The 1980–81
Southern Football League season was the 78th in the history of the league, an English
football competition.
Alvechurch
Alvechurch ( ) is a large village and civil parish in the Bromsgrove district in northeast Worcestershire, England, in the valley of the River Arrow. The Lickey Hills Country Park is 2.5 miles (4 km) to the northwest. It is south of Bir ...
won the Midland Division, whilst
Dartford won the Southern Division. Alvechurch were declared Southern League champions after defeating Dartford 4–3 on penalties, after the two championship play-offs had finished 3–3 on aggregate (Alvechurch won 1–0 at home and Dartford won 3–2).
Despite Alvechuch being champions, they declined promotion to the
Alliance Premier League
The National League (named Vanarama National League for sponsorship reasons) is an association football league in England consisting of three divisions, the National League, National League North, and National League South. It was called the ...
alongside Dartford as their board thought they were not ready,
with third-placed
Trowbridge Town going up in their place. There was no relegation for the second successive season, although
Bognor Regis Town
Bognor Regis Town Football Club is an English football club based in Bognor Regis, West Sussex. Nicknamed 'The Rocks',the club is an FA Chartered Standard Community club affiliated to the Sussex County Football Association. They currently compet ...
transferred to the
Isthmian League at the end of the season.
Bedford Town, who finished second to Alvechurch in the Midland Division on
goal difference, won the
Southern League Cup.
Midland Division
The Midland Division consisted of 22 clubs, including 21 clubs from the
previous season and one new club:
*
Redditch United
Redditch United Football Club is an English football club based in Redditch, Worcestershire. The club participates in the and play their home games at the V
Trico Stadium. They are managed by former Captain and Assistant Manager Matt Clarke.
...
, relegated from the
Alliance Premier League
The National League (named Vanarama National League for sponsorship reasons) is an association football league in England consisting of three divisions, the National League, National League North, and National League South. It was called the ...
Bedford Town needed to beat
Enderby Town by eight goals in their last game of the season to win the league but only won 2-0 making Alvechurch the champions.
Dave Lewis of
Gloucester City was top scorer for the season with 27 goals.
League table
Southern Division
There were no new clubs in the Southern Division this season. Though, at the end of the previous season Addlestone
Addlestone ( or ) is a town in Surrey, England. It is located approximately southwest of London. The town is the administrative centre of the Runnymede (borough), Borough of Runnymede, of which it is the largest settlement.
History
The town is ...
was renamed Addlestone & Weybridge Town and Folkestone & Shepway was renamed Folkestone.
At the end of the season Margate
Margate is a seaside town on the north coast of Kent in south-east England. The town is estimated to be 1.5 miles long, north-east of Canterbury and includes Cliftonville, Garlinge, Palm Bay and Westbrook.
The town has been a significan ...
was renamed Thanet United.
League table
See also
* Southern Football League
* 1980–81 Isthmian League
* 1980–81 Northern Premier League
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:1980-81 Southern Football League
Southern Football League seasons
6