RFU Intermediate Cup
Rugby union national knockout cup competition in England
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The RFU Intermediate Cup is a rugby union national knockout cup competition in England run by the Rugby Football Union. It is contested by teams at level 7 of the English rugby union system. While the competition is a national one, it is however split into regions until the semi-finals with the final being held at Twickenham Stadium in London.[1] It was first contested in 1997.[2] Presently, the RFU Intermediate Cup is the third most important club cup competition in England, behind the Premiership Rugby Cup and RFU Championship Cup.
Current season or competition: 2018–19 RFU Intermediate Cup | |
| Sport | Rugby union |
|---|---|
| Instituted | 1997 |
| Number of teams | Level 7 of English rugby |
| Nations | England (RFU) |
| Holders | Kenilworth (1st title) (2018–19) |
| Website | England Rugby |
| Related competition | Senior Vase, Junior Vase |
History
The RFU Intermediate Cup was first contested in 1997 for clubs at Level 7 of English rugby.[3] The competition was initially unsponsored but later gained sponsorship from NPI,[4] Powergen[5] and EDF Energy[6] before becoming known as the "RFU Intermediate Cup" solely un-sponsored by 2008.[7] The largest crowd for a final was set in 2016 for the match between Kent based Tunbridge Wells RFC and Cumbria's St. Benedict's where 9,000 Tunbridge Wells fans attended the final.[8][9] A number of future RFU Championship clubs have played in the RFU Intermediate Cup prior to promotion to the second tier with Jersey Reds,[10] Hartpury College,[7] Doncaster Knights[2] and Richmond all taking part in the past.[11]
Current format
The rounds are contested on a regional basis between the four regional unions until the semi-finals, where the winner of each region enters the national competition. Each region decides their representative separately. For example, London and South East use a direct knockout competition of all teams in the region[12] while South West split their region into Southern Counties and South Western Counties with the winners playing each other to be the region's representative.[13] Each regional champion plays another set champion with the ground being one of the semi-finalist's home.[14] The semi-finals pairings are London & South East against South West and Midlands against North.[15] The winners of the semis play each other in the final at Twickenham Stadium.[1]
North
The format for northern teams involved in the RFU Intermediate Cup is a league-cup hybrid with each county union in the region selecting one representative each. The first stage features a mini league with clubs from Cheshire, Cumbria and Lancashire meeting in one pool and clubs from Durham County, Northumberland and Yorkshire, meeting in the other, each side playing 2 games each. The winners of each group then meet in the north final to determine who goes forward to the national semi-finals.[16] The competition involves representative teams from the following level 7 leagues:
Midlands
The format for Midlands teams involved in the RFU Senior Vase is a direct knockout cup with a 1st round, 2nd round, 3rd round, semi-finals and final. The winner of the final goes forward to the Senior Vase national semi-finals.[17] The competition involves all teams from the following level 7 leagues:
London and South East
As with the Midlands the format for London and South East teams involved in the RFU Senior Vase is a direct knockout cup with a 1st round, 2nd round, 3rd round, semi-finals and final. The winner of the final goes forward to the Senior Vase national semi-finals.[18] The competition involves all teams from the following level 7 leagues:
South West
The format for the south-west teams is more complex with different methods of qualification decided on by the county unions that they represent. Clubs that are affiliated with Dorset & Wilts and Gloucestershire play in county based knock-out competitions first. The winners of the Dorset & Wilts competition then plays in the Southern Counties semi-finals against representatives from Berkshire, Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire, while the Gloucestershire winners play in the South West Counties semi-finals against representative from Cornwall, Devon and Somerset, with the winners then meeting in a regional final. Finally, the Southern Counties and South West Counties winners meet to determine qualification for the national semi-finals.[19] Teams involved are from the following level 7 leagues:
Competition results
| Season | Winner | Score | Runners–up | Name | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1996–97 | Thanet Wanderers (SE) | 21–13[20][2] | Doncaster (N) | NPI Intermediate Cup[21][22] | ||||||||||
| 1997–98 | Bedford Athletic (M) | 29–24 (aet)[23] | Stroud (SW) | |||||||||||
| 1998–99 | Aldwinians (N) | 21–10[24][25] | Dudley Kingswinford (M) | |||||||||||
| 1999–00 | Dunstablians (M) | 14–10[26] | Hull Ionians (N) | |||||||||||
| 2000–01 | Old Patesians (SW) | 25–24[27] | Blaydon (N) | |||||||||||
| 2001–02 | Halifax (N) | 43–19[28][29] | Gosport and Fareham (SE) | Powergen Intermediate Cup[30] | ||||||||||
| 2002–03 | Hertford (SE) | 31–16[5][31] | Bristol St Mary's Old Boys (SW) | |||||||||||
| 2003–04 | Bradford & Bingley (N) | 46–18[32] | Gloucester Old Boys (SW) | |||||||||||
| 2004–05 | Morley (N) | 21–11[33] | Westoe (N) | |||||||||||
| 2005–06 | Stockport (N) | 11–3[34] | Morley (N) | |||||||||||
| 2006–07 | Mounts Bay (SW) | 46–36[35] | Dunstablians (M) | EDF Energy Intermediate Cup[36] | ||||||||||
| 2007–08 | Chester (N) | 21–18[6] | Birkenhead Park (N) | |||||||||||
| 2008–09 | Hartpury College (SW) | 41–31[7] | Clifton (SW) | |||||||||||
| 2009–10 | Old Redcliffians (SW) | 42–21[37] | Northern (N) | RFU Intermediate Cup | ||||||||||
| 2010–11 | Stoke-on-Trent (M) | 16–10[38] | Aylesford Bulls (SE) | |||||||||||
| 2011–12 | East Grinstead (SE) | 34–18[39] | Ilkley (N) | |||||||||||
| 2012–13 | Brighton (SE) | 30–22[40] | Bridlington (N) | |||||||||||
| 2013–14 | Trowbridge (SW) | 22–19[41] | Leek (M) | |||||||||||
| 2014–15 | Maidstone (SE) | 31–18[42] | Bridgnorth (M) | |||||||||||
| 2015–16 | Tunbridge Wells (SE) | 56–14[43] | St. Benedict's (N) | |||||||||||
| 2016–17 | West Leeds (N) | 35–26[44] | Charlton Park (SE) | |||||||||||
| 2017–18 | Camberley (SE) | 63–14[45] | Droitwich (M) | |||||||||||
| 2018–19 | Kenilworth (M) | 32–26[46] | Matson (SW) | |||||||||||
| 2019-20 | Not contested due to COVID-19 Pandemic | |||||||||||||
| (N) stands for Northern region, (M) for Midlands, (SE) for London & South East, (SW) for South-west | ||||||||||||||
Number of wins
Club
- Aldwinians (1)
- Bedford Athletic (1)
- Bradford & Bingley (1)
- Brighton (1)
- Camberley (1)
- Chester (1)
- Dunstablians (1)
- East Grinstead (1)
- Halifax (1)
- Hartpury College (1)
- Hertford (1)
- Kenilworth (1)
- Maidstone (1)
- Morley (1)
- Mounts Bay (1)
- Old Patesians (1)
- Old Redcliffians (1)
- Stockport (1)
- Stoke-on-Trent (1)
- Thanet Wanderers (1)
- Trowbridge (1)
- Tunbridge Wells (1)
- West Leeds (1)
Region
- London & South East (7)
- North (7)
- South West (5)
- Midlands (4)