Southern Football League

Southern Football League

Country	England
Other club(s) from	Wales
Confederation	The Football Association
Founded	1894
Number of teams	68
Level on pyramid	Level 7 and Level 8
Promotion to	National League South, National League North
Relegation to	Combined Counties League Hellenic League Midland Football League Spartan South Midlands League United Counties League Wessex League Western League
Domestic cup(s)	Southern League Cup
Current champions	Poole Town (Premier Division) Cinderford Town (D1 South & West) Kings Langley (D1 Central) (2015–16 Southern Football League)
Website	Official website
2016–17

The Southern League, currently known as the Evo-Stik League Southern under the terms of a sponsorship agreement with Bostik Ltd,^[1] is a men's football competition featuring semi-professional and amateur clubs from the South West, 'South Central' and Midlands of England and South Wales. Together with the Isthmian League and the Northern Premier League it forms levels seven and eight of the English football league system.

The structure of the Southern League has changed several times since its formation in 1894, and currently there are 68 clubs which are divided into three divisions. The Premier Division is at step 3 of the National League System (NLS), and is a feeder division, mainly to the National League South but also to the National League North. Feeding the Premier Division are two regional divisions, Division One South & West and Division One Central, which are at step 4 of the NLS. These divisions are in turn fed by various regional leagues.

History

Football in the south of England

Professional football (and professional sport in general) developed more slowly in Southern England than in Northern England. Professionalism was sanctioned by The Football Association as early as 1885, but when The Football League was founded in 1888 it was based entirely in the north and midlands with the County Football Associations in the South being firmly opposed to professionalism.

Woolwich Arsenal (nowadays simply Arsenal) were the first club in London to turn professional in 1891 and were one of the prime motivators behind an attempt to set up a Southern League to mirror the existing Northern and Midlands based Football League. However, this venture failed in the face of opposition from the London Football Association and Woolwich Arsenal instead joined the Football League as its only representative south of Birmingham in 1893. Additionally, an amateur league, the Southern Alliance was founded in 1892, with seven clubs from the region, but that folded after one incomplete season.

Formation of the Southern League

Nonetheless, another attempt was made to form the Southern League, and this time it was successful. A competition for both professional and amateur clubs was founded in 1894 under the initiative of Millwall Athletic (now simply Millwall). Initially only one division was envisaged, but such was the enthusiasm, that eventually two divisions were formed. The sixteen founder members were:^[2]

Division One Chatham Clapton Ilford Luton Town Millwall Athletic Reading Royal Ordnance Factories 2nd Scots Guards Swindon Town

Division Two Bromley Chesham Maidenhead New Brompton Old St Stephen's Sheppey United Uxbridge

2nd Scots Guards withdrew before the first season started and were replaced by Southampton St Mary's. Woolwich Arsenal attempted to add their reserve side to the second division but this application was refused.

Success of the Southern League

The Southern League soon became the dominant competition below The Football League in Southern and Central England. By the turn of the century a few of the Southern League sides began to rival the Football League in the FA Cup but overall it was still regarded as the equivalent to the third level of English.^[3]

Two Southern League clubs, Southampton (in 1900 and 1902) and Tottenham Hotspur (in 1901) reached the final of the FA Cup around the turn of the century. Tottenham Hotspur are the only club from below the 2nd level of English football to have won the FA Cup.

Several of the best players in England moved from the Football League to the Southern League around this time, due to the restrictions on their freedom of movement and wages implemented by the Football League between 1893 and 1901, and the failed efforts of the Association Footballers' Union (the AFU) to relax the restrictions.

The champions of the two leagues during this period met in the annual Charity Shield. Out of the six meetings the respective league champions had in the Shield, however, only one was won by the Southern League champions – Brighton & Hove Albion, in 1910, and this remains their only top level national honour.

In 1907, it accepted Bradford Park Avenue, a northern club, as a member, reflecting its senior position at the time.

In 1920, virtually the entire top division of the Southern League was absorbed by the Football League to become that league's new Third Division. A year later the Third Division was expanded and regionalised. The Third Division clubs from the previous season became the Third Division South, with the addition of the Third Division North.

Of the original founder members, six – Gillingham (formerly New Brompton), Luton Town, Millwall, Reading, Southampton and Swindon Town – are now Premier or Football League clubs.

A feeder league

For the next six decades, the Football League and Southern League would exchange a limited number of clubs as a result of the older league's re-election process. From 1920 onward, the Southern League's status as a semi-professional league was firmly established.

With its clubs seeking a more regular means of advancing to the Football League, in 1979 the Southern League became a feeder to the new Alliance Premier League along with the Isthmian League and the Northern Premier League, and the top Southern clubs of the day joined the new league. In turn, the APL (renamed Football Conference in 1986) would eventually succeed in becoming a feeder to the Football League. The league lost more of its top clubs in 2004 when the Conference added two regional divisions below the existing National League, the Conference South and Conference North.

Sponsorship

The first sponsor of the Southern League was Beazer Homes who sponsored the league from 1987–96. The sponsors after Beazer Homes to the present day are: Dr Martens (1996–2004), British Gas (2006–2009), Zamaretto (2009–2011), Evo-Stik (2011–2013),^[4] Calor Gas (2013–14), and Evo-Stik (2014– ).

2016–17 member clubs

Past Southern League winners

This section lists the past winners of the Southern League.^[5]

Season	Division One	Division Two
1894–95	Millwall Athletic	New Brompton
1895–96	Millwall Athletic	Wolverton L & NWR
1896–97	Southampton St Mary's	Dartford
1897–98	Southampton	Royal Artillery Portsmouth

For the 1898–99 season, Division Two was divided into London and South-West sections, with a playoff contested between the winners of each section.

Season	Division One	Division Two (London)	Division Two (SW)	Division Two Playoff
1898–99	Southampton	Thames Ironworks	Cowes	Thames won 3–1

For the 1899–1900 season, the league reverted to the old format.

Season	Division One	Division Two
1899–1900	Tottenham Hotspur	Watford
1900–01	Southampton	Brentford
1901–02	Portsmouth	Fulham
1902–03	Southampton	Fulham
1903–04	Southampton	Watford
1904–05	Bristol Rovers	Fulham Reserves
1905–06	Fulham	Crystal Palace
1906–07	Fulham	Southend United
1907–08	Queens Park Rangers	Southend United
1908–09	Northampton Town	Croydon Common

For the 1909–10 season, Division Two was split into an 'A' section and a 'B' section, with the winners of each section contesting a play-off for the Division Two championship.

Season	Division One	Division Two (A)	Division Two (B)	Division Two Playoff
1909–10	Brighton & Hove Albion	Stoke	Hastings & St Leonards	Stoke won 6–0

For the 1910–11 season, the league again reverted to the previous format.

Season	Division One	Division Two
1910–11	Swindon Town	Reading
1911–12	Queens Park Rangers	Merthyr Town
1912–13	Plymouth Argyle	Cardiff City
1913–14	Swindon Town	Croydon Common
1914–15	Watford	Stoke
1919–20	Portsmouth	Mid Rhondda

At the end of the 1919–20 season, the majority of the clubs in the First Division moved into the new Third Division of the Football League. The Southern League was therefore split into two sections for England and Wales, with the winners of each section contesting a playoff for the Southern League championship.

Season	English Section	Welsh Section	Championship Playoff
1920–21	Brighton & Hove Albion Reserves	Barry	Brighton won 2–1
1921–22	Plymouth Argyle Reserves	Ebbw Vale	Plymouth won 3–0
1922–23	Bristol City Reserves	Ebbw Vale	Ebbw Vale won 2–1

For the 1923–24 season, the league was split into two regional sections, with the winners of each section contesting a playoff for the Southern League championship.

Season	Eastern Section	Western Section	Championship Playoff
1923–24	Peterborough & Fletton United	Yeovil & Petters United	Yeovil won 3–1
1924–25	Southampton Reserves	Swansea Town Reserves	Southampton won 2–1
1925–26	Millwall Reserves	Plymouth Argyle Reserves	Plymouth won 1–0
1926–27	Brighton & Hove Albion Reserves	Torquay United	Brighton won 4–0
1927–28	Kettering Town	Bristol City Reserves	Kettering won 5–0
1928–29	Kettering Town	Plymouth Argyle Reserves	Plymouth won 4–2
1929–30	Aldershot Town	Bath City	Aldershot won 3–2
1930–31	Dartford	Exeter City Reserves	Dartford won 7–2
1931–32	Dartford	Yeovil & Petters United	Dartford won 2–1
1932–33	Norwich City Reserves	Bath City	Norwich won 2–1

For the 1933–34 season an extra section, the Central Section was introduced to provide additional fixtures. The Central included clubs from the other two sections and did not contribute to the overall championship.

Season	Eastern Section	Western Section	Central Section	Championship Playoff
1933–34	Norwich City Reserves	Plymouth Argyle Reserves	Plymouth Argyle Reserves	Plymouth won 3–0
1934–35	Norwich City Reserves	Yeovil & Petters United	Folkestone	Norwich won 7–2
1935–36	Margate	Plymouth Argyle Reserves	Margate	Margate won 3–1

For the 1936–37 season, the Eastern and Western sections were merged into a single division. Additional fixtures were obtained through the Midweek Section which did not contribute to the overall championship.

Season	Southern League	Midweek Section
1936–37	Ipswich Town	Margate
1937–38	Guildford City	Millwall Reserves
1938–39	Colchester United	Tunbridge Wells Rangers

For the 1945–46 season, the Midweek Section was not played due to power restrictions after the Second World War.

Season	Southern League
1945–46	Chelmsford City
1946–47	Gillingham
1947–48	Merthyr Tydfil
1948–49	Gillingham
1949–50	Merthyr Tydfil
1950–51	Merthyr Tydfil
1951–52	Merthyr Tydfil
1952–53	Headington United
1953–54	Merthyr Tydfil
1954–55	Yeovil Town
1955–56	Guildford City
1956–57	Kettering Town
1957–58	Gravesend & Northfleet

For the 1958–59 season the Southern League was again divided into two sections: North-Western and South-Eastern. The winners of each section contested a playoff for the Southern League championship

Season	North-Western Section	South-Eastern Section	Championship Playoff
1958–59	Hereford United	Bedford Town	Bedford won 3–0

The following season saw the two sections merged to form a Premier Division, and a new Division One introduced.

Season	Premier Division	Division One
1959–60	Bath City	Clacton Town
1960–61	Oxford United	Kettering Town
1961–62	Oxford United	Wisbech Town
1962–63	Cambridge City	Margate
1963–64	Yeovil Town	Folkestone Town
1964–65	Weymouth	Hereford United
1965–66	Weymouth	Barnet
1966–67	Romford	Dover
1967–68	Chelmsford City	Worcester City
1968–69	Cambridge United	Brentwood Town
1969–70	Cambridge United	Bedford Town
1970–71	Yeovil Town	Guildford City

For the 1971–72 season Division One was regionalised.

Season	Premier Division	Division One North	Division One South
1971–72	Chelmsford City	Kettering Town	Waterlooville
1972–73	Kettering Town	Grantham	Maidstone United
1973–74	Dartford	Stourbridge	Wealdstone
1974–75	Wimbledon	Bedford Town	Gravesend & Northfleet
1975–76	Wimbledon	Redditch United	Minehead
1976–77	Wimbledon	Worcester City	Barnet
1977–78	Bath City	Witney Town	Margate
1978–79	Worcester City	Grantham	Dover

For the 1979–80 season, thirteen Premier Division clubs joined the newly formed Alliance Premier League. The Premier Division and Division One were subsequently merged, and two regional divisions formed.

Season	Midland Division	Southern Division
1979–80	Bridgend Town	Dorchester Town
1980–81	Alvechurch	Dartford
1981–82	Nuneaton Borough	Wealdstone

For the 1982–83 season, the Premier Division was re-introduced, above the regional divisions.

Season	Premier Division	Midland Division	Southern Division
1982–83	Leamington	Cheltenham Town	Fisher Athletic
1983–84	Dartford	Willenhall Town	Road-Sea Southampton
1984–85	Cheltenham Town	Dudley Town	Basingstoke Town
1985–86	Welling United	Bromsgrove Rovers	Cambridge City
1986–87	Fisher Athletic	VS Rugby	Dorchester Town
1987–88	Aylesbury United	Merthyr Tydfil	Dover Athletic
1988–89	Merthyr Tydfil	Gloucester City	Chelmsford City
1989–90	Dover Athletic	Halesowen Town	Bashley
1990–91	Farnborough Town	Stourbridge	Buckingham Town
1991–92	Bromsgrove Rovers	Solihull Borough	Hastings Town
1992–93	Dover Athletic	Nuneaton Borough	Sittingbourne
1993–94	Farnborough Town	Rushden & Diamonds	Gravesend & Northfleet
1994–95	Hednesford Town	Newport County	Salisbury City
1995–96	Rushden & Diamonds	Nuneaton Borough	Sittingbourne
1996–97	Gresley Rovers	Tamworth	Forest Green Rovers
1997–98	Forest Green Rovers	Grantham Town	Weymouth
1998–99	Nuneaton Borough	Clevedon Town	Havant & Waterlooville

For the 1999–2000 season, the regional divisions were renamed the Western and Eastern divisions.

Season	Premier Division	Western Division	Eastern Division
1999–2000	Boston United	Stafford Rangers	Fisher Athletic
2000–01	Margate	Hinckley United	Newport IOW
2001–02	Kettering Town	Halesowen Town	Hastings Town
2002–03	Tamworth	Merthyr Tydfil	Dorchester Town
2003–04	Crawley Town	Redditch United	King's Lynn
2004–05	Histon	Mangotsfield United	Fisher Athletic
2005–06	Salisbury City	Clevedon Town	Boreham Wood

For the 2006–07 season, the two regional divisions were renamed Division One Midlands and Division One South & West.

Season	Premier Division	Division One Midlands	Division One South & West
2006–07	Bath City	Brackley Town	Bashley
2007–08	King's Lynn	Evesham United	Farnborough
2008–09	Corby Town	Leamington	Truro City

For the 2009-10 season, Division One Midlands was renamed Division One Central.

Season	Premier Division	Division One Central	Division One South & West
2009–10	Farnborough	Bury Town	Windsor & Eton
2010–11	Truro City	Arlesey Town	AFC Totton
2011–12	Brackley Town	St Neots Town	Bideford
2012–13	Leamington	Burnham	Poole Town
2013–14	Hemel Hempstead Town	Dunstable Town	Cirencester Town
2014–15	Corby Town	Kettering Town	Merthyr Town
2015–16	Poole Town	Kings Langley	Cinderford Town

League Cup winners

Winners to 1993 source:^[6]

League structure

The league structure has changed several times over the years, and currently consists of a Premier Division at step 3 of the pyramid, with Division One South & West and Division One Central at step 4. Due in large part to the presence of the Isthmian League, the geographical footprint of the Southern League actually extends further north than the National League South. Therefore, while the majority of the winners of the Premier Division, together with the winners of a playoff, are promoted to the National League South, those clubs in the most northerly locales are promoted to the National League North.

Clubs relegated from the Southern League can theoretically be placed in any of fourteen lower level leagues, but in practice it is likely to be one of the following (based on geography):

• Combined Counties League
• Hellenic League
• Midland Football League
• Spartan South Midlands League
• United Counties League
• Wessex League
• Western League

From time to time, clubs outside the promotion and relegation positions based at the geographical edges of the Southern League will be compelled to leave the League by the NLS Committee, should it be necessary for them to compete in the Northern Premier or Isthmian Leagues so as to correct any imbalances brought on by the geographical distribution of the clubs promoted and relegated to this level. Clubs in the Northern Premier or Isthmian Leagues have also been entered into the Southern League for the same reason. In general, there has been a drift southwards with teams in the Midlands such as Halesowen Town moving into the Northern Premier.

References

External links

• Official website