Current season or competition: 2025–26 Counties 1 Durham & Northumberland | |
| Sport | Rugby union |
|---|---|
| Instituted | 1987; 38 years ago (1987) |
| Number of teams | 12 |
| Country | England |
| Holders | Sunderland (1st title) (2024–25) |
| Most titles | Horden(4 titles) |
| Website | Website |
| Related competition | Counties 1 Yorkshire |
| Promotion to | Regional 2 North |
| Relegation to | Counties 2 Durham & Northumberland |
Counties 1 Durham & Northumberland, formerly known asDurham/Northumberland 1 is an English amateurrugby union competition. The league consists of twelve clubs, and is in theseventh tier of the English rugby union system; one of the sixteen regional leagues and is the highest level of local rugby inNorth East England. The champions are promoted toRegional 2 North, a division with a wider geographical area that also encompasses theYorkshire region. The last two clubs are relegated toCounties 2 Durham & Northumberland.
Each season, two teams from the league are selected to take part in theRFU Intermediate Cup, a national competition for clubs in the seventh tier: one is affiliated with theDurham County RFU, the other is affiliated with theNorthumberland RFU.
Well known clubs have competed in Durham/Northumberland 1 throughout the league's history. Many of these clubs enjoyed success, mainly during the amateur era of rugby. These includeGosforth RFC who in the '70s enjoyed success, winning theJohn Player Cup in 1975–76 and 76–77;West Hartlepool who played in the Premiership in the 1990s;Northern who produced many international players; andMedicals, who have the rare distinction of having been the home club of twoRFU Presidents. Clubs such asAlnwick RFC, Stockton RFC and Horden RFC have traditionally played in higher leagues and tend to finish towards the top of Durham/Northumberland 1.
The champions are promoted toRegional 2 North. Teams are relegated toCounties 2 Durham & Northumberland; with the number of teams relegated depending on feedback following promotion and relegation in the leagues above.
The season runs from September to April and comprises twenty-two rounds of matches, with each club playing each of its rivals, home and away. The results of the matches contribute points to the league as follows:
Leaving the league were Sunderland promoted toRegional 2 North whileWhitley Bay Rockcliff were relegated toCounties 2 Durham & Northumberland.
|  Locations of the 2025–26 Durham/Northumberland 1 teams
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Leaving the league were Guisborough promoted toRegional 2 North whileSouth Shields Westoe andHartlepool Rovers were relegated toDN2. Replacing them wereStockton (relegated),Darlington andHorden and Peterlee (both promoted).
| Locations of the 2024–25 Durham/Northumberland 1 teams
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| Played | Won | Drawn | Lost | Points for | Points against | Points diff | Try bonus | Loss bonus | Points | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Sunderland(P) | 22 | 22 | 0 | 0 | 918 | 382 | 536 | 19 | 0 | 107 | ||||
| 2 | Novocastrians | 22 | 15 | 1 | 6 | 786 | 435 | 351 | 16 | 4 | 82 | ||||
| 3 | Peterlee & Horden | 22 | 16 | 1 | 5 | 734 | 536 | 198 | 14 | 1 | 81 | ||||
| 4 | Medicals | 22 | 15 | 0 | 7 | 851 | 500 | 351 | 17 | 4 | 81 | ||||
| 5 | Stockton | 22 | 12 | 1 | 9 | 635 | 615 | 20 | 11 | 3 | 64 | ||||
| 6 | Ponteland | 22 | 9 | 3 | 10 | 581 | 692 | −111 | 12 | 3 | 57 | ||||
| 7 | Ryton | 22 | 9 | 0 | 13 | 597 | 588 | 9 | 11 | 2 | 49 | ||||
| 8 | Darlington | 22 | 9 | 0 | 13 | 500 | 751 | −251 | 8 | 4 | 48 | ||||
| 9 | Acklam | 22 | 7 | 1 | 14 | 537 | 653 | −116 | 9 | 6 | 45 | ||||
| 10 | Bishop Auckland | 22 | 7 | 0 | 15 | 536 | 626 | −90 | 9 | 4 | 41 | ||||
| 11 | Hartlepool | 22 | 5 | 1 | 16 | 483 | 807 | −324 | 6 | 1 | 29 | ||||
| 12 | Whitley Bay Rockcliff | 22 | 2 | 0 | 20 | 397 | 970 | −573 | 6 | 4 | 18 | ||||
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| Green background is the promotion placePink background are the relegation places Updated: 22 November 2025 | |||||||||||||||
Leaving the league wereWest Hartlepool promoted toRegional 2 North whileDarlington andHorden and Peterlee were relegated toDN2. Replacing them wereSouth Shields Westoe (relegated), Bishop Auckland and Ryton (both promoted).
| Locations of the 2023–24 Durham/Northumberland 1 teams
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| Played | Won | Drawn | Lost | Points for | Points against | Points diff | Try bonus | Loss bonus | Points | Pts adj | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Guisborough(P) | 22 | 18 | 0 | 4 | 723 | 390 | 333 | 15 | 0 | 87 | 0 | |||
| 2 | Sunderland | 22 | 17 | 0 | 5 | 759 | 359 | 400 | 15 | 4 | 87 | 0 | |||
| 3 | Novocastrians | 22 | 18 | 0 | 4 | 767 | 467 | 300 | 16 | 2 | 85 | −5 | |||
| 4 | Medicals | 22 | 14 | 0 | 8 | 586 | 480 | 106 | 11 | 3 | 70 | 0 | |||
| 5 | Ryton | 22 | 12 | 0 | 10 | 708 | 459 | 249 | 10 | 6 | 64 | 0 | |||
| 6 | Acklam | 22 | 9 | 0 | 13 | 605 | 785 | −180 | 15 | 1 | 53 | +1 | |||
| 7 | Bishop Auckland | 22 | 9 | 0 | 13 | 551 | 553 | −2 | 11 | 4 | 51 | 0 | |||
| 8 | Ponteland | 22 | 10 | 0 | 12 | 599 | 545 | 54 | 12 | 3 | 50 | −5 | |||
| 9 | Hartlepool | 22 | 10 | 0 | 12 | 450 | 673 | −223 | 9 | 1 | 50 | 0 | |||
| 10 | Whitley Bay Rockcliff | 22 | 7 | 0 | 15 | 527 | 817 | −290 | 10 | 3 | 41 | 0 | |||
| 11 | Hartlepool Rovers(R) | 22 | 8 | 0 | 14 | 494 | 556 | −62 | 5 | 3 | 40 | 0 | |||
| 12 | South Shields Westoe(R) | 22 | 0 | 0 | 22 | 260 | 945 | −685 | 2 | 4 | 6 | 0 | |||
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| Green background is the promotion placePink background are the relegation places Updated: 20 November 2025 | |||||||||||||||
Leaving the league werePercy Park,Northern,South Shields Westoe,Stockton andAspatria who were all promoted toRegional 2 North. There was no relegation.
| Locations of the 2022–23 Durham/Northumberland 1 teams
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| Played | Won | Drawn | Lost | Points for | Points against | Points diff | Try bonus | Loss bonus | Points | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | West Hartlepool(P) | 22 | 22 | 0 | 0 | 781 | 302 | 479 | 16 | 0 | 105 | ||||
| 2 | Sunderland | 22 | 17 | 0 | 5 | 797 | 396 | 401 | 15 | 2 | 85 | ||||
| 3 | Medicals | 22 | 15 | 1 | 6 | 673 | 339 | 334 | 15 | 3 | 80 | ||||
| 4 | Ponteland | 22 | 12 | 0 | 10 | 532 | 506 | 26 | 12 | 2 | 62 | ||||
| 5 | Guisborough | 22 | 10 | 0 | 12 | 531 | 473 | 58 | 9 | 6 | 55 | ||||
| 6 | Whitley Bay Rockcliff | 22 | 11 | 0 | 11 | 467 | 454 | 13 | 7 | 2 | 53 | ||||
| 7 | Hartlepool | 22 | 10 | 1 | 11 | 445 | 486 | −41 | 7 | 3 | 52 | ||||
| 8 | Acklam | 22 | 10 | 0 | 12 | 544 | 596 | −52 | 10 | 2 | 52 | ||||
| 9 | Hartlepool Rovers | 22 | 10 | 0 | 12 | 463 | 625 | −162 | 8 | 2 | 50 | ||||
| 10 | Novocastrians | 22 | 7 | 0 | 15 | 379 | 574 | −195 | 6 | 1 | 35 | ||||
| 11 | Darlington(R) | 22 | 4 | 0 | 18 | 362 | 611 | −249 | 4 | 4 | 24 | ||||
| 12 | Horden & Peterlee(R) | 22 | 3 | 0 | 19 | 278 | 890 | −612 | 3 | 1 | 16 | ||||
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| Green background is the promotion placePink background are the relegation places Updated: 17 November 2025 | |||||||||||||||
Middlesbrough finished runners-up in DN1 in 2019–20 but were level transferred toYorkshire 1 for the current season, the space was taken byAspatria RUFC who were level transferred fromNorth 2 West.
The teams competing in 2021–22 achieved their places in the league based on performances in 2019–20, the 'previous season' column in the table below refers to that season, not 2020–21.
Locations of the 2021–22 Durham/Northumberland 1 teams in Tyne & Wear Locations of the 2021–22 Durham/Northumberland 1 teams in County Durham, North Yorkshire & Cumbria
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On 30 October 2020 the RFU announced that due to thecoronavirus pandemic a decision had been taken to cancel Adult Competitive Leagues (National League 1 and below) for the 2020–21 season meaning DN1 was not contested.[4]
When league rugby began in 1987 this division contained the following teams:
The original Durham/Northumberland 1 was a tier 9 league with promotion toNorth East 2 and relegation toDurham/Northumberland 2.
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| Season | No of teams | Champions | Runners–up | Relegated teams | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1987–88 | 11 | Blyth | Rockcliff | Percy Park | ||||||||||
| 1988–89 | 11 | Rockcliff | Mowden Park | Winlanton Vulcans | ||||||||||
| 1989–90 | 11 | Ashington | Horden | Ponteland,Hartlepool | ||||||||||
| 1990–91 | 11 | Redcar | Horden | Whitby | ||||||||||
| 1991–92 | 11 | Horden | Acklam[a] | No relegation[b] | ||||||||||
| 1992–93 | 13 | Whitby | Darlington | Seghill,Hartlepool | ||||||||||
| Green backgrounds are promotion places. | ||||||||||||||
The creation ofNational 5 North for the 1993–94 season meant that Durham/Northumberland 1 dropped to tier 10. A further restructure at the end of the 1995–96 season, which included the cancellation of National 5 North and the addition ofNorth East 3 at tier 9, saw Durham/Northumberland 1 remain at tier 10 with promotion to the new North 3 East league.
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| Season | No of teams | Champions | Runners–up | Relegated teams | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1993–94 | 13 | Mowden Park | Darlington | Consett,Seaham | ||||||||||
| 1994–95 | 13 | Percy Park | Sunderland | Wallsend,Guisborough | ||||||||||
| 1995–96 | 12 | Darlington | Sunderland | North Durham,Ponteland | ||||||||||
| 1996–97 | 10 | West Hartlepool TDSOB | Ryton | Hartlepool,Guisborough,Novocastrians | ||||||||||
| 1997–98 | 10 | Ryton | Acklam | North Durham[c],Bishop Auckland | ||||||||||
| 1998–99[5] | 10 | Medicals | Acklam | Blyth, North Shields | ||||||||||
| 1999–00[6] | 10 | Consett | Winlaton Vulcans | Seghill,Novocastrians,Whitley Bay Rockcliff | ||||||||||
| Green backgrounds are promotion places. | ||||||||||||||
Northern league restructuring by theRFU at the end of the 1999–2000 season saw the cancellation ofNorth East 1,North East 2 andNorth East 3 (tiers 7–9). This meant that Durham/Northumberland 1 became a tier 7 league, with promotion toNorth 2 East (also known as North 1 East).
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| Season | No of teams | Champions | Runners–up | Relegated teams | Ref | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000–01 | 12 | Westoe | Durham City | Medicals | [7] | |||||||||
| 2001–02 | 12 | Horden | Ashington | Winlaton Vulcans,Consett | [8] | |||||||||
| 2002–03 | 12 | Northern | Hartlepool Rovers | Ryton,Gosforth | [9] | |||||||||
| 2003–04 | 12 | Hartlepool Rovers | Alnwick | Houghton,Gateshead | [10] | |||||||||
| 2004–05 | 12 | Percy Park | Durham City | Ashington,Hartlepool | [11] | |||||||||
| 2005–06 | 12 | Horden | Malton and Norton | Acklam,West Hartlepool T.D.S.O.B. | [12] | |||||||||
| 2006–07 | 12 | Gateshead | Sunderland | North Shields,Consett,Gosforth | [13] | |||||||||
| 2007–08 | 12 | Billingham | Northern | West Hartlepool T.D.S.O.B.,Ponteland | [14] | |||||||||
| 2008–09 | 12 | Hartlepool Rovers | Percy Park | No relegation[d] | [15] | |||||||||
| 2009–10 | 14 | Northern | Team Northumbria | Consett,Hartlepool | [16] | |||||||||
| 2010–11 | 14 | Gateshead | Darlington | Redcar,Wallsend | [17] | |||||||||
| 2011–12 | 14 | Darlington | Alnwick | Novocastrians,Ashington | [18] | |||||||||
| 2012–13 | 14 | Alnwick | Guisborough | Sunderland,Ryton | [19] | |||||||||
| 2013–14 | 14 | Horden | Guisborough | Bishop Auckland,Ponteland | [20] | |||||||||
| 2014–15 | 14 | Guisborough | Morpeth | Sunderland, Blyth | [21] | |||||||||
| 2015–16 | 14 | Durham City | Middlesbrough | Darlington,Ponteland | [22] | |||||||||
| 2016–17 | 14 | Northern | South Shields Westoe | Ryton,Hartlepool | [23] | |||||||||
| 2017–18 | 14 | Consett | Durham City | Redcar,Gosforth | [24] | |||||||||
| 2018–19 | 14 | Durham City | West Hartlepool | Whitby,Ponteland | [25] | |||||||||
| 2019–20 | 14 | Consett | Middlesbrough | Barnard Castle, North Shields,Gateshead | [26] | |||||||||
| 2020–21 | 14 | Cancelled due toCOVID-19 pandemic in the United Kingdom. | ||||||||||||
| 2021–22 | 14 | Percy Park | Northern | No relegation | [27] | |||||||||
| Green backgrounds are promotion places. | ||||||||||||||
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| Season | No of teams | Champions | Runners–up | Relegated teams | Ref | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2022–23 | 12 | West Hartlepool | Sunderland | Darlington (11th) andHorden (12th) | [3] | ||||||||
| 2023–24 | 12 | Guisborough | Sunderland | Hartlepool Rovers (11th) andSouth Shields Westoe (12th) | [2] | ||||||||
| 2024–25 | 12 | Sunderland | Novocastrians | Rockcliff (12th) | [1] | ||||||||
Since the 2000–01 season there has been a play-off between the runners-up of Durham/Northumberland 1 andYorkshire 1 for the third and final promotion place toNorth 1 East. The team with the superior league record has home advantage in the tie. At the end of the 2019–20 season Yorkshire 1 teams have been the most successful with thirteen wins to the Durham/Northumberland 1 teams six; and the home side have won ten times to the away sides nine.
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| Season | Home team | Score | Away team | Venue | Attendance | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000–01[28] | Wheatley Hills (Y) | 21-19 | Percy Park (DN)[e] | Brunel Road,Doncaster,South Yorkshire | ||||
| 2001–02[29] | Ashington (DN) | 17-23 | Scarborough (Y) | Recreation Ground,Ashington,Northumberland | ||||
| 2002–03[30] | York (Y) | 29-15 | Hartlepool Rovers (DN) | Clifton Park,York,North Yorkshire | ||||
| 2003–04[31] | Alnwick (DN) | 25-18 | Pontefract (Y) | Greensfield,Alnwick,Northumberland | ||||
| 2004–05[32] | Durham City (DN) | 26-13 | Wheatley Hills (Y) | Hollow Drift,Durham, County Durham | ||||
| 2005–06[33] | Malton and Norton (DN) | 19-39 | Old Crossleyans (Y) | The Gannock,Malton, North Yorkshire | ||||
| 2006–07[34] | Sunderland (DN) | 16-18 | York (Y) | Ashbrooke Sports Club,Ashbrooke,Sunderland,Tyne and Wear | ||||
| 2007–08[35] | Northern (DN) | 24-28 | Ilkley (Y) | McCracken Park,Gosforth,Newcastle upon Tyne,Tyne and Wear | ||||
| 2008–09[36] | Percy Park (DN) | 36-3 | Bridlington (Y) | Preston Avenue,North Shields,Tyne and Wear | ||||
| 2009–10[37] | Team Northumbria (DN) | 34-13 | Sheffield (Y) | Coach Lane Sports Ground,Benton,Newcastle upon Tyne,Tyne and Wear | ||||
| 2010–11[38] | Darlington (DN) | 17-18 | Sheffield (Y) | Blackwell Meadows,Darlington,County Durham | ||||
| 2011–12[39] | Alnwick (DN) | 16-18 | Keighley (Y) | Greensfield,Alnwick,Northumberland | ||||
| 2012–13[40] | Huddersfield Y.M.C.A. (Y) | 33-12 | Guisborough (DN) | Laund Hill,Huddersfield,West Yorkshire | ||||
| 2013–14[41] | Dinnington (Y) | 34-20 (aet) | Guisborough (DN) | Lodge Lane,Dinnington, South Yorkshire | ||||
| 2014–15[42] | Morpeth (DN) | 14-11 | Malton and Norton (Y) | Grange House Field,Morpeth, Northumberland | ||||
| 2015–16[43] | Middlesbrough (DN) | 17-25 | Malton and Norton (Y) | Acklam Park,Middlesbrough,North Yorkshire | ||||
| 2016–17[44] | South Shields Westoe (DN) | 14-19 | West Leeds (Y) | Wood Terrace,South Shields,Tyne and Wear | ||||
| 2017–18[45] | Durham City (DN) | AWO[f] | Scarborough (Y) | Hollow Drift,Durham, County Durham | ||||
| 2018–19[46] | West Hartlepool (DN) | 24-23 | Heath (Y) | Brinkburn,Hartlepool,County Durham | ||||
| 2019–20 | Cancelled due toCOVID-19 pandemic in the United Kingdom. Best ranked runner up -Heath (Y) - promoted instead. | |||||||
| 2020–21 | N/A | N/A | N/A | Uncontested due to thecoronavirus pandemic | ||||
| 2021–22 | N/A | N/A | N/A | Uncontested due theRFU Adult Competition Review | ||||
| Green background is the promoted team. DN = Durham/Northumberland 1 and Y = Yorkshire 1 | ||||||||
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