2019 RFL League 1
{{short description|2019 rugby league competition in the United Kingdom}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=November 2024}}
{{Use British English|date=November 2024}}
{{Infobox rugby football league season
|title = 2019 League 1
|league =League 1
|duration = 20 matches
|no_of_teams = 11
|logo = Betfred League 1 logo.jpg
|attendance =
|highest_attendance =
|lowest_attendance =
|TV =
|season = 2019 Season
|season_champs = Whitehaven
|season_champ_name = Champions
|second_place =
|biggest_home_win =
|biggest_away_win =
|top_scorer =
|top try scorer =
|promote = {{leagueicon|Oldham|12}} Oldham
|promote_from = League 1
|promoted_to = RFL Championship
|prevseason_link = 2018 RFL League 1
|prevseason_year =2018
|nextseason_link = 2020 RFL League 1
|nextseason_year =2020
}}
The 2019 RFL League 1 was a professional rugby league football competition played in England and Wales and is the third tier of the sport for Rugby Football League (RFL) affiliated clubs. The sponsors for the league are the bookmakers, Betfred and the league will continue to be known as the Betfred League 1.
The league was restructured following a meeting on the RFL clubs in 2018 and League 1 was reduced in size from 14 clubs in 2018 to 12 clubs for 2019. However, on 23 October 2018, Hemel Stags announced that the club was withdrawing from the league for 2019 reducing the number of teams to 11; the RFL indicated that no replacement team is to be sought.{{cite web |url=http://www.rugby-league.com/championship__league_1/article/53826/stags-to-switch-focus-in- |title=Stags to switch focus in 2019 |publisher=RFL |date=23 October 2018 |access-date=23 October 2018}} The season will consist of 22 rounds with each of the 11 teams playing 20 fixtures against each other home and away and two bye rounds. The team finishing top will win automatic promotion to the 2020 Championship and be named league champions for 2019. The teams finishing second to sixth will meet in a series of play-off games culminating in the League 1 Play-Off Final. The winner of this match will also be promoted to the Championship for 2020.{{cite web |url=http://www.rugby-league.com/2019_structure|title=2019 structure explained|date=14 September 2018 |publisher=Rugby Football League |access-date=14 October 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181014165551/http://www.rugby-league.com/2019_structure |archive-date=14 October 2018 |url-status=live}}
During the season Coventry Bears were forced to move home fixtures away from Butts Park Arena due to work being undertaken on the pitch by the ground owners, Coventry R.F.C.{{cite web |url=http://www.coventrybears.com/blog/bears-move-to-the-home-of-rugby-for-remainder-of-2019 |title=Bears move to Rugby for remainder of 2019 |publisher=Coventry Bears |date=4 June 2019 |access-date=4 June 2019}} Two other clubs also played home games at other venues due to pitch works; Doncaster played three games at Featherstone Rovers LD Nutrition Stadium in July and Workington Town played three games, also in July, at their original ground Borough Park (now the home of soccer club Workington A.F.C.).{{cite news |url=https://www.yorkshireeveningpost.co.uk/sport/rugby-league/featherstone-rovers-fined-by-rfl-over-incidents-involving-supporters-1-9816643 |title=Featherstone Rovers fined by RFL over incidents involving supporters |work=Yorkshire Evening Post |date=11 June 2019 |access-date=16 July 2019}}{{cite news |url=https://www.newsandstar.co.uk/sport/17670542.workington-town-heading-home/ |title=Workington Town 'heading home' |work=News & Star |date=29 May 2019 |access-date=16 July 2019}}
The division was won by Whitehaven who secured the title and the automatic promotion place to the Championship with a 72–0 win over Coventry Bears in the last round of the regular season.{{cite news |url=https://www.newsandstar.co.uk/sport/17888793.whitehaven-crowned-betfred-league-one-champions-victory-coventry-bears/ |title=Whitehaven crowned Betfred League One champions after victory at Coventry Bears |work=News and Star |date=8 September 2019 |access-date=8 September 2019}} Whitehaven were joined in the Championship for 2020 by Oldham who won the play-offs beating Newcastle Thunder 18–14 in the play-off final.{{cite web|url=https://www.loverugbyleague.com/post/oldham-beat-newcastle-to-secure-promotion-to-the-championship |title=Oldham beat Newcastle to secure promotion to the Championship |website=Love Rugby League |date=6 October 2019 |access-date=6 November 2024}}
Teams
{{location map+ |England|float=right |width=450 |caption=Locations of the 2019 RFL League 1 teams |places=
{{location map~ |England|lat=52.406969 |long=-1.520070 |label=
|position=left}}{{location map~ |England|lat=53.522705 |long=-1.128609 |label=
|position=right}}{{location map~ |England|lat=53.783528|long=-1.534705 |label=
|position=right}}{{location map~ |England|lat=53.867767|long=-1.912512 |label=
|position=left}}{{location map~ |England|lat=51.604758|long=-0.100140 |label=
|position=right}}{{location map~ |England|lat=54.978472|long=-1.618835 |label=
|position=right}}{{location map~ |England|lat=53.043392|long=-2.994863 |label=
|position=left}}{{Location map~ |England |lat=53.51861|long=-2.121666 |label=
|position=left}}{{location map~ |England|lat=51.683888|long=-4.147500 |label=
|position=left}}{{location map~ |England|lat=54.549607|long=-3.589067 |label=
|position=left}}{{location map~ |England|lat=54.641489|long=-3.551209|label=
|position=right}}}}
| class="wikitable"
!Colours !Club !City !Stadium !Capacity* |
| style="text-align: center;"|{{leagueicon|coventry|16}}
| Butts Park Arena | 4,000 |
| style="text-align: center;"| {{leagueicon|Doncaster|16px}}
| Doncaster, South Yorkshire | 15,231 |
| style="text-align: center;"|{{leagueicon|Hunslet|16}}
| Hunslet | Leeds, West Yorkshire | 4,000 |
| style="text-align: center;"|{{leagueicon|Keighley|16}}
| 7,800 |
| style="text-align: center;"|{{leagueicon|London Skolars|16}}
| 2,000 |
| style="text-align: center;"|{{leagueicon|Gateshead|16}}
| 10,200 |
| style="text-align: center;"|{{leagueicon|North Wales Crusaders|16}}
| 2,000 |
| style="text-align: center;"|{{leagueicon|Oldham|16}}
| Oldham | 1,500 |
| style="text-align: center;"|{{leagueicon|canberra|16px}}
| Llanelli, Wales | 3,700 |
| style="text-align: center;"|{{leagueicon|Whitehaven|16}}
| 7,500 |
| style="text-align: center;"|{{leagueicon|Workington|16}}
| 10,000 |
*capacity for rugby league games may differ from official stadium capacity.
Results
{{main|2019 RFL League 1 results}}
Standings
|for_against_style=points
|winpoints=2
|start_date=17 February 2019
|team1=WHI |team2=OLD |team3=NEW |team4=DON |team5=HUN |team6=WOR |team7=CRU |team8=LON |team9=COV |team10=KEI |team11=WWR
|source= [https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/rugby-league/league-one/table]
|update=Complete
|win_COV=4 |draw_COV=0 |loss_COV=16 |gf_COV=365 |ga_COV=829
|win_DON=12 |draw_DON=0 |loss_DON=8 |gf_DON=564 |ga_DON=309
|win_HUN=12 |draw_HUN=0 |loss_HUN=8 |gf_HUN=596 |ga_HUN=379
|win_KEI=8 |draw_KEI=1 |loss_KEI=11 |gf_KEI=447 |ga_KEI=576
|win_LON=7 |draw_LON=1 |loss_LON=12 |gf_LON=440 |ga_LON=542
|win_NEW=14 |draw_NEW=1 |loss_NEW=5 |gf_NEW=741 |ga_NEW=364
|win_CRU=9 |draw_CRU=0 |loss_CRU=11 |gf_CRU=489 |ga_CRU=501
|win_OLD=15 |draw_OLD=0 |loss_OLD=5 |gf_OLD=655 |ga_OLD=341
|win_WWR=1 |draw_WWR=0 |loss_WWR=19 |gf_WWR=222 |ga_WWR=1091
|win_WHI=15 |draw_WHI=2 |loss_WHI=3 |gf_WHI=582 |ga_WHI=283
|win_WOR=10 |draw_WOR=1 |loss_WOR=9 |gf_WOR=592 |ga_WOR=478
|name_COV={{leagueicon|coventry|12}} Coventry Bears
|name_DON={{leagueicon|doncaster|12}} Doncaster
|name_HUN={{leagueicon|hunslet|12}} Hunslet
|name_KEI={{leagueicon|keighley|12}} Keighley Cougars |adjust_points_KEI=-12 |hth_KEI=Keighley deducted 12 points for transfer of RFL membership during the close season.{{cite web |url=https://www.rugby-league.com/article/54206/rfl-statement-keighley-cougars |title=RFL statement: Keighley Cougars |publisher=RFL |date=24 January 2019 |access-date=25 January 2019}}
|name_LON={{leagueicon|london skolars|12}} London Skolars
|name_NEW={{leagueicon|gateshead|12}} Newcastle Thunder
|name_CRU={{leagueicon|north wales|12}} North Wales Crusaders
|name_OLD={{leagueicon|oldham|12}} Oldham
|name_WWR={{leagueicon|canberra|12}} West Wales Raiders
|name_WHI={{leagueicon|whitehaven|12}} Whitehaven
|name_WOR={{leagueicon|workington|12}} Workington Town
|result1=CHA |result2=SF |result3=QF |result4=QF |result5=EF |result6=EF
|res_col_header=Q
|col_CHA=gold |text_CHA=Champions
|col_SF=green1 |text_SF=Play-off semi-final
|col_QF=yellow1 |text_QF=Play-off qualifying final
|col_EF=blue1 |text_EF=Play-off elimination final
}}
Play-offs
The winners of the play-off final will join this season's champions of League 1, Whitehaven, in the Championship in 2020.
{{5TeamBracket-2Elim-B
| RD1 = Qualifying play-off
| RD2 = Qualifying semi-final
| RD4 = Promotion play-off final
| RD1b= Elimination play-off
| RD2b= Elimination semi-final
| RD3b= Preliminary final
| RD1-seed1 = 3
| RD1-team1 = Newcastle Thunder
| RD1-score1 = 6
| RD1-seed2 = 4
| RD1-team2 = Doncaster
| RD1-score2 = 20
| RD1-seed3 = 5
| RD1-team3 = Hunslet
| RD1-score3 = 24
| RD1-seed4 = 6
| RD1-team4 = Workington Town
| RD1-score4 = 32
| RD2-seed1 = 2
| RD2-team1 = Oldham
| RD2-score1 = 22
| RD2-team2 = Doncaster
| RD2-score2 = 12
| RD2-team3 = Newcastle Thunder
| RD2-score3 = 38
| RD2-team4 = Workington Town
| RD2-score4 = 18
| RD3-details =
| RD3-team1 = Newcastle Thunder
| RD3-score1 =34
| RD3-team2 = Doncaster
| RD3-score2 =4
| RD4-details =
| RD4-team1 =Oldham
| RD4-score1 = 18
| RD4-team2 = Newcastle Thunder
| RD4-score2 =14
}}