2017–18 Southern Football League
The 2017–18 season was the 115th in the history of the Southern League since its establishment in 1894. It was also the last to have a single Premier Division. From the 2014–15 season onwards, the Southern League is known as Evo-Stik League Southern, following a sponsorship deal with Evo-Stik.
The league constitution was announced in May 2017.[1]
Premier Division
Season | 2017–18 |
---|---|
Champions | Hereford |
Promoted | Hereford Slough Town |
Relegated | Dunstable Town |
Matches played | 552 |
Goals scored | 1,871 (3.39 per match) |
Top goalscorer | 38 goals - Brandon Goodship (Weymouth) |
Biggest home win | Chesham United 13 – 1 Merthyr Town, 18 November |
Biggest away win | Gosport Borough 0 – 8 Basingstoke Town, 28 August |
Highest scoring | Chesham United 13 – 1 Merthyr Town, 18 November |
Highest attendance | 4,556 – Hereford 4 – 1 Kettering Town, 21 April |
Lowest attendance | 67 – St Ives Town 2 – 6 Stratford Town, 17 April |
Total attendance | 256,331 |
Average attendance | 464 (+35.6% to previous season) |
← 2016–17 |
At the end of the season a new division was to be created at step 3. Also, the number of clubs in step 3 divisions was reduced from 24 to 22. To make up the number of clubs at step 3 only one Premier Division club was to be relegated this season.
The Premier Division consisted of 24 clubs, including 18 clubs from the previous season, and six new clubs:
- Two clubs promoted from Division One Central:
- Two clubs promoted from Division One South & West:
- Two clubs relegated from the National League South:
League table
Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Promotion, qualification or relegation |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Hereford | 46 | 36 | 5 | 5 | 111 | 33 | +78 | 113 | Promoted to the National League North |
2 | King's Lynn Town | 46 | 30 | 10 | 6 | 99 | 39 | +60 | 100 | Qualified for the play-offs, then placed to Premier Division Central[a] |
3 | Slough Town | 46 | 30 | 9 | 7 | 111 | 49 | +62 | 99 | Qualified for the play-offs, then promoted to the National League South |
4 | Kettering Town | 46 | 30 | 7 | 9 | 122 | 56 | +66 | 97 | Qualified for the play-offs, then placed to Premier Division Central |
5 | Weymouth | 46 | 30 | 7 | 9 | 103 | 48 | +55 | 97 | Qualified for the play-offs, then placed to Premier Division South |
6 | Tiverton Town | 46 | 24 | 6 | 16 | 78 | 69 | +9 | 78 | Placed to Premier Division South |
7 | Royston Town | 46 | 24 | 5 | 17 | 84 | 65 | +19 | 77 | Placed to Premier Division Central |
8 | Chesham United | 46 | 21 | 11 | 14 | 85 | 61 | +24 | 74 | Placed to Premier Division South |
9 | Banbury United | 46 | 19 | 15 | 12 | 90 | 59 | +31 | 72 | Placed to Premier Division Central |
10 | Basingstoke Town | 46 | 21 | 8 | 17 | 92 | 72 | +20 | 71 | Placed to Premier Division South |
11 | Hitchin Town | 46 | 19 | 9 | 18 | 67 | 66 | +1 | 66 | Placed to Premier Division Central |
12 | St Neots Town | 46 | 17 | 13 | 16 | 79 | 79 | 0 | 64 | |
13 | Frome Town | 46 | 18 | 7 | 21 | 78 | 96 | −18 | 61 | Placed to Premier Division South |
14 | Redditch United | 46 | 15 | 10 | 21 | 73 | 73 | 0 | 55 | Placed to Premier Division Central |
15 | Stratford Town | 46 | 15 | 10 | 21 | 68 | 81 | −13 | 55 | |
16 | Biggleswade Town | 46 | 14 | 11 | 21 | 52 | 63 | −11 | 53 | |
17 | Merthyr Town | 46 | 13 | 14 | 19 | 76 | 98 | −22 | 53 | Placed to Premier Division South |
18 | Bishop's Stortford | 46 | 14 | 10 | 22 | 74 | 79 | −5 | 52 | Transferred to Isthmian League Premier Division |
19 | Dorchester Town | 46 | 13 | 12 | 21 | 62 | 83 | −21 | 51 | Placed to Premier Division South |
20 | Farnborough | 46 | 15 | 6 | 25 | 82 | 120 | −38 | 51 | |
21 | Kings Langley | 46 | 8 | 14 | 24 | 63 | 98 | −35 | 38 | |
22 | St Ives Town | 46 | 8 | 9 | 29 | 54 | 105 | −51 | 33 | Placed to Premier Division Central |
23 | Gosport Borough | 46 | 5 | 5 | 36 | 41 | 142 | −101 | 19[b] | Placed to Premier Division South |
24 | Dunstable Town | 46 | 4 | 5 | 37 | 27 | 137 | −110 | 17 | Relegated to Division One Central |
Rules for classification: 1) Points; 2) Goal difference; 3) Number of goals scored; 4) Number of matches won; 5) Head-to-head results [3]
Notes:
- ^ Four teams played for one spot and promotion to the National League North / South.
- ^ Gosport Borough were deducted one point for fielding an ineligible player in their draw against Biggleswade Town on 31 March.[2]
Results table
Play-offs
Semi-finals | Final | ||||||||
2 | King's Lynn Town | 3 | |||||||
5 | Weymouth | 0 | |||||||
2 | King's Lynn Town | 1 | |||||||
3 | Slough Town | 2 | |||||||
3 | Slough Town | 3 | |||||||
4 | Kettering Town | 1 |
Semi-finals
2 May 2018 | King's Lynn Town | 3–0 | Weymouth | The Walks, King's Lynn |
19:45 (UTC+01:00) | Norman 13' Parker 15' King 39' |
Report | Attendance: 1,223 |
2 May 2018 | Slough Town | 3–1 | Kettering Town | Arbour Park, Slough |
19:45 (UTC+01:00) | Coles 13' Dobson 52' (pen) Dobson 71' (pen) |
Report | O'Connor 36' | Attendance: 1,246 |
Final
7 May 2018 | King's Lynn Town | 1–2 | Slough Town | The Walks, King's Lynn |
15:00 (UTC+01:00) | Hilliard 27' | Flood 44' Williams 89' |
Attendance: 2,842 |
Stadia and locations
Club | Stadium | Capacity |
---|---|---|
Banbury United | Spencer Stadium | 2,000 |
Basingstoke Town | The Camrose | 6,000 |
Biggleswade Town | Langford Road | 3,000 |
Bishop's Stortford | Woodside Park | 4,525 |
Chesham United | The Meadow | 5,000 |
Dorchester Town | The Avenue Stadium | 5,009 |
Dunstable Town | Creasey Park | 3,200 |
Farnborough | Cherrywood Road | 7,000 |
Frome Town | Badgers Hill | 2,000 |
Gosport Borough | Privett Park | 4,500 |
Hereford | Edgar Street | 4,913 |
Hitchin Town | Top Field | 4,000 |
Kettering Town | Latimer Park (groundshare with Burton Park Wanderers) | 2,400 |
King's Lynn Town | The Walks | 5,733 |
Kings Langley | Gaywood Park | 1,000 |
Merthyr Town | Penydarren Park | 10,000 |
Redditch United | The Valley | 5,000 |
Royston Town | Garden Walk | 5,000 |
Slough Town | Arbour Park | 1,950 |
St Ives Town | Westwood Road | 2,000 |
St Neots Town | New Rowley Park | 3,500 |
Stratford Town | Knights Lane | 1,400 |
Tiverton Town | Ladysmead | 3,500 |
Weymouth | Bob Lucas Stadium | 6,600 |
Division One East
Season | 2017–18 |
---|---|
Champions | Beaconsfield Town |
Promoted | AFC Rushden & Diamonds Beaconsfield Town Hartley Wintney |
Relegated | Arlesey Town |
Matches played | 462 |
Goals scored | 1,492 (3.23 per match) |
Top goalscorer | 34 goals - Daniel West (Thame United) |
Biggest home win | Ashford Town 10 – 0 Fleet Town, 24 October |
Biggest away win | Arlesey Town 1 – 9 Hayes & Yeading United, 20 January |
Highest scoring | 10 goals (3 matches) |
For this season, Division One Central was renamed Division One East.
At the end of the season a new division was to be created at step 3. To make up the number of clubs at step 3 two clubs from each step 4 division, one club with best points-per-game among the step 4 division clubs and six play-off winners were to be promoted this season. Also, a new division were to be added at step 4 within the Isthmian League, while the number of clubs in every step 4 division was decreased to 20. To make up the number of clubs only one club was to be relegated.
Division One East consisted of 22 clubs, including 16 clubs from the previous season Division One Central, and six new clubs:
- AFC Rushden & Diamonds, transferred from the Northern Premier League Division One South
- Cambridge City, relegated from the Premier Division
- Hartley Wintney, promoted from the Combined Counties League
- Hayes & Yeading United, relegated from the Premier Division
- Moneyfields, promoted from the Wessex League
- Thame United, promoted from the Hellenic League
For 2018–19, Division One East was renamed Division One Central.
League table
Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Promotion, qualification or relegation |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Beaconsfield Town | 42 | 29 | 5 | 8 | 99 | 46 | +53 | 92 | Promoted to Premier Division South |
2 | AFC Rushden & Diamonds | 42 | 27 | 10 | 5 | 92 | 25 | +67 | 91 | Promoted to Premier Division Central |
3 | Hayes & Yeading United | 42 | 26 | 5 | 11 | 103 | 49 | +54 | 83 | Qualified for the play-offs, then transferred to the Isthmian League South Central Division[a] |
4 | Hartley Wintney | 42 | 26 | 4 | 12 | 96 | 53 | +43 | 82 | Qualified for the play-offs, then promoted to Premier Division South |
5 | AFC Dunstable | 42 | 23 | 10 | 9 | 80 | 37 | +43 | 79 | Qualified for the play-offs |
6 | Cambridge City | 42 | 23 | 8 | 11 | 99 | 53 | +46 | 77 | |
7 | Kempston Rovers | 42 | 21 | 10 | 11 | 80 | 68 | +12 | 73 | |
8 | Bedford Town | 42 | 22 | 6 | 14 | 70 | 48 | +22 | 72 | |
9 | Chalfont St Peter | 42 | 20 | 12 | 10 | 56 | 39 | +17 | 72 | Transferred to the Isthmian League South Central Division |
10 | Moneyfields | 42 | 19 | 12 | 11 | 79 | 63 | +16 | 69 | Transferred to Division One South |
11 | Thame United | 42 | 20 | 4 | 18 | 84 | 78 | +6 | 64 | |
12 | Ashford Town | 42 | 16 | 8 | 18 | 81 | 68 | +13 | 56 | Transferred to the Isthmian League South Central Division |
13 | Aylesbury United | 42 | 17 | 4 | 21 | 52 | 73 | −21 | 52[b] | |
14 | Marlow | 42 | 13 | 10 | 19 | 54 | 75 | −21 | 49 | Transferred to the Isthmian League South Central Division |
15 | Uxbridge | 42 | 14 | 7 | 21 | 58 | 87 | −29 | 49 | |
16 | Egham Town | 42 | 13 | 9 | 20 | 54 | 88 | −34 | 48 | |
17 | Northwood | 42 | 10 | 11 | 21 | 54 | 71 | −17 | 41 | |
18 | Hanwell Town | 42 | 9 | 7 | 26 | 48 | 88 | −40 | 34 | |
19 | Fleet Town | 42 | 8 | 10 | 24 | 38 | 86 | −48 | 34 | Transferred to Division One South |
20 | Barton Rovers | 42 | 8 | 9 | 25 | 39 | 86 | −47 | 33 | |
21 | Aylesbury | 42 | 9 | 6 | 27 | 40 | 88 | −48 | 33 | |
22 | Arlesey Town | 42 | 3 | 5 | 34 | 36 | 123 | −87 | 14 | Relegated to the Spartan South Midlands League |
Rules for classification: 1) Points; 2) Goal difference; 3) Number of goals scored; 4) Number of matches won; 5) Head-to-head results [3]
Notes:
Results table
Play-offs
Semi-finals | Final | ||||||||
3 | Hayes & Yeading United | 0 | |||||||
6 | Cambridge City | 1 | |||||||
4 | Hartley Wintney | 1 | |||||||
6 | Cambridge City | 0 | |||||||
4 | Hartley Wintney | 2 | |||||||
5 | AFC Dunstable | 0 |
Semi-finals
2 May 2018 | Hayes & Yeading United | 0–1 | Cambridge City | Beaconsfield Road, Hayes |
19:45 (UTC+01:00) | Report | Attendance: 415 |
2 May 2018 | Hartley Wintney | 2–0 | AFC Dunstable | The Memorial Playing Fields, Hartley Wintney |
19:45 (UTC+01:00) | Report | Attendance: 310 |
Final
7 May 2018 | Hartley Wintney | 1–0 | Cambridge City | The Memorial Playing Fields, Hartley Wintney |
15:00 (UTC+01:00) | Report | Attendance: 710 |
Stadia and locations
Club | Stadium | Capacity |
---|---|---|
AFC Dunstable | Creasey Park (groundshare with Dunstable Town) | 3,500 |
AFC Kempston Rovers | Hillgrounds Leisure | 2,000 |
AFC Rushden & Diamonds | Hayden Road | 1,500 |
Arlesey Town | Hitchin Road | 2,920 |
Ashford Town | Robert Parker Stadium | 2,550 |
Aylesbury | Haywood Way | 1,300 |
Aylesbury United | The Meadow | 5,000 |
Barton Rovers | Sharpenhoe Road | 4,000 |
Beaconsfield Town | Holloways Park | 3,500 |
Bedford Town | The Eyrie | 3,000 |
Cambridge City | Westwood Road (groundshare with St Ives Town) | 2,000 |
Chalfont St Peter | Mill Meadow | 1,500 |
Egham Town | The Runnymede Stadium | 5,565 |
Fleet Town | Calthorpe Park | 2,000 |
Hanwell Town | Reynolds Field | 3,000 |
Hartley Wintney | The Memorial Playing Fields | 2,000 |
Hayes & Yeading United | Beaconsfield Road | 3,000 |
Marlow | Alfred Davis Memorial Ground | 3,000 |
Moneyfields | Moneyfields Sports Ground | 2,000 |
Northwood | Northwood Park | 3,075 |
Thame United | Meadow View Park | 2,000 |
Uxbridge | Honeycroft | 3,770 |
Division One West
Season | 2017–18 |
---|---|
Champions | Taunton Town |
Promoted | Salisbury Swindon Supermarine Taunton Town Wimborne Town |
Relegated | Bishop's Cleeve Shortwood United |
Matches played | 462 |
Goals scored | 1,635 (3.54 per match) |
Top goalscorer | 43 goals - Benjamin Whitehead (Cirencester Town) and Tobias Holmes (Wimborne Town) |
Biggest home win | Taunton Town 9 – 0 Slimbridge, 24 April and Cinderford Town 9 – 0 Slimbridge, 19 April |
Biggest away win | Shortwood United 0 – 8 Salisbury, 9 September |
Highest scoring | Salisbury 8 – 2 Cirencester Town, 19 September |
← 2016–17 |
For this season, Division One South & West was renamed Division One West.
At the end of the season a new division was to be created at step 3. To make up the number of clubs at step 3 two clubs from each step 4 division, one club with best points-per-game among the step 4 division clubs and six play-off winners were to be promoted this season. Also, a new division were to be added at step 4 within the Isthmian League, while the number of clubs in every step 4 division was decreased to 20. To make up the number of clubs only one club was to be relegated.
Division One West featured four new clubs:
- Bristol Manor Farm, promoted from the Western League
- Cinderford Town, relegated from the Premier Division
- Cirencester Town, relegated from the Premier Division
- Kidlington, transferred from Division One Central
For 2018–19, Division One West was renamed Division One South.
League table
Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Promotion, qualification or relegation |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Taunton Town | 42 | 31 | 10 | 1 | 107 | 41 | +66 | 103 | Promoted to Premier Division South |
2 | Salisbury | 42 | 25 | 9 | 8 | 108 | 55 | +53 | 84 | |
3 | Wimborne Town | 42 | 23 | 8 | 11 | 104 | 57 | +47 | 77[a] | Qualified for the play-offs, then promoted to Premier Division South[b] |
4 | Evesham United | 42 | 23 | 7 | 12 | 73 | 53 | +20 | 76 | Qualified for the play-offs |
5 | Swindon Supermarine | 42 | 21 | 11 | 10 | 86 | 54 | +32 | 74 | Qualified for the play-offs, then promoted to Premier Division South |
6 | Didcot Town | 42 | 21 | 10 | 11 | 89 | 63 | +26 | 73 | Qualified for the play-offs, then transferred to Division One Central |
7 | Cirencester Town | 42 | 22 | 7 | 13 | 93 | 74 | +19 | 73 | |
8 | Bideford | 42 | 21 | 9 | 12 | 79 | 58 | +21 | 72 | |
9 | Bristol Manor Farm | 42 | 20 | 9 | 13 | 83 | 61 | +22 | 69 | |
10 | AFC Totton | 42 | 19 | 9 | 14 | 65 | 49 | +16 | 66 | |
11 | Winchester City | 42 | 17 | 10 | 15 | 73 | 66 | +7 | 61 | |
12 | Kidlington | 42 | 15 | 12 | 15 | 80 | 64 | +16 | 57 | Transferred to Division One Central |
13 | Cinderford Town | 42 | 14 | 12 | 16 | 81 | 71 | +10 | 54 | |
14 | Yate Town | 42 | 14 | 14 | 14 | 72 | 74 | −2 | 53[c] | |
15 | Larkhall Athletic | 42 | 13 | 6 | 23 | 66 | 78 | −12 | 45 | |
16 | Mangotsfield United | 42 | 10 | 11 | 21 | 53 | 86 | −33 | 41 | |
17 | Shortwood United | 42 | 10 | 10 | 22 | 63 | 124 | −61 | 40 | Resigned at the end of the season, then demoted to the Western League |
18 | North Leigh | 42 | 10 | 8 | 24 | 53 | 84 | −31 | 38 | Transferred to Division One Central |
19 | Paulton Rovers | 42 | 10 | 7 | 25 | 57 | 81 | −24 | 37 | |
20 | Slimbridge | 42 | 9 | 8 | 25 | 54 | 130 | −76 | 35 | |
21 | Barnstaple Town | 42 | 7 | 8 | 27 | 53 | 105 | −52 | 29 | |
22 | Bishop's Cleeve | 42 | 8 | 3 | 31 | 43 | 107 | −64 | 24[d] | Relegated to the Hellenic League |
Rules for classification: 1) Points; 2) Goal difference; 3) Number of goals scored; 4) Number of matches won; 5) Head-to-head results [3]
Notes:
- ^ Wimborne Town were promoted after Shaw Lane from the Northern Premier League Premier Division folded.
- ^ Four teams played for one spot and promotion to Level 7.
- ^ Yate Town were deducted three points for fielding two ineligible players in their win over Taunton Town on 26 September.[4]
- ^ Bishop's Cleeve were deducted three points for fielding an ineligible player in their win over Kidlington on 24 March.[2]
Results table
Play-offs
Semi-finals | Final | ||||||||
3 | Wimborne Town | 2 | |||||||
6 | Didcot Town | 0 | |||||||
3 | Wimborne Town | 0 (3) | |||||||
5 | Swindon Supermarine | 0 (4) | |||||||
4 | Evesham United | 1 (4) | |||||||
5 | Swindon Supermarine | 1 (5) |
Semi-finals
2 May 2018 | Wimborne Town | 2–0 | Didcot Town | The Cuthbury, Wimborne |
19:45 (UTC+01:00) | Report | Attendance: 618 |
2 May 2018 | Evesham United | 1–1 (a.e.t.) (4–5 p) | Swindon Supermarine | Jubilee Stadium, Evesham |
19:45 (UTC+01:00) | Report | Attendance: 437 |
Final
7 May 2018 | Wimborne Town | 0–0 (a.e.t.) (3–4 p) | Swindon Supermarine | The Cuthbury, Wimborne |
15:00 (UTC+01:00) | Report | Attendance: 1,272 |
Stadia and locations
Club | Stadium | Capacity |
---|---|---|
AFC Totton | Testwood Stadium | 3,000 |
Barnstaple Town | Mill Road | 5,000 |
Bideford | The Sports Ground | 2,000 |
Bishops Cleeve | Kayte Lane | 1,500 |
Bristol Manor Farm | The Creek | 2,000 |
Cinderford Town | Causeway Ground | 3,500 |
Cirencester Town | Corinium Stadium | 4,500 |
Didcot Town | Loop Meadow | 3,000 |
Evesham United | Jubilee Stadium | 3,000 |
Kidlington | Yarnton Road | 1,500 |
Larkhall Athletic | The Plain Ham Ground | 1,000 |
Mangotsfield United | Cossham Street | 2,500 |
North Leigh | Eynsham Hall Park Sports Ground | 2,000 |
Paulton Rovers | Athletic Field | 2,500 |
Salisbury | Raymond McEnhill Stadium | 5,000 |
Shortwood United | Meadowbank Ground | 2,000 |
Slimbridge | Thornhill Park | 1,500 |
Swindon Supermarine | Hunts Copse Ground | 3,000 |
Taunton Town | Wordsworth Drive | 2,500 |
Wimborne Town | The Cuthbury | 3,250 |
Winchester City | The City Ground | 4,500 |
Yate Town | Lodge Road | 2,000 |
League Cup
Tournament details | |
---|---|
Country | England, Wales |
Teams | 65 |
Final positions | |
Champions | Hitchin Town |
Runner-up | Didcot Town |
The 2017–18 Southern League Cup (billed as The BigFreeBet.com Challenge Cup) was the 80th edition of the Southern League Cup, the cup competition of the Southern Football League.
Hereford, Mangotsfield United, and North Leigh declined to participate. The defending champions, Hayes & Yeading United, were defeated in the semi-finals by Hitchin Town.
Preliminary round
Tie | Home team (tier) | Score | Away team (tier) | Att. |
1 | Northwood (E) | 1–3 | Egham Town (E) |
First round
|
|
Second round
|
|
Third round
|
|
Quarter-finals
|
|
Semi-finals
Tie | Home team (tier) | Score | Away team (tier) | Att. |
62 | Hitchin Town (P) | 1–1 | Hayes & Yeading United (E) | |
Hitchin Town advance 4–2 on penalties | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
63 | Didcot Town (W) | 0–0 | Larkhall Athletic (W) | |
Didcot Town advance 4–2 on penalties |
Final
18 April | Hitchin Town (P) | 1–0 | Didcot Town (W) | Hitchin |
Vincent 10' | Stadium: Top Field Attendance: 401 |
See also
References
- ^ "CLUB ALLOCATIONS FOR STEPS 1 TO 4 OF THE NATIONAL LEAGUE SYSTEM CONFIRMED FOR 2017-18". The FA. 14 May 2017.
- ^ a b c Evo-Stik South League (18 May 2018). "Points deductions". Archived from the original on 19 July 2018. Retrieved 18 May 2018.
- ^ a b c "The FA Handbook Standardised Rules 2017-2018 (page 539, section 12.2)". The FA. Retrieved 21 July 2017.
- ^ Evo-Stik South League (21 April 2018). "Yate Town FC Deducted 3 Points". Archived from the original on 19 July 2018. Retrieved 21 April 2018.