THE East Coast Rugby League region will divide into northern and southern divisions early in 2022.
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East Coast takes in Groups Two and Three along with the Northern Rivers Region Rugby League (NRRRL).
Group Three chairman Wayne Bridge said Groups Two and Three would again form North Coast, with the NRRL standing alone. This was outlined at the meeting of the East Coast Region and will revert to the previous system that was in place before the region was unified.
North Coast will now take in the area from Forster-Tuncurry to Grafton.
Group Three chairman Wayne Bridge said the idea is to cut down on travel for delegates.
"And issues that impact on the Northern Rivers are often totally different from those that affect us,'' Mr Bridge said.
He said delegates from Groups Two and Three will meet early this year to form a committee, although a date has yet to be fixed.
In previous years the chairmen of both groups usually stood for the divisional position, with voting split between the delegates of both groups. If all the delegates were in attendance, the vote was tied, meaning the position was decided by a draw.
Mr Bridge agreed this was farcical, believing a better system would be for the president's position to swap each year or every two years between the groups.
"This happens in other areas,'' he added.
In the days of the Country Rugby League the divisional president also held a position on the CRL board of management. However, this is no longer the case since the CRL merged with the NSW Rugby League.
However, Mr Bridge said that it is 'unlikely' that he'll seek the position. Mr Bridge has previously served as divisional president.
Meanwhile Camden Haven has applied to join the Group Three rugby league competition next season
The Eagles originally sought to play reserve grade, under 18s and women's league tag.
However Group Three chief executive Mal Drury said the Eagles have signed Willy Lockwood as coach and believe they have the players capable of fielding a competitive side in first grade. Lockwood steered Macleay Valley to the Group Three premiership in 2014, the year the club joined Group Three.
"They've been very active in chasing players," Mr Drury said.
Mr Drury added the application has been approved by the group management, however the group will also need to see player registrations to ensure the side will be competitive. This will make nine teams in first grade in 2022.
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