The East Rugby League (East RL) is a tier 5 amateur rugby league competition structure with sides from the East of England. It was previously the East Division of the Rugby League Conference, which was set up in 1997. Structure The East Rugby League consists of three divisions of competition. Premier, Division 1 and Entry league. The East Premier was set up for the 2013 season with an East Entry League below this for emerging clubs and second teams. 2013 is also the inaugural year for the East Cup. The competition operates for all tier 4 clubs in the Eastern Counties of England. (Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire, Essex, Hertfordshire, Norfolk & Suffolk) In 2014, a new division between the Premier and Entry level was formed and named East Division 1. It provides a more structured level for teams who cannot compete with the standard of the established East Premier. Promotion and relegation between the two competitions begins in 2015. History The Rugby League Conference was founded in 1997 as the Southern Conference, a 10-team pilot league for teams in the South of England and the English Midlands. The initial line-up of divisions included an Eastern Division and this has been a feature of the Conference ever since. The Premier Divisions were set up in 2005 for teams who had achieved a certain playing standard and were able to travel further afield to find stronger opposition. The Eastern Division became the East Division in 2009. The RFL restructured amateur rugby league in 2012 and the Eastern region became rebranded as the "East RL" Community game pyramid National Conference League Conference League South East Premier League East Division 1 East Entry League The East Merit League is the lowest level on the pyramid for clubs in the East of England. Representative Side From 2015, the East will have a representative side at the end of each season. The side will be made up of the best players from clubs within the East RL. They are likely to play other representative sides from other regions as well as services such as the Police, Fire brigade, Army etc. Participating teams by season Eastern Division (1997-2008) 1997: Bedford Swifts, Ipswich Rhinos, Kingston, North London Skolars, West London 1998: Bedford Swifts, Cambridge Eagles, Ipswich Rhinos, Northampton (failed to start season), South Norfolk Saints 1999: Bedford Swifts, Cambridge Eagles, Hemel Stags, Ipswich Rhinos, South Norfolk Saints 2000: Bedford Swifts,