Southern League to Third Division

Morning Leader

Thursday, 29 April 1909

SOUTHERN LEAGUE CRISIS

There is trouble in the Southern League over the proposed Third Division of the Football League. This Third Division, should it materialize, is to embrace 18 Southern League clubs and two others, which means that some Southern Leaguers would have to go under.

At a meeting of Southern League delegates the other day it was decided which clubs should be dropped. Hence the trouble.

The representatives of these clubs met at Holborn Restaurant on Tuesday night, and passed the following resolution:

At this meeting of representatives of the Southend, New Brompton, Watford, and Croydon Common Football Clubs protests in the strongest possible manner against the treatment which has been meted out to them by the 16 other clubs of the Southern League who met in secret to control the nomination of 18 clubs to the proposed Third Division of the English League.

That the meeting was totally unauthorised and illegal, for at the meeting of the Southern League it was agreed that 20 Southern League clubs should be nominated for the proposed Third Division. In defiance of that definite instruction, the delegates agreed to a scheme limiting the number to 18.

This meeting is further of opinion that because of the hurried manner in which the negotiations have been undertaken grievous and unnecessary injury is likely to be inflicted upon the non- selected teams of the Southern League by the undue haste which has been shown.

Negotiations should proceed for a period of another 12 months, and if at the end of that time it should be decided to form a Third Division, to take in a certain number of Southern League clubs, the choice should then be made according to the position on the League table.

New Brompton held an indignation meeting yesterday in connection with the club’s treatment by the League. A resolution protesting against the exclusion of club from the councils of the Southern League when the question was discussed and its omission from the selected clubs was unanimously passed. It was decided to send copies to the Football League and Southern League, and to bring the matter before the Football Association.