2021–22 Midland Football League
The 2021–22 Midland Football League season was the eighth in the history of the Midland Football League, a football competition in England. The Midland League operates two divisions in the English football league system, the Premier Division at Step 5, and Division One at Step 6, and these two divisions are covered by this article.
The allocations for Steps 5 and 6 for this season were announced by The Football Association on 18 May 2021,[1] and were subject to appeal.
After the abandonment of the 2019–20 and 2020–21 seasons due to the COVID-19 pandemic in England, numerous promotions were decided on a points per game basis over the previous two seasons.[2][3][4]
Premier Division
[edit]Season | 2021–22 |
---|---|
Champions | Hanley Town (1st title) |
Promoted | Hanley Town Boldmere St Michaels |
Relegated | Haughmond |
Matches played | 342 |
Goals scored | 1,122 (3.28 per match) |
Biggest home win | Lichfield City 9–0 Uttoxeter Town (13 November 2021) |
Biggest away win | Wolverhampton Casuals 1–7 Lye Town (30 October 2021) Bewdley Town 0–6 Stourport Swifts (27 December 2021) Wolverhampton Casuals 1–7 Hanley Town (18 January 2022) |
Highest scoring | Bewdley Town 3–8 Shifnal Town (9 November 2021) |
← 2020–21 2022–23 → |
The Premier Division featured 11 clubs which competed in the previous season, along with eight new clubs.
- Clubs promoted from Division One:
- Clubs promoted from the West Midlands (Regional) League Premier Division:
- Clubs transferred from the North West Counties League Premier Division:
- Plus:
- Stone Old Alleynians, promoted from North West Counties League Division One South
Congleton Town's initial transfer to this division from the North West Counties League was reversed on appeal.[5]
League table
[edit]
Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Promotion, qualification or relegation |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Hanley Town | 36 | 25 | 8 | 3 | 82 | 26 | +56 | 83 | Promoted to the Northern Premier League |
2 | Boldmere St Michaels | 36 | 22 | 8 | 6 | 71 | 35 | +36 | 74 | Qualified for the inter-step play-off, then promoted to the Northern Premier League[a] |
3 | Lichfield City | 36 | 20 | 8 | 8 | 82 | 42 | +40 | 68 | |
4 | Worcester City | 36 | 20 | 5 | 11 | 70 | 37 | +33 | 65 | |
5 | AFC Wulfrunians | 36 | 17 | 9 | 10 | 57 | 48 | +9 | 60 | |
6 | Walsall Wood | 36 | 15 | 12 | 9 | 69 | 43 | +26 | 57 | |
7 | Shifnal Town | 36 | 16 | 8 | 12 | 69 | 45 | +24 | 56 | |
8 | Lye Town | 36 | 16 | 7 | 13 | 58 | 38 | +20 | 55 | |
9 | Romulus | 36 | 16 | 6 | 14 | 59 | 57 | +2 | 54 | |
10 | Stone Old Alleynians | 36 | 14 | 10 | 12 | 59 | 63 | −4 | 52 | |
11 | Tividale | 36 | 14 | 9 | 13 | 50 | 55 | −5 | 51 | |
12 | Whitchurch Alport | 36 | 15 | 3 | 18 | 64 | 73 | −9 | 48 | |
13 | Stourport Swifts | 36 | 11 | 13 | 12 | 58 | 57 | +1 | 46 | |
14 | Racing Club Warwick | 36 | 12 | 6 | 18 | 51 | 61 | −10 | 42 | |
15 | Highgate United | 36 | 6 | 12 | 18 | 44 | 65 | −21 | 30 | |
16 | Uttoxeter Town | 36 | 7 | 9 | 20 | 38 | 76 | −38 | 30 | |
17 | Wolverhampton Casuals | 36 | 9 | 4 | 23 | 46 | 101 | −55 | 30[b] | |
18 | Bewdley Town | 36 | 6 | 8 | 22 | 42 | 110 | −68 | 26 | Reprieved from relegation[c] |
19 | Haughmond | 36 | 6 | 5 | 25 | 53 | 90 | −37 | 23 | Relegated to Division One |
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) goal difference; 3) number of goals scored; 4) number of matches won; 5) head-to-head results[8]
Notes:
- ^ Contested an inter-step play-off match as one of bottom six runners-up from Step 5 with the most points per game (PPG) at the end of the 2021–22 season against one of the seven third-from-bottom clubs with the fewest PPG from the eight divisions at Step 4. The winner rose to Step 4 for the 2022–23 season, while the loser dropped to Step 5.[6]
- ^ Wolverhampton Casuals were deducted 1 point for fielding an ineligible player.
- ^ Reprieved as one of twelve clubs with the most PPG out of 16 that were second-from-bottom at Step 5.[7]
Inter-step play-off
[edit]30 April 2022 | Chalfont St Peter | 0–4 | Boldmere St Michaels | Chalfont St Peter |
15:00 BST | Daley 29' Byrne 33', 70' McSkeane 63' |
Stadium: Mill Meadow Attendance: 313 |
Results table
[edit]Stadia and locations
[edit]Club | Location | Stadium | Capacity |
---|---|---|---|
AFC Wulfrunians | Wolverhampton | Castlecroft Stadium | 2,000 |
Bewdley Town | Bewdley | Ribbesford Meadows | 1,000 |
Boldmere St. Michaels | Boldmere | Trevor Brown Memorial Ground | 2,000 |
Hanley Town | Hanley | Potteries Park | |
Haughmond | Shrewsbury | Shrewsbury Sports Village | 1,000 |
Highgate United | Shirley | The Coppice | 2,000 |
Lichfield City | Lichfield | City Ground | 1,000 |
Lye Town | Lye | The Sports Ground | 1,000 |
Racing Club Warwick | Warwick | Townsend Meadow | 1,280 |
Romulus | Birmingham (Castle Vale) | Castle Vale Stadium | 2,000 |
Shifnal Town | Shifnal | Phoenix Park | |
Stone Old Alleynians | Stone | Yarnfield Lane | |
Stourport Swifts | Stourport-on-Severn | Walshes Meadow | 2,000 |
Tividale | Tividale | The Beeches | 2,000 |
Uttoxeter Town | Uttoxeter | Oldfields | |
Walsall Wood | Walsall Wood | Oak Park | 1,000 |
Whitchurch Alport | Whitchurch | Yockings Park | |
Wolverhampton Casuals | Featherstone | Brinsford Lane | |
Worcester City | Worcester | Claines Lane | 1,000 |
Division One
[edit]Season | 2021–22 |
---|---|
Champions | Atherstone Town |
Promoted | Atherstone Town Darlaston Town (1874) |
Relegated | Dudley Sports |
Matches played | 342 |
Goals scored | 1,196 (3.5 per match) |
← 2020–21 2022–23 → |
Division One featured eight clubs which competed in the previous season, along with eleven new clubs, from the West Midlands (Regional) League:
- AFC Bridgnorth
- Bilston Town
- Cradley Town
- Darlaston Town
- Dudley Sports
- Dudley Town
- OJM Black Country Rangers
- Shawbury United
- Smethwick Khalsa Football Federation, formerly Smethwick Rangers
- Wednesfield
- Wolverhampton Sporting Community
League table
[edit]
Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Promotion, qualification or relegation |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Atherstone Town | 36 | 30 | 5 | 1 | 93 | 26 | +67 | 95 | Promoted to the Premier Division |
2 | Darlaston Town (1874) | 36 | 23 | 9 | 4 | 98 | 27 | +71 | 78 | Qualified for the play-offs, then promoted to the Premier Division |
3 | Stapenhill | 36 | 24 | 6 | 6 | 97 | 43 | +54 | 78 | Qualified for the play-offs |
4 | Ashby Ivanhoe | 36 | 23 | 5 | 8 | 99 | 58 | +41 | 74 | |
5 | Dudley Town | 36 | 22 | 6 | 8 | 76 | 38 | +38 | 72 | |
6 | OJM Black Country Rangers | 36 | 18 | 10 | 8 | 90 | 58 | +32 | 58[a] | |
7 | Bilston Town | 36 | 17 | 4 | 15 | 75 | 67 | +8 | 55 | |
8 | Nuneaton Griff | 36 | 16 | 5 | 15 | 51 | 64 | −13 | 53 | |
9 | Wolverhampton Sporting | 36 | 18 | 3 | 15 | 63 | 58 | +5 | 51[b] | |
10 | Heath Hayes | 36 | 15 | 6 | 15 | 58 | 55 | +3 | 51 | |
11 | Wednesfield | 36 | 12 | 9 | 15 | 44 | 53 | −9 | 45 | |
12 | Paget Rangers | 36 | 12 | 5 | 19 | 49 | 71 | −22 | 41 | |
13 | Khalsa Football Federation | 36 | 11 | 5 | 20 | 48 | 83 | −35 | 35[c] | |
14 | AFC Bridgnorth | 36 | 9 | 8 | 19 | 39 | 84 | −45 | 35 | |
15 | Cradley Town | 36 | 10 | 4 | 22 | 41 | 82 | −41 | 34 | |
16 | Chelmsley Town | 36 | 8 | 9 | 19 | 42 | 57 | −15 | 33 | |
17 | Coventry Copsewood | 36 | 9 | 5 | 22 | 57 | 83 | −26 | 32 | Reprieved from relegation[d] |
18 | Shawbury United | 36 | 7 | 4 | 25 | 44 | 80 | −36 | 25 | |
19 | Dudley Sports | 36 | 2 | 4 | 30 | 32 | 109 | −77 | 10 | Relegated to the West Midlands (Regional) League |
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) goal difference; 3) number of goals scored; 4) number of matches won; 5) head-to-head results[8]
Notes:
- ^ Black Country Rangers were deducted 3 points for fielding an ineligible player and an additional 3 points for failing to fulfil a fixture on 30 April 2022.
- ^ Wolverhampton Sporting were deducted 6 points for failing to fulfil a fixture on 4 October 2021 and for fielding an ineligible player. They were awarded a home win after Black Country failed to raise a team.
- ^ Khalsa Football Federation were deducted 3 points for failing to fulfil a fixture on 5 November.
- ^ All third-from-bottom clubs at Step 6 were reprieved from relegation. Fifteen second-from-bottom sides were also reprieved on a PPG basis.[9]
Play-offs
[edit]Semifinals | Final | ||||||||
2 | Darlaston Town (1874) | 4 | |||||||
5 | Dudley Town | 0 | |||||||
2 | Darlaston Town (1874) | 2 | |||||||
3 | Stapenhill | 1 | |||||||
3 | Stapenhill | 4 | |||||||
4 | Ashby Ivanhoe | 2 |
Results table
[edit]Stadia and locations
[edit]Club | Location | Stadium | Capacity |
---|---|---|---|
AFC Bridgnorth | Bridgnorth | Crown Meadow | |
Ashby Ivanhoe | Ashby-de-la-Zouch | Lower Packington Road | |
Atherstone Town | Atherstone | Sheepy Road | 3,000 |
Bilston Town | Bilston | Queen Street | |
Black Country Rangers | Lye | The Sports Ground[a] | |
Chelmsley Town | Coleshill | Pack Meadow | |
Coventry Copsewood | Coventry | Allard Way | 2,000 |
Cradley Town | Cradley | Beeches View | |
Darlaston Town (1874) | Walsall | Bentley Sports Pavilion | |
Dudley Sports | Brierley Hill | Hillcrest Avenue | |
Dudley Town | Willenhall | Aspray 24 Arena[b] | |
Heath Hayes | Heath Hayes | Coppice Colliery Ground | |
Nuneaton Griff | Nuneaton | Pingles Stadium | 6,000 |
Paget Rangers | Sutton Coldfield | Coles Lane | 2,000 |
Shawbury United | Ludlow | Ludlow Football Stadium | 1,000 |
Smethwick Khalsa Football Federation | Tividale | The Beeches[c] | |
Stapenhill | Stapenhill | Edge Hill | 1,000 |
Wednesfield | Wednesfield | Cottage Ground | |
Wolverhampton Sporting | Great Wyrley | Pride Park |
Division Two
[edit]Season | 2021–22 |
---|---|
Champions | Cadbury Athletic |
Promoted | Coton Green |
← 2020–21 2022–23 → |
Division Two featured 12 clubs which competed in the division last season, along with 3 new clubs:
- Cadbury Athletic, voluntary demoted from Division One
- Kenilworth Sporting, promoted from Division Three
- Inkberrow, promoted from Division Three
League table
[edit]
Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Promotion or relegation |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Cadbury Athletic | 28 | 19 | 9 | 0 | 82 | 17 | +65 | 66 | |
2 | Coton Green | 28 | 17 | 6 | 5 | 61 | 34 | +27 | 57 | Promoted to Division One |
3 | Knowle | 28 | 17 | 5 | 6 | 70 | 30 | +40 | 56 | |
4 | Fairfield Villa | 28 | 15 | 6 | 7 | 54 | 40 | +14 | 51 | |
5 | Kenilworth Sporting | 28 | 13 | 9 | 6 | 52 | 32 | +20 | 48 | |
6 | Inkberrow | 28 | 14 | 2 | 12 | 62 | 45 | +17 | 44 | |
7 | Alcester Town | 28 | 11 | 11 | 6 | 63 | 49 | +14 | 44 | |
8 | Redditch Borough | 28 | 9 | 5 | 14 | 44 | 43 | +1 | 32 | |
9 | Earlswood Town | 28 | 8 | 6 | 14 | 40 | 60 | −20 | 30 | |
10 | Coventry Alvis | 28 | 8 | 6 | 14 | 35 | 70 | −35 | 30 | |
11 | Hampton | 28 | 7 | 6 | 15 | 34 | 61 | −27 | 27 | |
12 | Barnt Green Spartak | 28 | 5 | 10 | 13 | 33 | 50 | −17 | 25 | |
13 | Boldmere Sports & Social Falcon | 28 | 6 | 6 | 16 | 39 | 50 | −11 | 24 | |
14 | Lane Head | 28 | 5 | 8 | 15 | 37 | 70 | −33 | 23 | |
15 | Bolehall Swifts | 28 | 5 | 7 | 16 | 19 | 74 | −55 | 22 |
Division Three
[edit]Season | 2021–22 |
---|---|
Champions | AFC Coventry Rangers |
Promoted | AFC Coventry Rangers Sutton United |
← 2020–21 2022–23 → |
Division Three featured 11 clubs which competed in the division last season, along with 5 new club:
- AFC Coventry Rangers
- AFC Birmingham, transferred from the West Midlands (Regional) League Division Two
- Balsall and Berkswell, joined from the Coventry Alliance
- DSC United
- Bartley Reds
League table
[edit]
Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Promotion or relegation |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | AFC Coventry Rangers | 28 | 23 | 2 | 3 | 140 | 29 | +111 | 71 | Promoted to Division Two |
2 | Sutton United | 28 | 20 | 1 | 7 | 104 | 49 | +55 | 61 | |
3 | Coventrians | 28 | 18 | 4 | 6 | 89 | 45 | +44 | 58 | |
4 | AFC Solihull | 28 | 19 | 1 | 8 | 91 | 51 | +40 | 58 | |
5 | Central Ajax | 28 | 18 | 2 | 8 | 84 | 47 | +37 | 53[a] | |
6 | AFC Birmingham | 28 | 16 | 4 | 8 | 65 | 39 | +26 | 52 | |
7 | Upton Town | 28 | 15 | 5 | 8 | 82 | 56 | +26 | 50 | Resigned from the league |
8 | Balsall and Berkswell | 28 | 15 | 4 | 9 | 61 | 46 | +15 | 49 | |
9 | Enville Athletic | 28 | 13 | 1 | 14 | 54 | 54 | 0 | 40 | |
10 | DSC United | 28 | 8 | 4 | 16 | 62 | 68 | −6 | 28 | |
11 | Leamington Hibs | 28 | 7 | 6 | 15 | 42 | 65 | −23 | 27 | |
12 | Castle Vale Town | 28 | 6 | 3 | 19 | 40 | 99 | −59 | 20[b] | |
13 | Birmingham Tigers | 28 | 5 | 3 | 20 | 41 | 98 | −57 | 18 | |
14 | Continental Star | 28 | 2 | 3 | 23 | 29 | 105 | −76 | 8[c] | |
15 | Bartley Reds | 28 | 2 | 1 | 25 | 17 | 150 | −133 | 7 | Resigned from the league |
16 | WLV Sport | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Club folded, record expunged |
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) goal difference; 3) number of goals scored.
Notes:
- ^ Central Ajax 3 points deducted.
- ^ Castle Vale Town 1 point deducted.
- ^ Continental Star 1 point deducted.
References
[edit]- ^ "National League System club allocations – Steps 5–6, Season 2021–22" (PDF). The FA. May 2021 – via The Non-League Paper.
- ^ "Coronavirus: All football below National League to end". BBC Sport. 26 March 2020. Retrieved 4 July 2021.
- ^ "FA provides update on NLS Steps 3-6". The Football Association. 24 February 2021. Retrieved 4 July 2021.
- ^ "EXPLAINED: The 2021-22 Non-League restructure". The Non-League Paper. 12 April 2021. Retrieved 4 July 2021.
- ^ "Congleton Town Win Appeal". nwcfl.com. North West Counties Football League. 24 June 2021.
- ^ Miller, Pete. "Non League 21/22 Promotion and Relegation: Step 5 Promotion". Google Docs.
- ^ The FA: "12 clubs across Step 5 to be reprieved. Reprieves are based on those with the highest PPG, starting with 2nd from bottom Clubs first, then bottom. As it stands, this would be 12 of the 16 2nd from bottom Clubs."
- ^ a b "The FA Handbook 2020/2021 Part 29 Standardised Rules Section 12.2". The FA.
- ^ Miller, Pete. "Non League 21/22 Promotion and Relegation: Step 6 Relegation". Google Docs.