Bassetlaw Bulldogs Rugby League Football Club

Bassetlaw Bulldogs Rugby League Football Club is a rugby league team based in Nottinghamshire, England. It is one of only three rugby league teams in the county.
The club operates outside the traditional heartland areas of rugby league (namely the North of England) and is a member of the Midlands Rugby League.
As the club was initially established as a junior club, and continues to run a range of teams across all junior age groups alongside its newer open-age team, Bassetlaw Bulldogs RLFC engages in a long-term sponsorship deal with Focus on Young People in Bassetlaw, a charity championing the development of young people across the district. The club's Youth and Masters teams are sponsored by Ballards Removals.https://www.ballards-move.co.uk/blog/ballards-backs-the-bulldogs/
==Facilities==
Games are played at the home ground, Queen Elizabeth II Playing Field, East Markham. The club have been pivotal in improving the facilities at the ground and in June 2022, a new Sports Pavilion was opened following a fundraising effort which saw £200,000 invested in the project. The facility includes changing rooms for players and match officials, a communal area and toilets.
The record, capacity crowd of 500 was achieved in May 2023 when the club hosted the Midlands Rugby League Junior Festival.
==History and notable firsts==
The club was founded in 2018 by Phil Abbott, a long-time servant of the community game, having previously co-founded Brentwood RLFC in Essex in 2004.
Bassetlaw Bulldogs RLFC is unique in that, despite its relatively young age, it has provided a number of firsts in the game of rugby league. In June 2018, alongside fellow Midlands Rugby League members, Immingham Wasps, the club played the first ever Player Development League fixture in England as part of the Rugby Football League's sport expansion plan.
Furthermore, the Bulldogs club is the only Nottinghamshire-based team who are affiliated with Super League team Wakefield Trinity, with whom they hold Ambassador Club status.
In 2023, a further notable first came in the shape of the inception of an U13s girls team, who became the only Nottinghamshire-based girls team to play in a formal national league, administrated by the Rugby Football League. On 1st July 2023, the team became the first from outside the traditional rugby league heartlands to win a game in the National League (East Division B) when they beat Batley Girls by 32-30.
==Club Development==
Since its establishment in 2018, the club has grown at a strong rate. This growth was stunted by the Covid-19 pandemic, which brought disruption to all sport through lockdowns and restrictions, however this did not stop the club pushing forward with its activity when allowed.
In August 2023, the club introduced its 8th different team, with the inception of an over-35s Masters Rugby League team.
 Team development over time
- 	2018	2019	2020	2021	2022	2023
U7 	- 	- 	Yes 	Yes 	Yes 	Yes
U9 	Yes 	Yes 	Yes 	Yes 	Yes 	Yes
U11 	Yes 	Yes 	Yes 	Yes 	Yes 	Yes
U13 	- 	Yes 	Yes 	Yes 	Yes 	Yes
U13 Girls	- 	- 	- 	- 	Yes 	Yes
U14/15 	- 	- 	- 	- 	Yes 	Yes
X-League 	- 	- 	- 	- 	Yes 	Yes
Masters 	- 	- 	- 	- 	- 	Yes
==Results and tables==
 Girls U13s
East Division B
2023 Season
Date 	Result 	Opposition
18th March 	L 66-18	West Leeds Eagles (A)
25th March 	L 36-16	Bentley (H)
15th April 	L 42-10	Farnley Falcons (H)
21st April 	L 26-10	East Leeds (A)
13th May 	L 54-4 	Heworth (H)
3rd June 	L 44-18	Stanningley (A)
21st June 	L 20-24	Wetherby Bulldogs (H)
24th June 	L 32-18	Bentley (A)
1st July 	W 32-30	Batley (H)
8th July 	L 70-26	Farnley Falcons (A)
15th July 	L 24-0 	Batley (A)
19th August	W 44-20	West Leeds Eagles (H)
 East Division B Table - 2023
Position	Team 	P 	W 	L 	D	PF 	PA 	Diff	Pts
1 	Heworth 	12	11	1 	0	386	88 	+298	22
2 	Stanningley 	12	10	2 	0	362	166	+196	20
3 	Farnley Falcons 	12	9 	3 	0	378	182	+196	18
4 	Batley 	12	7 	5 	0	298	192	+106	14
5 	Bentley 	12	7 	5 	0	256	172	+84 	14
6 	Wetherby Bulldogs 	12	5 	7 	0	220	278	-58 	10
7 	East Leeds 	12	2 	10	0	126	352	-226	4
8 	Bassetlaw Bulldogs	12	2 	10	0	216	468	-252	4
9 	West Leeds Eagles 	12	1 	11	0	160	504	-344	2
Category:Football teams
Category:Rugby league teams
Category:Rugby league teams in Nottinghamshire
Category:Rugby clubs established in 2018