AFC Totton
THE SOUTHERN FOOTBALL LEAGUE’S Annual General Meeting took place at the Chesford Grange Hotel in Kenilworth on Saturday 17 June, where AFC Totton were formally presented with two of the trophies they won during the 2022/23 season.
David Martin, the Vice-Chairman of the Southern League, presented the Southern League Division One South Shield to AFC Totton’s Finance Director Tony Croft and Club Secretary Richard Matthews at the prestigious annual event in Warwickshire.
Mr. Martin also handed over the Champion of Champions trophy in recognition of The Stags’ triumph in the Super Cup-style match against Berkhamsted, who had romped to the Southern League Division One Central title. Two goals from Ethan Taylor saw Jimmy Ball’s men to a 2-1 success at Chesham United’s Meadow ground in Buckinghamshire on Saturday 29 April.
The Totton twosome also brought back the Southern League Division One South's Golden Boot award on behalf of Scott Rendell, who racked up a total of 28 league goals. He couldn't attend the event because he was back at the Snows Stadium with the rest of his teammates, undergoing the first day of pre-season training ahead of the 2023/24 campaign.
The Southern Football League was originally founded in 1894. Early iterations of Southampton Football Club (originally called Southampton St. Mary’s), Portsmouth and Tottenham Hotspur all competed successfully in the competition in the late-1800s and early-1900s, along with a host of familiar names from the lower ranks of the modern professional game.
Totton were promoted into the Southern League after claiming the Wessex Premier Division title in 2007/08. The then Southern League Division One South & West title followed in 2010/11, leading to promotion to the Southern League Premier Division South where they remained for three seasons before being relegated back to Step 4. After narrowly missing out on a Promotion Play-Off place on the last day of the 2021/22 season, The Stags lost only four matches on their way to lifting the Southern League Division One South Shield last term by a margin of seven points over their closest rivals.
They now await the release of fixtures for the upcoming 2023/24 season, during which they will renew acquaintances with the likes of Basingstoke Town, Dorchester Town, Gosport Borough, Merthyr Town, Plymouth Parkway, Poole Town, Salisbury, Sholing and Winchester City in the 22-team strong Southern Premier Division South.
By Ben Rochey-Adams
