2018–19 División de Honor de Rugby
The 2018–19 División de Honor was the 52nd season of the top flight of the Spanish domestic rugby union competition since its inception in 1953.
| 2018–19 División de Honor | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Countries |  Spain |
| Date | 16 September 2018 - 2 June 2019 |
| Champions | Valladolid RAC |
| Runners-up | El Salvador |
| Promoted | Ciencias Sevilla CR, Independiente RC |
| Relegated | Bizkaia Gernika, CR La Vila |
| Matches played | 137 |
| Tries scored | 939 (average 6.9 per match) |
| Top point scorer | Valentin Cruz, 271 |
| Top try scorer | Juandre Kleynhans, 22 |
The championship playoffs began in May finishing with the Final on 28 May.
Valladolid won its third consecutive title, its ninth overall, after defeating local arch-rivals SilverStorm El Salvador in the Final.
Competition format
The División de Honor season takes place between September and March, with every team playing each other home and away for a total of 22 matches. Points are awarded according to the following:
- 4 points for a win
- 2 points for a draw
- 1 bonus point is awarded to a team scoring 4 tries or more in a match
- 1 bonus point is awarded to a team that loses a match by 7 points or fewer
The six teams with the highest number of points at the end of 22 rounds of matches play the championship playoffs. The top two teams win a semifinal berth automatically, while the next four teams play off to take the remaining two spots.
The club which finishes bottom is relegated, while the club that finishes 11th goes into a playoff with a team from División de Honor B.
Promotion and relegation
The bottom team in the standings is relegated to División de Honor B, while the team finishing 11th play the relegation playoff. The top team from División de Honor B is promoted to División de Honor.
Teams
El Salvador
| Team | Stadium | Capacity | City |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alcobendas | Las Terrazas | 500 | Alcobendas |
| Aparejadores | San Amaro | 1,500 | Burgos |
| Bizkaia Gernika | Urbieta | 2,500 | Gernika, Bizkaia |
| Complutense Cisneros | Estadio Complutense | 12,400 | Madrid |
| El Salvador | Pepe Rojo | 5,000 | Valladolid |
| FC Barcelona | La Teixonera | 500 | Barcelona |
| Hernani | Landare Toki | 500 | Hernani, Gipuzkoa |
| Independiente RC | San Román | 1,500 | Santander, Cantabria |
| La Vila | Campo de Rugby El Pantano | 3,000 | Villajoyosa, Valencia |
| Ordizia | Altamira | 500[1] | Ordizia, Gipuzkoa |
| Santboiana | Baldiri Aleu | 4,000 | Sant Boi de Llobregat |
| Valladolid | Pepe Rojo | 5,000 | Valladolid |
Table
| Team | P | W | D | L | F | A | +/- | TF | TA | Bon | Los | Pts | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | El Salvador | 22 | 18 | 2 | 2 | 852 | 405 | 447 | 120 | 53 | 15 | 1 | 92 |
| 2 | Valladolid | 22 | 18 | 1 | 3 | 816 | 448 | 368 | 107 | 53 | 14 | 1 | 89 |
| 3 | Alcobendas | 22 | 16 | 1 | 5 | 614 | 487 | 127 | 80 | 62 | 10 | 2 | 78 |
| 4 | Ordizia | 22 | 12 | 2 | 8 | 614 | 581 | 33 | 76 | 77 | 9 | 2 | 63 |
| 5 | Aparejadores | 22 | 11 | 0 | 11 | 612 | 654 | -42 | 80 | 86 | 12 | 3 | 59 |
| 6 | FC Barcelona | 22 | 11 | 1 | 10 | 503 | 549 | -46 | 64 | 65 | 7 | 4 | 57 |
| 7 | Santboiana | 22 | 10 | 1 | 11 | 566 | 570 | -4 | 79 | 74 | 10 | 5 | 57 |
| 8 | Independiente RC | 22 | 7 | 1 | 14 | 580 | 691 | -111 | 74 | 94 | 8 | 5 | 43 |
| 9 | Hernani CRE | 22 | 7 | 0 | 15 | 467 | 687 | -220 | 61 | 91 | 7 | 6 | 41 |
| 10 | Complutense Cisneros | 22 | 5 | 1 | 16 | 526 | 673 | -147 | 73 | 94 | 9 | 8 | 39 |
| 11 | La Vila | 22 | 6 | 0 | 16 | 471 | 661 | -190 | 61 | 92 | 7 | 7 | 38 |
| 12 | Bizkaia Gernika | 22 | 5 | 2 | 15 | 497 | 712 | -215 | 64 | 98 | 6 | 6 | 36 |
|
Playoffs
| Quarter finals | Semifinals | Final | |||||||||||
| 2 |  Valladolid |
33 | |||||||||||
| 3 |  Alcobendas |
34 | 3 | Alcobendas |
12 | ||||||||
| 6 |  Barcelona |
20 | Valladolid |
39 | |||||||||
| El Salvador |
27 | ||||||||||||
| 1 | El Salvador |
39 | |||||||||||
| 4 |  Ordizia |
38 | 4 | Ordizia |
26 | ||||||||
| 5 | Aparejadores |
31 | |||||||||||
Relegation playoff
The relegation playoff was played over two legs by La Vila, the team finishing 11th in División de Honor, and Santander, the losing team from División de Honor B promotion playoff final. Santander won 57–53 on aggregate and gained promotion to the División de Honor for the 2019–20 season.
| Relegation/promotion playoff | ||||||
| 11th |  La Vila
| 14 | 39 | 53 | ||
| DHB |  Santander
| 30 | 27 | 57 | ||
References
- "Estadio Altamira" (in Spanish). Archived from the original on 21 October 2010. Retrieved 13 September 2010.