)
- Game rescheduled from 1 February 2003.
- Game rescheduled from 11 January 2003.
| 5 April 2003 |
| Darlington Mowden Park | 38 - 19 | Liverpool St Helens |
| Report |
| Yiewsley Drive Referee: David Drury |
- Game rescheduled from 1 February 2003.
- Game rescheduled from 1 February 2003.
Round 26
| 12 April 2003 |
| Preston Grasshoppers | 28 - 28 | Liverpool St Helens |
| Report |
| Lightfoot Green Referee: Steve Brown |
Round 20 (rescheduled games)
- Game rescheduled from 1 February 2003.
- Game rescheduled from 1 February 2003.
Promotion play-off
The league runners up of National Division Three South and North would meet in a playoff game for promotion to National Division Two. Lydney were runners-up in the south and because they had a better league record than north runners-up, New Brighton, they hosted the play-off match.
Total season attendances
| Club | Home Games |
Total | Average | Highest | Lowest | % Capacity |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bedford Athletic | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0% |
| Blaydon | 2 | 250 | 125 | 150 | 100 | 6% |
| Broadstreet | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| Darlington Mowden Park | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| Dudley Kingswinford | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| Halifax | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| Hull Ionians | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0% |
| Liverpool St Helens | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| New Brighton | 1 | 500 | 500 | 500 | 500 | 25% |
| Nuneaton | 1 | 1,200 | 1,200 | 1,200 | 1,200 | 28% |
| Preston Grasshoppers | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0% |
| Scunthorpe | 7 | 2,025 | 289 | 450 | 200 | |
| Tynedale | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0% |
| Waterloo | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0% |
- Due to extremely poor coverage and reporting by the media for this season there is not enough attendance data for the league to give an accurate figure.
Individual statistics
- Note that points scorers includes tries as well as conversions, penalties and drop goals.
Top points scorers
|
Top try scorers
|
Season records
Team
67 - 0 Bedford Athletic at home to Scunthorpe on 22 March 2003
60 - 0 Darlington Mowden Park away to Scunthorpe 22 February 2003
71 - 19 Waterloo at home to Broadstreet on 8 February 2003
Bedford Athletic at home to Scunthorpe on 22 March 2003
Waterloo at home to Broadstreet on 8 February 2003
Darlington Mowden Park at home to Hull Ionians on 21 December 2002
Liverpool St Helens at home to Nuneaton on 23 November 2002 Player
|
Attendances
Nuneaton at home to Broadstreet on 1 November 2002
Blaydon at home to Nuneaton on 12 October 2002
|
References
- "National Division Two 2001-02". englandrugby.com. 20 April 2002.
- "Midlands 1 2001-02". englandrugby.com. 20 April 2002.
- "North 1 2001-02". englandrugby.com. 25 May 2002.
- "National League 3 North 2002-03". englandrugby.com. 19 April 2003.
- "National League Playoffs 2002-03". englandrugby.com. 26 April 2003.
- "North 1 2003-04". englandrugby.com. 6 September 2003.
- "Midlands 1 2003-04". englandrugby.com/. 6 September 2003.
- "Rugby Union results and details - Telegraph". Telegraph. 31 August 2002.
- "Rugby Union results and details - Telegraph". Telegraph. 7 September 2002.
- "Rugby Union results and details - Telegraph". Telegraph. 14 September 2002.
- "Rugby Union results and details - Telegraph". Telegraph. 28 September 2002.
- "Rugby Union results and details - Telegraph". Telegraph. 12 October 2002.
- "Rugby Union results and details - Telegraph". Telegraph. 19 October 2002.
- "Rugby Union results and details - Telegraph". Telegraph. 26 October 2002.
- "Rugby Union results and details - Telegraph". Telegraph. 2 November 2002.
- "Rugby Union results and details - Telegraph". Telegraph. 10 November 2002.
- "Rugby Union results and details - Telegraph". Telegraph. 16 November 2002.
- "Rugby Union results and details - Telegraph". Telegraph. 23 November 2002.
- "Rugby Union results and details - Telegraph". Telegraph. 30 November 2002.
- "Rugby Union results and details - Telegraph". Telegraph. 7 December 2002.
- "Rugby Union results and details - Telegraph". Telegraph. 14 December 2002.
- "Rugby Union results and details - Telegraph". Telegraph. 21 December 2002.
- "Rugby Union results and details - Telegraph". Telegraph. 28 December 2002.
- "Rugby Union results and details - Telegraph". Telegraph. 4 January 2003.
- "Rugby Union results and details - Telegraph". Telegraph. 11 January 2003.
- "Rugby Union results and details - Telegraph". Telegraph. 18 January 2003.
- "Rugby Union results and details - Telegraph". Telegraph. 25 January 2003.
- "Rugby Union results and details - Telegraph". Telegraph. 1 February 2003.
- "Rugby Union results and details - Telegraph". Telegraph. 8 February 2003.
- "Rugby Union results and details - Telegraph". Telegraph. 15 February 2003.
- "Rugby Union results and details - Telegraph". Telegraph. 22 February 2003.
- "Rugby Union results and details - Telegraph". Telegraph. 1 March 2003.
- "Rugby Union results and details - Telegraph". Telegraph. 8 March 2003.
- "Rugby Union results and details - Telegraph". Telegraph. 15 March 2003.
- "Rugby Union results and details - Telegraph". Telegraph. 22 March 2003.
- "Rugby Union results and details - Telegraph". Telegraph. 29 March 2003.
- "Rugby Union results and details - Telegraph". Telegraph. 5 April 2003.
- "Rugby Union results and details - Telegraph". Telegraph. 12 April 2003.
- "National Three North 02/03 Leading top scorers". Rugby Statbunker. 19 April 2003.
- "National Three North 02/03 Leading try scorers". Rugby Statbunker. 19 April 2003.
- "National 3 North 02/03 Most tries in a match (Team)". Rugby Statbunker. 19 April 2003.
- "National 3 North 02/03 Most conversions in a match (Team)". Rugby Statbunker. 19 April 2003.
- "National 3 North 02/03 Most penalties in a match (Team)". Rugby Statbunker. 19 April 2003.
- "National 3 North 02/03 Most drop goals in a match (Team)". Rugby Statbunker. 19 April 2003.
- "National 3 North 02/03 Most points in a match (Player)". Rugby Statbunker. 19 April 2003.
- "National 3 North 02/03 Most tries in a match (Player)". Rugby Statbunker. 19 April 2003.
- "National 3 North 02/03 Most conversions in a match (Player)". Rugby Statbunker. 19 April 2003.
- "National 3 North 02/03 Most penalties in a match (Player)". Rugby Statbunker. 19 April 2003.
- "National 3 North 02/03 Most drop goals in a match (Player)". Rugby Statbunker. 19 April 2003.
- "National 3 North 02/03 Home attendance". Rugby Statbunker. 19 April 2003.
External links
- NCA Rugby Archived 2015-07-01 at the Wayback Machine
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