NEW LEAGUES
Three new leagues begin again this year, with a growing trend of teams in areas of the country with lower population density organising competitions.
EAST KENT LEAGUE
Formed by the majority of the clubs whose bids to join the Kent County League were overlooked a year ago, the East Kent League consists of six teams playing a thirty-two game schedule. Different from other six-team competitions, the teams are paired up with a geographical neighbour and will play eight times against that opponent, with six games against the other four teams. Of those who applied to the Kent County League, only the club from Sittingbourne are excluded, with the belief that they would have gained a place had an application come from an eighth team. The driving force behind the formation of the league are Canterbury-based club The Buffs, the team of the Royal East Kent Regiment, an infantry regiment of the British Army known by that nickname. They play in buff coloured jerseys with the regiment’s badge on their chest. They are paired for extra games with Ashford Gore, who take their name from the hill which their home field lies at the top of, on the northern side of the town. Their jerseys are pale red, with white and black stripes.
Paired together on the south coast are Dover Elms and Folkestone and Sandgate. The name of the Dover club comes from the lane on which their home field is located. They play in jerseys which are a bold shade of green. Folkestone and Sandgate take the name of both the larger town and smaller village that lie either side of their home field, and play in sandy-coloured jerseys with gold trimmings. The final two clubs paired together are on the Isle of Thanet in the far north-east of the county. The club’s seafront location is the inspiration for the name of Margate Esplanade, who play in jerseys which are two shades of blue. The name of Ramsgate St Lawrence comes from the parish in which the club is located, and they play in pale purple jerseys with stripes of a darker shade.
LOGOS AND UNIFORMS
Top Row (L-R): Ashford Gore, The Buffs, Dover Elms
Bottom Row (L-R): Folkestone and Sandgate, Margate Esplanade, Ramsgate St Lawrence
MAP OF TEAM LOCATIONS
STAFFORDSHIRE COUNTY LEAGUE
Although there are already several Staffordshire clubs playing in the Birmingham and District League, the new County League takes in clubs from the remainder of the county, further away from the Birmingham area. Three of the clubs come from the ‘Potteries’ area, with Hanley Etruria taking their name from the pottery factory in the district of that name. They wear blue-grey jerseys with red trim. Burslem Green Head are another team whose name comes from the area in which they play, and unsurprisingly their jerseys are coloured green. Newcastle under Lyme are another team who simply take the name of their town, as appears to be increasingly common when the town has a longer name. They play in gold, with dark blue caps. The fourth club from the north of the county are The Silk Pickers, who come from the town of Leek and originated amongst workers at several of the town’s silk mills who decided to join forces and form a single team. They come as close as any team to playing in white jerseys, as their chosen colour is pale yellow.
The other four clubs come from further south in the county, and near the border with Derbyshire are Burton Cresent, whose name comes from the Crescent Brewery, where the club’s founders worked. They play in blue with a crescent shape and initial ‘B’ on their chest. From Stafford itself, Stafford Hough take their name from the area on the edge of the town where their home field is located. They play in dark red and like the county team, feature the ‘Stafford knot’ emblem on their jerseys. Cannock Ridings are named after a brook which runs near to their home field, and they play in a very pale shade of green with stripes in darker green. Finally, Lichfield Close were formed by a group of men who attended the cathedral and who used to meet for practices among the buildings of Cathedral Close, before heading to their nearby field. They wear the arms of the cathedral and their jerseys match the colours of those arms, being red and grey halves. The league is the first to include scheduled double games in its first year, as it is following the format used in the Liverpool and District League where two geographically based groups of four teams play six games against one another rather than just four against the other to give a thirty-four game schedule. The four clubs from the north of the county are grouped together, as are Burton, Stafford, Cannock and Lichfield.
LOGOS AND UNIFORMS
Top Row (L-R): Burslem Green Head, Burton Crescent, Cannock Ridings, Hanley Etruria
Bottom Row (L-R): Lichfield Close, Newcastle under Lyme, The Silk Pickers, Stafford Hough
MAP OF TEAM LOCATIONS
WARWICKSHIRE COUNTY LEAGUE
Like Staffordshire, Warwickshire already has teams playing in the Birmingham and District League but the new competition takes in smaller towns across the county. It follows the common format of a six-team league with a thirty-game schedule and all clubs meeting six times. Warwick St Nicholas were formed by parishioners at the church of that name, and play in a riverside field nearby in jerseys which are grey with red sleeves. From nearby Royal Leamington Spa, the name of Leamington Archers is derived from the fact that their founders initially came together to practice archery, before also taking up baseball and forming a team. They play in yellow with red stripes, and a bow and arrow embroidered on the chest. Stratford Shakespeare take their name from the most famous resident of their town, playwright William Shakespeare, and they play in black with a large white collar.
Nuneaton Anker’s name comes from the cotton mill where the club’s founders worked, which in turn is named after the river which flows through the town. Their jerseys are light blue. Coventry Godiva play in jerseys in red and green halves, inspired by the city arms, and are named after the legendary figure of Lady Godiva, who allegedly rode naked through the city’s streets centuries ago. Finally, the name of the Rugbeian Masters is not a statement on their playing ability but rather a reflection on the fact that they are a club formed by past and present teachers of Rugby School, and play on the school’s own playing field. Their colours are the shades of blue used by Oxford and Cambridge universities, perhaps inspired by the number of students from the school who have gone on to those establishments.
LOGOS AND UNIFORMS
Top Row (L-R): Coventry Godiva, Leamington Archers, Nuneaton Anker
Bottom Row (L-R): Rugbeian Masters, Stratford Shakespeare, Warwick St Nicholas
MAP OF TEAM LOCATIONS
