[Football] Sussex Sunday League Football 80s to Today

[Shropshire Seagull]

That would have made mum 191 when she passed away in 2010. So yes it was 1980s. I think that Roy was the boss and it was about the time it changed from being a standard 2 bar pub to The George Carvery.

Have you got the right "George"?

I played a couple of seasons with AFC George - the pub was in Kemp Town ....

 

[Shropshire Seagull]

17 divisions back in the day on Sundays, 10 in the Brighton League. So glad I played when I did. Roughly 1976 through to 2010.

Played for Brighton Electricity, Lancing and International Factors on Saturdays.

KTM, Windsor Wanderers, Station Cavaliers and the Hartington on Sundays. Loved every minute.

Both Leagues in a bad way now.

I played for Factors from their inception [around '87? for about 5 years [mostly skipper and centre-back].
Already worked out a while back I know Watford Zero MFH and he mentioned another NSCer NickG, but I must know you as well ...

 

[loz]

There'll be no Sunday football in ten years. Played in the Hastings Sunday League for many years which was I think seven divisions when I started but down to four when I finished. Once it gets down to one or two divisions it'll soon fold as there's no opportunity for sides to find their natural place, the teams of mates find themselves in with the trophy hunters and get smashed every week.

This is so sadly true..

Tatsfield Rovers..West Kent Sat and Sunday. 1978 until 1985
Lingfield, Mid sussex, 1985 until 1989
Lewes rovers, Mid Sussex 1989 until 1991
Uckfield Town , Mid sussex, 1991 until 1992
Dormansland Rockets 1992 until 2000 Sat

Dormansland Rockets Sundays 1987 until 2004, West Kent mostley but a couple of seasons in the Redhill and district.

Wednesday night 5 a side, Crawley Leisure centre. 1994 until 2004

I took a season out in 1988 to Ref in the Mid sussex and Crawley Sunday league...But I was too young really and decided to carry on playing. Which was in the long run not a good idea as I have had 3 total hip replacements (2 one side) and my knees are shot and I am only 55 !!

 

[Leegull]

Yep playing for Brighton Post office we played the inmates, remember you had to walk through the gym to get to the changing rooms, the pitches were excellent compared to the crap we usually got to play on.

The pitch was always in good nick but quite small from memory and always made for a lively match.
Walking through the prison before was always entertaining with plenty of threats shouted by the inmates. These matches were genuinely highlights of the season..

They would lock us in the gym to get changed and after every match they would always send in one of the prisoners with a lovely tray of egg mayonnaise sandwiches for us..
the guy delivering the sandwiches always had a certain look to him and I don’t think that I ever saw one of those sandwiches consumed by anyone ever!

I’m sure that they were fine but no one was ever prepared to take a punt and find out...

Happy days, you could write a book about our Sunday morning escapades and such a shame to see the recent decline of Sunday football.. I don’t think that the Lewes&District Sunday league even exists now, whereas back in those days (15/20 years back) there were 7 leagues and 70+ teams... very sad... great days.

 

[darkwolf666]

Yep playing for Brighton Post office we played the inmates, remember you had to walk through the gym to get to the changing rooms, the pitches were excellent compared to the crap we usually got to play on.

Playing here in Kent I’ve played at a couple of prisons, Aldington near Ashford and Stanford Hill on the isle of Sheppey...

Had some real tasty matches, specially at Aldinton, where the pitch was within a compound with a 12 foot fence all round. Had to be escorted onto and off the pitch by officers. As a keeper it was quite intimidating being only feet away from a baying mob, admittedly they were behind a wire fence, but still scary all the same...

We always had one wag who would tell someone in the crowd that he was going home to shag their missus - much hilarity ensued!!!

 

[Tim Edwards]

The pitch was always in good nick but quite small from memory and always made for a lively match.
Walking through the prison before was always entertaining with plenty of threats shouted by the inmates. These matches were genuinely highlights of the season..

They would lock us in the gym to get changed and after every match they would always send in one of the prisoners with a lovely tray of egg mayonnaise sandwiches for us..
the guy delivering the sandwiches always had a certain look to him and I don’t think that I ever saw one of those sandwiches consumed by anyone ever!

I’m sure that they were fine but no one was ever prepared to take a punt and find out...

Happy days, you could write a book about our Sunday morning escapades and such a shame to see the recent decline of Sunday football.. I don’t think that the Lewes&District Sunday league even exists now, whereas back in those days (15/20 years back) there were 7 leagues and 70+ teams... very sad... great days.

Damn, I ate them! We had a bloke who wouldn't drink the tea either!

 

[Dave the OAP]

Aymer athletic have the proud distinction of being the team I managed to score a double hatrick against, admittedly they only had 10 men and my brother was the ref

That wasn’t for ILEX Worthing was it...we lost 15-1 I think it was and I had a blinder in goal keeping it well under 25 which is what it should have been.

Our centre backs didn’t like heading the ball, so being in goal was a thankless task!

 

[Dave the OAP]

Norton Wanderers
and
Mid Sussex NALGO (though they were more Sussex County North)

I played table tennis for NALGO in the 70’s. We played just off st James’ street at the NALGO club which was near where the Safeway’s was.

 

[Dave the OAP]

Our Corals team (late 80s) included Ted Maybank and Sammy Nelson. Only former Albion I can recall in opposition were Steve Jacobs (Brewery Tap) and Jack Dineen (Tongdean Rovers)

Wasn’t Brian Horton manager of withdean Sunday side whilst he was at the Albion?

 

[Taybha]

That wasn’t for ILEX Worthing was it...we lost 15-1 I think it was and I had a blinder in goal keeping it well under 25 which is what it should have been.

Our centre backs didn’t like heading the ball, so being in goal was a thankless task!

No I could be mistaken about who I was playing for but probably Brighton Hospitals, the score was definitely 16-1 I missed a penalty as well!

 

[P.S]

You know me too well Watford. For many years it was brown kit on Saturday AND Sunday for me.

Electricity have a new brown kit this year and we are in our 3rd season in the SCFL, the old County League. And we play at Withdean Stadium these days. Not me I hasten to add, far too old.

I remember the brown kit very well, not that I ever pulled that shirt on!!

 

[Miami Seagull]

Horsham Astros in the Worthing and Horsham Sunday league circa 87-early nineties! We had a couple of good seasons!

 

[Spiros]

I played for Factors from their inception [around '87? for about 5 years [mostly skipper and centre-back].
Already worked out a while back I know Watford Zero MFH and he mentioned another NSCer NickG, but I must know you as well ...

Of course you know him, no-one can ever forget the world's most MISERABLE centre forward

I guess I must know you too

I was also at Factors from the start (before that at Adur Athletic) and did a spell on Sunday's with KTM/FMT after leaving the mighty Kingston Broadway

 

[Beezer]

I also played for Brighton electricity 83 onwards, when it's was a short sleeve ,v neck brown kit,and when it rained, become an off the shoulder number.

 

[POSKETT AT THE VALLEY]

Sussex Sunday League

Southern Water (Worthing Based) Mainly Junior division 1 with a brief spell in intermediate.

Remember beating AFC George at Fernhurst in their own back yard. I’m think we would have been 100-1 for that one. Played mostly on hill barn east and remember the likes of St George, E&A United,Fine Arts and Fratsom etc.

Remember watching the six a sides at Woodside road when I was younger and totally in awe of Newick Rangers. Probably the best Sunday League team ever.

 

[Sirnormangall]

The pitch was always in good nick but quite small from memory and always made for a lively match.
Walking through the prison before was always entertaining with plenty of threats shouted by the inmates. These matches were genuinely highlights of the season..

They would lock us in the gym to get changed and after every match they would always send in one of the prisoners with a lovely tray of egg mayonnaise sandwiches for us..
the guy delivering the sandwiches always had a certain look to him and I don’t think that I ever saw one of those sandwiches consumed by anyone ever!

I’m sure that they were fine but no one was ever prepared to take a punt and find out...

Happy days, you could write a book about our Sunday morning escapades and such a shame to see the recent decline of Sunday football.. I don’t think that the Lewes&District Sunday league even exists now, whereas back in those days (15/20 years back) there were 7 leagues and 70+ teams... very sad... great days.

“The pitch was always in good nick...” ho ho!

 

[thedonkeycentrehalf]

When I played for Brighton Electricity (and I did for many years), we were drawn against Ford United in the semi final of the oddly named Sussex Junior Cup. This was made up of the inmates AND screws of Ford Prison. 1982/83 season.

When we arrived, it was obviously set up for us to have to walk through the prison gym where a load of them were working out and every one of them just stopped and stared us out.

As for the game, there must have been every single prisoner watching, all up one side of the pitch and behind the goal. So loud and intimidating. As a cocky 22 year old, I loved it.

1-1 at 90 minutes, Ford went 2-1 ahead in the 2nd period of ET and we then scored two late goals to win 3-2. They were not happy. As we walked off I had one screw and one inmate either side of me threatening to kill me.

What a day that was. Lost in the bloody final though!

Played a few times at Ford - pitch was usually very good. We did okay but many teams were intimidated by the crowd - it helped that, as the keeper, I would take a carrier rather than my usual glove bag and it would be filled with cigarettes and then left for the Ford keeper to share out.

I've told this story on here before but had one of my most awkward moments there. We went two nil down in the first ten minutes and, as the goalkeeper, I yelled at my team to play with some conviction. Obviously the inmates didn't appreciate my choice of words, not helped by my attempt at apologising by saying 'no offence' to those massed behind the goal. As you would expect, I got loads of abuse for the rest of the half.

That wasn’t for ILEX Worthing was it...we lost 15-1 I think it was and I had a blinder in goal keeping it well under 25 which is what it should have been.

Our centre backs didn’t like heading the ball, so being in goal was a thankless task!

I played for Ilex for a while and remember a 15-1 win on a tiny pitch over at Wild Park which would have been around 1986/7.

 

[Shropshire Seagull]

Of course you know him, no-one can ever forget the world's most MISERABLE centre forward

I guess I must know you too

I was also at Factors from the start (before that at Adur Athletic) and did a spell on Sunday's with KTM/FMT after leaving the mighty Kingston Broadway

Indeed you do, I recall two things about you - we once shared a pre-match mulligatawny soup [my first and last time] - the other one, we were both CB and you went in a tad hard on a head-case called "Face" at Waterhall and he chased you round the field for a good 5 mins [I then had to switch from sweeper to man-mark him to avert him getting even on you].

Happy Days !!

 

[Knocky's Nose]

West Yorkshire : Youth : Keeper : Pollard Park. - Won a gamut of Titles and Cups from the age of 10 to 14. I was quite handy and even had Bradford City come and have a look, but they saw through me and decided I was crap.

Sussex : Sunday League : Defender - I played for Wilmington from 1995-1998. I was crap on the whole but my slide tackles were completed with around a 99.7% accuracy.

I'd have had more red cards dealt to me than Bruce Forsyth if I'd been playing today...

So, on the whole... crap.

 

[darkwolf666]

West Yorkshire : Youth : Keeper : Pollard Park. - Won a gamut of Titles and Cups from the age of 10 to 14. I was quite handy and even had Bradford City come and have a look, but they saw through me and decided I was crap.

Sussex : Sunday League : Defender - I played for Wilmington from 1995-1998. I was crap on the whole but my slide tackles were completed with around a 99.7% accuracy.

I'd have had more red cards dealt to me than Bruce Forsyth if I'd been playing today...

So, on the whole... crap.

Is that Wilmington Trees?