The 1998–99 National League 2 North was the twelfth full season of rugby union within the fourth tier (north) of the English league system. It is counterpart to National League 2 South, which covers the southern half of the country.
As with the previous season, the battle for the league was very competitive, with Preston Grasshoppers edging out Stourbridge by just 2 points to claim the title and only promotion spot to the 1999–00 National League 1. At the other end of the table Winnington Park, Lichfield, Hinckley were the three sides to be relegated, with newly promoted Hinckley being the most competitive of the three. Winnington Park would drop to North 1 while Lichfield and Hinckley fell to Midlands 1. The reason National League 2 North had so many relegation places compared to National League 2 South (3 to 1) was that both of the two teams relegated from the division above were based in the north of the country, requiring more places to accommodate for their arrival the following season.
Structure
Each team played home and away matches against each of the other teams, playing a total of twenty-six matches each. The league champions were promoted to National League 1 while the bottom three sides dropped to either North 1 or Midlands depending on locality.
Participating teams and locations
TeamGroundCapacityCity/AreaPrevious seasonAspatria Bower Park3,000 (300 seats) Aspatria, Cumbria9th Hinckley Leicester Road 2,000 Hinckley, Leicestershire 12thKendal Mint Bridge 4,600 (600 seats) Kendal, Cumbria 3rd Lichfield Cooke Fields 5,460 (460 seats) Lichfield, Staffordshire 14th New Brighton Hartsfield 2,000 Moreton, Merseyside Promoted from North 1 (1st)NuneatonLiberty Way3,800 (500 seats)Nuneaton, Warwickshire 7th Preston Grasshoppers Lightfoot Green 2,250 (250 seats) Preston, Lancashire 4th Sandal Milnthorpe Green Sandal Magna, Wakefield, West Yorkshire 8th Sedgley Park Park Lane 3,000 Whitefield, Greater Manchester 5th Sheffield Abbeydale Park 3,300 (100 seats) Dore, Sheffield, South Yorkshire 10th Stourbridge Stourton Park 3,500 (450 seats) Stourbridge, West Midlands 6th Walsall Broadway 2,250 (250 seats) Walsall, West Midlands 11th Whitchurch Edgeley Park Whitchurch, Shropshire Promoted from Midlands 1 (1st) Winnington Park Burrows Hill 5,000 Northwich, Cheshire 13th
League table
Sponsorship National League 2 North is part of the Jewson National Leagues is sponsored by Jewson.
See also 1998–99 Premiership 1 1998–99 Premiership 2 1998–99 National League 1 1998–99 National League 2 South
Notes
References