Leicestershire Senior League
- Official Website – https://leicsseniorleague.wixsite.com/mysite
- FA Full Time – https://fulltime.thefa.com/index.html?league=651281
- Non League Matters page – https://www.nonleaguematters.co.uk/divisions/58/
- Wikipedia – https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leicestershire_Senior_League
The current Leicestershire Senior League started in the 1903/04 season and was the third attempt to establish a county league in Leicestershire. The previous two years without senior league football in the county had seen a steady growth in the number of Junior Leagues in the area.
The league was initially formed with a single division of 9 teams, Leicester Fosse Reserves from the Midland Counties League, Barrow Rising Star & Loughborough Corinthians from the Loughborough & District League, Leicester Imperial & South Wigston Albion from the Leicester & District League, Coalville Town & Coalville United from the Coalville & District League, plus the reserve teams of Midland Counties League Hinckley Town & Whitwick White Cross.
What do we know about this league ?
Information about this league is complete in terms of final league tables, though some do have mistakes in the goals for/against totals. I’m also missing some information about where teams came from or moved to.
| Winners | Runners Up | |
|---|---|---|
| 1903/04 | Loughborough Corinthians | Leicester Fosse Reserves |
| 1904/05 | Leicester Fosse Reserves | Leicester Imperial |
| 1905/06 | Leicester Fosse Reserves | South Wigston Albion |
| 1906/07 | Leicester Fosse Reserves | Coalville Town |
| 1907/08 | Coalville Town | Hinckley United |
| 1908/09 | Hinckley United | Market Harborough Town |
| 1909/10 | Hinckley United | Hugglescote United |
| 1910/11 | Shepshed Albion | Coalville Town |
| 1911/12 | Holwell Works | Gresley Rovers |
| 1912/13 | Loughborough Corinthians | Hinckley United |
| 1913/14 | Hinckley United | Whitwick Imperial |
| 1914/15 | Whitwick Imperial | Coalville Town |
| 1915/16 | Coalville Swifts | Gresley Rovers |
The outbreak of the First World War caused the league to be suspended for two seasons.
| Winners | Runnners Up | |
|---|---|---|
| 1918/19 | Coalville Swifts | Loughborough YMCA |
| 1919/20 | Whitwick Imperial | Coalville Swifts |
| 1920/21 | Shepshed Albion | Moira United |
| 1921/22 | Whitwick Imperial | Shepshed Albion |
| 1922/23 | Whitwick Imperial | Ashby Town |
| 1923/24 | Ashby Town | Whitwick Imperial |
| 1924/25 | Whitwick Imperial | Barwell United |
| 1925/26 | Barwell United | Burton Town Reserves |
| 1926/27 | Mountsorrel Town | Barwell United |
| 1927/28 | Burton Town Reserves | Loughborough Corinthians Reserves |
| 1928/29 | Burton Town Reserves | Gresley Rovers Reserves |
| 1929/30 | Burton Town Reserves | Gresley Rovers Reserves |
A steady decline in numbers during the late 1920s saw the league stop in 1930 for four seasons. It started back up in 1934 with 12 teams taken from junior leagues from Northern Leicestershire and South Derbyshire.
| Winners | Runners Up | |
|---|---|---|
| 1934/35 | New Lount Colliery | Overseal Institute |
| 1935/36 | HR Mansfields Sports | Whitwick White Cross |
| 1936/37 | Loughborough Brush | Whitwick White Cross |
| 1937/38 | HR Mansfields Sports | Gresley Rovers |
| 1938/39 | Donisthorpe | Gresley Rovers |
For the 1939/40 season the league reverted back to it’s old title of the Leicestershire Senior League.
The league continued during the Second World War, often made up with teams from the armed forces and works teams.
| Winners | Runners Up | |
|---|---|---|
| 1939/40 | Loughborough Colleges | Quorn Methodists |
| 1940/41 | Brush Sports | Leicester City Colts |
| 1941/42 | Leicester City Colts | Gresley Rovers |
| 1942/43 | Leicester City Colts | Central Ordnance Depot Old Dalby |
| 1943/44 | Central Ordnance Depot Old Dalby | Leicester City Colts |
| 1944/45 | Pegson’s | RAF Melton Mowbray |
| 1945/46 | Coalville Town | Leicester City Colts |
After the war the league expanded to run two equal divisions based on geography.
| Winners | Runners Up | |
|---|---|---|
| 1946/47 | Central – Gresley Rovers Western – Moira United | Central – Anstey Methodists Western – Measham Imperial |
| 1947/48 | Central – Gresley Rovers Western – Moira United | Central – Nuneaton Borough Reserves Western – Barlestone United |
With the number of teams growing further and travel becoming easier after the war the league ran First and Second divisions.
| Division One | Division Two | |
|---|---|---|
| 1948/49 | Coalville Town | Measham Imperial |
| 1949/50 | Nuneaton Borough Reserves | Quorn Methodists |
| 1950/51 | Quorn Methodists | Ibstock Penistone Rovers |
| 1951/52 | Anstey Nomads | Oadby Town |
| 1952/53 | Measham Imperial | Bentley Engineering |
| 1953/54 | Anstey Nomads | Shepshed Albion |
| 1954/55 | Leicester City ‘A’ | Midland Woodworkers |
| 1955/56 | Whitwick Colliery Reserves | Burton Albion Reserves |
| 1956/57 | Leicester City ‘A’ | Enderby Town |
| 1957/58 | Leicester City ‘A’ | Donisthorpe Colliery Miners Welfare |
| 1958/59 | Stapenhill | Morris Sports |
| 1959/60 | Stapenhill | Wigston Fields |
| 1960/61 | Whitwick Colliery | Syston St. Peter’s |
| 1961/62 | Syston St. Peter’s | Loughborough United Reserves |
| 1962/63 | Enderby Town | Melton Old Grammarians |
| 1963/64 | Oadby Town | Bentley Engineering |
| 1964/65 | Enderby Town | St. Margaret’s Works |
| 1965/66 | Newfoundpool WMC | Shepshed Albion |
| 1966/67 | Enderby Town | Northfield United |
| 1967/68 | Oadby Town | Ibstock Penistone Rovers |
| 1968/69 | Oadby Town | Earl Shilton Albion |
| 1969/70 | Newfoundpool WMC | Friar Lane Old Boys |
| 1970/71 | Friar Lane Old Boys | Enderby Town Reserves |
| 1971/72 | Friar Lane Old Boys | Thringstone |
| 1972/73 | Oadby Town | Hinckley Town |
| 1973/74 | Friar Lane Old Boys | Anstey Nomads |
| 1974/75 | Friar Lane Old Boys | Great Bowden Imperial |
| 1975/76 | Friar Lane Old Boys | Melton Town |
| 1976/77 | Friar Lane Old Boys | Birstall United |
| 1977/78 | Friar Lane Old Boys | Shepshed Charterhouse |
| 1978/79 | Shepshed Charterhouse | Ibstock Penistone Rovers |
| 1979/80 | Shepshed Charterhouse | Earl Shilton Albion |
| 1980/81 | Shepshed Charterhouse | Lutterworth Town |
| 1981/82 | Anstey Nomads | Narborough & Littlethorpe |
| 1982/83 | Anstey Nomads | Newfoundpool WMC |
For the 1983/84 season the divisions were renamed the Premier Division and Division One.
| Premier Division | Division One | |
|---|---|---|
| 1983/84 | Melton Town | Harborough Town Imperial |
| 1984/85 | Thringstone | Holwell Works |
| 1985/86 | Thringstone | Syston St. Peter’s |
| 1986/87 | Stapenhill | Rolls Royce Mountsorrel |
| 1987/88 | Holwell Works | Quorn |
| 1988/89 | Stapenhill | Earl Shilton Albion |
| 1989/90 | St. Andrews | Barlestone St. Giles |
| 1990/91 | Lutterworth Town | Houghton Rangers |
| 1991/92 | Holwell Sports | Burbage Old Boys |
| 1992/93 | Holwell Sports | Barrow Town |
| 1993/94 | St. Andrews | Asfordby Amateurs |
| 1994/95 | Oadby Town | Kirby Muxloe |
| 1995/96 | St. Andrews | Quorn |
| 1996/97 | Oadby Town | Leicestershire Constabulary |
| 1997/98 | Oadby Town | Thurnby Rangers |
| 1998/99 | Oadby Town | Thurmaston Town |
| 1999/00 | Highfield Rangers | Leicester YMCA |
| 2000/01 | Quorn | Thurnby Rangers |
| 2001/02 | Coalville Town | Loughborough Dynamo |
| 2002/03 | Coalville Town | Epworth |
| 2003/04 | Loughborough Dynamo | Rothley Imperial |
| 2004/05 | Thurnby Rangers | Anstey Town |
| 2005/06 | Friar Lane & Epworth | Anstey Town |
| 2006/07 | Stapenhill | Anstey Town |
| 2007/08 | Kirby Muxloe | Asfordby Amateurs |
During the 2007/08 season proposals were put forward to combine the best teams in the Leicestershire Senior League and the Notts/Derby based Central Midlands League to form a new step 7 league. This came to light in the 2008/09 season with the formation of the East Midlands Counties League which resulted in eight teams leaving the Leicestershire Senior League at the end of the 2007/08 season.
Since 1998 the Leicestershire Senior League had been one of three leagues feeding into the Midland Football Alliance, with a number of teams progressing up the pyramid using this path. Now the Leicestershire Senior league would drop down a step and feed initially into the East Midlands Counties League, but later also to the lower divisions of the United Counties League and the Midland Football League.
| Premier Division | Division One | |
|---|---|---|
| 2008/09 | Anstey Nomads | Sileby Town |
| 2009/10 | Thurmaston Town | FC Dynamo |
| 2010/11 | Ashby Ivanhoe | Desford |
| 2011/12 | Rothley Imperial | Caterpillar |
| 2012/13 | Rothley Imperial | Allexton & New Parks |
| 2013/14 | Allexton & New Parks | Blaby & Whetstone Athletic Reserves |
| 2014/15 | Sileby Town | Lutterworth Athletic Reserves |
In 2015 the Leicestershire Senior League absorbed the Leicestershire Combination (set up to be the reserve league for Senior League clubs). Both leagues were administered by the same body so it’s a bit unclear when the merger happened but 2015/16 is the first season when the Senior League appeared to contain three divisions.