The1894–95 season was the first in the history of theSouthern League. Sixteen clubs joined the new league, which was split into two divisions.Millwall Athletic won Division One without losing a match, and were invited to jointhe Football League but declined because of travelling.[1]
| Season | 1894–95 |
|---|---|
| Champions | Millwall Athletic |
| Promoted | none |
| Relegated | none |
| Matches | 72 |
| Goals | 285 (3.96 per match) |
1895–96 → | |
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GR | Pts | Qualification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Millwall Athletic | 16 | 12 | 4 | 0 | 68 | 19 | 3.579 | 28 | |
| 2 | Luton Town | 16 | 9 | 4 | 3 | 36 | 22 | 1.636 | 22 | |
| 3 | Southampton St. Mary's | 16 | 9 | 2 | 5 | 34 | 25 | 1.360 | 20 | |
| 4 | Ilford | 16 | 6 | 3 | 7 | 26 | 40 | 0.650 | 15 | |
| 5 | Reading | 16 | 6 | 2 | 8 | 33 | 38 | 0.868 | 14 | |
| 6 | Chatham Town | 16 | 4 | 5 | 7 | 22 | 25 | 0.880 | 13 | |
| 7 | Royal Ordnance Factories | 16 | 3 | 6 | 7 | 20 | 30 | 0.667 | 12 | Relegation test matches |
| 8 | Clapton | 16 | 5 | 1 | 10 | 22 | 38 | 0.579 | 11 | |
| 9 | Swindon Town | 16 | 4 | 1 | 11 | 24 | 48 | 0.500 | 9 |
| Season | 1894–95 |
|---|---|
| Champions | New Brompton |
| Promoted | New Brompton |
| Relegated | none |
| Matches | 42 |
| Goals | 184 (4.38 per match) |
1895–96 → | |
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GR | Pts | Qualification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | New Brompton | 12 | 11 | 0 | 1 | 57 | 10 | 5.700 | 22 | Promotion test matches |
| 2 | Sheppey United | 12 | 6 | 1 | 5 | 25 | 23 | 1.087 | 13 | |
| 3 | Old St.Stephen's | 12 | 6 | 0 | 6 | 26 | 26 | 1.000 | 12 | |
| 4 | Uxbridge | 12 | 4 | 3 | 5 | 14 | 20 | 0.700 | 11 | |
| 5 | Bromley | 12 | 4 | 1 | 7 | 23 | 30 | 0.767 | 9 | |
| 6 | Chesham | 12 | 3 | 3 | 6 | 20 | 42 | 0.476 | 9 | |
| 7 | Maidenhead | 12 | 2 | 4 | 6 | 19 | 33 | 0.576 | 8 |
At the end of the season, the bottom three clubs in Division One played the top three clubs in Division Two in test matches to decide on promotion and relegation. Division Two championsNew Brompton were the only lower division club to win, although their opponents,Swindon Town, were not relegated, with the First Division expanding to 10 clubs.
| Division One clubs | v | Division Two clubs |
|---|---|---|