Southern Combination League (Sussex County League)

    Local clubs
  • Battle Rangers (1955 - 1967) - Bexhill United (1928 - Present) - Hastings Town / Hastings & St Leonards (1920 - 1927 / 1952 - 1985) - Hastings Rangers (1952 - 1973) - Little Common (1977 - 1995 / 2005 - Present) - Rye United (1952 - 1983 / 2000 - 2014) - St Leonards / STAMCO (1988 - 1996 / 2003 - 2004) - Sidley United (1952 - 2013) - Wadhurst United (1964 - 1972 / 2003 - 2006 - Westfield (1997 - 2019)

The Sussex County League began in 1920 with 12 founding members. By the end of the 1929–30 season, six of those original clubs had competed in every campaign since the league’s inception. Between 1921 and 1928, membership changed regularly, and 23 different clubs took part during the league’s first ten seasons. Despite this turnover, the size of the competition remained notably stable: only in the 1922–23 and 1924–25 seasons did the number of teams differ from the usual 12.

The outbreak of the Second World War in September 1939 brought the league to a halt until 1945. When football resumed, the 1945–46 season was organised into Eastern and Western divisions, with eight and nine clubs respectively. Twelve pre‑war members returned, with Chichester and Eastbourne Comrades the notable absentees. Haywards Heath won the Eastern division with 22 points from 14 matches, with East Grinstead Town close behind on 20 points. Worthing topped the Western division, while Horsham finished runners‑up, two points adrift, having collected 27 points from 16 games. The league reverted to a single division in 1946, featuring 14 clubs—all of whom had competed in the final pre‑war season—although Bexhill now played as Bexhill Town Athletic.

Severe weather during the 1962–63 campaign caused widespread disruption across the country, leaving some Sussex County League clubs having played 21 or 22 matches while others had completed only 13 or 14. As a result, the usual competition was suspended and replaced with an emergency format.

The early 1970s proved challenging as league membership declined. By contrast, the early 1980s were a period of expansion and renewal. In 1983, the league grew to three divisions and adopted the ‘three points for a win’ system. Several long‑standing members struggled during this era and dropped into Division Two. Former champions Bexhill endured an even steeper decline, spending a season in Division Three before recovering. Throughout this period, a two‑up, two‑down system of promotion and relegation was used, though occasional club departures required administrative adjustments to keep the competition running smoothly.

The years 1987–93 brought further change. The three‑division structure remained, with regular promotion and relegation—though not always strictly determined by on‑field performance. The competition featured 45 clubs at the start of the 1987–88 season; by the 1993 AGM, this number had risen to 54. Although some clubs had departed permanently, their loss was more than balanced by the improving quality of newcomers. Pagham won the Division One title in the first two seasons of this period, followed by Wick and then Littlehampton Town. Peacehaven & Telscombe, having missed out on goal difference in 1991, secured back‑to‑back championships in 1992 and 1993. At the opposite end of the table, Haywards Heath Town were relegated from Division One in 1992 and again the following year.

Ahead of the 2015–16 season, the league changed its name to the Southern Combination Football League (retaining the SCFL initials) to enable it to welcome additional clubs from beyond the Sussex border, particularly in anticipation of the FA reallocating teams between competitions.

Source: Non-League Football Matters, Sussex County League Archives.