Winter League
Preview of the Division 7 fixtures scheduled for Monday 17 February at Lockwood Park RUFC
Monday 17 February is the last day of the 2024-25 Winter League season with the final set of Division 7 fixtures being played at Lockwood Park the home of Huddersfield RUFC. This season has been the hardest hit of any of our five seasons in existence with snow causing fixture postponements in November and January with a prolonged freezing period after the January snow extending the impact. Lockwood Park has been the hardest hit of any of the eight host clubs as regarding days lost to the weather.
It should be quite simple. We have a 14-week League season for all eight of our divisions. The host clubs select their own season start dates based on what end of the Summer season work maintenance programme they have planned for their green. That has always worked well and the milder winters we have experienced over those five years has usually permitted a mid-February end to fixtures. Even when we have had 9 teams in a division extending the season to 18 weeks clubs have always managed to draw the season to a close by the end of February at the latest.
Lockwood Park has been the worse affected green this year with 20 match days needed to complete the Division 7 fixture programme. Six of those matchdays resulted in postponements. Fortunately the season started early at the RUFC and they still managed a mid-February conclusion to the season.
Comparisons are inevitable with the experience of the Netherton Con green just 5 minutes drive down the road and playing on the same Thursdays as at the RUFC. Whereas Lockwood Park has seen 6 postponed matchdays this season, Netherton Con has only suffered 4 such postponements over the course of the season, still the most ever at Netherton over their 3 years in the League.
Is Netherton in a different climate zone to Lockwood Park? Probably not but those of us who tend to visit both venues on the same matchdays can notice a difference in temperatures on a regular basis. The trees and buildings around the RUFC green tend to produce more shade than that encountered at Netherton which in turn delays the green's recovery after a hard overnight frost.
The Lockwood Park green is maintained by professional on-site greenkeppers who also manage the rugby pitches and extensive open fields in the complex. I recall when we first met with the club and their greenkeeper to discuss the club becoming a host green in the League the greenkeeper was adamant that he foresaw no problems with using the green during the winter months as long as it was never played on after a hard frost. He has maintaned that stance ever since and like all the eight host greens it is the greenkeeper's call when matches are postponed.
Hopefully the green will pass any inspection on Monday to allow the season to finish on a high with an interesting set of Division 7 fixtures focused on the race for the second promotion place. Three teams remain in contention all with 62 points and only seperated by 714-712-681 'Aggregate For' diferences. Hanging Heaton B are in prime position and will face the homesters from Huddersfield RUFC who haven't won a match since the first week in November, a run of eight winless matches after sitting top of the table before that sequence started.
Kirkheaton Con B are next in the frame and face a final day match against the Division 7 Champions, Cowcliffe B, who will be keen to extend their 20-points lead over the chasing pack. The two teams met in January where a 4-4 draw was the outcome and was in the middle of a 10-match run of matches for the Yetton boys which saw only one defeat (surprisingly to Meltham B).
Marsh Lib are the third promotion contenders but cannot afford to rely on a better 'Aggregate For' total to enhance their chances as they are 33 points off the pace so will need to aim for a 8-0 win over Meltham B if they are to feature in the honours list at all. It is going to be an intriguing end day to the season with teams watching their rivals results as closely as their own.
Not forgetting the matter of pride of avoiding the Division 7 wooden spoon as the bottom two teams go head-to-head to steer clear of that status. Broad Oak A have a 4 points lead over Lockwood Con B where only an 8-0 win for the Lockwood team can reverse the current standings. That means that there is something at stake in all four final day fixtures which augers well for a warmly contested end day to a fragmented but thoroughly enjoyable season at Lockwood Park.
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