1949–50 Southern Football League
The 1949–50 Southern Football League season was the 47th in the history of the league, an English football competition.
The league consisted of 24 clubs, including all 22 clubs from the previous season, and two newly elected clubs - Headington United and Weymouth. Merthyr Tydfil were champions, winning their second Southern League title. At the end of the season the Football League expanded from 88 to 92 clubs. Six Southern League clubs applied to join, with Colchester United and Gillingham succeeding.
League table
| Season | 1949–50 |
|---|---|
| Champions | Merthyr Tydfil |
| Matches played | 552 |
| Goals scored | 1,987 (3.6 per match) |
← 1948–49 1950–51 → | |
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GR | Pts | Results |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Merthyr Tydfil | 46 | 34 | 3 | 9 | 143 | 62 | 2.306 | 71 | |
| 2 | Colchester United | 46 | 31 | 9 | 6 | 109 | 51 | 2.137 | 71 | Elected to the Football League |
| 3 | Yeovil Town | 46 | 29 | 7 | 10 | 104 | 45 | 2.311 | 65 | |
| 4 | Chelmsford City | 46 | 26 | 9 | 11 | 121 | 64 | 1.891 | 61 | |
| 5 | Gillingham | 46 | 23 | 9 | 14 | 92 | 61 | 1.508 | 55 | Elected to the Football League |
| 6 | Dartford | 46 | 20 | 9 | 17 | 70 | 65 | 1.077 | 49 | |
| 7 | Worcester City | 46 | 21 | 7 | 18 | 85 | 80 | 1.063 | 49 | |
| 8 | Guildford City | 46 | 18 | 11 | 17 | 79 | 73 | 1.082 | 47 | |
| 9 | Weymouth | 46 | 19 | 9 | 18 | 80 | 81 | 0.988 | 47 | |
| 10 | Barry Town | 46 | 18 | 10 | 18 | 78 | 72 | 1.083 | 46 | |
| 11 | Exeter City II | 46 | 16 | 14 | 16 | 73 | 83 | 0.880 | 46 | |
| 12 | Lovells Athletic | 46 | 17 | 10 | 19 | 86 | 78 | 1.103 | 44 | |
| 13 | Tonbridge | 46 | 16 | 12 | 18 | 65 | 76 | 0.855 | 44 | |
| 14 | Hastings United | 46 | 17 | 8 | 21 | 92 | 140 | 0.657 | 42 | |
| 15 | Gravesend & Northfleet | 46 | 16 | 9 | 21 | 88 | 81 | 1.086 | 41 | |
| 16 | Torquay United II | 46 | 14 | 12 | 20 | 80 | 89 | 0.899 | 40 | |
| 17 | Bath City | 46 | 16 | 7 | 23 | 61 | 78 | 0.782 | 39 | |
| 18 | Gloucester City | 46 | 14 | 11 | 21 | 72 | 101 | 0.713 | 39 | |
| 19 | Hereford United | 46 | 15 | 8 | 23 | 74 | 76 | 0.974 | 38 | |
| 20 | Headington United | 46 | 13 | 11 | 22 | 75 | 96 | 0.781 | 37 | |
| 21 | Cheltenham Town | 46 | 15 | 7 | 24 | 72 | 97 | 0.742 | 37 | |
| 22 | Bedford Town | 46 | 12 | 11 | 23 | 63 | 79 | 0.797 | 35 | |
| 23 | Kidderminster Harriers | 46 | 12 | 11 | 23 | 64 | 108 | 0.593 | 35 | |
| 24 | Chingford Town | 46 | 10 | 6 | 30 | 63 | 151 | 0.417 | 26 |
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) goal ratio.
Football League elections
As the Football League's Division Three South was expanded from 20 to 22 clubs, no League clubs put up for re-election, but two places were available for non-League clubs. Six Southern League clubs applied, with Gillingham and Colchester United topping the ballot,[1] despite Merthyr winning the league.