The 2020–21 Southern Combination Football League season was the 96th in the history of the competition, which lies at levels 9 and 10 of the English football league system. This season also marked 100 years since the league was first formed, with Eastbourne Town, Newhaven and Shoreham being the only teams still in the league to have played in the first season.
The club allocations for Steps 5 and 6 were announced by The Football Association (The FA) for the 2020–21 season on 21 July 2020 and remained unchanged after the 2019–20 season was abandoned on 26 March due to the coronavirus pandemic.
On 18 July 2020 the FA released a statement that football would provisionally start on 5 September subject to spectators being able to watch games. With the FA Cup qualifying rounds starting from 1 September as midweek games to bring it in line with a November start for the First Round proper. The League Cup and the Sussex RUR Cup were cancelled this season with the main focus being the league season completed. Only the Sussex Senior Challenge Cup was to be played during the season.
Covid–19 impact The season was briefly paused between Thursday 5 November and 2 December 2020 as the UK Government imposed a four-week lockdown on non-elite sports across England. With the lockdown ending the Counties of Sussex and Surrey were placed in Tier 2 and clubs held a vote with the league whether to recommence the season. The league restarted with Division Two recommencing on Saturday 5 December and the Premier and Division One recommencing on Tuesday 8 December.
On Saturday 20 December, the UK Government announced that parts of the Sussex and Surrey would be placed in a new Tier 4. With Alfold, Bexhill United and Horley Town being in that tier, players and fans living in the Tier 4 area were not allowed to travel; the SCFL decided to again pause the season on 22 December with a review whether to re-start the season on 9 January 2021 which later resulted in a suspension until further notice.
On 24 February 2021, the FA Alliance and Leagues committees announced that the 2020–21 would be curtailed, subject to ratification by The FA, with immediate effect.
On 18 March, the Southern Combination League committee announced a supplementary cup competition to provide competitive football for their teams. Premier and Division One teams started on 10 April with Division Two teams kicked off earlier, on 3 April. The winners of each group then entered a semi-final and the final was played on or after 17 May.
Promotion, relegation and restructuring The scheduled restructuring of non-League football took place at the end of the season. Promotions from Steps 5 to 4 and 6 to 5 were based on points per game across all matches over the two abandoned seasons (2019–20 and 2020–21), while teams were promoted to Step 6 on the basis of a subjective application process.
Premier Division
The Premier Division consisted of 20 clubs, the same as last season.
Premier Division table at time of curtailment
Results table
Results by matchday
Position by matchday
Top scorers Correct as of 24 February 2021 RankPlayerClubGoals 1 Louis Croal Broadbridge Heath (previously Crawley Down Gatwick) 12 Jared Rance Pagham 3 Charlie Pitcher Hassocks 10 Lee Robinson Newhaven 5 Ben Connolly Lancing 9 Adam Grant Horley Town Daniel Perry Eastbourne Town (previously AFC Uckfield Town) 8 James Allen Lingfield 8 9 George Cousins Steyning Town 7 Kelvin Lucas Alfold Trevor McCreadie Saltdean United (previously Eastbourne Town) Sam Lemon Alfold
Stadia and locations
Team Location Stadium Capacity FoundedAlfold Alfold Crossways Alfold Recreation Ground 1,000 1923AFC Uckfield Town Framfield The Oaks 1,000 2014Broadbridge Heath Broadbridge Heath High Wood Hill Sports Ground 1,000 1919Crawley Down Gatwick Crawley Down The Haven Centre 1,000 1993Eastbourne Town Eastbourne The Saffrons 3,000 1881Eastbourne United Association Eastbourne The Oval 2,000 2003East Preston Littlehampton The Lashmar 2,000 1966Hassocks Hassocks The Beacon 1,500 1902Horley Town Horley The New Defence 1,800 1896Horsham YMCA Horsham Gorings Mead 1,575 1898Lancing Lancing Culver Road 1,500 1941Langney Wanderers Eastbourne Priory Lane (groundshare with Eastbourne Borough) 4,151 2010Lingfield Lingfield The Sports Pavilion 2,000 1893Little Common Eastbourne The Oval (groundshare with Eastbourne United) 2,000 1966Loxwood Loxwood Plaistow Road 1,000 1920Newhaven Newhaven The Trafalgar Ground 3,000 1889Pagham Pagham Nyetimber Lane 1,500 1903Peacehaven & Telscombe Peacehaven The Sports Park 3,000 1923Saltdean United Brighton Hill Park 1,000 1966Steyning Town Community Steyning The Shooting Field 2,000 1892
Division One
Division One was reduced from 18 clubs to 16 after Sidlesham resigned during the previous season and Southwick were demoted into the Mid Sussex Football League.
Division One table at time of curtailment
Results table
Results by matchday
Top scorers Correct until 24 February 2021 RankPlayerClubGoals1 Joseph Benn Littlehampton Town172 Evan Archibald Bexhill United133 Daniel Simmonds Wick10 4 Marcus Bedford Midhurst & Easebourne 8 Thomas Biggs Mile Oak Jack McLean Bexhill United7 Daniel Hegarty Littlehampton Town6 Jordan Layton Littlehampton Town Ramon Santos Shoreham10 Lewis Hyde Midhurst & Easebourne5 Joseph Keehan AFC Varndeanians Harry Lowe Roffey
Stadia and locations
Team Location Stadium Capacity FoundedAFC Varndeanians Brighton Withdean Stadium (groundshare with Brighton Electricity) 8,850 1929Arundel Arundel Mill Road 2,200 1889Bexhill United Bexhill-on-Sea The Polegrove — 2002Billingshurst Billingshurst Jubilee Fields — 1891Hailsham Town Hailsham The Beaconsfield 2,000 1885Littlehampton Town Littlehampton St Flora Sportsfield (groundshare with Littlehampton United) 4,000 1896Midhurst & Easebourne Easebourne Rotherfield — 1946Mile Oak Brighton Mile Oak Recreation Ground — 1960Oakwood Crawley Tinsley Lane — 1962Roffey Horsham Bartholomew Way — 1901Seaford Town Seaford The Crouch — 1888Selsey Selsey Bunn Leisure Stadium — 1903Shoreham Shoreham-by-Sea Middle Road 2,000 1892Storrington Storrington The Recreation Ground, Storrington — 1883Wick Littlehampton Crabtree Park 2,000 1892Worthing United Worthing The Robert Albon Memorial Ground 1,504 1988
Division Two
Division Two was reduced from 15 teams to 14 after Cowfold resigned from the league last season and Angmering Village transferred to the West Sussex Football League and featured one new club: Charlwood, transferred from the Mid Sussex Football League
Promotion from this division depended on ground grading as well as league position.
League table
Results table
Results by matchday
Top scorers
RankPlayerClubGoals1 Oscar Weddell Copthorne 13 2 James Butt Rustington 5 Bradley Curtis TD Shipley Jonathan Hendrick Littlehampton United Josh Irish Rustington Pat O'Sullivan Upper Beeding James Rowland Upper Beeding Ryan Warr Upper Beeding9 Mark Cave TD Shipley 4 Chris Darwin Rustington
Stadia and locations
Team Location Stadium Capacity FoundedBosham Bosham Walton Lane — 1901Brighton Electricity Brighton Withdean Stadium (groundshare with AFC Varndeanians) 8,850 —Charlwood Charlwood Glovers Road — 1901Copthorne Copthorne King Georges Field — 2004Ferring Ferring The Glebelands — 1952Jarvis Brook Crowborough Limekiln — 1888Littlehampton United Littlehampton St Flora Sportsfield (groundshare with Littlehampton Town 4,000 1947Montpelier Villa Brighton Sussex University — 1991Rottingdean Village Brighton Rottingdean Sports Centre — —Rustington Rustington Rustington Recreation Ground — 1903St Francis Rangers Haywards Heath Colwell Ground 1000 2002TD Shipley Shipley (Dragon's Green) Dragons Green — 1994Upper Beeding Upper Beeding Memorial Playing Field — —Worthing Town Worthing Palatine Park — 1995
Supplementry Shield Premier Division Group A
Group B
Group C
Group D
semi-final
Final
Division One Group A
Group B
Group C
semi-final
Final
Division Two Group A
Group B
semi-final
Final
References
External links Southern Combination Football League