Essex Senior Football League
The Essex Senior Football League is an English men's football league. It contains clubs from the Essex FA, Hertfordshire FA, London FA, Middlesex FA and the Amateur Football Alliance. It is a feeder league to Division One North of the Isthmian League and has a single division which sits at Step 5 of the National League System.
Founder members
The Essex Senior League was formed in 1971 with nine founder members. The finishing positions for the 1971–72 season were as follows:| 1 | Witham Town |
| 2 | Billericay Town |
| 3 | Pegasus Athletic |
| 4 | Tiptree United |
| 5 | Saffron Walden Town |
| 6 | Basildon United |
| 7 | Heybridge Swifts |
| 8 | Southend United 'A' |
| 9 | Stansted |
Promotion and relegation
The Essex Senior League state that a club must finish in the top 3 to be considered for promotion to the Isthmian League Division One North. However the process is governed by the FA Leagues Committee who regulate relegations and promotions throughout the National League System. As of the 2014–15 season FA rules for Step 5 divisions such as the Essex Senior League stipulate that the champions should be offered the first chance of promotion. If the champions do not wish to be promoted or are not able to meet the entry requirements for promotion then the 2nd or 3rd placed team may be considered for promotion. Under normal circumstances, only one club can be promoted from a Step 5 league to a Step 4 league.In exchange for the promoted club, the Essex Senior League would typically receive a relegated club from a Step 4 league. Relegated clubs of Step 4 leagues are allocated an appropriate league based on their geographical locations. Thus the Essex Senior League is most likely to receive one of the relegated clubs from the Isthmian League Division One North.
There was no relegation from the Essex Senior League into a lower league since there was no Step 6 equivalent to the ESL until the 2017–18 season. Leagues including the Essex Olympian League sometimes acted as a feeder league to the Essex Senior League but promotion and relegation between the two leagues was not automatic. A Step 6 division for Essex and East Anglia was announced in October 2017 to solve the relegation problem. Starting in 2018–19, the Eastern Counties League controls this new division.
Champions, runners up and third place finishers
League winners records
- 5 times – Basildon United
- 3 times – Billericay Town, Bowers & Pitsea, Concord Rangers, Great Wakering Rovers, Heybridge Swifts, Witham Town
- 2 times – Brentwood Town, Brightlingsea United, Canvey Island, Enfield Town, Ford United, Romford, Saffron Walden Town
- 1 time – AFC Hornchurch, Barking, Burnham Ramblers, Enfield 1893, Haringey Borough, Hullbridge Sports, Leyton, Maldon Town, Purfleet, Stansted, Southend Manor
Essex Senior League Challenge Cup
As of the 2017–18 season the competition is referred to as the "Errington Challenge Cup" in recognition of the league's treasurer Margaret Errington who held the post for 26 years before sadly dying in 2016.
Final results
League and Cup Double
On 14 occasions a team has won both the Essex Senior League and the Essex Senior League Challenge Cup in the same season. They are:- 1972–73 – Billericay Town
- 1977–78 – Basildon United
- 1982–83 – Heybridge Swifts
- 1987–88 – Purfleet
- 1992–93 – Canvey Island
- 1993–94 – Basildon United
- 1995–96 – Romford
- 1998–99 – Bowers United
- 1999-00 – Saffron Walden Town
- 2005–06 – AFC Hornchurch
- 2006–07 – Brentwood Town
- 2011–12 – Witham Town
- 2013–14 – Great Wakering Rovers
- 2017–18 – Great Wakering Rovers
Former members
- AFC Hornchurch
- Barking
- Barkingside
- Basildon United
- Beaumont Athletic
- Billericay Town
- Bowers & Pitsea
- Brentwood Town
- Brightlingsea United
- Burnham Ramblers
- Bury Academy
- Canvey Island
- Chelmsford City reserves
- Coggeshall Town
- Colchester United 'A'
- Concord Rangers
- East Ham United
- East Thurrock United
- Enfield Town
- Eton Manor
- FC Romania
- Great Wakering Rovers
- Hackney Wick
- Halstead Town
- Haringey Borough
- Heybridge Swifts
- Hullbridge Sports
- Leyton
- Leyton Athletic
- London APSA
- Maldon Town
- Pegasus Athletic
- Purfleet
- Romford
- Southend United 'A'
- Stambridge
- Stanway Rovers
- Tilbury
- Tiptree United
- Waltham Abbey
- Witham Town
- Wivenhoe Town
- Woodford Town
- Woodford Town reserves
Notable former Essex Senior League players
- Tom Williams - Hashtag United
- Jimmy Greaves – Played for Brentwood Town after playing for West Ham United, Tottenham Hotspur, AC Milan, Chelsea and England.
- Alan Brazil – Played for Stambridge after Queens Park Rangers and other teams including Manchester United and Scotland.
- Kerry Dixon – Played in the Essex Senior League for Basildon after playing for other teams including Chelsea and England.
- Michael Kightly – left Basildon United to join Southend United circa 2003, playing for Burnley as of April 2016.
- Dwight Gayle – left Stansted to play for Dagenham & Redbridge, Peterborough United and Crystal Palace.
- Trevor Putney – left Brentwood to join Ipswich Town in 1980, also played for Norwich City, and Middlesbrough.
- Stuart Wardley – left Saffron Walden Town to join Queens Park Rangers in 1999.
- Steve Tilson – left Witham Town to join Southend United in 1989.
- Gary Hart – left Stansted for £1,000 and a set of kit to join Brighton & Hove Albion in 1998.
- Ben Barnett – left Southend Manor to briefly join Leyton Orient in 2000.
- Ian Renshaw – left Basildon United to join Scarborough.
- John Warner – left Burnham Ramblers to join Colchester United in 1988.
- Scott Forbes – left Saffron Walden Town to join Southend United in 2000.