NFL: League confirms structure for 2020 with no club to be relegated from Division 2
An extra club will play Northern Football League finals from next year when the competition expands Division 2 to feature 10 teams.
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An extra club will play Northern Football League finals from next year when the competition expands Division 2 to feature 10 teams.
The NFL has released its competition structure for 2020, when 10 clubs will compete in Division 1 and Division 2.
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To accommodate the change, the nine Division 2 clubs will be safe from relegation this year.
They will be joined in the second tier by this year’s Division 3 premier, leaving eight teams in Division 3.
Division 2 will operate with a five-team finals series based on the same structure as Division 1.
NFL boss Peter McDougall said the 10-10-8 structure would eliminate byes from the Division 2 and 3 fixtures and allow for 18 home-and-away matches.
“The restructure provides our senior men’s competition a more cohesive model and will increase the depth in our second division,” McDougall said.
The change means promoted club St Mary’s will have two seasons to establish itself in Division 2.
The promotion-relegation model will continue in Division 1 and 2, with the bottom side in the top flight to be replaced by the second-tier premier in 2020.
Finalists Eltham, Banyule and Thomastown will vie with Epping, Whittlesea, Diamond Creek, Fitzroy Stars, Watsonia and St Mary’s for this year’s Division 2 flag.
The campaign starts on Saturday, April 6 with Epping hosting Whittlesea, Thomastown at home against Eltham, Fitzroy Stars tackling Diamond Creek and Watsonia facing St Mary’s.
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