The Midlands Football League is a junior football league based in the Tayside area of Scotland. The league sits at level 6 on the Scottish football league system, acting as a feeder to the Highland Football League.
| Founded | 2021 |
|---|---|
| Country |  Scotland |
| Confederation | UEFA |
| Divisions | 1 |
| Number of teams | 20 |
| Level on pyramid | 6 |
| Promotion to | Highland Football League |
| Domestic cup(s) | Scottish Cup (SFA licensed clubs and league winners) Scottish Junior Cup North and Tayside Inter-Regional Cup |
| League cup(s) | East Region League Cup |
| Current champions | Dundee North End (1st title) (2023–24) |
| Most championships | Carnoustie Panmure (2 titles) |
| Website | scottishjuniorfa.com/east-region |
| Current: 2024–25 Midlands Football League | |
Founded in 2021, the inaugural season was contested by 19 clubs, largely from those who still remained in the SJFA East Region from the previous season. Geographically, the league covers Angus, Perth and Kinross, Dundee and Fife (all East Region clubs based further south already having left the SJFA to join the East of Scotland Football League over the previous five years).
The winners take part in an end-of-season promotion play-off with the SJFA North Superleague and North Caledonian League champions, subject to clubs meeting the required licensing criteria.
History
editBackground
editThe Tayside Junior Football League (originally named the Midlands League) had existed in the region since 1969. It was formed as one of the six new regions of the SJFA in part of a wider restructure of Scottish junior football, bringing several local junior leagues from the area together. It operated until 2002 when it merged with the Fife League and the East (Lothians) League to form a new larger East Region.[1]
From 2017, most of the East Region clubs departed the junior ranks to join the senior East of Scotland League which was part of the pyramid with promotion to the Lowland League, including some former Tayside teams from Perthshire.[2] By 2020, there were only 30 teams left in the East Region, which was restructured into two regional leagues of North and South. At the end of the season, all of the South teams (mostly from West Lothian) departed to join the senior ranks, leaving only the North teams (former Tayside Junior members) remaining which went on to join the pyramid system underneath the Highland League.
Formation
editOn 1 April 2021, the Scottish Junior Football Association stated their aim to establish a Midlands League for the 2021–22 season at Tier 6 of the Scottish football pyramid.[3]
Although there was no official announcement of the league's formation, the SJFA East Region announced the fixtures for the 2021–22 season straight away on 21 June, with 19 clubs shown as league members, Dundee St James and Letham being new clubs in addition to all members of the 2020–21 East Premiership North.[4]
On 5 July 2021, it was announced that subject to SFA approval, the Midlands league would be joined at Tier 6 by the SJFA North Superleague and North Caledonian League to form a fully-integrated level below the Highland League from 2021–22.[5]
Member clubs
edit
| Club | Location | Home Ground | Capacity | Seats | Floodlit |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Arbroath Victoria | Arbroath | Ogilvy Park[6] | 4,000 | 0 | Yes |
| Blairgowrie | Blairgowrie | Davie Park[7] | 2,500 | 0 | No |
| Brechin Victoria | Brechin | Victoria Park[8] | 600 | 100 | Yes |
| Broughty Athletic | Dundee | Whitton Park[9] | 2,500 | 0 | Yes |
| Carnoustie Panmure | Carnoustie | Laing Park[10] | 1,500 | 0 | No |
| Coupar Angus | Coupar Angus | Foxhall Park[11] | 1,800 | 0 | Yes |
| Downfield | Dundee | Downfield Park[12] | 2,500 | 13 | Yes |
| Dundee North End | Dundee | North End Park[13] | 2,000 | 0 | Yes |
| Dundee St James | Dundee | Fairfield Park | TBC | 0 | No |
| Dundee Violet | Dundee | Glenesk Park[14] | 2,000 | 0 | No |
| East Craigie | Dundee | Craigie Park[15] | 3,300 | 0 | No |
| Forfar United | Forfar | Guthrie Park[16] | 2,500 | 0 | No |
| Forfar West End | Forfar | Strathmore Park[17] | 2,500 | 0 | No |
| Kirriemuir Thistle | Kirriemuir | Westview Park[18] | 2,000 | 32 | Yes |
| Letham | Perth | Seven Acres Park | TBC | 0 | Yes |
| Lochee Harp | Dundee | Lochee Community Sports Hub | TBC | 0 | Yes |
| Lochee United | Dundee | Thomson Park[19] | 3,200 | 0 | Yes |
| Scone Thistle | Scone | Farquharson Park[20] | 1,000 | 0 | No |
| Tayport | Tayport | Canniepairt[21] | 2,000 | 0 | Yes |
Seasons
edit| Season | Champions | League Cup |
|---|---|---|
| 2021–22 | Carnoustie Panmure | Lochee United |
| 2022–23 | Carnoustie Panmure (2) | Carnoustie Panmure |
| 2023–24 | Dundee North End | Not Played |
Cup competitions
edit- Scottish Junior Cup: Known as the Macron Scottish Junior Cup for sponsorship purposes.
- Knock-out tournament for all Junior Association member clubs.
- East Region League Cup: Known as the Thorntons Property East Region League Cup under a sponsorship arrangement, this tournament was introduced for the 2018–19 season East Superleague to compensate for a reduced number of league fixtures.
- Knock-out tournament for all clubs.
- All matches played to a finish with penalties after 90 minutes, if required.
- 2 rounds before Quarter-finals.
- North and Tayside Inter-Regional Cup: Known as the Signature Signs Cup for sponsorship purposes. First played for in 1988.
- Knock-out tournament for all Midlands League and North Region clubs.
- Clubs play early rounds in their own region with eight sides from each area progressing to the last sixteen.
References
edit- ^ "Tayside Region Junior League". Scottish Football Historical Archive. Retrieved 23 July 2023.
- ^ McLauchlin, Brian (7 June 2018). "East of Scotland League vote signals exodus of 25 junior clubs". BBC Sport. Retrieved 17 December 2019.
- ^ "SJFA PYRAMID STATEMENT". Scottish Junior FA. Retrieved 29 July 2021.
- ^ "MIDLAND LEAGUE FIXTURES RELEASED". Scottish Junior FA. Retrieved 29 July 2021.
- ^ "SCOTTISH FOOTBALL PYRAMID UPDATE".
- ^ Arbroath Victoria, Non League Scotland, Retrieved 29 July 2021.
- ^ Blairgowrie, Non League Scotland, Retrieved 29 July 2021.
- ^ Brechin Victoria, Non League Scotland, Retrieved 29 July 2021.
- ^ Broughty Athletic, Non League Scotland, Retrieved 29 July 2021.
- ^ Carnoustie Panmure, Non League Scotland, Retrieved 29 July 2021.
- ^ Coupar Angus, Non League Scotland, Retrieved 29 July 2021.
- ^ Downfield, Non League Scotland, Retrieved 29 July 2021.
- ^ Dundee North End, Non League Scotland, Retrieved 29 July 2021.
- ^ Dundee Violet, Non League Scotland, Retrieved 29 July 2021.
- ^ East Craigie, Non League Scotland, Retrieved 29 July 2021.
- ^ Forfar United, Non League Scotland, Retrieved 29 July 2021.
- ^ Forfar West End, Non League Scotland, Retrieved 29 July 2021.
- ^ Kirriemuir Thistle, Non League Scotland, Retrieved 29 July 2021.
- ^ Lochee United, Non League Scotland, Retrieved 29 July 2021.
- ^ Scone Thistle, Non League Scotland, Retrieved 29 July 2021.
- ^ Tayport, Non League Scotland, Retrieved 29 July 2021.