RL Merit League - Old News

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Old News

5th May 2008 - Important development in Derbyshire Rugby League

Rugby league in Derbyshire took a major step forward with the announcement today that the Chesterfield Spires will combine forces with the North Derbyshire Chargers to form one club to serve the north of the county. The team will retain the Chargers branding but will play and train from the Spires' base at Chesterfield Rugby Club. Chesterfield bring three years experience of playing games at open age level and already have a relationship with the Rugby Union club in the town. The Chargers were formed in January this year as a way for pupils at Eckington School to extend the rugby league they have experienced at the school to club level. The Chargers have junior teams at the Under 16 and Under 14 age groups and will be playing in the Midlands League through the summer. In addition to the Eckington players, whose year 9 team are the current Derbyshire Schools Champions, the collaboration will enable the club to offer junior rugby league to rugby union players from the Chesterfield club and other players in the area new to rugby.

Both clubs have entered teams into the RL Merit League at open age (16 and over) level but after discussions between the committees it was felt that one club, combining the strengths of both, would enable players to get better coaching and playing standards over the short and long term. Once joint training is fully under way, the club hopes to confirm that it will field two teams in the league, giving playing opportunities to the whole squad.

The Chargers also have a women's section that has been training throughout 2008 in preparation for a season in the newly formed Women's Rugby League Conference. The competition allows teams to enter at their own level, with festivals where any numbers from a club can turn up and join forces with other development clubs to get game experience through to a full league program for clubs at a more advanced stage. The "Chargettes" will also play touch and tag rugby for those players who enjoy the skills part of the game without the rough and tumble of full contact.

The Chargers' Chairman, Tim Fellows, is happy to see the collaboration. "As someone born in Chesterfield who has lived in three different villages in the area for most of my life, the development of the sport of rugby league in this part of Derbyshire is close to my heart. This club has the potential to develop rugby league from the ground up, through a pro-active junior development program." Spires co-founder Ken Huckle agrees. "Developing local junior players has been aim of the Spires since we started it, but there has been limited resource to act on the plans. The Eckington development programme has accelerated this dramatically and enables us to drive our plans forward sooner rather than later." Luke Holt, introduced to rugby league by the Spires, is now at the Sheffield Eagles and two of the Eckington based juniors have been accepted onto the Eagles' scholarship program.

The club is also looking to develop new coaches to add to the existing team put together by Chargers' Performance Manager Rob Potts and are looking for more volunteers in any aspect of club management or administration. Several sponsors are already in place, but the club is always on the lookout for help from companies or individuals who want to contribute to junior sport in the area.

Training continues on Wednesday evenings with juniors (aged 13-16) from 6.00 - 7.15 and over 16s and women continuing from 7.15 onwards at Chesterfield Rugby Union Club, Tapton View Road. All players are welcome, regardless of rugby experience.

For more information, call Tim Fellows (midlands_rl@btinternet.com, phone 07855-281746), Rob Potts (pottsrob@hotmail.com, phone 07980-625497) or Ken Huckle (secretary@chesterfieldspires.com)

4th May 2008 - Forgers take revenge, Chargers start with defeat

The Sheffield Forgers gained revenge over the German Exiles for last season's play-off defeat in another high scoring win at All Saints. Last year saw the Exiles win 25-24, but this year the Forgers took an early grip on the game but were grateful for the fin al whistle as the Exiles scored three late unanswered tries in a 38-46 defeat.

In the North Derbyshire Chargers' opening game of the campaign, Nottingham Outlaws Academy spoilt the party with a solid performance in a 30 points to 8 victory.

29th April 2008 - Forgers overpower Riversiders, Marauders in winning debut

The Sheffield Forgers overcame a strong challenge from ML newcomers Wigan Riversiders in the second round of games in the Impact Sports RL Merit League. The Forgers were behind for much of the game but came through at the end 38-32 for their first win of 2008. In a double header with an RLC friendly at Moorends, the Marauders Academy side beat the Barton Bulldogs by 40 points to 8 to top the early leaderboard.

Next weekend sees a repeat of last year's elimination play-off with the German Exiles visiting the Sheffield Forgers (Saturday, 14.00), who will be looking to avenge their narrow defeat on that occasion. On Sunday Barton and South Humber represent the RLML at the Scunthorpe 9s, start at 11.00am. There is also a festival of rugby at Chesterfield RUFC, where the North Derbyshire Chargers will play Nottingham Outlaws at Open Age, Women's, Under 16 and Under 14s level. The junior games kick off at 13.00, followed by the women's and RLML games.

20th April 2008 - Coventry Bears win Inaugural Midlands 9s

The Coventry Bears won the Midlands 9s today at their home ground of Old Coventrians, beating a determined St Ives Roosters team in a fiery final that saw a player from both sides dismissed. The Roosters had looked set for a surprise win when they led 6-0 into the second half. A narrowly missed drop goal attempt by St Ives proved the turning point as the Bears scored two late tries to take the spoils.

In the plate final a combined Wolverhampton Wizards and Redditch Ravens team proved too strong for the newly formed North Derbyshire Chargers, who were bolstered by some loan players from Coventry's Academy.
Earlier the teams all played each other round-robin, with Coventry just edging St Ives into second place in the table. Development sides North Derbyshire and Wolverhampton Wizards got their first competitive wins in a dogfight for the plate final with the Heavy Woollen Donkeys.

Over 100 players took part in a great festival of rugby league that the organisers hope will become an annual fixture. Thanks go to Ron Banks and the Bears for hosting and organising, to the South Yorkshire & East Midlands Referees Society for the match officials and to Niel Wood and the RFL for their support.

Round robin

Coventry 12 St Ives 6
Redditch Wizards 22 Donkeys 0
Warlords 4 Chargers 0
Donkeys 8 Chargers 14
St Ives 26 Warlords 0
Coventry 42 Redditch Wizards 0
Redditch Wizards 16 Warlords 6
Coventry 28 Donkeys 0
St Ives 22 Chargers 0
Coventry 34 Warlords 0
Redditch Wizards 22 Chargers 6
St Ives 30 Donkeys 0
St Ives 28 Redditch Wizards 6
Coventry 16 Chargers 6
Donkeys 12 Warlords 10

Plate final
Redditch Wizards 16 Chargers 6

Final
Coventry 12 St Ives 6

10th April 2008 - Merit League announces new sponsor

The RL Merit League is pleased to announce that its sponsor for the 2008 season is Impact Sports, who have recently opened up an office in the midlands and who specialise in fully bespoke rugby union and rugby league on and off field gear. For this season the league will be known as the Impact Sports RL Merit League and the company will be sponsoring the league's Player of the Month and Player of the Year awards and offering discounts for orders placed by clubs registered with the league. Impact have been in the business for the last 2 years and have a large presence in the North of England and are expanding into the Midlands and Southern Region. Impact are the Official Suppliers to the USA Tomahawks.

"The partnership with Impact Sports is an ideal fit for both parties." said Tim Fellows, RL Merit League organiser. "It is good to be involved with a specialist rugby company in the league's heartland."

The Impact Sports RL Merit League kicks off on Saturday, April 12th with a fixture between East Riding Academy and Sheffield Forgers Academy and involves 16 clubs over four months of rugby league action culminating in the double header Grand Final in August.

To find out any more about Impact Sports please visit: www.impact-sports.co.uk.

25th March 2008- Merit League season poised to start

The RL Merit League is poised to kick off on April 12th with a record 14 teams, with a couple more expected to join in as the season progresses. Already over 50 games have been arranged and the season promises to be one of the most competitive so far, with some teams in their third season of Merit League action, others new to the league and a couple of well established clubs entering their second string for the first time.

"It really is a difficult league to predict in 2008", said league organiser Tim Fellows, "New teams are an unknown quantity and second teams can be variable in standard as the first team injuries take their toll. I am delighted that established and well respected summer clubs Telford Raiders and Birmingham Bulldogs have entered their academy teams this season. That, and the upcoming junior summer leagues, shows that the RFL's development program in the Midlands is bearing fruit."

For full details on the RL Merit league go to the website at http://uk.geocities.com/midlands_rl@btinternet.com

8th February 2008- New season, new name

The Midlands Merit League will, from 2008 onwards, be known as the RL Merit League. This change in name has arisen from the success of the competition and its ever increasing participants and geographical spread. "The league has seen significant growth in its first two seasons and I am expecting further entries from all over the Midlands and North in 2008", said RL Merit League Organiser Tim Fellows. "Clubs like the flexibility that a Merit League offers, and it is ideal for RLC teams who want to run a second team without week-in, week-out commitment".

The league kicks off at the end of March and closes with a double header Grand Final on Saturday, August 16th and applications are now being accepted for the 2008 season.

20th August 2007- Wild Boars and Easts take the spoils

The St Helens Wild Boars became the 2nd MML champions when they beat the German Exiles 46-22 at a wet Dore Moor on Saturday. With the rain sweeping in from the misty hills the day was more reminiscent of a traditional winter game than a showpiece summer event but the sides defied the conditions to produce a good game for the damp but vociferous crowd. The Wild Boars, coached by Warrington's Lee Briers, started by conceding a string of penalties and a sin bin which was taken advantage of by a mobile Exiles outfit featuring a number of German internationals. The Exiles went into a 10-0 lead prior to half time, but gradually the strength and experience of the St Helens team told and the Exiles were on the back foot during the latter part of the first half and most of the second. To their credit they never gave up and scored a brace of tries themselves, but the Wild Boars were not to be denied a deserved victory.

In the Shield Final, East Riding beat the Nottingham Outlaws 32-26 in another fine advert for the game. Easts led 24-4 at half time but a rare 8-point try got the Outlaws back into the contest. The comeback was on but a late try to easts gave them a 10 point cushion going into the last 5 minutes and despite another Outlaws try a last minute penalty was slotted over to send the inaugural Shield trophy to Holderness.

12th August 2007- 10-man Exiles win thriller

The German Exiles booked their place in next week's forty-twenty.co.uk MML Grand Final with a last minute drop goal victory over the Sheffield Forgers at All Saints. Despite being a man down due to injury, the Exiles eased into a 24-10 lead. Things changed late in the second half when an Exile was red carded for a deliberate high tackle and a second player left the field for 10 minutes for deliberately slowing the Forgers down. With 13 against 10 the Forgers clawed back into the game but missed a vital conversion to take the lead. The Exiles capitalised by driving up field for the winning drop goal. They now face the St Helens Wild Boars next week in the final, taking place at Sheffield Tigers RUFC, kick off at 15.00.

In the Shield, the two home teams eased to victors over their lower ranked opponents. Nottingham Outlaws Academy beat Shropshire 56-4 and East Riding beat Chesterfield 64-6. Despite having been in the MML for two seasons, the two finalists have yet to meet and the first encounter between the two promises to be a cracker. It takes place as the curtain raiser to the main final at Sheffield Tigers, kicking off at 13.00.

5th August 2007- 4-try Simms boosts Spires

The forty-twenty.co.uk MML play-offs kicked off in good style with a close, hard fought win for Chesterfield Spires against Barton Bulldogs on a hot afternoon at Stonegravels. With both sides depleted due to holidays the game was played 9-a-side and Barton made the early running with the first four tries to take an 18-0 lead. Chesterfield's speedy winger Matt Simms took advantage of the open spaces to get Chesterfield into the game and gradually the men in blue pulled back the defecit to draw level 18-18 at half time. The Spires appeared to be taking control in the second half, going ahead 28-18 at the mid point with Simms completing a hat-trick. However Barton have proved this season that they are no pushovers and they scored two fine tries of their own to take the lead again at 30-28.

Chesterfield then refused an easy 2 points with a penalty under the sticks, opting to run instead. Unfortunately they spilled the ball over the line and Barton took advantage with a length of the field run that, despite being stopped by a desperate chase and tackle by Simms, resulted in the Bulldogs going over. The kick was missed but the men from the Humber had taken a valuable 6 point lead. Chesterfield pressed again and with 5 minutes left drew level after a close range try from dummy half by John Newsome.

As the prospect of an energy sapping extra time loomed large, the ball was fed through the backs to Simms who raced round the outside to score the decisive try.

Barton bowed out with heads held high but the Spires move on to a tough encounter away at East Riding next Saturday.

29th July 2007- Round-up and Play-offs

The forty-twenty.co.uk MML regular season drew to a close this weekend with St Helens Wild Boars taking the Minor Premiership after a 36-12 win over East Riding. Second placed Sheffield Forgers took on Crewe and Nantwich Steamers who were making a belated debut in the 2007 season and also came out winners by 64-14. Despite the defeat, Crewe showed some promise and we hope to see them in the league for the whole of the 2008 campaign.

The play-offs will begin next week with a first round Shield tie between Chesterfield and Barton at Stonegravels, Chesterfield. The full line up is

August 5th:

Chesterfield v Barton (Shield)

August 11th:

East Riding v Chesterfield or Barton (Shield semi)
Nottingham v Shropshire (Shield semi)

Sheffield Forgers v German Exiles (Semi-final)

August 18th: GRAND FINALS at Sheffield Tigers RUFC

St Helens Wild Boars v Sheffield or German Exiles (Championship)
East Riding/Chesterfield/barton v Nottingham/Shropshire (Shield)

20th July 2007- East Riding RLC

East Riding R.L.F.C. have now been running for two years. The club based on the outskirts of Hull are pleased with the way they have developed over the past two seasons. They currently playing in the Midlands Merit league and have high hopes of taking the step up to the RLC Summer Conference next season.
With a very young squad in place the future is looking good, with over 90% of the players under the age of 23, with seven of these eligible for under18s.
The club only have six players who live in the city of Hull and the rest all travel from as far as York, Hornsea, Withersea and the surrounding villages.
The team Based at Haworth park, have several times rejected players from Hull based clubs and stuck with the mentality of developing players who have shown commitment and dedication. Most of these have never played open age rugby before the start of the East‘s club, and several have only ever played the game of Rugby League in the Blue and White of an East Riding Shirt
Only four of the twenty six Man squad played open age rugby before the club started.
Chairman Karl Beardshaw is very pleased with the way things are developing and praises the coaches Mark Hardcastle, Mike Harrison and head Coach Dan Beardshaw.
“When we have our strongest 17 out I believe we could compete with most Summer conference clubs. Not once has the same 17 been played this season due to injuries, holidays, etc. And the coaches are developing the players as individuals, playing them in different positions and trying to get them to understand every aspect of the game. For example Props don’t just drive, they can pass, kick, put players in gaps etc. We are not aiming for success now, we are aiming for success in years to come or for our players to get signed up professional.’
The club is developing very well with the under 15’s playing with a man down, beating a very strong Keighley Cougar cubs side 36-30 last week and the first team beating Barton Bulldogs 56-4.
Anybody willing to sponsor or help out at the club should go on the website www.freewebs.com/eastridingrlc or email EastRidingRLC@hotmail.co.uk

16th July 2007- MML update

With Crewe unable to take on St Helens this week the focus was on the battle for second place in the forty-twenty.co.uk MML league table. The German Exiles missed the chance to go second by drawing 22-22 with the Northampton Casuals, the highest scoring draw in the history of the MML. The Sheffield Forgers continued their impressive run with an 80-12 win at Wolverhampton with a team containing a large number of under 17s. East Riding got back in action after a long gap and completed a double over Barton with a 56-6 win.

Sunday's game saw Nottingham gain revenge over the Spires after their recent defeat at Chesterfield with a comprehensive 58-12 win at Wilford.

8th July 2007- MML update

The forty-twenty.co.uk Midlands Merit League has just three weekends of its regular season left and the top two teams continued their unbeaten runs as Sheffield Forgers beat local rivals Chesterfield Spires on an incredibly green pitch at All Saints by 66-4 and St Helens Wild Boars hit the road again to complete a double over the improving Shropshire Scorpions. After a 66-0 drubbing in St Helens, the Shifnal outfit pushed the league leaders harder this time, the result being 20-48. The third team with an average points score of 3 or more are the German Exiles, who had a weekend off this week to coincide with a Germany-Serbia international in Heidelberg.

In the Under 15 league Coventry Bears outgunned the Nottingham Outlaws 42-24 on Saturday and on Sunday the triple header at Derby saw the home side beat both Telford and Sheffield, whilst Telford completed a double over Sheffield to stay top of the league.

1st July 2007- MML update

Sheffield Forgers made it 8 out of 8 in the forty-twenty.co.uk Midlands Merit League on Saturday when they defeated the Barton Bulldogs 78-10 in a game switched to Chesterfield's Stonegravels ground. Barton travelled with 9 and were helped out by Sheffield and Chesterfield who loaned players to make it a 13-a-side game. With the score only 26-10 at half time Sheffield stepped up in the second half to cement second place in the league. Barton's attitude to this game was a credit to them and an example to all about the spirit in which this league is meant to be played. Well done to Sheffield as well for loaning some of their better players and coping with Barton's late arrival. Sheffield also fielded possibly the youngest player to play in the MML in Andy Stewart, who was 16 last week.

Shropshire Scorpions got back to winning ways with a 38-12 victory over Nottingham Outlaws, who beat them twice last season. Despite the defeat, Nottingham move to third place having played 4 games away from home.

In the Under 15 league Telford Raiders top the table, having played 5 games and gaining 4 points yesterday when East Riding couldn't raise a team for the clash at neutral Chesterfield. Next week Derby, Telford and Sheffield meet in a Tri-Team tournament at Derby.

21st June 2007- Crewe and Nantwich Steamers join the MML

Crewe and Nantwich Steamers have joined the MML for the remainder of the season. They are ineligible for the play-offs due to late entry but will hopefully fit in 3-4 fixtures.

Contact details are here.

21st June 2007- Deserved award for East Riding's Dan Beardshaw

East Riding First Team coach Daniel Beardshaw will receive the Rugby Football League young volunteer award for the Hull area at half time of the Hull Kingston Rovers versus Hull FC Super League game.

Dan (23) has been involved in starting up the Lincoln City Knights, Lincoln University RL and MML club East Riding. He is currently head coach, secretary and a player at East Riding, coaches Hull and District under 14s Service Area squad and is a scholarship coach at Hull Kingston Rovers.
The East Riding club and the forty-twenty.co.uk MML organisers and sponsors would like to say thank you to Dan and keep up the good work.

17th June 2007- Results update

St Helens Wild Boars jumped to the top of the forty-twenty.co.uk Midlands Merit League this weekend as they completed their fourth straight win, this time at home, all the others being on the road. They eased past Shropshire Scorpions 66-0 but have former leaders Sheffield Forgers breathing down their necks after their 52-4 win overs a spirited Barton Bulldogs outfit.

The best game of the weekend was saved for Sunday, where the Chesterfield Spires beat Nottingham Outlaws Academy 40-34 at Stonegravels. Chesterfield held the lead for most of the game but with 13 minutes to go and the game locked at 28-28 the Spires' Gaz Barnard went down with a neck injury and had to be taken to hospital. Happily the news is good and Gaz should be back in action before the end of the season. The game continued and Nottingham took the lead before the Spires hit back with two late tries to clinch their first win over the Outlaws.

Next week in a bumper weekend the Spires go to Wolverhampton, St Helens host Barton, the German Exiles host Shropshire, the Forgers host the Akkies and the Outlaws are hoping to arrange a game with East Riding on Sunday after Scunthorpe 'A' suspended their fixtures.

10th June 2007- Results update

As the forty-twenty.co.uk Midlands Merit League reaches the half way stage of its regular season the likely play-off candidates are starting to emerge.

Leaders Sheffield maintained their position when Scunthorpe failed to raise a team - hopefully the return fixture next Saturday in Lincolnshire will be played. East Riding got their biggest win of the season 68-14 against Barton, who were playing their first competitive game of the campaign. This moves Easts into third place. Wolverhampton Warlords lost 16-64 away at the German Exiles, but player/manager Richard Lord was impressed with their improvement since their first meeting with the Exiles. Next week they take on Telford 'A' with the hope of further improvement and a positive result. St Helens Wild Boars continued their run of away wins with a 48-10 victory over Leeds Akkies 'B'. The Akkies fielded three teams at Weetwood, which is a fine achievement spoilt only by the fact that all three teams lost their games.

In the Under 15s Nottingham kicked off their campaogn with a 20-16 victory over the Telford Raiders. Nottingham led 16-0 at half time but Telford's fightback wasn't enough.

3rd June 2007- Results update

A busy weekend in the forty-twenty.co.uk MML saw the Sheffield Forgers go to the top of the league but perhaps not in the way they would have wanted as they picked up three points when Shropshire failed to raise a team on the day. Hot on their heels are St Helens Wild Boars who beat Scunthorpe Barbarians Academy 52-12 and Nottingham Outlaws Academy, who won the first ever cross-league fixture when they just edged Northampton Casuals of the London League 24-20. The league table is starting to take shape and by the middle of the month we should see who will be the play-off contenders - the format of the play-offs will be announced this week.

Away from the league an injury depleted Chesterfield Spires had a friendly run out against the Heavy Woollen Donkeys which was won by the Dewsbury based social team by 34 points to 28.

In the Under 15 league the Carvell Coventry Bears emulated their Open Age counterparts by beating Telford Raiders U15 by the narrow margin of 18-16 in a double header at Oakengates.

The U13/U11 festival at Sheffield on Sunday took place in hot and humid conditions with the Sheffield Forgers, Nottingham Outlaws, Derby Dragons and Coventry Bears juniors in action. Many of the players at U11 were playing their first contact rugby and at U13 level many were playing full rules for the first time so refereeing the 10m and the scrums was more coaching than refereeing! All teams and players gained something from the day as all matches were well contested.

27th May 2007- Results update

Sheffield Forgers continued their 100% record in the 2007 forty-twenty.co.uk MML with a 60-16 victory at the Chesterfield Spires. In a hard fought match played in excellent spirit the Spires came out of the blocks first and stunned their local rivals with three quickfire tries that propelled them into an early 16-6 lead. At this stage the Forgers were struggling to find their rhythym against an enthusiastic Spires defence but as the first half wore on the Forgers forwards began to exert pressure and despite a couple of disallowed tries they eased into a 26-16 half time lead. In the second half the Spires sustained a number of injuries and with Sheffield fielding a strong bench it became increasing difficult for the Derbyshire outfit to prevent a series of well worked Forgers tries. Man of the Match was the Forgers' Dave Reed. Despite the defeat, Spires manager Ken Huckle was pleased with the effort and commitment of his squad and by the week on week improvement being shown. Forgers' captain Phil Stubbs also praised the Spires' efforts - "This was a hard game played in the best spirit and there will be some sore bodies for both sides tomorrow" said Stubbs.

Due to a series of injuries and late unavailability the Scunthorpe Barbarians Academy had to concede their game to Barton Bulldogs, who take the two points. Scunthorpe's first team played South Humber Rabbitohs in the RLC yesterday in a battle of the two former MML teams. The Rabbitohs scored their first RLC win 40-30 to continue their 100% record against their Lincolnshire neighbours.

Leeds Akkies 'B' played their first game yesterday in a match with York Universities Tigers. Despite a 38-40 loss the Akkies were delighted to have fielded 3 teams in one day, with the 'B' team fielding 20 players.

20th May 2007- Results update

Next week sees the return clash between Sheffield Forgers and Shropshire Scorpions - the Forgers ran out close winners in Shifnal and the Scorpions will be keen to pick up a potential 5 merit points from a long trip away win. Whoever wins will be top of the table next Saturday.

A busy weekend in the forty-twenty.co.uk Midlands Merit League saw four teams play their first game of the season in a round of four matches, two of whom were playing their first competitive game as a club.

The German Exiles won their first ever game, overpowering the Wolverhampton Warlords 74-16 at Hilton Park (not the one in Leigh, the one in Wolverhampton!). In the Sunday game last year's finalists Nottingham Outlaws Academy showed that they want to go one better this year by beating their Scunthorpe counterparts 60-26 in the Sunday game. The closest game of the weekend saw St Helens Wild Boars edge East Riding by 26-24 at Haworth Park, Hull.

The Nottingham win made it four away wins out of four after Saturday's win for Shropshire Scorpions at Chesterfield. The Scorpions just edged the first half but powered on in the second, scoring eight tries in a 42-14 victory that puts them top of the table as they are the only team to have played four matches so far. They also have a healthy points average, having accumulated 10 league points in their 4 games to date and have noticably improved in their second season in the MML. They also have a strong junior section who performed very well in their first outing at the Coventry Festival last Sunday.

Next week sees the debut of the Barton Bulldogs as they take on Scunthorpe in what promises to be a hard fought Lincolnshire derby game. Barton played their first game as a team on Saturday when they took on RLC outfit Worksop-Rossington. Due to their first team gaming being called off Rossington fielded a very strong team and they ran out winners by 70-10. Former leaders Sheffield Forgers also have a short trip to make into Derbyshire to take on the Spires and leaders Shropshire travel up the M6 to St Helens. On Sunday the Rabbitohs go to Nottingham to take on the Outlaws Academy.

13th May 2007- Results update

The forty-twenty.co.uk Midlands merit league got into full swing with a round of three games yesterday including the debut of the Wolverhampton Warlords.

East Riding got their season going after the disappointment of their opening day defeat at Sheffield with a first ever win over the South Humber Rabbitohs. It was a close affair, with the team from north of the river winning by 36-32.

The win puts Easts into second place as previous leaders Shropshire Scorpions fell to a home defeat to new leaders Sheffield Forgers. Forgers made the better of the poor conditions to run out winners by 22-12 in the first game to be held in Shifnal.

Meanwhile after a turbulent couple of weeks the Chesterfield Spires took the field against newcomers Wolverhampton Warlords and their experience told with a 52-12 win over a team containing a large number of players playing their first game of contact rugby. Team player/manager Richard Lord was disappointed with the result but pleased with the effort and determination of his new team. He can look at his opponents Chesterfield and new leaders Sheffield as examples of teams who suffered some big defeats in their first MML season and who are now competing and competing well in their second.

It now looks likely that a minimum of 12 teams will take part in the MML this season, an increase of 50% on the first year with over 50 games already scheduled.

11th May 2007- New website launched for Midlands clubs

A new website www.midlandsrugbyleague.co.uk has been launched to provide information about rugby league in the Midlands. It has club and league information, up to date results and tables, a forum and more.

6th May 2007- Leeds Akkies join the MML, second win for Shropshire

Leeds Akkies are the latest club to join the MML as they reap the benfit of a successful recruitment campaign with 50 players in training. They have a team in RLC National and a second team in RLC regional (Yorks and Lincs). They are looking for fixtures for their fringe 2nd team players, preferably tied in to their 2nd team fixture list. They are a good club and will bring a great deal to the MML.

Shropshire Scorpions gained their second victory of the season, beating local rivals Telford Raiders in a match that was a curtain raiser to the Raiders RLC Premier game. The Raiders are an associate club of the league and are available for fixtures that tie in to their first team schedule.

4th May 2007- Scunthorpe win friendly at club launch and Exiles announce ground

The Scunthorpe Barbarians launched their club at Heslam Park on Wednesday with a comfortable 54-10 win over Humberside Police. Representatives from the RFL and the Doncaster Lakers joined local dignitaries and former England International Ikram Butt at the launch.

The German Exiles have announced their home ground for 2007.They will be based at Mount St Mary's College near Sheffield, a venue used regularly by the RFL for festivals and tournaments. This confirms that their games against Shropshire and Wolverhampton will be "long trips".

3rd May 2007- Bristol Sonics and Coventry Bears join under 15 league

The number of registered under 15 teams rose to 7 yesterday with th formal applications being received for the Bristol Sonics and the Coventry Bears.

29th April 2007 - Forgers and Scorpions kick off with wins

The Midlands Merit League kicked off on Saturday with wins for Sheffield Forgers and Shropshire Scorpions. The Forgers beat East Riding 26-14 at Hillsborough whilst the Scorpions took the points when Chesterfield failed to raide a team.

26th April 2007 - National Challenge postponed

The National Challenge game between South Humber and South London has been postponed due to unforseen circumstances. It is hoped to put the game on later in the season.

24th April 2007 - Season preview

The 2007 forty-twenty.co.uk Midlands Merit League kicks off next Saturday with games in Sheffield and Shropshire. Following the success of the 2006 season, where 8 teams took part in 35 matches, the league has expanded to 13 teams with over 50 fixtures already scheduled, with more fixtures to come.

The success of the first year was shown by the promotion of the South Humber Rabbitohs and Scunthorpe, now renamed the Barbarians, to the Rugby League Conference. Good luck to both in what will be a very tough RLC division.

The league looks set to be very competitive this season, with several new teams providing an unknown quantity that makes it difficult to pick a winner in advance, Of the teams who took part in 2006 East Riding look on paper to be a strong challenger for the title having pushed South Humber close on two occasions last year. Sheffield Forgers, Chesterfield Spires and Shropshire Scorpions look set to be much improved from last season, and the RLC 'A' teams wil also provide a stern test for all clubs. Nottingham Outlaws 'A' were last years beaten finalists and are joined in the league by reserve teams from Scunthorpe, Lincoln and South Humber.

The new boys this season are the St Helens Wild Boars, Wolverhampton Warlords, Hull FC Irregulars, Barton Bulldogs and the German Exiles. These clubs have very different backgrounds and it will be interesting to find out how they perform over the coming weeks.

The season concludes with play-offs in August culminating in Finals day on Saturday, August 19th.

This season also sees the introduction of an Under 15 league based on Merit League principles - six teams have already confirmed entry and others are expected to follow in the next couple of weeks.

The 2006 champions, South Humber Rabbitohs, will also take part in a new challenge against the winners of the London League. The LastTackle.com National Challenge takes place on Saturday May 5th in Croydon between South London Storm II and the Rabbitohs.

Fixtures - Saturday April 28th

Sheffield Forgers v East Riding RLC 12.15pm
Shropshire Scorpions v Chesterfield Spires 2.30pm

23rd April 2007 - Friendly results

East Riding showed their credentials for the 2007 season by beating Hull Premier side Embassy Longhill 30-18 in a friendly on Saturday. Meanwhile Chesterfield put up a creditable performance in going down 18-54 to RLC outfit Wolverhampton Wizards.

21st April 2007 - Telford Raiders win first ever MML Under 15 game

The Telford Raiders U15 team earned 4 points from their away win at Sheffield in the first ever MML junior game. A close first half saw the vistors ahead by 17-12, but they raced away to victory by 55-20 in the second stanza.

17th April 2007 - Forgers win pre-season MML friendly

The Sheffield Forgers, containing a number of new players, outgunned a Chesterfield Spires team missing some its Union players at All Saints on Saturday. The final score was 82-22, but there was plenty for Chesterfield Spires coach Colin Wood to be happy with despite the scoreline.

12th April 2007 - St Helens Wild Boars join the MML

A new team from the RL town of St Helens want to make the MML a springboard to an RLC entry in 2008. Hopefully they will be able to fit some fixtures into the now crowded fixture list.

2nd April 2007 - Friendly results

Shropshire Scorpions opened their campaign with a feisty derby against the Telford Raiders, ranked two divisions higher in the RLC Premier. The final score was 36-8 to the Raiders, but Shropshire can be proud of their efforts in a match that saw two Scorpions in the sin bin.

The Sheffield Forgers, having lost against Hull FC Irregulars in their opening encounter last week, ran out 46-22 winners away at the Heavy Woollen Donkeys. Despite leaving half a team behind in Sheffield, including influential Aussie Steve Craven, they ran out comfortable winners. The day was rounded off by nipping round the corner to the Tetley's Stadium to watch the Sheffield Eagles beat Dewsbury in the Challenge Cup.

13th March 2007 - FC Irregulars enter Merit League

The Hull FC supporters team the FC Irregulars have entered the MML in 2007. They have been around for some time as a team playing tag rugby, but have decided to follow the Sheffield Beagles (now the Forgers) and the London Griffins into the full contact game. They are the second team to enter from north of the Humber.

11th March 2007 - German Exiles enter Merit League

A new team but not a new concept - the German Exiles hope to do what the likes of London Irish and London Welsh did for their exiles in Rugby Union and allow players of German nationality or descent to play rugby league together. This is part of the growing development of RL Deutschland and is a way of finding players who may be eligible to play internationally for Germany.

The club has no fixed home ground as yet - they can play away games and can arrange "home" games at any convenient venue. We are looking for the MML fixture secretaries to be flexible and innovative - you could get good publicity from these games and help the growth of rugby league in a new country.

6th March 2007 - Merit League Challenge game announced

The winners of the MML, South Humber Rabbitohs, have accepted a challenge from the London League winners South London Storm II to play a one-off game on Saturday, May 5th in London. Hopefully this will become an annual fixture between the winners of the two leagues.

3rd February 2007 - More teams commit for 2007

The Barton Bulldogs are the second brand new club to be admitted in 2007 following their near neighbours Scunthorpe Barbarians. Both clubs emerged in part from players who played for last year's Scunthorpe Braves, and the Bulldogs are now the fourth Lincolnshire team to play in the MML.

Last year's finalists Nottingham Outlaws 'A' will take part again this year, as will the Sheffield Forgers and East Riding.

At this stage the indications are that the number of teams will be greater than 10, with more expected to commit in the next week or two.

31st January 2007 - Telford Trojans name change

The Telford Trojans have been renamed for 2007 as the Shropshire Scorpions, and haved moved out of the town of Telford to nearby Shifnal. They hope that the move will enable them to tap into wider sponsorship and remove any confusion with the Telford Raiders.

29th January 2007 - Sponsor announced for season 2007

The MML is pleased to announce that the 2007 season will be sponsored by forty-twenty.co.uk, a specialist rugby league supplier. They were launched in 2002 as a one-stop rugby league shop, and in 2006 added forty-twenty teamwear to their portfolio as a means to provide affordable, quality kit and accessories without ridiculously long lead times. They provide kit for, amongst others, the national teams of Tonga, Holland and the Czech Republic and in the UK for Bramley Buffaloes, South London Storm, New Earswick All Blacks, St Albans Centurions and Telford Raiders. For information go to forty-twenty.co.uk or e-mail info@forty-twenty.co.uk

19th January 2007 - Junior Merit League launched

A new league for U15 players will be launched this summer for clubs in the Midlands. It will be organised in conjunction with major development work being undertaken in the area by the RFL and the leading clubs. This includes 5 new development officers and a series of U11 and U13 festivals.

15th January 2007 - Second West Midlands club joins the 2007 MML

The newly formed Wolverhampton Warlords are our third club for 2007. They have been formed with the intention of developing year-round rugby players in Wolverhampton, as well as developing a junior setup. They are working together with the existing RLC club, the Wizards, but will be focussing on the development of new players rather than the use of rugby union players.

20th December 2006 - Scunthorpe Barbarians 'A' apply for 2007 MML

The newly formed Scunthorpe Barbarians today became the second club to apply for, and be provisionally accepted into, membership of the MML in 2007, entering their reserve team into the MML to support their first team, who will play in the RLC. The Barbarians are a collaberation between last year's MML team, the Braves, and Scunthorpe RUFC. They will play at Heslam Park, the home of Scunthorpe RUFC, which has excellent facilities. We can look forward to meeting some old faces and some new ones as the Barbarians get going in 2007.

14th December 2006 - Telford Trojans apply for 2007 MML

Telford Trojans today became the first team to apply for, and be provisionally accepted into, membership of the MML in 2007. Despite being some distance from the other clubs, the Trojans competed well last season, including a trip to the York 9s.

5th December 2006 - Rebranding of NL3

In 2007 National League 3 will be rebranded as the Rugby League Conference National division, making it the top tier of the RLC rather than the bottom tier of the professional competition.

18th September 2006 - Awards announced

The 2006 MML Awards were announced today and were dominated by the South Humber Rabbitohs, who took the team of the year, player of the year and player's player awards, and got 7 players in the 20-man dream team squad.

The full list of awards can be found here.

20th August 2006 - Rabbitohs take the Championship

South Humber Rabbitohs beat the Nottingham Outlaws Academy by 42-18 to take the Grand Final. Full report here. You can download the Matchday Programme in PDF format here and view or buy photographs from the Final here.

13th August 2006 - Directions to Hillsborough

The Arena is situated in the top corner of Hillsborough Park, off Middlewood Road at the junction with Hawksley Avenue. Follow the signs for Proctor Place and Hillsborough shops and then Hillsborough Arena.

The postcode is S6 4HA. If you are coming from the centre of Sheffield (e.g. from J33 via the Parkway) you will be travelling north on Penistone Road. As you approach Hillsborough corner you will see the greyhound stadium and leisure centre on your right and the park on your left. Take the left hand lane keeping the park on your left hand side and the Sheffield Wednesday football ground on your right. At the next lights keep left and then turn left at the next lights (where the tram tracks are). The park is still on your left and the Arena entrance is about 200m along on your left hand side.

The Arena is served by the yellow tram route. If arriving by train you can pick up the tram close to the train station at Park Square.

There is space for coaches and cars in the car park. If there are problems or questions call the office at 0114 233 4073.

13th August 2006 - Nottingham Outlaws make the final

Nottingham Outlaws Academy gained the points they needed this weekend against the Sheffield Forgers to book a repeat visit to the Steel City next week in the Grand Final against the South Humber Rabbitohs. The game was played 10-a-side and the Forgers started well, missing several chances to take the lead. As time went on, the Outlaws used their interchanges to good effect to score some excellent tries, eventually running out 64-0 winners.

7th August 2006 - Spires win two in a row and Rabbitohs finish in style

Chesterfield Spires ended a difficult season on a high note with their second win in a row, this time against the Sheffield Forgers by 48-26. Both sides were depleted by holidays and so the game was played as a nine-a-side. Chesterfield made the most of the slope to lead 26-4 at half time. In the second half the Forgers rallied and came within 12 points. In this time they also spilled two chances over the Spires' line. An interception try with 10 minutes to go killed off the fightback and the Spires ran out worthy winners.

The South Humber Rabbitohs completed an emphatic double and the deserved title of League Champions with a crushing 102-16 victory in the return derby with Scunthorpe Braves. They move on to the Grand Final on the 20th August, where they will meet either Nottingham or East Riding. The Outlaws must avoid defeat against the Sheffield Forgers next Sunday to book a date with the rabbitohs at the Hillsborough Arena.

30th July 2006 - Spires break their duck as Rabbitohs win the North Lincs derby

The Chesterfield Spires finally broke their losing streak, winning their first competitive game by 34-32 at Gosforth Fields against the Telford Trojans. After an encouraging performance against the Donkeys in last week's friendly, they scored their highest points total to just edge it. To cap off the month for the Spires, July's Merit League Player of the Month goes to newly installed captain Barry Lane, whose sheer determination and effort at the York 9s should be an inspiration to everyone.

On Sunday a sometimes feisty North Lincs derby was won 42-30 by the Rabbitohs, who have virtually booked their place in the Grand Final. The home side Scunthorpe took the lead but once the Rabbitohs got in front the Braves were always chasing the game and despite rallying twice the Bunnies kept scoring to keep their noses in front.

25th July 2006 - All games off

Last weekend's games were all called off by the away teams. This is not uncommon at this time of the year with injuries and holidays biting into squads. Chesterfield travelled north to Dewsbury and gained their best ever away points haul but lost 31-44 to the Heavy Woollen Donkeys.

This weekend sees Chesterfield take on Telford and the long awaited North Lincs derby between Scunthorpe and South Humber.

17th July 2006 - York 9s

Telford and South Humber both put in creditable performances at the York 9s against some strong opposition. Chesterfield and Sheffield were both hit by late withdrawals due to illness and injury and so guested for each other. Some players played all 6 games. Telford put in a fine performance against the British Asian Rugby Association but just lost out to a couple of late tries. South Humber beat Sheffield and just lost out to York RUFC but made the quarter finals. With a depleted squad containing 16 year olds they opted not to take on a very stroing Police UK team in the last eight. Well done to everybody who pulled an MML shirt on yesterday in searing heat.

16th July 2006 - All Square at Broughton

The sun was beating down again this weekend and the temperatures were certainly rising at Broughton where Scunthorpe and East Riding fought out a 20-20 draw. There were 4 yellow cards and one red in between the rugby, which was a decent standard on a bone hard pitch. East Riding held the advantage in the first half, playing downhill and scoring three well worked tries to one to lead 14-4. In the second half Scunthorpe came back to lead 16-14 before Easts scored again in the corner. Sam Smith, under goading from a vociferous crowd, slotted an excellent conversion. With two minutes to go the Braves forced the ball over the line but were unable to convert.

10th July 2006 - Scunthorpe bounce back

Scunthorpe bounced back from last week's defeat by beating previously unbeaten Nottingham Outlaws 'A' in an excellent game at Wilford. Facing the wind and the slope in the first half, strong defence and powerful running saw the Braves take an early lead that they never relinquished. Despite leaking a try just before half time, the Braves defence were again dominant in the second stanza and they ran in three more tries to add to their first half triple to end up 30-6 winners.

South Humber Rabbitohs winger Darren Daley broke the individual points scoring record as a rampant Rabbitohs team swarmed all over Sheffield Forgers. Darren scored a hat-trick of tries and kicked 13 from 16 goals for a personal tally of 38 points. A Luke Fellows try was all the Forgers had to show against the 16 from the Bunnies, who ran out 90-6 winners. The two teams meet again next week in the York 9s and again the week after.

The two North Lincolnshire teams lead the race for the Grand Final places with Nottingham and East Riding chasing hard. The Rabbitohs are favourites to top the table but have two meetings with the Braves still to come that will have a major effect on the final positions.

3rd July 2006 - Scunthorpe suffer first loss

East Riding 26 Scunthorpe Braves 22

Despite the defeat Scunthorpe move into third place just ahead of East Riding as they have now played 4 matches.

Friendly - Worksop Sharks 39 South Humber Rabbitohs 34

League leaders South Humber gave RLC side Worksop a real scare at Rossington on Saturday and they will now have further belief that they can go on and win the inaugural MML title.

Upcoming games:

Sheffield Forgers v South Humber Rabbitohs (Sat, 2.30pm)
Lincoln City Squires v East Riding (Sat 12.00pm)
Nottingham Outlaws v Scunthorpe Braves (Sun, 2.30pm)

Some intruiging matches - South Humber will accumulate 4 points if they win, taking them further clear of Nottingham. They will stay top even if they lose and the Outlaws win. Scunthorpe need to bounce back after their first defeat and East riding will hope to keep up their momentum in the return fixture at Lincoln - the previous game ended 16-16.

29th June 2006 - York 9s draw

The draw for the Archbishop Dolben Cup has been made and pits two MML clubs against each other. Sheffield Forgers and South Humber Rabbitohs square up for one of three contests in three weeks, the 9s being sandwiched between two MML fixtures. Chesterfield Spires and Telford Trojans are the other teams involved in the competition on July 16th. The full draw can be found here.

26th June 2006 - Battle for MML Grand Final hots up

The South Humber Rabbitohs hopped over the Nottingham Outlaws this weekend at the top of the table after the late withdrawal of Chesterfield gave them a home win and an extra point for the fixture pair. Meanwhile the Scunthorpe Braves overcame the Lincoln Squires in a terrific match at Broughton - possibly the first ever Lincolnshire rugby league derby ending in a 22-18 win for the home team. Scunthorpe's next opponents are East Riding, who recorded a big 88-12 win over the Sheffield Forgers in an 11-a-side game at West Hull's ground. Travelling to the "wrong" side of the city obviously didn't affect Dan Beardshaw's men and they remain Grand Final contenders.

The Grand Final has been provisionally booked for Sunday, 20th August at 2.30pm. The venue will be the Hillsborough Arena in Sheffield, home of the Hawks.

The player of the month for June has been awarded to Tom Alldridge of the Scunthorpe Braves. His fine kicking game from the tee and in hand plus a try and excellent effort against a strong Worksop side gave him the edge over other contenders Dave Butler (Sheffield Forgers, 2 MoM performances) and Lewis Smeeton (Outlaws - also a contender in May).

20th June 2006 - Outlaws go for Double Top

The Nottingham Outlaws now top both the Midlands Premier and the Midlands Merit League after their first team extended their unbeaten league run to 8 games and the 'A' team to 5 following home victories over Coventry Bears and Telford Trojans respectively. At Wilford on Sunday afternoon the Outlaws reserves ran in 11 tries against a spirited but eventually outflanked Trojans side who picked up two points for a long trip and for completing a home and away fixture with Nottingham to take back to Shropshire. In addition they became the first team to score a drop goal in the Merit League.

A tough forwards exchange early on was eventually won by Nottingham, who were playing down the slope. In the second half it was the backs who took over, scoring some fine tries including a length of the pitch effort after the full back was forced into his own in-goal but escaped and ran the first 40m, passing to his outside man to run in the rest.

Despite the defeat, Telford move into third place and Nottingham take a break which gives a chance for South Humber, Scunthorpe or Lincoln to claim top spot.

11th June 2006 - Football? What football?

There is apparantly a football tournament on at the moment which means that this week's matches were on Sunday. In baking hot temperatures Nottingham Outlaws 'A' moved to the top of the table with a 52-18 win at Chesterfield. Chasing hard are the Scunthorpe Braves, who scored an excellent away win in a tightly contested game at the Sheffield Forgers. They scored 5 tries to the Forgers' 4 to run out 30-18 winners and keep the pressure on the front runners.

5th June 2006 - Braves smash MML records

The Scunthorpe Braves became the first MML side to pass 100 points as they beat Chesterfield 104-6 in a 9-a-side game at Dronfield. There was also a double for South Humber who beat East Riding 38-24 despite being down to 12 men for much of the game. Nottingham continued their fine start by beating the Sheffield Forgers 52-16. This game was another first as the match was a double header with the respective U13 teams providing an excellent game as a curtain raiser. East Riding remain top of the league due to playing more than 4 games but the pack are now breathing down their necks and there are more interesting encounters to come in the next few weeks.

31st May 2006 - New Records section added to website

A new Records section, including team and individual records, has been added to the site. As not all individual scorers have been recorded, please check and contact the organiser if you have evidence of better performnaces by individuals. Individual season records will be added at the end of the year, but this can onlybe accurate if the match-by-match data is provided.

30th May 2006 - Easts go top but Bunnies and Squires step up the challenge

A fine 52-22 win, including a double hat trick by Ben Parker, put East Riding top of the table on Saturday. Hot on their heels are South Humber and Lincoln 'A', who scored convincing wins at Chesterfield and at home to Telford respectively.

23rd May 2006 - Forgers sneak it against French tourists

A late penalty by Simon Waller earnt Sheffield Forgers a narrow win against touring French team Bretagne Nantes XIII. Full report here.

22nd May 2006 - Outlaws go marching on

Nottingham Outlaws 'A' scored an excellent victory in shocking conditions away at the Telford Trojans on Sunday. They now have an average of 3 points per game and go second behind Chesterfield, who still top the league as a result of playing four matches. Full report here.

22nd May 2006 - First ever MML draw

East Riding and Lincoln 'A' fought out the first ever MML draw, scoring 16 points each in a clash of the Beardshaws against their old team. Report to follow.

17th May 2006 - Forgers play first MML international match next week

Bretagne Nantes XIII will be making a short tour of England later this week, taking in 2 matches in South Yorkshire plus a visit to the Galpharm for the Challenge Cup match between Huddersfield and York. On Friday 19th they play Hoyland Vikings and on Monday 22nd they will play the Sheffield Forgers in the first game in Sheffield by a French club since the ill-fated Paris SG in 1997. Nantes are a real RL outpost, regularly travelling 4-5 hours each way to get to away games. We hope to give them a positive experience in Sheffield and welcome them as a member of the global RL family.

15th May 2006 - Weekend review

What we believe to be the first game of rugby league played in Grimsby since a challenge game in 1910 took place at Grimsby RUFC on Saturday 13th May when the newly formed South Humber Rabbitohs took on the young East Riding team from over the water. Easts were looking to build on their win at Chesterfield and the Bunnies were hoping not only for the win but to entertain the crowd there to watch the "other code". They did not disappoint - the hits were big and the home team came up with a win by 26 to 12. Report here.

The Chesterfield Spires scored 8 points for the fifth time in a row leaving manager Ken Huckle wondering whether his team has a jinx on them - this time the opposition scored 40 but the Spires were in the game until half time, when the score was 8-8. They once again missed the conversions and also had a try disallowed and as the game wore on Nottingham capitalised on their fitness and use of substitutes to run in a total of 9 tries. The Merit League has provided a great opportunity for fringe and new players at Nottingham to get game time without having to go straight in at RLC Premier level.

12th May 2006 - Telford Trojans apply for York 9s

Telford Trojans will hopefully become the fourth Merit League to take part in the York 9s after submitting their application this week.

11th May 2006 - Weekend preview

This weekend sees two intruiging fixtures. On Saturday the Rabbitohs hop into action in Grimsby, taking on league leaders East Riding at Grimsby RUFC, kick-off 1pm. On Sunday (k.o. 2.30pm) the Nottingham Outlaws Academy also debut against a Chesterfield team searching for their first win. Whatever happens, Chesterfield will top the league if they fulfill the fixture as this will be their fourth game.

8th May 2006 - Telford Trojans make a winning start

Telford Trojans beat Chesterfield Spires in their first ever MML game by 62-8. This puts them in second place in the table and you can read the match report here.

1st May 2006 - East Riding go top of the League

East Riding beat Chesterfield Spires on Saturday by 34-8 to go top of the league, picking up a point for a long trip as well as 3 for the away win. Click here for the match report. On Sunday the Telford Trojans made their competitive debut in a friendly at Redditch Ravens, losing 18-30 to a team consisting of many of their RLC team.

12th April 2006 - York International Nines

Three MML teams have been accepted into the prestigious York International 9s event in July. The Forgers, Spires and Rabbitohs will play in the Archbishop Dolben Cup - more information here. This is a real boost for the Midlands League as it establishes itself as a part of the development of Rugby League.

9th April 2006 - First game ends in a win for the Forgers

The Sheffield Forgers defeated a depleted Chesterfield Spires team yesterday by 58-8. Match report and pictures here. The day was kicked off with a junior session run by Mark Aston and Sheffield Eagles players.

7th April 2006 - Kukri sponsors the match balls for the 2006 MML

Kukri have agreed to sponsor the match balls for the 2006 Midlands Merit League. They will provide 2 balls for each of the first ten clubs to play matches in the league. Hopefully this will be the start of a partnership with Kukri for this and future seasons.

3rd April 2006 - Birmingham Bulldogs register with the MML

The Birmingham Bulldogs have registered with the MML, but are unlikely at this stage to run a full second string team. However they are available for pre-season friendlies under the MML banner and may be able to play second team games during the season if playing numbers increase in the meantime.

31st March 2006 - Scunthorpe Braves accepted into the MML

The Scunthorpe Braves have been formally accepted into the Midlands Merit League for the 2006 Season. Contact Ian McBride for fixtures - details are in the pack sent out earlier today and on the Clubs section of the website. Ian and his committee have done a fantastic job in getting to this position in such a short space of time and we welcome them as our twelth club.

31st March 2006 - Season 2006 information now available

The Midlands Merit League 2006 Season Information has been sent out to registered clubs and potential clubs by e-mail, or post if no e-mail address was supplied. If you have not received it, let the Organizer know as soon as possible. It is also available for download here.

31st March 2006 - South Wakefield Sharks pull out of the RLC

The RLC announced today that the South Wakefield Sharks have withdrawn from this year's competition. This paves the way for either an MML team to step into their shoes or for MML teams to test their strength by taking fixtures against Mansfield, Hillsborough or Worksop on blank weeks.

29th March 2006 - New club joins the Midlands Merit League

The Midlands Merit League gained its 11th team today with the acceptance of the Telford Trojans. They are a new club in Telford who are working in co-operation with the local Premier club the Telford Raiders to expand Rugby League in Telford and the rest of Shropshire. Please remember when arranging matches to consider both the Trojans and the Raiders 'A' team for fixtures. Full details are available in the Clubs section of the website.

20th March 2006 - Clubs Meeting and Player Registration

The RLC clubs meeting is in Telford on Sunday, April 23rd.

Note that players registered with any MML or RLC club may play in a MML game, provided they are identified on the teamsheet as being with another club. Send all completed registration forms to David Lowe at his home address.

15th March 2006 - Launch Details

Preparations are well under way for the league launch on Saturday, April 8th at All Saints Sports College, Norfolk Park Road, Sheffield. The day will begin at 10.00 am with a free junior skills session run by the Sheffield Eagles coaching staff and players. The official launch will happen at 11.30 followed by the inaugural match between the Forgers and the Chesterfield Spires. After the match there will be presentations in the bar.

Representatives of all MML clubs are welcome to attend to meet up and get some photo opportunities.

3rd March 2006 - London League Tie-Up

As many of you will be aware, the Midlands Merit League is based on the successful London League. We have agreed with them that members of the two competitions can play regular season matches against each other.

There are two key reasons we have decided on this

Firstly, any club who is on the borderline as to which league they join can arrange games against all of their most local rivals without half of the games being friendlies.

Secondly, the RLC-Premier teams will have some options of making their cross-conference games into double-headers (e.g W London v Wolverhampton).

There are a couple of issues for clubs to bear in mind however.

As there will be additional admin work on the part of the league organizers, who will have to communicate with each other and their clubs, these fixtures will need to be confirmed a week in advance, to be guaranteed inclusion. We will try to be flexible on this though.

Games must be within the regular season of both competitions to be counted. For 2006 this will be April 29th through to July 30th.

Thanks to the North Midlands clubs who co-operated with this initiative even though it has no direct benefit to them.

24th February 2006 - Rugby League World

Watch out for the March edition of Rugby League World, which has an article by Phil Caplan about the Midlands Merit League.

23rd February 2006 - Heading South West

The area covered by the league may extend further with the news that Gloucestershire 'A' and Worcester have both shown provisional interest in taking part. Talks are also taking place to determine whether Scunthorpe will be the third Lincolnshire team in the competition.

20th February 2006 - Match Officials Update

Referees for Merit League games should be organised by the home club, with help from the Merit League Organiser. A list of referees who are available in the summer will be sent to clubs prior to the start of the season. The referee will be paid by the home club at BARLA rates, which vary according to the distance travelled. Ways of reducing these costs include using local referees where possible, training more referees within a club or (for 'A' teams of RLC clubs) asking a referee already travelling to take a second game.

11th February 2006 - RLC clubs' meeting

The latest information from the RLC organiser, Neil Wood, is that he would like all Merit League clubs to attend the RLC clubs' pre-season meeting in Telford. Existing clubs will receive an invitation but new teams should contact David Lowe at the RFL to register details on the clubs' database to ensure they are invited to attend.

8th February 2006 - South Humber on board

A new team, the South Humber Rabbitohs, has expressed interest in joining the competition. They will be based in Grimsby and play out of Grimsby RUFC. There has been an initial enquiry from another West Midlands based Rugby Union Club and two more possible new teams, but these are at a very early stage. The signs are promising that the league will contain more than ten teams, which would be excellent news for rugby league in the Midlands.

23rd January 2006 - More teams sign on

Several existing clubs have confirmed the participation of their 'A' teams this season. They are Thorne Moor, Lincoln, Nottingham and Redditch. Another side has indicated possible interest but have asked not be named until their plans for 2006 are known.

18th January 2006 - Over the Bridge!

A new team has indicated interest in joining the league for 2006. They will be based east of Hull (Holderness) and are tentatively named the East Riding Rangers. They are outside the normal criteria for entry but after consultation with the four clubs in the North East Midlands it has been agreed that they can be included. It has been taken into consideration by all parties that this league is about development, and the Merit League is all about getting people playing. It is understood that they are unlikely to meet teams like Redditch and Telford, unless anyone fancies a real day out!

13th January 2006 - Welcome to Telford 'A'

Telford Raiders 'A' have indicated that they intend to participate, and will begin organising matches when their RLC commitments and fixtures are known.

11th January 2006 - Local rivals confirm participation

Chesterfield Spires and Sheffield Forgers have both confirmed their intention to participate in the league. In addition, Wolverhampton's second team, the Wahoos, will also take part as part of a new recruitment initiative announced this week which also includes the introduction of Touch Rugby League in the city.

9th January 2006 - League Officially Launched

It is now confirmed that the Midlands Merit League will be part of the Summer RLC setup, of which many of the clubs involved are already a part. This is excellent news as it minimises the administration for clubs and allows a simple route for new clubs to enter the conference proper.