1960–61 Southern Football League
The 1960–61 Southern Football League season was the 58th in the history of the league, an English football competition.
Oxford United won the championship, whilst Kettering Town, Cambridge United, Bexleyheath & Welling and Merthyr Tydfil were all promoted to the Premier Division. Ten Southern League clubs applied to join the Football League at the end of the season, but none were successful.
Premier Division[]
The Premier Division consisted of 22 clubs, including 18 clubs from the previous season and four new clubs, promoted from Division One:
- Clacton Town
- Folkestone Town
- Guildford City
- Romford
League table[]
| Season | 1960–61 |
|---|---|
| Champions | Oxford United |
| Relegated | Dartford Hastings United Wisbech Town |
| Matches played | 462 |
| Goals scored | 1,697 (3.67 per match) |
← 1959–60 1961–62 → | |
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GR | Pts | Promotion or relegation |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Oxford United | 42 | 27 | 10 | 5 | 104 | 43 | 2.419 | 64 | |
| 2 | Chelmsford City | 42 | 23 | 11 | 8 | 91 | 55 | 1.655 | 57 | |
| 3 | Yeovil Town | 42 | 23 | 9 | 10 | 109 | 54 | 2.019 | 55 | |
| 4 | Hereford United | 42 | 21 | 10 | 11 | 83 | 67 | 1.239 | 52 | |
| 5 | Weymouth | 42 | 21 | 9 | 12 | 78 | 63 | 1.238 | 51 | |
| 6 | Bath City | 42 | 18 | 14 | 10 | 74 | 52 | 1.423 | 50 | |
| 7 | Cambridge City | 42 | 16 | 12 | 14 | 101 | 71 | 1.423 | 44 | |
| 8 | Wellington Town | 42 | 17 | 9 | 16 | 66 | 68 | 0.971 | 43 | |
| 9 | Bedford Town | 42 | 18 | 7 | 17 | 94 | 97 | 0.969 | 43 | |
| 10 | Folkestone Town | 42 | 18 | 7 | 17 | 75 | 86 | 0.872 | 43 | |
| 11 | King's Lynn | 42 | 13 | 16 | 13 | 68 | 66 | 1.030 | 42 | |
| 12 | Worcester City | 42 | 15 | 11 | 16 | 69 | 69 | 1.000 | 41 | |
| 13 | Clacton Town | 42 | 15 | 11 | 16 | 82 | 83 | 0.988 | 41 | |
| 14 | Romford | 42 | 13 | 15 | 14 | 66 | 69 | 0.957 | 41 | |
| 15 | Guildford City | 42 | 14 | 11 | 17 | 65 | 62 | 1.048 | 39 | |
| 16 | Tonbridge | 42 | 16 | 6 | 20 | 79 | 85 | 0.929 | 38 | |
| 17 | Cheltenham Town | 42 | 15 | 7 | 20 | 81 | 81 | 1.000 | 37 | |
| 18 | Gravesend & Northfleet | 42 | 15 | 7 | 20 | 75 | 101 | 0.743 | 37 | |
| 19 | Dartford | 42 | 13 | 11 | 18 | 57 | 90 | 0.633 | 37 | Relegated to Division One |
| 20 | Hastings United | 42 | 8 | 9 | 25 | 60 | 100 | 0.600 | 25 | |
| 21 | Wisbech Town | 42 | 9 | 6 | 27 | 58 | 112 | 0.518 | 24 | |
| 22 | Boston United | 42 | 6 | 8 | 28 | 62 | 123 | 0.504 | 20 | Resigned from the league |
Source: rsssf.com
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) goal ratio.
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) goal ratio.
Division One[]
Division One consisted of 21 clubs, including 16 clubs from the previous season and five new clubs:
- Four clubs relegated from the Premier Division:
- Barry Town
- Kettering Town
- Nuneaton Borough
- Poole Town
- Plus:
- Canterbury City, elected from the Metropolitan League
League table[]
| Season | 1960–61 |
|---|---|
| Champions | Kettering Town |
| Promoted | Kettering Town Cambridge United Bexleyheath & Welling Merthyr Tydfil |
| Matches played | 420 |
| Goals scored | 1,513 (3.6 per match) |
← 1959–60 1961–62 → | |
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GR | Pts | Promotion or relegation |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kettering Town | 40 | 26 | 7 | 7 | 100 | 55 | 1.818 | 59 | Promoted to the Premier Division |
| 2 | Cambridge United | 40 | 25 | 5 | 10 | 100 | 53 | 1.887 | 55 | |
| 3 | Bexleyheath & Welling | 40 | 22 | 8 | 10 | 93 | 46 | 2.022 | 52 | |
| 4 | Merthyr Tydfil | 40 | 23 | 6 | 11 | 88 | 65 | 1.354 | 52 | |
| 5 | Sittingbourne | 40 | 21 | 10 | 9 | 77 | 63 | 1.222 | 52 | |
| 6 | Hinckley Athletic | 40 | 17 | 13 | 10 | 74 | 59 | 1.254 | 47 | |
| 7 | Ramsgate Athletic | 40 | 19 | 7 | 14 | 77 | 56 | 1.375 | 45 | |
| 8 | Rugby Town | 40 | 18 | 9 | 13 | 89 | 71 | 1.254 | 45 | |
| 9 | Corby Town | 40 | 16 | 10 | 14 | 82 | 73 | 1.123 | 42 | |
| 10 | Poole Town | 40 | 18 | 5 | 17 | 71 | 65 | 1.092 | 41 | |
| 11 | Barry Town | 40 | 16 | 9 | 15 | 65 | 74 | 0.878 | 41 | |
| 12 | Yiewsley | 40 | 17 | 7 | 16 | 65 | 76 | 0.855 | 41 | |
| 13 | Trowbridge Town | 40 | 14 | 10 | 16 | 71 | 73 | 0.973 | 38 | |
| 14 | Ashford Town (Kent) | 40 | 14 | 8 | 18 | 61 | 67 | 0.910 | 36 | |
| 15 | Margate | 40 | 11 | 12 | 17 | 62 | 75 | 0.827 | 34 | |
| 16 | Dover | 40 | 12 | 7 | 21 | 67 | 74 | 0.905 | 31 | |
| 17 | Canterbury City | 40 | 10 | 10 | 20 | 52 | 75 | 0.693 | 30 | |
| 18 | Nuneaton Borough | 40 | 11 | 7 | 22 | 60 | 91 | 0.659 | 29 | |
| 19 | Burton Albion | 40 | 12 | 4 | 24 | 63 | 85 | 0.741 | 28 | |
| 20 | Tunbridge Wells United | 40 | 8 | 5 | 27 | 56 | 115 | 0.487 | 21 | |
| 21 | Gloucester City | 40 | 7 | 7 | 26 | 40 | 102 | 0.392 | 21 |
Source: rsssf.com
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) goal ratio.
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) goal ratio.
Football League elections[]
Ten Southern League clubs (including Bexleyheath & Welling and Kettering Town from Division One) applied for election to the Football League. However, all four League clubs were re-elected.[1]
| Club | League | Votes |
|---|---|---|
| Chester | Football League | 45 |
| Exeter City | Football League | 44 |
| Barrow | Football League | 35 |
| Hartlepools United | Football League | 32 |
| Oxford United | Southern League | 19 |
| Bedford Town | Southern League | 4 |
| Wigan Athletic | Lancashire Combination | 4 |
| Cambridge City | Southern League | 3 |
| Chelmsford City | Southern League | 3 |
| Gateshead | Northern Counties League | 3 |
| Hereford United | Southern League | 1 |
| Kettering Town | Southern League | 1 |
| Romford | Southern League | 1 |
| Scarborough | Northern Counties League | 1 |
| South Shields | Northern Counties League | 1 |
| Bexleyheath & Welling | Southern League | 0 |
| Gravesend & Northfleet | Southern League | 0 |
| King's Lynn | Southern League | 0 |
| Morecambe | Lancashire Combination | 0 |
References[]
Categories:
- Southern Football League seasons
- 1960–61 in English football leagues