Southern League Division Two

Brighton & Hove Albion Southern League Division Two Overview

Brighton & Hove Albion spent the first two seasons of their existence in Southern League Division Two, taking up the spot in the division which had been offered to Brighton & Hove Rangers for the 1901-02 season.

Rangers had been the successors to Brighton’s first football club, Brighton United. United spent the 1899-90 season in Southern League Division One but failed to see out the season – they were wound up on Thursday 29^th March 1900 with four fixtures still to play.

The United committee then took over a struggling East Sussex League side, North End Rangers in 1900. North End Rangers were renamed Brighton & Hove Rangers and after spending the 1900-01 campaign playing friendly matches on what is now Surrenden Field the other side of the A23 to Withdean Stadium, Rangers were invited to join Southern League Division Two.

Unfortunately, Rangers collapsed in June 1901. There was now a spot waiting in Division Two for a Brighton-based team and a new home pitch at the Sussex County Cricket Ground, but no club to fill it. Rangers manager John Jackson subsequently became the driving force behind the quick-fire formation of a new club.

On Monday 24^th June 1901, Brighton & Hove Albion were founded at the Seven Stars pub in Ship Street. On Saturday 28^th September 1901, they were kicking off their first Southern League Division Two campaign with a 2-0 win against Shepherd’s Bush.

Brighton spent most of their first Southern League Division Two season in the promotion places thanks to a startling run of form which saw them win their first six games. Jackson’s side were unbeaten and topped the table entering March, but three away defeats against Fulham (1-2), Wycombe Wanderers (0-2) and West Hampstead (1-3) from their final three fixtures saw the Albion slip to third place behind Fulham and Grays United.

Only six sides competed in Division Two in the 1902-03 season. There was to be no repeat of the previous year’s late collapse as the Albion lost only two games all season to finish level on points with Fulham at the top of the table.

Normally when teams finished tied at the top of the Southern League, a playoff took place to determine who would be crowned champions. For unknown reasons, that was not the case in the 1902-03 campaign and so Brighton and Fulham shared the title. The Albion are recorded as finishing in first place in the table by virtue of a better goal average.

Promotion into Division One was not automatic and so there was still a Southern League playoff to contest against Watford, who had finished in the top flight relegation zone. Even after defeating Watford, there was plenty of debate about whether the Albion should take up their place in Division One. It was only after a vote at the Athenaeum Hall in North Street (now the Premier Inn) that the committee decided to accept promotion.

Brighton played 26 games in total in their two seasons in Southern League Division Two, winning 18, drawing one and losing seven. The Albion were quite literally invincible at home during that time, winning all 13 of their league matches played at the County Ground and then the Goldstone Ground, which became the club’s home in the summer of 1901. They scored 49 times and conceded just nine in those 13 fixtures.