After two Covid-19 interrupted seasons which had seen both Season’s 2019-20 and 2020-21 curtailed in the Premier Division it is pleasing to report that all three categories of our league competitions were completed in Season 2021-22. Whilst Covid still lingered around for most of the season everyone had learned to live with it and work around it and, whilst there were still a few postponed games, most games were played on their original scheduled dates. Careful management of the fixtures by the League Fixture Secretary saw the season through to a satisfactory conclusion as far as the league games in the Premier Division, U18 Division and two Veterans’ divisions was concerned. A big thank you to all the clubs for their co-operation and understanding in helping achieve this objective.

Premier Division

When Season 2020-21 was curtailed the four sides that had looked most likely to see their campaign turn into a championship winning season were Pewsey Vale, Melksham Town, Royal Wootton Bassett Town Development and Wroughton. Pewsey led the way having won 12 of their 14 games, losing just once. Melksham Town had started badly losing four of their first five games but had picked up and gone on a tremendous ten game unbeaten run, nine of which had been won to sit in second place, six points behind Pewsey having played one game more. Royal Wootton Bassett Town Development were three points behind Melksham but had three games in hand on Melksham and two on Pewsey Vale. Wroughton, champions in the last completed season in the Premier Division, sat fourth having won eight of their opening ten games. Whilst Pewsey led the way they had not played either Royal Wootton Bassett Town Development or Wroughton and still had another game against Melksham to come and so the title race was still very much all to play for.

Season 2021-22 saw both Pewsey Vale and Royal Wootton Bassett Town Development continue where they had left off the previous season but for Wroughton, who had seen most of their squad depart, it was not the case as they started off the season with seven defeats in their opening eight games as they went through a re-building exercise under their new management team. Right from the start both Pewsey Vale and Royal Wootton Bassett Town Development dominated matters. Pewsey won their opening nine league games and finally tasted defeat in the league at home against Malmesbury Vics Development in their tenth league fixture whilst Royal Wootton Bassett Town Development won ten of their opening eleven fixtures, their only dropped points coming in a hard fought 2-2 daw against Calne Town Reserves who were also going well at the time. Prior to the top two sides meeting in mid-October, Pewsey dropped further points against Trowbridge Town, this after having led 4-1 at one stage. They were pegged back by Trowbridge and had to share the points following a 4-4 draw, but they returned to winning ways ahead of the Bassett game with a big 8-1 win over Devizes Town Reserves. The game on 16^th October between the top two sides saw Pewsey Vale return from the Gerard Buxton Sports Ground with all three points following a 3-1 away win which put them firmly in the driving seat at the top of the table.

The two teams continued to grind out results with no quarter given by either side, although both had a few scares along the way. Having lost the Pewsey game, Steve Yeardley’s Royal Wootton Bassett Town Development side went on a 16-game unbeaten run, winning 15 of those games. The only dropped points coming in a 1-1 home draw against a Malmesbury Vics Development side who, despite having their goalkeeper sent off, held on to take a point in a Friday night fixture played under lights at the Gerard Buxton Sports Ground. Royal Wootton Bassett Town had a few things go their way on that impressive run though, which would ultimately prove decisive in the final reckoning. Twice goalkeeper Simon Notman was called upon to make crucial penalty saves against Calne Town Reserves and Odd Down Reserves, the latter coming in the closing stages of the game at the Gerard Buxton Ground with the home side protecting a slender 1-0 lead. An injury time winner against Frome Collegians, again at the Gerard Buxton Ground, followed and saw three vital points claimed after visitors Frome had come back from 2-0 down and gone close to taking the lead prior to that injury time winner.

Pewsey won ten of the eleven games after that win over Royal Wootton Bassett but again were made to work hard for all three points by Trowbridge Town, Odd Down Reserves, a resurgent Wroughton side and Frome Collegians. Indeed, it was Frome who were take points off Pewsey in that run of eleven games in the return fixture between the sides, holding the title chasers to a 1-1 draw at the Old Showfield Ground. Pewsey suffered only their second league defeat of the season at the beginning of March, going down 3-2 away to Corsham Town Development, a result which put the destiny of the title in Royal Wootton Bassett Tow Developments own hands. Whilst Pewsey still led the table by six points at that stage their title rivals had three games in hand but with the two still set to meet in the return fixture against each other.

After that defeat to Corsham, Pewsey then went on an unbeaten run of six games, five of which were won leaving them with just the return game against Royal Wootton Bassett Town. However, their title rivals also kept winning as they went on that 16-game unbeaten run and went into their final three games two points clear at the top and with a game in hand. They still had some tough games to play though, as well as the second game with Pewsey they still had both Trowbridge Town and Salisbury FC Development to play. First up was Trowbridge Town who came into the game in fine form, unbeaten in nine games since a narrow 1-0 defeat to Royal Wootton Bassett Town at the Gerard Buxton Sports Ground, they had also won eight of those nine games and they extended that excellent run with a narrow 2-1 win on a warm afternoon at Woodmarsh. This was only the second defeat of the season for Royal Wootton Bassett Town Development and set up a winner takes all encounter at Pewsey Recreation Ground on Saturday 23^rd April.

Pewsey went into their final game against their main title rivals one point clear at the top with both teams knowing that a win would give them the title. A draw would mean Royal Wootton Bassett Town, who had a superior goal difference, would then need to avoid defeat in their final game of the season away at Salisbury FC Development to take the title. In a tense affair played in front of a crowd of over 300, a solitary early goal from Royal Wootton Bassett Town Development’s Dale Richards secured the title for the visitors negating the need for them to get a result in that final game at Salisbury. They did ultimately secure a draw in that final game to finish three points clear at the top of the table in what had been a fantastic title battle between the two sides. Matt Bennett finished as joint top scorer in the division with Trowbridge Town’s Scott Baker both smashing 42 league goals and Bennett’s teammate Dale Richards was not far behind on 35 goals.

Trowbridge Town, fired by those goals from Scott Baker, finished in third spot seven points behind Pewsey. With just the one defeat in their final 15 games, that at the hands of the champions, and with 13 of those games having been won, they will certainly be a force to reckon with next season if they retain the same squad. Corsham Town Reserves finished in fourth spot but somewhat disappointingly will not be taking part in the league next season. Malmesbury Vics Development having their best ever season finished in fifth spot and had a big say in the outcome of the title race by taking five points off Pewsey, also drawing with the champions. Calne Town Reserves were sixth in their first season back in the league after promotion from the Trowbridge & District League having been in a top five position virtually all season, slipping out of the top five only at the very end of the season.

Salisbury FC Development finished in seventh spot level on points with Calne Town Reserves and would no doubt have finished higher if their leading striker Devon Arnold had played all season, but the impressive youngster made the step up to the first team midway through the season. Frome Collegians also had a good season eventually finishing in eighth spot with just three points separating Malmesbury in fifth place from Wroughton in tenth spot in a congested middle of the table. After that tough start to the season Wroughton were clearly the most improved team over the season which bodes well for next season.

At the other end of the table, Purton had a tough season winning just two games and being on the wrong end of some very heavy defeats which saw them finish bottom of the table. They will look to regroup and come back stronger next season but credit to manager Frankie Hunt for seeing out the season and completing their fixtures. Both Ludgershall Sports and Devizes Town Reserves won just four games all season and finished seven points below Marlborough Town who were in 15^th place. The highlight of Marlborough’s season was reaching the semi-final of the prestigious Wiltshire FA Senior Cup, but they were well beaten by Bemerton Heath Harlequins in that semi-final and there was to be no cup final appearance.

Completing the Premier Division after two aborted seasons due to Covid-19 was always the priority in Season 2021-22 and there was insufficient time at the end of the season to stage the Fountain Trophies Cup competition. With the Premier Division set to revert to 16 teams next season the intention is to re-introduce the normal operating procedure of running the Fountain Trophies alongside the league fixtures.

Under 18 Division

Close games were a key feature of league games this season in the Under 18 Division of the Corsham Print Wiltshire Senior League with exactly half of the 56 league games played either being drawn (7 games) or settled by a single goal margin (21) with everyone capable of beating each other on the night. In the end the title race turned into a three-team battle between Devizes Town, Royal Wootton Bassett Town and Melksham Town.

Devizes Town started their first season in the league with an impressive 6-1 win in the FA Youth Cup over Shepton Mallet and it was the first evidence that Devizes were in for a good season. They immediately brought that cup form into the league hitting another six goals in their opening league fixture against Pewsey Vale. They exited the FA Youth Cup at the hands of the youth team of National League side Gloucester City but this after giving their higher league opposition a fright. They raced into a 2-0 lead before missing a penalty and then seeing Gloucester pull one back just before half time. Gloucester equalised from the penalty spot early in the second half, and it then remained all square until three late goals saw Gloucester secure the win, but they knew they had been given a tough game by their opponents from the Corsham Print Wiltshire Senior League.

Three straight wins in the league against Calne Town, AFC Aldermaston and an impressive 5-0 success against Melksham Town saw Devizes Town the early league leaders. They suffered their first defeat of the season away at New College in what was New College’s first win of the season but was an early indication that on their day any side in this season’s Under 18 Division could beat any other. Devizes returned to winning ways with back-to-back wins at fortress Nursteed Road to maintain a two-point lead over Royal Wootton Bassett Town who were at this stage unbeaten and with a game in hand. Next up for Devizes was a Monday night trip to Aldermaston and David Moore’s side suffered their second defeat of the season going down 2-1. Once again it was only by a solitary goal, but it allowed both Royal Wootton Bassett Town and Melksham Town to go ahead of them in the table as just one point separated the three teams at the top of the table. However, this was to be the last time that Devizes lost all season as they secured a league and cup double.

Next up for Devizes after that defeat at Aldermaston was a trip to the Gerard Buxton Ground to meet the new leaders Royal Wootton Town and the two sides served up a thriller. Trailing 3-2 going into the last minute of the game a goal for Devizes ensured the points were shared and gave Devizes a big physiological advantage knowing that their opponents still had to travel to Nursteed Road where Devizes had a 100% winning record. Devizes saw out 2021 with a second win over the strong Melksham Town side who by now were the new league leaders, although the 3-2 score line was a lot closer than the first meeting and once again it was a late goal that secured the points.

The first game of the new calendar year was the return match against Royal Wootton Bassett Town and after successfully defending against some initial pressure from the visitors, Devizes went into the break one nil to the good in what had been another close encounter up to this point. It was a different story after the break though as a rampant Devizes came out second half and scored three unanswered goals to put them well and truly in the driving seat for the league title.

An emphatic win against New College on a night when their two nearest rivals were losing meant Devizes now had destiny in their own hands. With two games to go against Radstock and Pewsey Vale, Devizes knew they only needed to win one of those two games and they were guaranteed the title. Lose both and they would open the door for Royal Wootton Bassett Town were they to win their own game against Pewsey. If Devizes lost one and drew one and Royal Wootton Bassett Town won their final game, then a play-off would be needed to decide the title as FA rules do not allow goal difference to decide Under 18 divisions. There was also still an outside chance that Melksham Town could also be involved in a title play-off, but it would need both Devizes Town and Royal Wootton Bassett Town to lose their remaining games and Melksham to win their final game. Under that scenario a play-off would then have been required between Devizes Town and Melksham Town.

There was to be no need for a play-off though as Devizes Town made sure of the title in the first of those two games although they were made to work hard for the three points by a Radstock Town team who had won three games in a row going into the match and had a good record at home. They made it difficult for Devizes and it was certainly a tight first half played at a high tempo with both sides creating chances. The deadlock was finally broken five minutes from the break Devizes scoring from the penalty spot. Both sides came out second half and maintained the intensity of the first period. In the 66th minute Devizes finally gave themselves some breathing space with a second goal and then saw out the closing stages maintaining a clean sheet for the third consecutive game to ensure the title was secured and the celebrations could commence.

Congratulations to Devizes manager David Moore, his young players, and the team’s coaches on their excellent achievement in their first season in the league. It has been a difficult season for their two senior sides but their Under 18 team has certainly given the club something to celebrate this season. They led from the front in the early part of the season and then those two wins over their nearest rivals in the run in showed they were clearly the top side in the division this season and are fully deserving of all the accolades that came their way.

Whilst Devizes were making sure of the league title their nearest challengers Royal Wootton Bassett Town were securing runners-up spot. They came into the game following defeat the previous week at Calne Town that had effectively ended any realistic hopes of the title. With Melksham Town hot on their heels, they knew they could not afford another slip up. Three points were almost certainly needed for runners-up against a Pewsey Vale side who, whilst bottom of the table, were a match for any side in the division as Royal Wootton Bassett Town had found on their visit to Pewsey at the end of September when the two sides had shared six goals and the points. It was another tight game in the return match with the two sides turning round at the break with the game still looking for its first goal.  The second half saw three goals with two going the way of Royal Wootton Bassett Town ensuring that it was they who finished second behind Devizes Town. The performance from Pewsey once again highlighted how close most games have been this season in the Under 18 Division and whilst the honours go to Devizes Town and Royal Wootton Bassett Town credit to all eight teams for making this one of the most competitive seasons ever. Pewsey had the consolation of making the final of the Wiltshire FA's County Youth Cup and they went close to winning that prestigious competition, twice leading opponents Swindon Supermarine but twice pegged back. Penalties were eventually needed to decide matters and it was Supermarine who won the shoot out to lift the cup.

With most of the teams finishing their league fixtures early, there was time to run a cup competition on a mini-group basis to give the teams a minimum of six additional fixtures. Group A saw a three-way battle between AFC Aldermaston, Royal Wootton Bassett Town and Calne Town for a place in the final and in the end, it was AFC Aldermaston who made it through by avoiding defeat against Royal Wootton Bassett Town in their final group game to finish two points clear of their nearest rivals. Group B was dominated by Devizes Town from start to finish, Devizes winning five of their six group games and drawing the other to finish nine points clear at the top of the group.

The cup final was staged at Corsham Town on a warm Saturday afternoon and produced an entertaining game. A tight first half saw the teams turn around with the game still looking for the first goal which eventually came in the 52^nd minute when Aldermaston’s captain Jacob Wilson headed in from a corner. It remained that way until 20 minutes from time when Devizes equalised through Danny Bowyer.  Devizes now had their tails up and they were to score what turned out to be the winner in the closing stages of the game, Toby Baker cutting in from the left flank hit a superb curling shot that sailed into the top far corner of the net to make the final score 2-1 to Devizes. It had been an excellent sporting contes,t well officiated by Rhiannon Stevens and her two assistants Colin Hopkins and Sam Pinches. So, for Devizes Town a league and cup double but post the season end, the management team and players have transferred back to their former club Bishops Cannings and will play under that name next season with all but two of their squad still eligible to play in the Under 18 Division.

Veterans' Divisions

Once again, we were able to run two divisions in the Veterans’ category. The North Division was based around the 3G facilities at New College Swindon, the Gerard Buxton Sports Ground at Royal Wootton Bassett and the Wiltshire FA Headquarters at Devizes Green Lane and involved nine teams. The Mid-Wiltshire Division had one additional side and, whilst also using Green Lane, saw most of the teams playing on their own grounds which made fixture scheduling for the Mid Wiltshire Division a lot easier than in the North, where the late-night trips to Devizes were understandably unpopular with the Swindon based sides. The burden of having to travel to Devizes was shared out amongst all the sides and by the end  of the season the Fixture Secretary was able to schedule fixtures around the two sites in and around Swindon, utilising Green Lane only for sides in the Mid Wiltshire Division who were unable to use their grass pitches towards the end of the season.

In the Mid Wiltshire Division, the four teams who had finished in the top four the previous season were once again to the fore. However, last season’s champions Corsham Town did not make the best of starts, losing three of their opening seven league fixtures and also crashing out of the Wiltshire FA’s Veterans’ County Cup and they never really recovered from that bad start. Devizes Town also started slowly, losing two of their opening three fixtures including a defeat to one of the previous season’s strugglers Amesbury Junior. In contrast,  Amesbury made an excellent start to the season winning all four of their opening league games but unfortunately for them fell away in mid-season before ending their season with three wins in their four final fixtures.

From the start the title looked to be between last season’s runners-up Melksham Town and Bradford Town who had finished fourth the previous season but had in the summer acquired one of Melksham’s key players from last season, Steve Tweddle. Melksham led from the off and won all twelve of their opening games in all competitions. They suffered their first defeat of the season early in the New Year when they lost on penalties to Royal Wootton Bassett Town in the Wiltshire FA’s Veterans’ County Cup, a competition Melksham had won the previous season. That cup defeat was then followed by defeat in the league as they went down to a much-improved FC Calne side, although this was to be the only league defeat Melksham suffered all season. The following week Melksham Town faced Bradford Town with a twelve-point lead at the top of the table but with Bradford Town having three games in hand. A win for Bradford and were they to win those three games in hand then it would be all level at the top. Melksham responded to the challenge and a 2-1 win thanks to two Charlie Griffin goals put them in pole position to lift the title.

By the time of the return game at the beginning of March, Bradford Town had just about caught up with their fixtures but trailed Melksham by six points with a game in hand. When Melksham secured a 1-1 draw in a fiery contest that saw a player form each side dismissed it looked as though Melksham were almost there. They still had three games to go and, whilst still six points clear, at this stage probably still needed to take seven points from those three games against Corsham Town, Devizes Town and Trowbridge Tigers respectively to make certain of the title. Bradford had that game in hand and also had bottom side Amesbury Junior Badgers still to play and were likely to have a better goal difference come the end of the season should they win all of their remaining games. Bradford Town’s other three games were against Amesbury Juniors, Chippenham Town Yard Dogs and Devizes Town.

Melksham Town’s next game saw them draw 2-2 with Devizes Town. A week later Bradford Town secured a big win over Amesbury Junior Badgers to improve their goal difference but on the same night Melksham were 2-0 winners over Trowbridge Tigers, now appearing to have one hand on the trophy with one game to go against last season’s champions Corsham Town. Devizes turned up the pressure on Melksham with a comfortable 5-0 win over Devizes Town but in doing so played an ineligible player which ultimately meant that the three points would be taken off their total. Before the discipline process had run its course, Melksham played their final game against Corsham. A win would have guaranteed them the title but after taking the lead in the opening five minutes they suffered the agony of an equaliser for Corsham six minutes from time that in theory opened the door for Bradford Town. Bradford Town’s final game was against a much-improved Chippenham Yard Dogs and, whilst a win would have seen them go top pending the outcome of the discipline case, they were held to a 2-2 draw meaning that Melksham were crowned champions without the need of any help from any discipline decision. It had been a close-run title race between two good teams but in the end Bradford Town had to settle for runners-up and also winning the Wiltshire FA’s Veterans’ County Cup, winning a penalty shoot out against Royal Wootton Bassett Town after an entertaining final that had seen the two sides share six goals on a wet night at Green Lane.

Corsham Town finished in third place, just pipping Devizes Town on goal difference. Amesbury Junior finished fifth, one place and two points ahead of FC Calne who had a tremendous end to the season winning six of their last seven league games, including that win over Melksham Town.

The title race in the North Division was equally exciting with three teams Priory Vale, Redhouse and Royal Wootton Bassett Town battling out right to the end, with the title finally being decided in the last game of the season between Redhouse and Priory Vale. Priory Vale and Royal Wootton Bassett Town had been the league leaders for much of the season with Redhouse being behind the other two title challengers with their fixtures.

Redhouse, who were last season’s runners-up, carried on from where they left off the previous season, winning all of their opening five games, including a win in the First Round of the Veterans’ County Cup. The first dropped points in the league came at the hands of Royal Wootton Bassett Town who had also picked up after an opening league defeat against South Cerney and had won four straight games ahead of the meeting with Redhouse. On an early November night when the defences were on top the two sides shared the points following a 0-0 draw. The same month Priory Vale laid down their title credentials with an impressive 3-0 win over Royal Wootton Bassett Town meaning they had secured six wins and a draw from their opening eight league fixtures.

The two sides met again in early December and this time Royal Wootton Bassett Town avenged that earlier defeat as they ran out 2-0 winners. The same week Redhouse suffered their first defeat of the season, going down 4-1 at the hands of Cricklade Town. They then also exited the Wiltshire Veterans’ County Cup at the hands of Bradford Town but that would be the last defeat they suffered until the final game of the season. Seven of their next eight league fixtures were won the only dropped points coming in yet another 0-0 draw, this time against their other title rivals Priory Vale.  

After their win over Priory Vale, Royal Wootton Bassett Town won five of their next six league games, their only defeat coming at the hands of a fast-improving Cricklade Town. Priory Vale did even better in their next six games, winning five of them and drawing that one with Redhouse as the three title contenders went into the final weeks of the season with the title still up for grabs.

A key game was on 12^th April, and it saw Redhouse move top of the table following a 3-1 win over Royal Wootton Bassett Town.  The defeat for Royal Wootton Bassett Town ended their quest for league honours, although they had the consolation of making the Veterans’ County Cup Final, although, as noted above, they eventually had to settle for runners-up after losing in the penalty shoot-out. It also almost certainly meant Redhouse would be champions as they were three points clear of Priory Vale with a much superior goal difference over their title rivals with the two set to meet each other in their final fixture. Redhouse knew that the title will be theirs as long as they avoid defeat by a six or more-goal margin. After two postponements, one from each side, the game finally took place on Wednesday 11^th May and whilst Priory Vale won on the night, by restricting the score line to just one goal Redhouse were crowned champions of the North Division, going one better than the previous season with Priory Vale runners-up.

Royal Wootton Bassett Town finished third but in the end were just one point ahead of Cricklade Town who had a storming end to the season, winning seven of their final eight league games. Had they not started the season with two defeats in their opening three league games they would almost certainly have been challenging for honours which bodes well for next season. There was then a big gap to Stratton Juniors in fifth spot who finished some fourteen points behind Cricklade. Special mention to bottom side AFC Swindon who finally won their first game in the league since joining three seasons ago.

With the league season again completed relatively early in the Veterans’ Division there was time to run a cup competition at the end of the season. Participation was made optional and with a number of club pitches being de-commissioned to get them ready for next season Melksham Town and Bradford Town from the Mid Wiltshire Division opted not to participate as did Priory Vale in the North Wiltshire Division. Corsham Town in the end also did not participate, given a bye in the First Round they then conceded their Second-Round tie. The First Round saw big wins for both Chippenham Town Yard Dogs and Redhouse against sides from their own divisions, Chippenham defeating Amesbury Junior Badgers and Redhouse beating AFC Swindon. FC Calne and Cricklade Town won inter-divisional contests against Stratton Juniors and St Andrews respectively. In another inter-divisional tie, Swindon Rovers just edged out Trowbridge Tigers with a 1-0 win and Royal Wootton Bassett Town were given a walkover over South Cerney Rangers. The best tie of the First Round though was the contest was at New College between Swindon Old Boys and Amesbury Junior. The two sides turned round at half-time all square at 2-2 but the second 25 minutes was to see ten goals scored! With just six minutes to go Amesbury led 6-3 but Swindon Old Boys astonishingly scored five times in those last six minutes to run out 8-6 winners.

Swindon Old Boys reward for that come from behind win was a quarter final trip to Chippenham to play the Town Yard Dogs. In a tight game their interest in the cup was ended when they went down to a narrow 2-1 defeat. Swindon Rovers progressed to the last four when Corsham Town conceded their quarter final tie. The other two games both ended in 3-0 wins. Cricklade Town brought their impressive league form at the end of the league season into the cup, knocking out North Wiltshire Division champions Redhouse whilst FC Calne defeated Royal Wootton Bassett Town 3-0 to make it through to the last four.

Both semi finals were inter-divisional affairs and both ties needed penalties to decide matters. The first game between Cricklade Town and Chippenham Town Yard Dogs saw neither side able to find the net after 50 minutes and Cricklade prevailed 5-4 in the penalty shoot-out. The second semi did produce some goals with FC Calne and Swindon Rovers drawing 2-2 at the end of normal time. Once again it was 5-4 in the penalty shoot with Swindon Rovers this time the victorious side to give the league an all North Wiltshire Division final. The final was at New College Swindon with an earlier than normal kick-off which allowed for the possibility of extra-time and that time was indeed needed. In normal time Swindon Rovers struck first, Mark Simpkins putting his side ahead but Cricklade were back on level terms by the break, leading scorer Ryan Keech with the equaliser. Cricklade went ahead for the first time in the game almost immediately after half time, Adam Smith firing in from the penalty spot to make it 2-1. Cricklade continued to have the better of things and had claims for a penalty late on in the game. However, the appeals were waved away and in the dying moments of the half Swindon Rovers broke and Neil Feline equalised to make it 2-2 at the end of normal time. Neither side was able to find the net in the first period of extra-time, but the second period saw Ryan Keech notch his second of the game with what proved to be the winner as Cricklade saw out the remaining time to secure a narrow 3-2 win and become the first winners of the Corsham Print Wiltshire Senior League Veterans’ Cup.