Division 7 team first to be relegated

Winter League

Review of the results from matches played in Divisions 6&7 on Thursday 15 January

It was a good day for the Division 6 leaders, Cowcliffe B on Thursday as they were the only winners in the top five. They contributed to that by beating third-placed Springwood C 8-0. It was also a bad day for Almondbury BC A and Outlane A who both lost to bottom three teams, Netherton Con A by 6-2 and Hanging Heaton B by the same 6-2 scoreline respectively.

That means that the bottom three teams all won their Thursday fixtures to test the resolve of the two teams on the fringe of the relegation dog-fight as both Outlane A and Almondbury BC will be getting nervous about the emerging threat to their Division 6 existence.

Scroll down past the photos for the Division 7 matchday reports and learn which team was the first to be relegated in the 2025-26 Winter League season.

Six photos from Netherton Con on Thursday provided by John Pix

Holmfirth A have started to find their feet again in Division 7 and have only lost one of their last 5 fixtures and that was against the leaders. They peaked this week by beating second-placed Marsh Lib A 8-0 to knock their rivals out of the promotion places. That opened the door to Kirkheaton Con B who pushed it further open with a 8-0 win of their own over Lockwood Con B. They have their destiny in their own hands now as two wins from their remaining two matches will clinch promotion as it will for Huddersfield RUFC, who are unlikely to take it. The Rugby Club have always maintained that they need their catering staff, who are the mainstay of the club's Division 7 team, playing at home each week to guarantee their availability.

So that could mean that we are looking for two teams, excluding the leaders, to take the two promotion places. That means the scrap could go down to the teams currently in 3rd and 4th places, Marsh Lib A and Holmfirth A.

The defeat of Broad Oak A by the leaders means that the Broad Oak team have become the first team in the League to be relegated this season. They are likely to be joined by New Mill C after they lost 2-6 to Huddersfield Recreation Club B and are now 7 points behind Lockwood Con B. Ironically, both teams have the same opponents in their final two matches - Huddersfield RUFC and Holmfirth - who are the two form teams in the Division at present. Not good news for either of the strugglers.