The 2009 RFL Championship (known as the Co-operative Championship for sponsorship reasons) was the 1st season of the RFL Championship under its current name and the 42nd season under its current league status.
There was no automatic promotion to Super League due to licensing being used. Qualifying for the Grand Final is a prerequisite for Championship clubs to be able to apply for license in the next round of applications for the 2012–14 period.
The Grand Final was won by Barrow Raiders, who also won the League leaders Shield, beating Halifax 26-18.
Toulouse Olympique were exempt from relegation meaning Leigh Centurions were relegated along with bottom placed Doncaster. Following the completion of the season, Gateshead Thunder were eliminated following salary cap breaches and subsequently relegated, meaning Leigh Centurions retained their place in the Championship.
Table
Play-offs Eliminators HomeScoreAwayMatch InformationDate and TimeVenueRefereeAttendance Widnes Vikings26 – 21 Whitehaven10 September, 19:30 GMTStobart Stadium 2,375 Sheffield Eagles8 – 32 Featherstone Rovers11 September, 20:00 GMTDon Valley Stadium 808 Semi finals HomeScoreAwayMatch InformationDate and TimeVenueRefereeAttendance Barrow Raiders 35 – 12 Halifax17 September, 19:30 GMTCraven Park Thierry Alibert 2823 Widnes Vikings 24 – 32 Featherstone Rovers18 September, 20:00 GMTStobart Stadium Ben Thaler 3,296 Elimination final HomeScoreAwayMatch InformationDate and TimeVenueRefereeAttendance Halifax 36 – 30 Featherstone Rovers24 September, 19:30 GMTShay Stadium Ian Smith 2,556
Grand Final
HomeScoreAwayMatch InformationDate and TimeVenueRefereeAttendance Barrow Raiders 26 – 18 Halifax4 October, 17:30Halliwell Jones Stadium P Bentham 11,398
Team bracket
Source:
Statistics The following are the top points scorers in the 2009 Championship season. Statistics include points scored in both league and play-off appearances.
Most tries Player Team Tries James Nixon Barrow Raiders 26 Jermaine McGillvary Batley Bulldogs 20 Shad Royston Halifax 20 Gregg McNally Whitehaven 19 Paddy Flynn Widnes Vikings 18 Ian Hardman Featherstone Rovers 16 Ben McAlpine Gateshead Thunder 15 Nick Youngquest Gateshead Thunder 15 Craig Calvert Batley Bulldogs 15 Luke Branighan Barrow Raiders 13 Rob Worrincy Widnes Vikings 13
Most goals (excluding drop goals) Player Team Goals Lee Patterson Halifax 106 Jonny Woodcock Sheffield Eagles 85 Michael Knowles Gateshead Thunder 84 Nathan Wynn Toulouse Olympique 76 Stuart Dickens Featherstone Rovers 65 Gregg McNally Whitehaven 65 Ian Mort Leigh Centurions 52 Paul Mennell Batley Bulldogs 50 Jamie Rooney Barrow Raiders 44 Tim Hartley Widnes Vikings 42
Attendances
TeamPlayedHighestLowestTotalAverage1 Widnes Vikings125,2362,37543,7523,6462 Halifax113,2742,00225,8122,3473 Barrow Raiders113,0501,69325,3262,3024 Toulouse Olympique103,2061,20021,7882,1795 Leigh Centurions102,7211,39419,8431,9846 Featherstone Rovers102,6731,34618,0841,8087 Whitehaven102,7081,17516,6981,6708 Sheffield Eagles111,45780912,5461,1419 Batley Bulldogs101,4305808,95289510 Doncaster101,0962756,69366911 Gateshead Thunder101,0334056,470647 Total11511,398275217,3621,874
Rugby League Crowds - 2009 Co-operative Champs
See also Co-operative Championship 2009 Championship 1 British rugby league system Super League Rugby League Conference Northern Ford Premiership National League Cup
Team season articles 2009 Widnes Vikings season 2009 Toulouse Olympique season 2009 Whitehaven RLFC season 2009 Featherstone Rovers season 2009 Barrow Raiders season
References
External links Official Championship website RFL Championship coverage Scores from Sky Sports RugbyLeague.org Championship Fans Forums
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