| Season | 1981–82 |
|---|---|
| Champions | Bideford (Premier Division) Shepton Mallet Town (Division One) |
1982–83 → | |
The1981–82 season was the 80th in the history of theWestern Football League.
The league champions for the fourth time in their history wereBideford. The champions of Division One wereShepton Mallet Town.[1]
The Premier Division remained at twenty clubs after Paulton Rovers and Tiverton Town were relegated to the First Division, and two clubs joined:
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Relegation |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Bideford(C) | 38 | 26 | 10 | 2 | 88 | 20 | +68 | 62 | |
| 2 | Barnstaple Town | 38 | 26 | 8 | 4 | 78 | 31 | +47 | 59[a] | |
| 3 | Bridgwater Town | 38 | 16 | 16 | 6 | 70 | 46 | +24 | 48 | Joined theSouthern League |
| 4 | Clandown | 38 | 17 | 12 | 9 | 49 | 37 | +12 | 46 | |
| 5 | Melksham Town | 38 | 17 | 11 | 10 | 58 | 50 | +8 | 45 | |
| 6 | Frome Town | 38 | 16 | 9 | 13 | 67 | 58 | +9 | 41 | |
| 7 | Weston-super-Mare | 38 | 15 | 11 | 12 | 47 | 42 | +5 | 41 | |
| 8 | Saltash United | 38 | 15 | 7 | 16 | 47 | 53 | −6 | 37 | |
| 9 | Devizes Town | 38 | 14 | 7 | 17 | 53 | 60 | −7 | 35 | |
| 10 | Dawlish Town | 38 | 11 | 13 | 14 | 45 | 53 | −8 | 35 | |
| 11 | Liskeard Athletic | 38 | 11 | 12 | 15 | 39 | 48 | −9 | 34 | |
| 12 | Bridport | 38 | 12 | 10 | 16 | 43 | 54 | −11 | 34 | |
| 13 | Clevedon Town | 38 | 11 | 12 | 15 | 58 | 60 | −2 | 33[a] | |
| 14 | Chippenham Town | 38 | 12 | 9 | 17 | 33 | 39 | −6 | 33 | |
| 15 | Falmouth Town | 38 | 12 | 9 | 17 | 46 | 55 | −9 | 33 | |
| 16 | Portway Bristol | 38 | 9 | 13 | 16 | 40 | 47 | −7 | 31 | |
| 17 | Wellington | 38 | 10 | 11 | 17 | 50 | 62 | −12 | 31 | |
| 18 | Keynsham Town | 38 | 9 | 13 | 16 | 39 | 55 | −16 | 31 | |
| 19 | Mangotsfield United(R) | 38 | 11 | 6 | 21 | 30 | 59 | −29 | 28 | Relegated to Division One |
| 20 | Welton Rovers(R) | 38 | 7 | 7 | 24 | 37 | 88 | −51 | 21 |
The First Division remained at nineteen clubs afterBrixham United left the league, and Chippenham Town and Wellington were promoted to the Premier Division. Three new clubs joined:
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Promotion or relegation |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Shepton Mallet Town(C, P) | 36 | 25 | 8 | 3 | 88 | 30 | +58 | 58 | Promoted to the Premier Division |
| 2 | Exmouth Town(P) | 36 | 24 | 8 | 4 | 74 | 31 | +43 | 56 | |
| 3 | Swanage Town & Herston | 36 | 21 | 5 | 10 | 90 | 47 | +43 | 47 | |
| 4 | Wimborne Town | 36 | 19 | 9 | 8 | 67 | 35 | +32 | 47 | |
| 5 | Bath City Reserves | 36 | 19 | 6 | 11 | 72 | 46 | +26 | 44 | |
| 6 | Elmore | 36 | 19 | 6 | 11 | 58 | 45 | +13 | 44 | |
| 7 | Paulton Rovers | 36 | 17 | 6 | 13 | 54 | 48 | +6 | 40 | |
| 8 | Bristol Manor Farm | 36 | 15 | 9 | 12 | 58 | 50 | +8 | 39 | |
| 9 | Torquay United Reserves | 36 | 15 | 9 | 12 | 50 | 44 | +6 | 39 | Left at the end of the season |
| 10 | Tiverton Town | 36 | 13 | 8 | 15 | 62 | 63 | −1 | 34 | |
| 11 | Chard Town | 36 | 12 | 10 | 14 | 43 | 55 | −12 | 34 | |
| 12 | Odd Down | 36 | 14 | 5 | 17 | 51 | 57 | −6 | 33 | |
| 13 | Radstock Town | 36 | 10 | 11 | 15 | 44 | 67 | −23 | 31 | |
| 14 | Glastonbury | 36 | 12 | 6 | 18 | 63 | 69 | −6 | 30 | |
| 15 | Heavitree United | 36 | 11 | 7 | 18 | 39 | 69 | −30 | 29 | |
| 16 | Yeovil Town Reserves | 36 | 10 | 8 | 18 | 40 | 53 | −13 | 28 | |
| 17 | Larkhall Athletic | 36 | 10 | 5 | 21 | 42 | 85 | −43 | 25 | |
| 18 | Ottery St Mary | 36 | 6 | 3 | 27 | 28 | 79 | −51 | 15 | |
| 19 | Ilminster Town | 36 | 3 | 5 | 28 | 20 | 70 | −50 | 11 | Left at the end of the season |