Western League Division One

Brighton & Hove Albion Western League Division One Section A League Overview

Brighton & Hove Albion spent two seasons in the Western League between 1907 and 1909 after deciding to jump ship from their previous midweek competition, the United League.

No official reason was ever given for the change. South coast derbies with Portsmouth and Southampton often attracted the biggest crowds to the Goldstone however and with those two clubs competing in the Western League, the Albion’s board may have thought additional fixtures with Pompey and the Saints would generate more money for the club.

For Brighton’s two seasons in the competition, Division One of the Western League was split into two sections with the winners meeting in a playoff to decide the overall champions. Although the name suggests that the Western League should have been filled with clubs from the west country – it now sits at step nine on the pyramid and covers Cornwall, Devon, Somerset, Gloucestershire and Wiltshire – for Brighton’s two season stay in Section A, their only real trip west was to Plymouth Argyle.

The rest of the division was made up of London clubs and Southampton and Portsmouth. Those two filled the top two spots in the 1907-08 season with Brighton enjoying a respectable debut campaign, finishing in third spot. Games at the Goldstone Ground proved to be particularly fruitful and the Albion dropped just one point at home all season when drawing 0-0 against Brentford on Wednesday 2^nd October 1907.

They hammered eventual champions Southampton in Hove on Wednesday 27^th November 1907 and runners up Pompey were beaten 3-1 five weeks earlier on Wednesday 23^rd October 1907. Manager Frank Scott-Walford largely used first team players in the competition, although there were occasions when young trialists or guests appeared.

Renowned Scotland international Tom Ritchie was the most notable guest in that Goldstone draw with Brentford. Fitchie was a Queen’s Park player but found himself spending time in the south of England where he kept his match fitness up by turning out for both the Albion and Norwich City in the 1907-08 season.

Brighton’s second campaign in the Western League saw them go two better as they won Division One Section A by three points from Queens Park Rangers. The Albion led the way from the second game of the season, winning seven, drawing two and losing three of their 12 games.

The tone was set from the opening day when Croydon Common were hammered 5-0 at the Goldstone on Wednesday 16^th September 1908 with the stand out result being a gritty 1-0 win against QPR at Park Royal on Monday 7^th December 1908.

After topping the league, Brighton went onto face Section B winners Millwall in the Western League playoff to decide the overall champions. A 1-1 draw at the Boleyn Ground on Monday 5^th April 1909 was followed by Millwall triumphing 2-1 in a replay on Thursday 22^nd April 1909, leaving the Albion to finish runners up.

Brighton and the other 13 Southern League sides competing in the Western League withdrew at the end of the 1908-09 season, but the competition had at least given the Albion a taste of success and some experience of leading a league and winning a division. Jack Robson and his players would go onto take that form into the 1909-10 campaign by winning the Southern League title and the Southern Professional Charity Cup.