2016 County Championship Shield

The 2016 County Championship Shield was the 12th version of the annual English rugby union County Championship, organised by the RFU for the tier 3 English counties. Each county drew its players from rugby union clubs from the fifth tier and below of the English rugby union league system. The counties were divided into three pools - one pool with four teams, the others with three teams each, with the winner of each group plus the best runner-up going through to the semi-finals, and the winners of those games meeting in the final held at Twickenham Stadium. Due to competition changes for the 2017 season (more on this below) a number of teams in the division would be promoted to tier 2 for the following season, joining the 2015 Shield champions Leicestershire who had already been promoted at the start of this season.[1][2]

For the first tier of the English Counties competition, see 2016 Bill Beaumont Cup. For the second tier of the English Counties competition, see 2016 County Championship Plate.
2016 County Championship Shield
Countries England
Date30 April 2016 - 29 May 2016
ChampionsHampshire (2nd title)
Runners-upStaffordshire

After winning their respective pools and semi-final games, Staffordshire and Hampshire met in the final. In the end it was Hampshire who finished as the champions, defeating Staffordshire, 33-11.[3]

Competition format

The competition format consisted of three groups (one with four teams, two with three teams), based roughly on regional lines where possible. The four team group consisted of six games, with two teams playing two home games and the others one home game each, while the three team groups saw each team play one home game. The top side of each group automatically qualified for the semi-finals, as did the best group runner-up. The winners of the semi-finals met in the final at Twickenham Stadium held on 29 May 2016. Due to changes to the County Championship format for the 2017 competition, four teams from the division would end up being promoted to the tier 2 for the following season, based on performances in the Shield over the past couple of seasons.[1]

Participating counties and ground locations
Sonning (Berks)
Aylesbury (Bucs)
Aspatria (Cumbria)
Waltham Forest(Essex)
Newham (Essex)
Wootton Bassett (D&W)
Gosport (Hamps)
Mansfield (NLD)
Banbury (Oxon)
Leek (Staffs)
Rugby (Warks)
Locations of the 2016 County Championship Shield county teams
County Stadium(s) Capacity City/Area
Berkshire Holme Park N/A Sonning, Reading, Berkshire
Buckinghamshire Ostler's Field N/A Aylesbury, Buckinghamshire
Cumbria Bower Park N/A Aspatria, Cumbria
Dorset & Wilts Ballard’s Ash Sports Ground N/A Wootton Bassett, Wiltshire
Essex Memorial Park
The New Wilderness		 N/A
N/A		 Newham, Greater London
Redbridge, Greater London
Hampshire Gosport Park N/A Gosport, Hampshire
Notts, Lincs & Derbyshire Eakring Road 1,000 Mansfield, Nottinghamshire
Oxfordshire Bodicote Park N/A Banbury, Oxfordshire
Staffordshire Esterchem Park N/A Leek, Staffordshire
Warwickshire Webb Ellis Road 1,000 Rugby, Warwickshire

Group stage

Pool 1
2016 County Championship Shield Pool 1 Table
County Played Won Drawn Lost Points For Points Against Points Difference Try Bonus Losing Bonus Points
1Buckinghamshire (Q)32109972272012
2Warwickshire (Q)3210898182012
3Essex31027175-4116
4Oxfordshire300378109-31112
  • If teams were level at any stage, tiebreakers were applied in the following order:
  1. Number of matches won
  2. Difference between points for and against
  3. Total number of points for
  4. Aggregate number of points scored in matches between tied teams
  5. Number of matches won excluding the first match, then the second and so on until the tie is settled
Green background means the county qualified for the Shield semi finals. Updated: 14 May 2016
Source: "County Championships". englandrugby.com.

Round 1
15:00
(BP) Warwickshire 27 - 21 Oxfordshire (BP)
Report
Webb Ellis Road, Rugby[4]
15:00
Buckinghamshire 20 - 8 Essex
Report
Ostler's Field, Aylesbury

[5]

Round 2
7 May 2016
15:00
(BP) Essex 22 - 24 Warwickshire
Report
Memorial Park, Newham, Greater London
7 May 2016
15:00
Oxfordshire 26 - 41 Buckinghamshire (BP)
Bodicote Park, Banbury

[6]

Round 3
14 May 2016
15:00
(BP) Essex 41 - 31 Oxfordshire (BP)
The New Wilderness, Waltham Forest, Greater London
14 May 2016
15:00
(BP) Warwickshire 38 - 38 Buckinghamshire (BP)
Webb Ellis Road, Rugby

[7]

Pool 2
2016 County Championship Shield Pool 2 Table
County Played Won Drawn Lost Points For Points Against Points Difference Try Bonus Losing Bonus Points
1Staffordshire (Q)2200685117109
2Notts, Lincs & Derbyshire210152502105
3Cumbria20026383-20202
  • If teams were level at any stage, tiebreakers were applied in the following order:
  1. Number of matches won
  2. Difference between points for and against
  3. Total number of points for
  4. Aggregate number of points scored in matches between tied teams
  5. Number of matches won excluding the first match, then the second and so on until the tie is settled
Green background means the county qualified for the Shield semi finals. Updated: 14 May 2016
Source: "County Championships". englandrugby.com.

    Round 1
    30 April 2016
    Staffordshire 23 - 15 Notts, Lincs & Derbyshire
    Report
    Esterchem Park, Leek

    [5]

    Round 2
    7 May 2016
    15:00
    (BP) Notts, Lincs & Derbyshire 37 - 27 Cumbria (BP)
    Eakring Road, Mansfield

    [6]

    Round 3
    14 May 2016
    15:00
    (BP) Cumbria 36 - 45 Staffordshire (BP)
    Bower Park, Aspatria

    [7]

    Pool 3
    2016 County Championship Shield Pool 3 Table
    County Played Won Drawn Lost Points For Points Against Points Difference Try Bonus Losing Bonus Points
    1Hampshire (Q)22009013772010
    2Berkshire21013560-25105
    2Dorset & Wilts20022779-52000
    • If teams were level at any stage, tiebreakers were applied in the following order:
    1. Number of matches won
    2. Difference between points for and against
    3. Total number of points for
    4. Aggregate number of points scored in matches between tied teams
    5. Number of matches won excluding the first match, then the second and so on until the tie is settled
    Green background means the county qualified for the Shield semi finals. Updated: 14 May 2016
    Source: "County Championships". englandrugby.com.

      Round 1
      30 April 2016
      15:00
      (BP) Hampshire 44 - 13 Dorset & Wilts
      Report
      Gosport Park, Gosport

      [5]

      Round 2
      7 May 2016
      13:00
      Berkshire 0 - 46 Hampshire (BP)
      Holme Park, Reading

      [6]

      Round 3
      14 May 2016
      15:00
      Dorset & Wilts 14 - 35 Berkshire (BP)
      Ballard’s Ash Sports Ground, Wootton Bassett

      [7]

      Knock-out Stage

      Semi-finals
      21 May 2016
      15:00
      Warwickshire 15 - 23 Hampshire
      Webb Ellis Road, Rugby[8]
      21 May 2016
      15:00
      Staffordshire 6 - 3 Buckinghamshire
      Esterchem Park, Leek[9]

      [10]

      Final
      29 May 2016
      Hampshire 33 - 11 Staffordshire
      Twickenham Stadium, Twickenham, Greater London
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      See also

      References
      1. "Full Men's County Championship fixture list 2016-17" (PDF). England Rugby. Archived from the original (PDF) on 6 September 2017. Retrieved 11 December 2016.
      2. "Rugby: Leicestershire lift County Championship Shield after win over Cumbria at Twickenham". Leicester Mercury. 1 June 2015. Archived from the original on 2015-06-03. Retrieved 2016-05-05.
      3. "Staffordshire beaten by Hampshire in County Shield final at Twickenham". Staffordshire Newsletter. 29 May 2016.
      4. "Warwickshire RFU". Rugby Network. 26 April 2016.
      5. "County Championships". England Rugby. 30 April 2016.
      6. "County Championships". England Rugby. 7 May 2016.
      7. "Bill Beaumont Cup". The RUGBYPaper (400). Rugby Paper Ltd. 15 May 2016. pp. 31 & 36.
      8. "COUNTY CHAMPIONSHIP SHIELD SEMI FINAL". Warwickshire RFU. 21 May 2016.
      9. "Staffordshire v Buckinghamshire on 21 May 2016". Staffordshire RFU. 20 May 2016.
      10. "Bill Beaumont Cup". The RUGBYPaper (401). Rugby Paper Ltd. 22 May 2016. pp. 30-31 & 32.
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