 The beginning of the 2008 – 09 season saw the Lions marking their 125th anniversary with a pre-season friendly against local rivals Salisbury City. Prior to the game, it had been announced that the club would also be wearing a new kit design to mark this occasion for one season only — a plain red shirt (a departure from the traditional red and black stripes) was worn for the first time during this game, which Andover won 3 – 2. The season itself saw Andover have their best run in the FA Trophy to date, eventually losing 0 – 3 at home to Newport County in the third qualifying round.
