1995–96 National Division 1
The 1995–96 National Division 1 was the ninth season of the top tier of the English rugby union league system, the Courage Clubs Championship, currently known as Premiership Rugby. Leicester were the defending champions and Saracens the promoted team.
Bath finished as champions for the sixth time, beating holders Leicester by just one point. Despite a disastrous season with 18 defeats in as many matches, West Hartlepool kept its place in the first division due to the expansion of the league from 10 teams to 12 the following season.
Structure
Each side played one another twice, in a round robin system, home and away, to make a total of eighteen matches for each team. Due to the number of teams increasing from ten to twelve for the following season there was no relegation.Participating teams
| Team | Stadium | Capacity | City/Area | Previous season |
| Bath | Recreation Ground | 8,300 | Bath, Somerset | 2nd |
| Bristol | Memorial Stadium | 8,500 | Bristol, Avon | 6th |
| Gloucester | Kingsholm | 12,000 | Gloucester, Gloucestershire | 7th |
| Harlequins | The Stoop | 9,000 | Twickenham, London | 8th |
| Leicester | Welford Road | 16,000 | Leicester, Leicestershire | Champions |
| Orrell | Edge Hall Road | 5,300 | Orrell, Greater Manchester | 5th |
| Sale | Heywood Road | 4,000 | Sale, Greater Manchester | 4th |
| Saracens | Bramley Road | 2,300 | Enfield, London | Promoted from National 2 |
| Wasps | Repton Avenue | 3,200 | Sudbury, London | 3rd |
| West Hartlepool | Brierton Lane | 7,000 | Hartlepool, County Durham | 9th |
Results
The Home Team is listed in the left column.Fixtures & Results
Round 1
----Round 2
----Round 3
----Round 4
----Round 5
----Round 6
----Round 7
----Round 8
----Round 9
- Postponed due to spectator falling ill. Game rescheduled to 20 April 1996.
Round 10
----Round 11
- Postponed. Game rescheduled to 10 April 1996.
- Postponed. Game rescheduled to 17 April 1996.
- Postponed. Game rescheduled to 13 January 1996.
- Postponed. Game rescheduled to 9 March 1996.
- Postponed. Game rescheduled to 5 May 1996.
Round 12
----Round 11 (rescheduled game)
- Game rescheduled from 30 December 1995.
Round 13
- Postponed. Game rescheduled to 20 April 1996.
- Postponed. Game rescheduled to 24 April 1996.
- Postponed. Game rescheduled to 20 April 1996.
- Postponed. Game rescheduled to 23 March 1996.
- Postponed. Game rescheduled to 23 March 1996.
Round 14
----Round 11 (rescheduled game)
- Game rescheduled from 30 December 1995.
Round 13 (rescheduled games)
- Game rescheduled from 10 February 1996.
- Game rescheduled from 10 February 1996.
Round 15
----Round 16
----Round 11 (rescheduled game)
- Game rescheduled from 30 December 1995.
Round 17
----Round 11 (rescheduled game)
- Game rescheduled from 30 December 1995.
Rounds 9 & 13 (rescheduled games)
- Game rescheduled from 10 February 1996.
- Game rescheduled from 10 February 1996.
- Game rescheduled from 4 November 1995.
Round 13 (rescheduled game)
- Game rescheduled from 10 February 1996.
Round 18
- Bath are champions.
Round 11 (rescheduled game)
- Game rescheduled from 30 December 1995.