1895–96 Southern Football League
Football league season
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The 1895–96 season was the second in the history of the Southern League. Luton Town applied for election to the Football League. However, the election was not successful. Millwall Athletic won Division One for the second successive season.
Division One
| Season | 1895–96 |
|---|---|
| Champions | Millwall Athletic (2nd title) |
| Promoted | none |
| Relegated | Luton Town (resigned) Clapton (resigned) Ilford |
| Matches | 90 |
| Goals | 406 (4.51 per match) |
← 1894–95 1896–97 → | |
Division One featured one new club, who had been promoted from Division Two the previous season: New Brompton.
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GR | Pts | Qualification or relegation |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Millwall Athletic | 18 | 16 | 1 | 1 | 75 | 16 | 4.688 | 33 | |
| 2 | Luton Town | 18 | 13 | 1 | 4 | 68 | 14 | 4.857 | 27 | Left to join the United League at end of season |
| 3 | Southampton St. Mary's | 18 | 12 | 0 | 6 | 44 | 23 | 1.913 | 24 | |
| 4 | Reading | 18 | 11 | 1 | 6 | 45 | 38 | 1.184 | 23 | |
| 5 | Chatham Town | 18 | 9 | 2 | 7 | 43 | 45 | 0.956 | 20 | |
| 6 | New Brompton | 18 | 7 | 4 | 7 | 30 | 37 | 0.811 | 18 | |
| 7 | Swindon Town | 18 | 6 | 4 | 8 | 38 | 41 | 0.927 | 16 | |
| 8 | Clapton | 18 | 4 | 2 | 12 | 30 | 67 | 0.448 | 10 | Relegation test matches, left league despite winning |
| 9 | Royal Ordnance Factories | 18 | 3 | 3 | 12 | 23 | 44 | 0.523 | 9 | Relegation test matches |
| 10 | Ilford | 18 | 0 | 0 | 18 | 10 | 81 | 0.123 | 0 | Relegation test matches, left league after losing |
Rules for classification: The system of using goal average to separate two teams tied on points was used until the 1976–77 season. The points system: 2 points for a win, 1 point for a draw and 0 points for losing.
Division Two
| Season | 1895–96 |
|---|---|
| Champions | Wolverton LNWR |
| Promoted | Wolverton LNWR Sheppey United |
| Relegated | Guildford (resigned) Bromley (resigned) Windsor & Eton (resigned) |
| Matches | 72 |
| Goals | 282 (3.92 per match) |
← 1894–95 1896–97 → | |
Division Two featured four new clubs, all of which were newly elected:
- 1st Scots Guards
- Guildford
- Windsor & Eton
- Wolverton LNWR
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GR | Pts | Qualification or relegation |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Wolverton LNWR | 16 | 13 | 1 | 2 | 43 | 10 | 4.300 | 27 | Promotion test matches |
| 2 | Sheppey United | 16 | 11 | 3 | 2 | 60 | 19 | 3.158 | 25 | |
| 3 | 1st Scots Guards | 16 | 8 | 5 | 3 | 37 | 22 | 1.682 | 21 | |
| 4 | Uxbridge | 16 | 9 | 1 | 6 | 28 | 23 | 1.217 | 19 | |
| 5 | Old St.Stephen's | 16 | 6 | 3 | 7 | 34 | 21 | 1.619 | 15 | |
| 6 | Guildford | 16 | 7 | 1 | 8 | 29 | 41 | 0.707 | 15 | Left league at end of season |
| 7 | Maidenhead | 16 | 4 | 1 | 11 | 20 | 49 | 0.408 | 9 | |
| 8 | Chesham | 16 | 2 | 3 | 11 | 15 | 48 | 0.313 | 7 | |
| 9 | Bromley | 16 | 2 | 2 | 12 | 16 | 49 | 0.327 | 6 | Left league at end of season |
| 10 | Windsor & Eton | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | Resigned from league after one match, record expunged |
Rules for classification: The system of using goal average to separate two teams tied on points was used until the 1976–77 season. The points system: 2 points for a win, 1 point for a draw and 0 points for losing.
Promotion-relegation test matches
At the end of the season, test matches were held between the bottom three clubs in Division One and the top three clubs in Division Two. Wolverton LNWR and Sheppey United were promoted after the play-offs, whilst Clapton remained in Division One. Although they later resigned from the league, 1st Scot Guards (who they had beaten in the play-offs) were not promoted in their place, and instead Royal Ordnance Factories kept their place in Division One.
| Division One clubs | v | Division Two clubs |
|---|---|---|
| Ilford | 0 – 2 | Wolverton LNWR |
|---|---|---|
Football League elections
Luton Town applied for election to Division Two of the Football League. However, in the election they were unsuccessful.[1]