Club History

A Brief History of AFC Totton (The Stags)

AFC Totton came into existence due to the amalgamation of Totton FC and Totton Athletic in 1974/75. The Stags started life in Hampshire League Division Two and that is where they remained until 1979/80. That season saw the Stags finish in 2^nd place behind Horndean and this saw the club promoted to Hampshire League Division One, which was then Step 4 of the non-league pyramid.

The following season (1980/81) saw the Stags win the Southampton Senior Cup, However, the achievements of the 1981/82 season will remain long in the memory of those older Stags supporters. Trevor Parker’s side unbelievably won the Hampshire League Division One title, the Russell-Cotes Cup, the Southampton Senior Cup, the Echo Trophy, the Reg Mathieson Trophy and the Hampshire Intermediate Cup!

The following season 1982/83 saw the club retain the Hampshire Intermediate Cup. Then in 1984/85 the Stags won their 2^nd Hampshire League Division One Championship in four years, finishing two points above their city rivals Sholing sports.

In 1989/90 AFC Totton were the Wessex League Cup winners, but it took a decade for more silverware to arrive at Testwood Park and it came in the shape of the Russell-Cotes Cup when they defeated Moneyfields 1-0 in the final.

The Stags won the 2002/03 Wessex League cup, beating Eastleigh 2-1 in the final. They won the competition once again in 2005/06, beating Andover 1-0 in that year’s final.

Stuart Ritchie was building quite a side at Testwood Park and in 2006/07 the club pulled off quite a feat by reaching the final of the FA Vase at Wembley Stadium. Unfortunately, the Stags were beaten 1-3 by Truro City in front of a record final crowd of 36.232, 17.000 supporters travelled up from the Town to give the Stags terrific backing. In the same season Totton were pipped to the Wessex Premier League title, after finishing Runners up to Gosport Borough by just one goal!

Totton made amends the following season (2007/08), by going one better and winning the Wessex premier League crown, The Stags finished on an incredible 106 points! In securing the Wessex League championship the club won promotion to the Southern League for the 1^st time in their history.

In 2009/10 Stuart Ritchie’s side won the Hampshire Senior Cup, beating Aldershot Town 4-0 in the final at Dean Court. The following season (2010/11) The club secured promotion to the Southern Premier Division by winning the Division One South & West title, The Stags also retained the Hampshire Senior Cup by beating Sholing 3-1 at St Mary’s. The 2010/11 season will also be fondly remembered by the club’s supporters for seeing their Stags side reach the FA Cup 2^nd Round Proper. The club were eventually knocked out by League Two Bristol Rovers live on National TV.

A full 40 years after their last success in the competition, the Stags lifted the Southampton Senior Cup at the end of the 2021/22 season. They amassed 32 goals in five games on their way to the final, knocking Bashley, Durley, Hedge End Town, Hamble Club and Winchester City out on their way to the Final at Soouthampton's St. Mary's Stadium.

After a tightly-contested first 45 minutes, second-half goals from striker Hisham Kasimu - his 30th of the season in all competitions - and midfielders Freddie Read and Lewis Waterfield saw them overcome Folland Sports from the Wessex League Division One in front of a crowd just shy of 1,100. Veteran striker Brett Williams made his 100th appearance for the club but his first ever as a goalkeeper, having been drafted into the No.1 jersey in response to an injury crisis that had three keepers all out at once.

In Manager Jimmy Ball's first full season in charge, AFC Totton were crowned Southern League Division One South Champions 2022/23. They sealed the title, and automatic promotion to the Southern League Premier Division South, with two matches to spare by beating Exmouth Town 1-0 at the Snows Stadium on Saturday 15 April 2023, with a goal from top scorer Scott Rendell. The squad, led by captain Mike Carter, were subsequently presented with the Shield by the Southern League Chairman David Martin after their home match against Frome Town, three days later (pictured below).

As a consequence of their championship success, Totton took part in the Southern League Division One Champion of Champions match, a Super Cup that pitches the winners of the Southern League Division One South against their Division One Central counterparts. Having achieved a higher points per game average across the course of the season, Berkhamsted were awarded home club status but due to a previously arranged event at their own ground, the match was moved the Chesham United's The Meadow ground amid The Chilterns in Buckinghamshire, taking place on Saturday 29 April 2023. Ethan Taylor scored both goals for The Stags, either side of an equaliser for Berkhamsted, in a 2-1 victory.

The Club completed a remarkable treble when they retained the SDFA Southampton Saturday Senior Cup with a 3-0 win over local rivals Sholing at St. Mary's Stadium on Wednesday 17 May 2023. Scott Rendell opened the scoring with an 11th minute penalty and added a second on 27 minutes. Ethan Taylor added a third goal in the 71st minute to cap and outstanding season of success for The Stags.

Having won promotion to the Southern League Premier Division South at Step 3 of the English non-league football pyramid, AFC Totton exceeded all early-season expectations by finishing Runners-Up to Champions Chesham United, finishing the regular season campaign as the division's top scorers. In the Promotion Play-Off Semi-Final, they beat Bracknell Town 2-1 after extra-time, to set-up a Play-Off Final against local rivals Salisbury, just five days later on the Bank Holiday Monday of 06 May 2024. The Stags were within a minute of reaching the National League South via Tony Lee's headed goal, when they conceded a controversial late penalty that resulted in a Salisbury equaliser to take the tie into extra-time. Salisbury took the lead during the first half of extra-time, but an Ethan Taylor leveller three minutes from the end meant the match went to penalties; Salisbury won the shoot-out 4-3.

Four days later, Totton participated in the Hampshire Senior Cup Final against Wessex League Premier Division side AFC Portchester at Aldershot Town's EBB Stadium. With the cup final still goalless after 90 minutes, it went straight to penalties; for the second time in a week, AFC Totton lost a final in a penalty shoot-out, going down 4-5 to The Royals.

After a horrendous week, the team got back to winning ways with a 5-0 victory in the Semi-Final of the SDFA Southampton Senior Cup at Blackfield & Langley's Gang Warily ground, near Fawley, to qualify for the Final against Hythe & Dibden. Originally scheduled to take place at Southampton FC's St. Mary's Stadium, the Final was relocated to Totton's Snows Stadium as a consequence of fixture congestion caused by The Saints' participation in the Championship Play-Offs at the end of the 2023/24 season. Totton were two goals up within the first three minutes and went on to win 4-1, to lift the Southampton Senior Cup for the third consecutive season, equalling a record jointly held by three other clubs. To date, no club has ever won it four times in a row.

AFC TOTTON, SDFA SOUTHAMPTON SENIOR CUP WINNERS 2023/24. Back row (left-to-right): Joe Oastler, Benny Read, Lewis Noice, Zach Earley, SaSean Lutumba, Remus Nixon, Scott Rendell (Capt.), Hugo Rawlings, Leon Maloney, Owen Pelham, Matty Burrows; Front: Jordan Ragguette, Ethan Taylor, Luke Bennett, Luke Hallett, Leo Taylor.