1897–98 Western Football League

The 1897–98 season was the sixth in the history of the Western Football League.

Western Football League
Season1897–98
ChampionsBristol City (Professional Section)
Bedminster (Amateur Division One)
Hanham (Amateur Division Two)

For this season the league was restructured, with a new Professional Section being formed, taking five clubs from Division One and three new clubs joining. Division One and Division Two remained as the Amateur Section, with four clubs being promoted from Division Two to Division One, and several new clubs joining both divisions.

Bristol City were the champions of the new Professional Section, and also competed in the Southern League during this season, along with Swindon Town, Reading and Warmley. Division One of the Amateur Section was won by Bedminster, and the Division Two champions were newcomers Hanham. Many clubs left the Amateur Section at the end of the season, necessitating a merger of the two amateur divisions for the following season.[1]

Professional section

The three new clubs admitted to the league to play in this eight-club section were:

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GR Pts Result
1 Bristol City 14 11 1 2 51 16 3.188 23 Left to concentrate on the Southern League Division One
2 Swindon Town 14 9 1 4 32 15 2.133 19
3 Reading 14 7 2 5 29 25 1.160 16 Left to concentrate on the Southern League Division One
4 Bristol St George 14 6 3 5 25 27 0.926 15
5 Eastville Rovers 14 6 2 6 38 25 1.520 14
6 Warmley 14 5 3 6 36 27 1.333 13
7 Eastleigh Athletic 14 3 2 9 22 55 0.400 8 Joined Southern League Division One at the end of the season
8 Trowbridge Town 14 2 0 12 15 58 0.259 4
Source:

Amateur Division One

This ten-club division was a continuation of the old Division One, with six new clubs:

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GR Pts Result
1 Bedminster (P) 16 15 0 1 65 11 5.909 30 Promoted to Professional Section
2 Staple Hill 16 11 1 4 38 15 2.533 23
3 Fishponds 16 8 2 6 26 30 0.867 18
4 Midsomer Norton 16 7 2 7 23 33 0.697 16
5 Barton Hill 16 6 2 8 25 29 0.862 14
6 Radstock 16 5 4 7 17 28 0.607 14 Left to concentrate on the Somerset Senior League
7 St Paul's 16 4 3 9 15 28 0.536 11 Left the league at the end of the season
8 Eastville Wanderers 16 4 1 11 15 26 0.577 9
9 Mangotsfield 16 1 7 8 5 29 0.172 9
10 Clifton 0 0 0 0 0 0 — 0 Resigned, record expunged[lower-alpha 1]
Source:
(P) Promoted
Notes:
  1. Clifton resigned early in the season, and their record was expunged.

Amateur Division Two

This eight-club division was a continuation of the old Division Two, with seven new clubs:

  • Barton Hill Reserves
  • Cotham
  • Eastville Wanderers Reserves
  • Fishponds Reserves
  • Hanham
  • Royal Artillery (Horfield) (not to be confused with Royal Artillery Portsmouth F.C.)
  • St Paul's Reserves
Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GR Pts Result
1 Hanham 10 9 1 0 32 8 4.000 19[lower-alpha 1]
2 Cotham 10 8 0 2 32 16 2.000 16
3 Barton Hill Reserves 10 4 2 4 20 14 1.429 10 Left the league at the end of the season
4 St Paul's Reserves 10 2 2 6 19 26 0.731 6
5 Fishponds Reserves 10 1 1 8 10 25 0.400 3
6 Bedminster Reserves 10 1 0 9 10 34 0.294 2
7 Eastville Wanderers Reserves 0 0 0 0 0 0 — 0 Resigned, record expunged[lower-alpha 2]
8 Royal Artillery (Horfield) 0 0 0 0 0 0 — 0
Source:
Rules for classification: The system of using goal average to separate two teams tied on points was used up to and including the 1976–77 season. The points system: 2 points for a win, 1 point for a draw and 0 points for losing.
Notes:
  1. The tables as published at the time contained errors, hence the totals do not balance in some columns.[1]
  2. Eastville Wanderers Reserves and Royal Artillery (Horfield) resigned early in the season, and their records were expunged.

References
  1. Robinson, Michael (ed.), Non-League Football Tables 1889–2006, Soccer Books, 2006
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