The 2021–22 season was the 107th season of the Isthmian League, which is an English football competition featuring semi-professional and amateur clubs from London, East and South East England. The league operates four divisions, the Premier Division at Step 3 and three divisions, North, South Central and South East at Step 4 of the National League System. This was the fourth season since the former South Division was subdivided into the South Central and South East divisions. The league was also known as the Pitching In League under a sponsorship deal with Entain, formerly GVC Holdings.
The allocations for Step 4 this season were announced by The Football Association (FA) on 17 May 2021. Numerous changes were made to the constitutions of the level 8 divisions within the Isthmian League.
The scheduled restructuring of the non-League system took place for the 2021–22 season and a new division was added to the Northern Premier League at Step 4 for 2021–22, which resulted in some reallocations into or out of, and promotions to, the Isthmian League's Step 4 divisions.
Premier Division
The Premier Division comprised the same set of 22 teams which competed in the aborted competition the previous season.
League table
Top scorers PlayerClubGoalsOliver PearceWorthing35Muhammadu FaalEnfield Town33Joseph TaylorLewes32David SmithFolkestone Invicta29Jake CassBishop's StortfordEnfield Town19Frankie MerrifieldBishop's Stortford19Liam NashHornchurch19Ben GreenhalghMargate18Thomas WraightHornchurch18
Play-offs
Semi-finals
Final
Results table
Stadiums and locations
Club Location Stadium CapacityBishop's Stortford Bishop's Stortford Woodside Park 4,525Bognor Regis Town Bognor Regis Nyewood Lane 4,500Bowers & Pitsea Pitsea Len Salmon Stadium 2,000Brightlingsea Regent Brightlingsea North Road 2,000Carshalton Athletic Carshalton War Memorial Sports Ground 5,000Cheshunt Cheshunt Theobalds Lane 3,000Corinthian-Casuals Tolworth King George's Field 2,700Cray Wanderers St Mary Cray Hayes Lane (groundshare with Bromley) 6,000East Thurrock United Corringham Rookery Hill 4,000Enfield Town Enfield Queen Elizabeth II Stadium 2,500Folkestone Invicta Folkestone Cheriton Road 4,000Haringey Borough Tottenham Coles Park 2,500Hornchurch Hornchurch Hornchurch Stadium 3,500Horsham Horsham The Camping World Community Stadium 1,300Kingstonian Kingston upon Thames King George's Field (groundshare with Corinthian-Casuals) 2,700Leatherhead Leatherhead Fetcham Grove 3,400Lewes Lewes The Dripping Pan 3,000Margate Margate Hartsdown Park 3,000Merstham Merstham Moatside 2,000Potters Bar Town Potters Bar Parkfield 2,000Wingate & Finchley Finchley The Maurice Rebak Stadium 1,500Worthing Worthing Woodside Road 4,000
North Division
North Division consisted of 20 clubs: 17 clubs from the previous season, and three new clubs: Barking, transferred from the South Central Division Hashtag United, promoted from the Essex Senior League Stowmarket Town, promoted from Eastern Counties League
League table
Top scorers PlayerClubGoalsThomas RichardsonBrentwood Town29Abouhadje KouassiCanvey Island26Alexander AkrofiAveley24Cemal RamadanBury Town22
Play-offs
Semi-finals
Final
Inter-step play-off
Results table
Stadiums and locations
Club Location Stadium CapacityAFC Sudbury Sudbury King's Marsh 2,500Aveley Aveley Parkside 3,500Barking Barking Mayesbrook Park 2,500Basildon United Basildon Gardiners Close 2,000Brentwood Town Brentwood The Brentwood Centre Arena 1,800Bury Town Bury St Edmunds Ram Meadow 3,500Canvey Island Canvey Island Park Lane 4,500Coggeshall Town Coggeshall West Street 2,000Dereham Town Dereham Aldiss Park 3,000Felixstowe & Walton United Felixstowe Dellwood Avenue 2,000Grays Athletic Grays Parkside (groundshare with Aveley) 3,500Great Wakering Rovers Great Wakering Burroughs Park 2,500Hashtag United Pitsea Len Salmon Stadium 2,661Heybridge Swifts Heybridge Scraley Road 3,000Hullbridge Sports Hullbridge Lower Road 1,500Maldon & Tiptree Maldon Wallace Binder Ground 2,000Romford Romford Mayesbrook Park (groundshare with Barking) 2,500Stowmarket Town Stowmarket Greens Meadow 1,000Tilbury Tilbury Chadfields 4,000Witham Town Witham Spa Road 2,500
South Central Division
After Whyteleafe resigned from the league after losing its ground and folded, South Central Division consisted of 19 clubs: 14 clubs from the previous season, and five new clubs: Basingstoke Town, transferred from the Southern League Binfield, promoted from the Hellenic League Guernsey, transferred from the South East Division returning to the league after one season of absence Sutton Common Rovers, promoted from the Combined Counties League Thatcham Town, transferred from the Southern League
League table
Top scorers PlayerClubGoalsSebastian BowermanBracknell Town27Jake BaxterChertsey Town23Thomas CollinsChipsteadHanwell Town23Daniel WilliamsTooting & Mitcham UnitedBedfont Sports22
Play-offs
Semi-finals
Final
Inter-step play-off
Results table
Stadiums and locations
Club Location Stadium CapacityAshford Town Ashford, Surrey Robert Parker Stadium 2,550Basingstoke Town Basingstoke Winklebury Football Complex 2,000Bedfont Sports Bedfont Bedfont Recreation Ground 3,000Binfield Binfield Hill Farm Lane 1,000Bracknell Town Sandhurst SB Stadium 1,108Chalfont St Peter Chalfont St Peter Mill Meadow 1,500Chertsey Town Chertsey Alwyns Lane 2,500Chipstead Chipstead High Road 2,000Guernsey Saint Peter Port Footes Lane 5,000Hanwell Town Perivale Powerday Stadium 3,000Marlow Marlow Alfred Davis Memorial Ground 3,000Northwood Northwood Northwood Park 3,075South Park Reigate King George's Field 2,000Staines Town Staines-upon-Thames Wheatsheaf Park 3,000Thatcham Town Thatcham Waterside Park 1,500Tooting & Mitcham United Mitcham Imperial Fields 3,500Uxbridge West Drayton Honeycroft 3,770Westfield Woking Woking Park 1,000
South East Division
South East Division consisted of 20 clubs: 18 clubs from the previous season, and two new clubs: Corinthian (Kent), promoted from the Southern Counties East League Lancing, promoted from the Southern Combination League
League table
Top scorers PlayerClubGoalsZak AnsahHerne Bay22Joshua AjayiRamsgate21Marcel BarringtonCray Valley PM20Daniel PerryThree Bridges20
Play-offs
Semi-finals
Final
Inter-step play-off
Results table
Stadiums and locations
Club Location Stadium CapacityAshford United Ashford, Kent The Homelands 3,200Burgess Hill Town Burgess Hill Leylands Park 2,500Chichester City Chichester Oaklands Park 2,000Corinthian Hartley Gay Dawn Farm n/aCray Valley Paper Mills Eltham Badgers Sports Ground 1,000East Grinstead Town East Grinstead East Court 1,500Faversham Town Faversham Salters Lane 2,000Hastings United Hastings The Pilot Field 4,050Haywards Heath Town Haywards Heath Hanbury Park 2,000Herne Bay Herne Bay Winch's Field 4,000Hythe Town Hythe Reachfields Stadium 3,000Lancing Lancing Culver Road 1,500 Phoenix Sports Barnehurst The Mayplace Ground 2,000Ramsgate Ramsgate Southwood Stadium 2,500Sevenoaks Town Sevenoaks Greatness Park 1,000Sittingbourne Sittingbourne Woodstock Park 3,000Three Bridges Crawley Jubilee Field 1,500VCD Athletic Crayford Oakwood 1,400Whitehawk Brighton The Enclosed Ground 3,126Whitstable Town Whitstable The Belmont Ground 3,000
Relegation reprieves Step 3 Seven clubs at Step 3, all four fourth-from-bottom teams and those placed third-from-bottom that were the top three on a points per game (PPG) basis, were reprieved from relegation. The remaining team was relegated to Step 4.
The final points-per-game ranking of the third-from-bottom placed teams in Step 3 divisions was as follows: PosTeamLeaguePldPtsPPGQualification5Basford UnitedNorthern Premier League Premier Division42451.071Retention at Step 36BarwellSouthern League Premier Division Central40411.0257Kings LangleySouthern League Premier Division South42370.8818LeatherheadIsthmian League Premier Division42360.857Relegation to Step 4 Source:
Step 4 Ten of the 16 clubs at Step 4, all eight fourth-from-bottom teams and two clubs placed third-from-bottom, one at the top and the other in third place on a points per game (PPG) basis, were reprieved from contesting relegation play-offs. The FA granted third-placed Sheffield a reprieve after demoting Yorkshire Amateur for non-compliance with Step 4 ground grading requirements. The remaining six teams contested one-off matches with sixrunners-up from Step 5 that had the fewest PPG at the end of the 2021–22 season. Three clubs won winners of their matches and stayed at Step 4 for the 2022–23 season, while three others lost theirs and were relegated to Step 5.
The final points-per-game ranking of the 3rd-from-bottom-placed teams in Step 4 divisions was also as follows: PosTeamLeaguePldPtsPPGQualification9Prescot CablesNorthern Premier League Division One West38391.026Retention at Step 410LancingIsthmian League South East Division38360.947Relegation match with a Step 5 team11SheffieldNorthern Premier League Division One East36330.917Retention at Step 412Witham TownIsthmian League North Division38330.863Relegation match with a Step 5 team13Cinderford TownSouthern League Division One South36310.86114Kempston RoversSouthern League Division One Central38290.76315HistonNorthern Premier League Division One Midlands38240.63216Chalfont St PeterIsthmian League South Central Division36210.583 Source:
League Cup
The 2021–22 Velocity Trophy (formerly the Isthmian League Cup) was the 48th season of the Alan Turvey Trophy, the cup competition of the whole Isthmian League. 60 of the 82 teams in the Isthmian League participated this season, with the other 22 opting not to participate.
Enfield Town were the defending champions, having beaten AFC Hornchurch in the 2018–19 season—the most recent season in which the competition was fully completed following the abandonment of the 2019–20 competition due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The competition was not held during the 2020–21 season.
This season's competition reverted to a straight knock out format. If a game finished level after 90 minutes, the match went straight to penalties—there was no extra time. Clubs were allowed to name and use 5 substitutes per match.
Calendar Round Dates Matches Clubs First round 2 November to 30 November 12 60 → 48 Second round 16 November to 11 January 16 48 → 32 Third round 18 January to 22 February 16 32 → 16 Fourth round 21 February to 10 March 8 16 → 8 Quarter-finals 8 March to 17 March 4 8 → 4 Semi-finals 22 March 2 4 → 2 Final 13 April 1 2 → 1
First round Twenty-four clubs participated in the first round, while thirty-six clubs received a bye to the second round
TieHome team (tier)ScoreAway team (tier)1Cray Valley Paper Mills (SE)2–1Hullbridge Sports (N)622Maldon & Tiptree (N)2–0Aveley (N)1683Three Bridges (SE)0–0Sittingbourne (SE)51Sittingbourne advanced 5–4 on penalties4Hashtag United (N)1–3Corinthian (SE)1415Faversham Town (SE)2–1Sutton Common Rovers (SC)1356Bracknell Town (SC)1–1Westfield (SC)102Westfield advanced 7–6 on penalties7Burgess Hill Town (SE)1–1Uxbridge (SC)120Burgess Hill Town advanced 5–4 on penalties8Chichester City (SE)0–0Hanwell Town105Chichester City advanced 3–1 on penalties9Coggeshall Town (N)2–2AFC Sudbury (N)109AFC Sudbury advanced 3–1 on penalties10Felixstowe & Walton United (N)1–1Witham Town (N)159Felixstowe & Walton United advanced 5–4 on penalties11Herne Bay (SE)6–1East Grinstead Town (SE)17812Chertsey Town (SC)5–2Chalfont St Peter (SC)175
Second round The twelve clubs who made it through the first round were joined in the draw by twenty clubs who got a bye through the previous round, making thirty-two clubs.