| Season | 1997–98 |
|---|---|
| Champions | AFC Lymington |
| Relegated | Romsey Town |
1998–99 → | |
The1997–98 Wessex Football League was the 12th season of theWessex Football League. The league champions for the second consecutive season and the third time in their history wereAFC Lymington, before their merger withNew Milton Town of theHampshire League. Runners-upAndover were promoted to theSouthern League as Lymington's ground was not of the required standard for promotion.Romsey Town finished bottom and were relegated, andRyde Sports resigned during the season.[1]
For sponsorship reasons, the league was known as theJewson Wessex League.[2]
The league consisted of one division of 21 clubs, the same as the previous season, afterPetersfield Town were relegated and one new club joined:[2]
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification or relegation |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | AFC Lymington(C) | 38 | 29 | 5 | 4 | 94 | 27 | +67 | 92 | Merged withNew Milton Town at the end of the season |
| 2 | Andover(P) | 38 | 24 | 9 | 5 | 99 | 46 | +53 | 81 | Joined theSouthern League |
| 3 | A.F.C. Newbury | 38 | 22 | 7 | 9 | 72 | 35 | +37 | 73 | |
| 4 | Eastleigh | 38 | 20 | 11 | 7 | 74 | 31 | +43 | 71 | |
| 5 | Bemerton Heath Harlequins | 38 | 19 | 11 | 8 | 69 | 38 | +31 | 68 | |
| 6 | Cowes Sports | 38 | 20 | 6 | 12 | 67 | 51 | +16 | 66 | |
| 7 | Wimborne Town | 38 | 18 | 9 | 11 | 89 | 63 | +26 | 63 | |
| 8 | A.F.C. Totton | 38 | 15 | 10 | 13 | 58 | 41 | +17 | 55 | |
| 9 | Bournemouth | 38 | 16 | 7 | 15 | 64 | 68 | −4 | 55 | |
| 10 | Thatcham Town | 38 | 16 | 6 | 16 | 64 | 54 | +10 | 54 | |
| 11 | Christchurch | 38 | 15 | 6 | 17 | 55 | 69 | −14 | 51 | |
| 12 | East Cowes Victoria Athletic | 38 | 13 | 11 | 14 | 46 | 42 | +4 | 50 | |
| 13 | Portsmouth Royal Navy | 38 | 13 | 7 | 18 | 64 | 79 | −15 | 46 | |
| 14 | B.A.T. Sports | 38 | 12 | 7 | 19 | 60 | 82 | −22 | 43 | |
| 15 | Gosport Borough | 38 | 9 | 10 | 19 | 48 | 65 | −17 | 37 | |
| 16 | Aerostructures Sports & Social | 38 | 9 | 10 | 19 | 50 | 77 | −27 | 37 | |
| 17 | Brockenhurst | 38 | 9 | 9 | 20 | 43 | 83 | −40 | 36 | |
| 18 | Downton | 38 | 7 | 10 | 21 | 36 | 66 | −30 | 31 | |
| 19 | Whitchurch United | 38 | 7 | 8 | 23 | 37 | 78 | −41 | 29 | |
| 20 | Romsey Town(R) | 38 | 5 | 5 | 28 | 40 | 134 | −94 | 20 | Relegated to theHampshire League |
| 21 | Ryde Sports | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Resigned during the season, record expunged[a] |