France Elite 1 : 2021-22

The 2021/22 regular season has ended and the final ranking is as below. There were supposed to be ten sides but Palau withdrew before the season started for financial reasons. There wasn't another club that was deemed ready and able to replace them. 

Now for a summary on the 2021/22 season plus some recent background. There wasn't a winner in 2019 due to Covid in case you wonder why I ignore that year. The top six teams go into a playoff series. 

Limoux: They last won the league in 2014 and were second for the three years from 2016 to 2018. The 2022 season has been a triumphant one for the club.

Carcassonne: The club won in 2015, 2016, 2019 and 2021 so the most successful team in recent times. They didn't quite achieve another league title this season although they did have the most wins. The way results are handled in France makes that possible. 

Lézignan: Came third, second last year and last won the league in 2017. They have been a very competitive unit.

Albi: Their best season in the league since the early 1960s. Nice to see them getting some reward.

St Estève-Catalan: Their last league win was in 2018 and came second in 2019. The history of this amalgamation of two clubs is strong. They are a reserve team for the Super League club the Catalan Dragons. 

Avignon: The club has been competitive without quite matching the best in Elite One. They last won the league in 1982. They have qualified for the finals this year, just. 

Villeneuve: They were the strongest club in France in the early 2000's but 2003 was the last time they won the league. Since then, they have often failed to even reach the finals series, as is the case this year. 

Toulouse: The second team to support a club with a Super League place. Clearly a lack of depth led to a poor season but understandable in the circumstances. Two second places were acheived in 2014 and 2015 but a club has never won a league title in its history going back to the 1930s. Amazing.  

St-Gaudens: The club had a very poor season and is struggling. It shouldn't have been in the league at all but at least it did complete the season. It last won the league in 1971 and came second in 2004.

The finals series blog article can be seen by clicking here. 

Below is a summary of recent top four rankings in the league. 

League 1 UK 2021

The season is yet to start for the third division competition so I go into this without a depth of knowledge for the teams nor a sighter of a couple of matches how they are likely to perform. Eleven sides will be playing in League 1. So here's a summary of a possible outcome for 2022. There are a couple of promotional spots up for grabs but no relegation. 

Cellar dwellers: It's hard to look past West Wales for being bottom of the league. They don't seem an organised outfit. London Skolars have been raided by the London Broncos and their chances of being competitive have accordingly diminished. The Coventry Bears are now the Midlands Hurricanes and they have moved to Birmingham but are unlikely to reach for the sky this season. 

Finally, the new Cornwall RLFC has joined and has recruited quite well. However, being a totally new team it will take time to form a cohesive unit so this year is about getting established. Their ground is pictured above.

Midtable: Rochdale (2nd full season in League 1), Hunslet  (six full seasons) and Doncaster (also six) look likely to be competitive but not heading for promotion.

Promotion candidates: Keighley (7th full season in this league) are a chance. North Wales (also 7th full season here) would love to kick on from 2022. They are now settled in Colwyn Bay with a lovely location and a supportive council. I do wonder if they are quite ready for the Championship? 

That leaves the two new sides relegated from the Championship Oldham and Swinton. Both must fancy their chances of returning to the Championship but it doesn't always wotrk out that way.

Summary: No one team seems to have a massive advantage so its all to play for with regard to promotion. Of course, some sides are simply not up to that standard but they will give their best regardless. I'm especially interested in how Cornwall will go. They are taking the game to a new level in that area so hopefully the locals get behind them.

Championship UK 2021

I don't know as much about the second division as I would like. It is an eclectic mix of clubs, some with Super League ambitions, others happy to be in the Championship and not expecting anything more. Others simply hoping to avoid the drop. So a run down of the teams for 2022 is in order. I write this three rounds into the season.

Survival: The two Cumbrian sides would be in this category. Workington was promoted from last season and this is effectively Whitehaven's second season, the first one not exceptional. The London Broncos were in Super League as recently as 2019 but a cut in finance means staying at this level would be the priority at this stage. Dewsbury is another that would be happy to be here in 2023. 

Middle Ground: Some of the sides here have been in the Championship for a while time but are yet to seriously push for promotion. Halifax (since 2004 in this league and at this juncture not going up), Sheffield (arrived in 2007) and Batley (2002 and before that in an extended league). This is Newcastle's second season at this level so still a work in progress. Bradford and York have played in just three full seasons so not ready to entertain anything more than further consolidation. 

SL hopefuls: Featherstone has been in the Championship every year since 2008 and hot favourites to move up. I think they deserve to. Widnes and Leigh both enjoyed recent spells in SL and will be in the mix at the end of the season. I'd put Barrow in the dark horse category. Probably unlikely to be promoted but they seem to have assembled a decent squad. 

Summary: I hope that covers the clubs reasonably well. I'm sure there are those who would question some of my opinions and nothing is black and white. However, it looks to be an interesting competition.