Western Football League

Western Football League

Founded	1892;132 years ago (1892)
Country	England
Other club(s) from	Wales
Divisions	Premier Division Division One
Number of teams	40 18 (Premier Division) 22 (Division One)
Level on pyramid	Levels 9–10
Feeder to	Southern League Division One South
Relegation to	Dorset Premier League Gloucestershire County League Somerset County League Wiltshire League South West Peninsula League* *Only relegated from & promoted to Premier Division
Domestic cup(s)	Les Phillips Cup
Current champions	Helston Athletic (Premier Division) Portishead Town (Division One) (2023–24)
Website	Official
Current: 2023–24 season

The Western Football League is a football league in South West England, covering Bristol, Cornwall, Devon, Somerset, western Dorset, parts of Gloucestershire and Wiltshire. The league's current main sponsor is Toolstation, so it is also known as the Toolstation League for sponsorship reasons.

Recent restructuring of the English football league system has placed the two divisions, known as the Premier Division and Division One (each a maximum of twenty-two clubs) at the ninth and tenth tiers overall, known as Step 5 and Step 6 of the National League System.

The champion club get promoted to a Step 4 league, which in practice will almost certainly be the Southern League Division One South. Below the Western League are four local leagues covering smaller areas, the Gloucestershire County League, the Somerset County League, the Dorset Premier League and the Wiltshire League. ^[1] The South West Peninsula League Premier Divisions East and West are also feeders to the Western League but due to having Step 6 status (the same level as the Western League Division One), they feed directly into the Western League Premier Division.

List of 2023–24 member clubs

Premier Division

Barnstaple Town

Bridgwater United

Brixham

Buckland Athletic

Clevedon Town

Falmouth Town

Helston Athletic

Ilfracombe Town

Millbrook

Nailsea & Tickenham

Oldland Abbotonians

Saltash United

Shepton Mallet

St Blazey

Street

Torpoint Athletic

Wellington

Welton Rovers

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Map showing the location of teams in Western Football League, Premier Division in 2023–24

Club	Home ground
Barnstaple Town	Mill Road
Bridgwater United	Fairfax Park
Brixham	Wall Park
Buckland Athletic	Homers Heath
Clevedon Town	Hand Stadium
Falmouth Town	Bickland Park
Helston Athletic	Kellaway Park
Ilfracombe Town	Marlborough Park
Lymington Town	The Sports Ground
Mangotsfield United	Cossham Street
Millbrook	Jenkins Park
Nailsea & Tickenham	Fryth Way
Oldland Abbotonians	Aitchison Playing Field
Saltash United	Kimberley Stadium
Shepton Mallet	The Playing Fields
St Blazey	Blaise Park
Street	The Tannery
Torpoint Athletic	The Mill
Wellington	The Playing Field
Welton Rovers	West Clewes

Division One

Club	Home ground
AEK Boco	Greenbank Road Playing Fields
Bishop Sutton	Lakeview
Bitton	Recreation Ground
Bradford Town	Trowbridge Road
Brislington	Brislington Stadium
Bristol Telephones	Stockwood Lane
Cadbury Heath	Springfield
Cheddar	Bowdens Park
Cribbs Reserves	The Lawns
Gillingham Town	Woodwater Lane
Hallen	The Hallen Centre
Hengrove Athletic	Norton Lane
Keynsham Town	Crown Field
Longwell Green Sports	Longwell Green Community Stadium
Middlezoy Rovers	The Aerodrome
Odd Down	Lew Hill Memorial Ground
Portishead Town	Bristol Road
Radstock Town	The Southfields Recreation Ground
Shirehampton	Penpole Lane
Warminster Town	Weymouth Street
Wells City	The Athletic Ground
Wincanton Town	Wincanton Sports Ground

History

The league was formed in 1892 as the Bristol & District League, and became the Western League in 1895. ^[2] Another Bristol & District League was later formed, which remains active at a much lower level than the Western League. In the years before World War II, many teams played in both the Southern and Western Leagues; the Western League was considered as secondary to the Southern League.

On four occasions, member clubs have lifted the FA Vase, Tiverton Town twice, Taunton Town once and most recently Truro City, who beat A.F.C. Totton in 2007 ^[3] at the first final to be held at the new Wembley Stadium before a competition record crowd of 27,754. Truro City were the only one of the three to win the FA Vase while in Division One, while none are current members of the Western League, as all three have since progressed to the Southern League.

Founder members

• Bedminster (later merged with Bristol South End to form Bristol City)
• Clevedon (later Clevedon Town)
• Clifton Association
• Eastville Rovers (later Bristol Rovers)
• Mangotsfield
• St. George (later merged with Roman Glass F.C. to form Roman Glass St George)
• Trowbridge Town
• Warmley
• Wells

List of champions

Bristol & District League

Season	Division One champions (number of titles)	Division Two champions (number of titles)
1892–93	Warmley (1)	Division Two not active
1893–94	Warmley (2)	Warmley Bristol Reserves (1)
1894–95	Hereford Thistle (1)	Warmley Bristol Reserves (2)

Western Football League

Season	Division One champions (number of titles)	Division Two champions (number of titles)
1895–96	Warmley (3)	Barton Hill (1)
1896–97	Warmley (4)	Eastville Wanderers (1)

Season	Professional Section champions (number of titles)	Amateur Division One champions (number of titles)	Amateur Division Two champions (number of titles)
1897–98	Bristol City (1)	Bedminster (1)	Hanham (1)

Season	Division One champions (number of titles)	Division Two champions (number of titles)
1898–99	Swindon Town (1)	Staple Hill (1)
1899–1900	Bristol Rovers (1)	Bristol East (1)
1900–01	Portsmouth (1)	Bristol East (2)
1901–02	Portsmouth (2)	Bristol East (3)
1902–03	Portsmouth (3)	Bristol Rovers Reserves (1)
1903–04	Tottenham Hotspur (1)	Bristol City Reserves (1)
1904–05	Plymouth Argyle (1)	Bristol Rovers Reserves (2)
1905–06	Queens Park Rangers (1)	Bristol Rovers Reserves (3)
1906–07	West Ham United (1)	Staple Hill (2)
1907–08	Millwall Athletic (1)	Bristol City Reserves (2)
1908–09	Millwall Athletic (2)	Bristol City Reserves (3)
1909–10	Treharris (1)	Division Two not active
1910–11	Bristol City Reserves (1)
1911–12	Welton Rovers (1)
1912–13	Bristol Rovers Reserves (1)
1913–14	Cardiff City Reserves (1)
1915–16 to 1918–19	League suspended due to World War I
1919–20	Douglas (1)	Frome Town (1)
1920–21	Bristol City Reserves (2)	Peasedown St John (1)
1921–22	Yeovil & Petters United (1)	Clandown (1)
1922–23	Weymouth (1)	Division Two not active
1923–24	Lovell's Athletic (1)
1924–25	Yeovil & Petters United (2)
1925–26	Bristol City Reserves (3)	Poole (1)
1926–27	Bristol City Reserves (4)	Poole Reserves (1)
1927–28	Plymouth Argyle Reserves (1)	Trowbridge Town (1)
1928–29	Bristol Rovers Reserves (2)	Bath City Reserves (1)
1929–30	Yeovil & Petters United (3)	Trowbridge Town (2)
1930–31	Exeter City Reserves (1)	Portland United (1)
1931–32	Plymouth Argyle Reserves (2)	Portland United (2)
1932–33	Exeter City Reserves (2)	Swindon Town Reserves (1)
1933–34	Bath City (1)	Weymouth (1)
1934–35	Yeovil & Petters United (4)	Swindon Town Reserves (2)
1935–36	Bristol Rovers Reserves (3)	Swindon Town Reserves (3)
1936–37	Bristol Rovers Reserves (4)	Weymouth (2)
1937–38	Bristol City Reserves (5)	Weymouth (3)
1938–39	Lovell's Athletic (2)	Trowbridge Town (3)
1939–40	Trowbridge Town (1)	Division Two not active
1940–41 to 1944–45	League suspended due to World War II
1945–46	Bristol Rovers Reserves (5)	Division Two not active
1946–47	Trowbridge Town (2)	Clandown (2)
1947–48	Trowbridge Town (3)	Salisbury (1)
1948–49	Glastonbury (1)	Chippenham United (1)
1949–50	Wells City (1)	Barnstaple Town (1)
1950–51	Glastonbury (2)	Stonehouse (1)
1951–52	Chippenham Town (1)	Bideford (1)
1952–53	Barnstaple Town (1)	Chippenham Town Reserves (1)
1953–54	Weymouth Reserves (1)	Bristol Rovers Colts (1)
1954–55	Dorchester Town (1)	Yeovil Town Reserves (1)
1955–56	Trowbridge Town (4)	Torquay United Reserves (1)
1956–57	Poole Town (1)	Cinderford Town (1)
1957–58	Salisbury (1)	Poole Town Reserves (1)
1958–59	Yeovil Town Reserves (1)	Bath City Reserves (2)
1959–60	Torquay United Reserves (1)	Welton Rovers (1)
1960–61	Salisbury (2)	Division Two not active
1961–62	Bristol City 'A' (1)
1962–63	Bristol City 'A' (2)
1963–64	Bideford (1)
1964–65	Welton Rovers (2)
1965–66	Welton Rovers (3)
1966–67	Welton Rovers (4)
1967–68	Bridgwater Town (1)
1968–69	Taunton (1)
1969–70	Glastonbury (3)
1970–71	Bideford (2)
1971–72	Bideford (3)
1972–73	Devizes Town (1)
1973–74	Welton Rovers (5)
1974–75	Falmouth Town (1)
1975–76	Falmouth Town (2)
1976–77	Falmouth Town (3)	Saltash United (1)
1977–78	Falmouth Town (4)	Keynsham Town (1)
1978–79	Frome Town (1)	Bournemouth Reserves (1)
1979–80	Barnstaple Town (2)	Melksham Town (1)
1980–81	Bridgwater Town (2)	Chippenham Town (1)
1981–82	Bideford (4)	Shepton Mallet Town (1)
1982–83	Bideford (5)	Bristol Manor Farm (1)
1983–84	Exmouth Town (1)	Bristol City Reserves (4)
1984–85	Saltash United (1)	Portway Bristol (1)
1985–86	Exmouth Town (2)	Portway Bristol (2)
1986–87	Saltash United (2)	Swanage Town & Herston (1)
1987–88	Liskeard Athletic (1)	Welton Rovers (2)
1988–89	Saltash United (3)	Larkhall Athletic (1)
1989–90	Taunton Town (2)	Ottery St Mary (1)
1990–91	Mangotsfield United (1)	Minehead (1)
1991–92	Weston-super-Mare (1)	Westbury United (1)
1992–93	Clevedon Town (1)	Odd Down (1)
1993–94	Tiverton Town (1)	Barnstaple Town (2)
1994–95	Tiverton Town (2)	Brislington (1)
1995–96	Taunton Town (3)	Bridgwater Town (1)
1996–97	Tiverton Town (3)	Melksham Town (2)
1997–98	Tiverton Town (4)	Bishop Sutton (1)
1998–99	Taunton Town (4)	Minehead (2)
1999–2000	Taunton Town (5)	Devizes Town (1)
2000–01	Taunton Town (6)	Team Bath (1)
2001–02	Bideford (6)	Frome Town (2)
2002–03	Team Bath (1)	Torrington (1)
2003–04	Bideford (7)	Hallen (1)
2004–05	Bideford (8)	Willand Rovers (1)
2005–06	Bideford (9)	Dawlish Town (1)
2006–07	Corsham Town (1)	Truro City (1)
2007–08	Truro City (1)	Wellington (1)
2008–09	Bitton (1)	Larkhall Athletic (2)
2009–10	Bideford (10)	Wells City (1)
2010–11	Larkhall Athletic (1)	Merthyr Town (1)
2011–12	Merthyr Town (1)	Cadbury Heath (1)
2012–13	Bishop Sutton (1)	Sherborne Town (1)
2013–14	Larkhall Athletic (2)	Bradford Town (1)
2014–15	Melksham Town (1)	Barnstaple Town (3)
2015–16	Odd Down (1)	Chipping Sodbury Town (1)
2016–17	Bristol Manor Farm (1)	Wellington (2)
2017–18	Street (1)	Westbury United (2)
2018–19	Willand Rovers (1)	Keynsham Town (2)
2019–20	League abandoned due to COVID–19 pandemic
2020–21	League curtailed due to COVID–19 pandemic
2021–22	Tavistock (1)	Sherborne Town (2)
2022–23	Mousehole (1)	Brislington (2)
2023–24	Helston Athletic (1)	Portishead Town (1)

Teams promoted to Southern League (since 1946)

The area covered by the Western League is coloured in dark green.

Year	Team	Position
1949	Weymouth	3rd
1957	Poole Town	1st
1958	Trowbridge Town	5th
1968	Salisbury	2nd
1971	Andover	2nd
1972	Bideford	1st
1972	Minehead	2nd
1972	Dorchester Town	7th
1977	Taunton Town	9th
1982	Bridgwater Town	3rd
1992	Weston-super-Mare	1st
1993	Clevedon Town	1st
1999	Tiverton Town	2nd
2000	Mangotsfield United	2nd
2001	Chippenham Town	2nd
2002	Taunton Town	2nd
2003	Team Bath	1st
2004	Paulton Rovers	2nd
2007	Bridgwater Town	2nd
2008	Truro City	1st
2009	Frome Town	2nd
2010	Bideford	1st
2012	Merthyr Town	1st
2014	Larkhall Athletic	1st
2015	Slimbridge	3rd
2016	Barnstaple Town	2nd
2017	Bristol Manor Farm	1st
2018	Street	1st
2018	Melksham Town	2nd
2019	Willand Rovers	1st
2021	Plymouth Parkway	1st
2022	Tavistock	1st
2022	Exmouth Town	2nd
2023	Mousehole	1st

References

1. Houlihan, Owen (24 May 2013). "FOOTBALL: Chippenham Park to join Toolstation League". Gazette and Herald. Wiltshire. Archived from the original on 28 June 2013. Retrieved 31 July 2013.
2. Bristol and District Football League (1892). Bristol & District Football League, Established 1892. [Rules, with Fixtures and List of Clubs.].
3. "Truro storm back to lift FA Vase". 13 May 2007. Retrieved 30 June 2022.

External links

• Official Site
• Western League – Fixtures, Results and Tables