# 1972–73 Kent Football League

The 1972–73 Kent Football League season was the seventh in the history of the Kent Football League, a football competition featuring teams based in and around the county of Kent in England.
The league comprised one division and there was also a league cup competition, the Challenge Cup.

## League table

The league featured teams from twenty clubs, including eight reserves teams. Eighteen of the clubs had competed in the league the previous season and they were joined by two additional clubs:
* Snowdown Colliery Welfare returning to the league following a one-season absence.
* Sheppey United joined from the Metropolitan–London League and replaced their reserves team.
The Ramsgate Athletic Reserves team from the previous season were renamed Ramsgate Reserves.
The league was won by Sheppey United.
At the end of the season Brett Sports folded and together with Hastings United Reserves left the league. Both bottom clubs, Ashford Town Reserves and Margate Reserves, were re-elected to continue their membership of the league.
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GAv | Pts | Season End Notes |
| 1 | Sheppey United | 38 | 31 | 5 | 2 | 127 | 33 | 3.848 | 67 | |
| 2 | Sittingbourne | 38 | 26 | 6 | 6 | 108 | 37 | 2.919 | 58 | |
| 3 | Chatham Town | 38 | 24 | 5 | 9 | 92 | 47 | 1.957 | 53 | |
| 4 | Brett Sports | 38 | 22 | 6 | 10 | 98 | 61 | 1.607 | 50 | Resigned from the league (folded) |
| 5 | Kent Police | 36 | 22 | 6 | 8 | 76 | 41 | 1.854 | 46 | |
| 6 | Dover Reserves | 38 | 19 | 9 | 10 | 64 | 35 | 1.829 | 40 | |
| 7 | Tonbridge Reserves | 38 | 16 | 8 | 14 | 71 | 67 | 1.060 | 40 | |
| 8 | Tunbridge Wells | 38 | 17 | 5 | 16 | 88 | 68 | 1.294 | 39 | |
| 9 | Bexley United Reserves | 38 | 15 | 7 | 16 | 59 | 57 | 1.035 | 37 | |
| 10 | Dartford Amateurs | 38 | 16 | 5 | 17 | 65 | 71 | 0.915 | 37 | |
| 11 | Deal Town | 38 | 16 | 5 | 17 | 65 | 69 | 0.942 | 35 | |
| 12 | Folkestone Reserves | 38 | 14 | 6 | 18 | 65 | 92 | 0.707 | 34 | |
| 13 | Whitstable Town | 37 | 11 | 9 | 17 | 50 | 83 | 0.602 | 33 | |
| 14 | Crockenhill | 38 | 14 | 4 | 20 | 67 | 94 | 0.713 | 32 | |
| 15 | Ramsgate Reserves | 37 | 10 | 9 | 18 | 49 | 69 | 0.710 | 31 | |
| 16 | Snowdown Colliery Welfare | 38 | 11 | 7 | 20 | 44 | 71 | 0.620 | 29 | |
| 17 | Slade Green Athletic | 38 | 9 | 10 | 19 | 55 | 77 | 0.714 | 28 | |
| 18 | Hastings United Reserves | 38 | 9 | 5 | 24 | 53 | 97 | 0.546 | 23 | Resigned from the league |
| 19 | Ashford Town Reserves | 38 | 6 | 10 | 22 | 42 | 113 | 0.372 | 22 | Re-elected |
| 20 | Margate Reserves | 38 | 4 | 5 | 29 | 41 | 97 | 0.423 | 13 | Re-elected |
* ↑ Matches versus Ramsgate Reserves and Whitstable Town not played.
* ↑ Kent Police were deducted four points.
* ↑ Dover Reserves were deducted seven points for playing ineligible players
* ↑ Deal Town were deducted two points for playing ineligible players
* 1 2 Match versus Kent Police not played.
* ↑ Whitstable Town had two points added.
* ↑ Ramsgate Reserves had two points added.

## Challenge Cup

The 1972–73 Kent Football League Challenge Cup was won by Folkestone Reserves – the final occasion it was won by a reserves team.
The competition, contested by all twenty clubs in the league, comprised five single match tie rounds culminating in the final between Sittingbourne and Folkestone Reserves and played at the former's home ground, the Bull Ground.

### Quarter-finals, Semi-finals and Final

| Quarter-finals | Quarter-finals | Quarter-finals | Semi-finals | Semi-finals | Semi-finals | Final | Final | Final |
| Ramsgate Reserves | Ramsgate Reserves | 0 | | | | | | |
| Sittingbourne | Sittingbourne | 3 | | | | | | |
| Sittingbourne | Sittingbourne | 3 | Sittingbourne | Sittingbourne | 2 | | | |
| | | | Dartford Amateurs | Dartford Amateurs | 0 | | | |
| Tonbridge Reserves | 1 | 0 | Dartford Amateurs | Dartford Amateurs | 0 | | | |
| Dartford Amateurs | 1 | 5 | | | | | | |
| Dartford Amateurs | 1 | 5 | | | | Sittingbourne | Sittingbourne | 1 |
| | | | | | | Folkestone Reserves | Folkestone Reserves | 2 |
| Sheppey United | Sheppey United | 2 | | | | | | | Folkestone Reserves | Folkestone Reserves | 2 |
| Tunbridge Wells | Tunbridge Wells | 3 | | | | | | |
| Tunbridge Wells | Tunbridge Wells | 3 | Tunbridge Wells | Tunbridge Wells | 2 | | | |
| | | | Folkestone Reserves | Folkestone Reserves | 3 | | | |
| Folkestone Reserves | Folkestone Reserves | 3 | Folkestone Reserves | Folkestone Reserves | 3 | | | |
| Deal Town | Deal Town | 2 | | | | | | |
* 1 2 Replay

### Second Round

* Ashford Town Reserves 0 – 2 Ramsgate Reserves
* Sittingbourne 3 – 1 Chatham Town
* Brett Sports 0 – 2 Tonbridge Reserves
* Whitstable Town 2 – 4 Dartford Amateurs
* Sheppey United 2 – 1 Kent Police
* Tunbridge Wells 3 – 1 Slade Green Athletic
* Margate Reserves 1 – 1 Folkestone Reserves
* REPLAY: Folkestone Reserves 2 – 0 Margate Reserves
* Crockenhill 1 – 6 Deal Town

### First Round

* Chatham Town 1 – 0 Bexley United Reserves
* Whitstable Town 2 – 0 Hastings United Reserves
* Dover Reserves 0 – 0 Kent Police
* REPLAY: Kent Police 3 – 2 Dover Reserves
* Margate Reserves 4 – 1 Snowdown Colliery Welfare
* Byes for the other twelve clubs
Sources:
* Final: "Results Round-up: Kent League: Cup Final". Sunday Mirror. 13 May 1973. p. 45. Retrieved 3 May 2024 – via British Newspaper Archive.
* Semi-finals: "Kent League: Results:League Cup Semi-Finals". Whitstable Times. 13 April 1973. p. 2. Retrieved 3 May 2024 – via British Newspaper Archive.
* Quarter-finals: "County Details: Results: Saturday: Kent League, League Cup quarter-finals". Kentish Express. 23 March 1973. p. 14. Retrieved 3 May 2024 – via British Newspaper Archive.; "Results: Kent League Cup". Thanet Times. 3 April 1973. p. 20. Retrieved 3 May 2024 – via British Newspaper Archive.
* Second Round: "Football Results: Monday: Kent League Cup". East Kent Times. 3 January 1973. p. 14. Retrieved 3 May 2024 – via British Newspaper Archive.; "County Details: Results: Saturday: Kent League. League Cup 2nd round". Kent Messenger. 12 January 1973. p. 16. Retrieved 3 May 2024 – via British Newspaper Archive.; "County Details: Results: Monday: Kent League Cup 2nd round replay". Kent Messenger. 19 January 1973. p. 16. Retrieved 3 May 2024 – via British Newspaper Archive.
* First Round: "Greyhounds and Sports Summary: Soccer: Kent League: League Cup-1st Rd". Daily Mirror. 9 November 1972. p. 31. Retrieved 3 May 2024 – via British Newspaper Archive.; "County Details: Results: Friday: Kent League Cup 1st round & Saturday: Kent League Cup 1st round". Kent Messenger. 10 November 1972. p. 15. Retrieved 3 May 2024 – via British Newspaper Archive.; "County Details: Results: Saturday: Kent League Cup 1st round replay". Kentish Express. 15 December 1972. p. 12. Retrieved 3 May 2024 – via British Newspaper Archive.