# 1895–96 Southern Football League

The 1895–96 season was the second in the history of the Southern League. Luton Town applied for election to the Football League. However, the election was not successful. Millwall Athletic won Division One for the second successive season.

## Division One

Division One featured one new club, who had been promoted from Division Two the previous season: New Brompton.
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GR | Pts | Qualification or relegation |
| 1 | Millwall Athletic | 18 | 16 | 1 | 1 | 75 | 16 | 4.688 | 33 | |
| 2 | Luton Town | 18 | 13 | 1 | 4 | 68 | 14 | 4.857 | 27 | Left to join the United League at end of season |
| 3 | Southampton St. Mary's | 18 | 12 | 0 | 6 | 44 | 23 | 1.913 | 24 | |
| 4 | Reading | 18 | 11 | 1 | 6 | 45 | 38 | 1.184 | 23 | |
| 5 | Chatham Town | 18 | 9 | 2 | 7 | 43 | 45 | 0.956 | 20 | |
| 6 | New Brompton | 18 | 7 | 4 | 7 | 30 | 37 | 0.811 | 18 | |
| 7 | Swindon Town | 18 | 6 | 4 | 8 | 38 | 41 | 0.927 | 16 | |
| 8 | Clapton | 18 | 4 | 2 | 12 | 30 | 67 | 0.448 | 10 | Relegation test matches, left league despite winning |
| 9 | Royal Ordnance Factories | 18 | 3 | 3 | 12 | 23 | 44 | 0.523 | 9 | Relegation test matches |
| 10 | Ilford | 18 | 0 | 0 | 18 | 10 | 81 | 0.123 | 0 | Relegation test matches, left league after losing |

## Division Two

Division Two featured four new clubs, all of which were newly elected:
* 1st Scots Guards
* Guildford
* Windsor & Eton
* Wolverton LNWR
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GR | Pts | Qualification or relegation |
| 1 | Wolverton LNWR | 16 | 13 | 1 | 2 | 43 | 10 | 4.300 | 27 | Promotion test matches |
| 2 | Sheppey United | 16 | 11 | 3 | 2 | 60 | 19 | 3.158 | 25 | Promotion test matches |
| 3 | 1st Scots Guards | 16 | 8 | 5 | 3 | 37 | 22 | 1.682 | 21 | Promotion test matches |
| 4 | Uxbridge | 16 | 9 | 1 | 6 | 28 | 23 | 1.217 | 19 | |
| 5 | Old St.Stephen's | 16 | 6 | 3 | 7 | 34 | 21 | 1.619 | 15 | |
| 6 | Guildford | 16 | 7 | 1 | 8 | 29 | 41 | 0.707 | 15 | Left league at end of season |
| 7 | Maidenhead | 16 | 4 | 1 | 11 | 20 | 49 | 0.408 | 9 | |
| 8 | Chesham | 16 | 2 | 3 | 11 | 15 | 48 | 0.313 | 7 | |
| 9 | Bromley | 16 | 2 | 2 | 12 | 16 | 49 | 0.327 | 6 | Left league at end of season |
| 10 | Windsor & Eton | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | Resigned from league after one match, record expunged |

## Promotion-relegation test matches

At the end of the season, test matches were held between the bottom three clubs in Division One and the top three clubs in Division Two. Wolverton LNWR and Sheppey United were promoted after the play-offs, whilst Clapton remained in Division One. Although they later resigned from the league, 1st Scot Guards (who they had beaten in the play-offs) were not promoted in their place, and instead Royal Ordnance Factories kept their place in Division One.

## Football League elections

Luton Town applied for election to Division Two of the Football League. However, in the election they were unsuccessful.
| Club | League | Votes |
| Blackpool | Lancashire League | 19 |
| Walsall Town Swifts | Midland League | 16 |
| Gainsborough Trinity | Midland League | 15 |
| Burslem Port Vale | Football League | 10 |
| Luton Town | Southern League | 10 |
| Crewe Alexandra | Football League | 4 |
| Fairfield | Lancashire League | 3 |
| Glossop North End | The Combination | 3 |
| Tottenham Hotspur | Southern League | 2 |
| Macclesfield | The Combination | 2 |