1972–73 Kent Football League

The 1972–73 Kent Football League season was the seventh in the history of the Kent Football League, a football competition featuring teams based in and around the county of Kent in England.

The league comprised one division and there was also a league cup competition, the Challenge Cup.

League table

Kent Football League
Season1972–73
ChampionsSheppey United
Matches played378
Goals scored1,379 (3.65 per match)

The league featured teams from twenty clubs, including eight reserves teams. Eighteen of the clubs had competed in the league the previous season and they were joined by two additional clubs:

The Ramsgate Athletic Reserves team from the previous season were renamed Ramsgate Reserves.[3]

The league was won by Sheppey United.[4]

At the end of the season Brett Sports folded[5] and together with Hastings United Reserves left the league.[6] Both bottom clubs, Ashford Town Reserves and Margate Reserves, were re-elected to continue their membership of the league.[6]

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GAv Pts Season End Notes
1 Sheppey United 38 31 5 2 127 33 3.848 67
2 Sittingbourne 38 26 6 6 108 37 2.919 58
3 Chatham Town 38 24 5 9 92 47 1.957 53
4 Brett Sports 38 22 6 10 98 61 1.607 50 Resigned from the league (folded)
5 Kent Police[a] 36 22 6 8 76 41 1.854 46[b]
6 Dover Reserves 38 19 9 10 64 35 1.829 40[c]
7 Tonbridge Reserves 38 16 8 14 71 67 1.060 40
8 Tunbridge Wells 38 17 5 16 88 68 1.294 39
9 Bexley United Reserves 38 15 7 16 59 57 1.035 37
10 Dartford Amateurs 38 16 5 17 65 71 0.915 37
11 Deal Town 38 16 5 17 65 69 0.942 35[d]
12 Folkestone Reserves 38 14 6 18 65 92 0.707 34
13 Whitstable Town[e] 37 11 9 17 50 83 0.602 33[f]
14 Crockenhill 38 14 4 20 67 94 0.713 32
15 Ramsgate Reserves[e] 37 10 9 18 49 69 0.710 31[g]
16 Snowdown Colliery Welfare 38 11 7 20 44 71 0.620 29
17 Slade Green Athletic 38 9 10 19 55 77 0.714 28
18 Hastings United Reserves 38 9 5 24 53 97 0.546 23 Resigned from the league
19 Ashford Town Reserves 38 6 10 22 42 113 0.372 22 Re-elected
20 Margate Reserves 38 4 5 29 41 97 0.423 13
Source: "Final Kent League Table". Sheerness Times Guardian. 15 June 1973. p. 8. Retrieved 30 April 2024 – via British Newspaper Archive. with further points additions/deductions per "Kent League Tables: Kent League '72–'73". SCEFL. 7 May 2022. Retrieved 29 March 2024.
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) goal average.
Notes:
  1. ^ Matches versus Ramsgate Reserves and Whitstable Town not played.[7]
  2. ^ Kent Police were deducted four points.
  3. ^ Dover Reserves were deducted seven points for playing ineligible players
  4. ^ Deal Town were deducted two points for playing ineligible players
  5. ^ a b Match versus Kent Police not played.[7]
  6. ^ Whitstable Town had two points added.
  7. ^ Ramsgate Reserves had two points added.

Challenge Cup

The 1972–73 Kent Football League Challenge Cup was won by Folkestone Reserves – the final occasion it was won by a reserves team.[8]

The competition, contested by all twenty clubs in the league, comprised five single match tie rounds culminating in the final between Sittingbourne and Folkestone Reserves and played at the former's home ground, the Bull Ground.[9]

Quarter-finals, Semi-finals and Final

Quarter-finals Semi-finals Final
         
Ramsgate Reserves 0
Sittingbourne 3
Sittingbourne 2
Dartford Amateurs 0
Tonbridge Reserves 1 0[a]
Dartford Amateurs 1 5[a]
Sittingbourne 1
Folkestone Reserves 2
Sheppey United 2
Tunbridge Wells 3
Tunbridge Wells 2
Folkestone Reserves 3
Folkestone Reserves 3
Deal Town 2
  1. ^ a b Replay


Second Round

First Round

Sources:

References

  1. ^ "Colliers back in the fold". Kentish Express. Ashford. 14 July 1972. p. 10.
  2. ^ "Sheppey plans". Thanet Times. Margate. 6 June 1972. p. 16.
  3. ^ "Rams will drop 'Athletic' when they go Ltd". East Kent Times and Mail. Ramsgate. 23 June 1972. p. 21.
  4. ^ "First Division past winners / runners-up". kentleague.com. 2013. Archived from the original on 17 April 2013. Retrieved 29 March 2024.
  5. ^ "Gordon's new club". Herne Bay Press. Herne Bay. 1 June 1973. p. 9.
  6. ^ a b Carpenter, Gordon (25 June 1973). "It's all change in the Kent League". Evening Post. Larkfield, Maidstone. p. 28.
  7. ^ a b "Kent League Tables: Kent League '72–'73". SCEFL. 7 May 2022. Retrieved 29 March 2024.
  8. ^ "League Cup Winners since 1923". SCEFL. February 2022. Retrieved 29 March 2024.
  9. ^ Carpenter, Gordon (11 May 1973). "All-fit Bourne Go For The Big One". Evening News. Larkfield. p. 48.