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1996–97 Courage League National Division Three
1996–97 Courage League National Division Three
Countries	England
Champions	Exeter (1st title)
Runners-up	Fylde (also promoted)
Relegated	Walsall, Havant, Redruth, Clifton
Matches played	240
	← 1995–96 1997–98 →

The 1996–97 Courage League National Division Three was the tenth full season of rugby union within the third tier of the English league system, currently known as National League 1. Exeter won a title for the second season in succession, following last seasons National League 4 title. The runner-up, Fylde, finished one point behind Exeter and were also promoted. Four teams were relegated; Walsall to National 2 North and Havant, Redruth and Clifton to National 2 South.

Structure

The league consists of sixteen teams, playing each other on a home and away basis to make a total of thirty matches for each team. There are two promotion places and four relegation places, with the champions and runner-up promoted to National League 2 and the last four teams relegated to either National Division 4 North or South, depending on their location.^[1]^[2]

Participating teams and locations

1996–97 Courage League National Division Three teams in England

National Division Three was increased from ten teams to sixteen with six of the clubs participating in last seasons competition. To make up the numbers the top eight teams in National Division Four were all promoted; Lydney and Wharfedale, as champions of National League 5 South and National League 5 North respectively were also promoted, from the fifth to the third tier.

Team	Ground	Capacity	City/Area	Previous season
Clifton	Station Road	2,500	Cribbs Causeway, Henbury, Bristol	Promoted from Division 4 (6th)
Exeter	County Ground	5,200	Exeter, Devon	Promoted from Division 4 (champions)
Fylde	Woodlands	9,000	Lytham St Annes, Lancashire	10th
Harrogate	Claro Road	3,000	Harrogate, North Yorkshire	6th
Havant	Hook's Lane	1,500	Havant, Hampshire	Promoted from Division 4 (8th)
Leeds	Headingley Stadium	22,250	Headingley, Leeds, West Yorkshire	Promoted from Division 4 (5th)
Liverpool St Helens	Moss Lane	3,000^[3]	St Helens, Merseyside	Promoted from Division 4 (3rd)
London Welsh	Old Deer Park	5,850	Richmond, London	Promoted from Division 4 (runners up)
Lydney	Regentsholm	1,500	Lydney, Gloucestershire	Promoted from National League 5 South (champions)
Morley	Scatcherd Lane		Morley, Leeds, West Yorkshire	5th
Otley	Cross Green	5,000	Otley, West Yorkshire	8th
Reading	Holme Park		Reading, Berkshire	Promoted from Division 4 (champions)
Redruth	Recreation Ground	12,000	Redruth, Cornwall	Promoted from Division 4 (7th)
Rosslyn Park	The Rock	2,000	Roehampton, London	9th
Walsall	Broadway Ground	1,150	Walsall, West Midlands	Promoted from Division 4 (4th)
Wharfedale	The Avenue	2,000	Threshfield, North Yorkshire	Promoted from National League 5 North (champions)

League table

1996–97 Courage League National Division Three table
Pos	Team	Pld	W	D	L	PF	PA	PD	Pts	Qualification
1	Exeter (C)	30	25	0	5	923	443	+480	50	Promoted
2	Fylde	30	24	1	5	813	439	+374	49	Promoted
3	Leeds	30	24	0	6	1209	432	+777	48
4	Morley	30	22	0	8	928	570	+358	44
5	Harrogate	30	18	0	12	832	599	+233	36
6	Reading	30	17	1	12	869	631	+238	35
7	Wharfedale	30	17	0	13	710	635	+75	34
8	Rosslyn Park	30	17	0	13	630	620	+10	34
9	Otley	30	13	0	17	720	766	−46	26
10	Lydney	30	13	0	17	668	766	−98	26
11	London Welsh	30	12	0	18	632	777	−145	24
12	Liverpool St Helens	30	9	0	21	665	827	−162	18
13	Walsall	30	8	0	22	640	980	−340	16	Relegated
14	Havant	30	8	0	22	580	954	−374	16
15	Redruth	30	8	0	22	565	1116	−551	16
16	Clifton	30	4	0	26	518	1347	−829	8

Source: ^[4]
Rules for classification: Points are awarded as follows: 2 pts for a win, 1 pt for a draw, 0 pts for a loss. If teams are level at any stage, the following tiebreaker is applied: Difference between points for and against.
(C) Champions

Sponsorship

National Division Three is part of the Courage Clubs Championship and is sponsored by Courage Brewery. This was their tenth and final season of sponsorship.^[2]

References

^ Mick Cleary and John Griffiths, ed. (1996). Rothmans Rugby Union Yearbook 1996–97 (25 ed.). London: Headline Book Publishing. pp. 150–163. ISBN 978-0-7472-7771-2.
^ ^a ^b Mick Cleary and John Griffiths, ed. (1997). Rothmans Rugby Union Yearbook 1997–98 (26 ed.). London: Headline Book Publishing. pp. 87–100. ISBN 0 7472 7732 X.
^ "Liverpool St Helens". Rugby Journal. Retrieved 22 October 2024.
^ "Courage Clubs Championship 1996/97". Moseley Rugby Club. Archived from the original on 2015-03-16. Retrieved 19 December 2016.