1987–88 Courage League National Division Three

The 1987–88 Courage League National Division Three was the first full season of rugby union within the third tier of the English league system, currently known as the National League 1. Both Wakefield and West Hartlepool won ten matches, lost one and finished on twenty points. Wakefield finished as champions due to their superior points difference but neither team was promoted to National Division Two. Morley and Birmingham (without a win) finished in the bottom two places and both clubs were relegated to Area League North for the following season.^[1] Almost all clubs in the national divisions reported an increase in attendances.^[2]

1987–88 Courage League National Division Three
Countries	England
Date	September 1987 – April 1988
Champions	Wakefield (1st title)
Runners-up	West Hartlepool
Relegated	Morley and Birmingham
Matches played	66
1988–89 →

Structure

Each team played one match against the other teams, playing a total of eleven matches each. There was no set date for matches, clubs having to arrange the fixtures amongst themselves.^[3]

Participating teams and locations

Birmingham

Exeter

Fylde

Met Police

Maidstone

Morley

Nuneaton

Plymouth Albion

Sheffield

Vale of Lune

Wakefield

W Hartlepool

1987–88 Courage League National Division Three teams in England

Team	Ground	Capacity	City/Area
Birmingham	Sharmans Cross	2,500	Solihull, West Midlands
Exeter	County Ground	5,200	Exeter, Devon
Fylde	Woodlands	9,000	Lytham St Annes, Lancashire
Maidstone	William Davey Memorial		Maidstone, Kent
Metropolitan Police	Imber Court		East Molesey, Surrey
Morley	Scatcherd Lane		Morley, Leeds
Nuneaton	Harry Cleaver Ground		Nuneaton, Warwickshire
Plymouth Albion	Beacon Park	3,500	Plymouth, Devon
Sheffield	Abbeydale Park	3,200	Dore, Sheffield, South Yorkshire
Vale of Lune	Powderhouse Lane		Lancaster, Lancashire
Wakefield	College Grove	3,000	Wakefield, West Yorkshire
West Hartlepool	Brierton Lane	7,000[4]	Hartlepool, Cleveland

^[1][2]

League table

1987–88 Courage League National Division Three table

Pos	Team	Pld	W	D	L	PF	PA	PD	Pts
1	Wakefield (C)	11	10	0	1	308	90	+218	20
2	West Hartlepool	11	10	0	1	249	105	+144	20
3	Plymouth Albion	11	8	0	3	276	125	+151	16
4	Sheffield	11	7	1	3	134	161	−27	15
5	Vale of Lune	11	7	0	4	183	149	+34	14
6	Fylde	11	6	0	5	269	170	+99	12
7	Metropolitan Police	11	5	0	6	130	128	+2	10
8	Maidstone	11	4	0	7	134	162	−28	8
9	Exeter	11	3	2	6	128	197	−69	8
10	Nuneaton	11	2	1	8	94	157	−63	5
11	Morley	11	1	1	9	109	235	−126	3
12	Birmingham	11	0	1	10	46	381	−335	1

Source: ^{[citation needed]}
Rules for classification: Points were awarded as follows:

1. 2 pts for a win
2. 1 pt for a draw
3. 0 pts for a loss

If teams were level at any stage, tiebreakers were applied in the following order:

1. Difference between points for and against

Some publications listed league tables with 4 pts for a win, 2 pt for a draw and 1 pt for a loss. (This scoring system is not the same as the current bonus points system introduced in 2000–01.) There was no promotion this season.
(C) Champions

Sponsorship

National Division Three is part of the Courage Clubs Championship and was sponsored by Courage Brewery

See also

• 1987–88 Courage League National Division One
• 1987–88 Courage League National Division Two
• 1987–88 Courage Area League North
• 1987–88 Courage Area League South