Non-League and Academy football writer

Both Middlesex County Football League Division One West sides, AFC Southall and Townmead will meet on early Saturday afternoon (kick-off is at 1pm) at Uxbridge FC, to compete to be named this season’s 2025/26 Jim Rogers President’s Division One Cup winners. The current holders of this league cup, AFC Southall, who won last season’s final against Harrow Bhoys, are arguably the favourites to retain the cup final again this season. A well established club in the Middlesex County League, AFC Southall are competing with league leaders Explorers FC for the Division One West title this season, who they currently trail by one point in the table.

In round one of this prestigious league cup competition, AFC Southall beat Edgware & Kingsbury Reserves 3-1 (away), before then winning 4-0 against last season’s runners up, Harrow Bhoys, in the second round. A narrow 3-2 win over a good Bessingby Park Rangers in the quarter-finals followed, before AFC Southall then beat CB Hounslow & Abbots A in emphatic fashion (6-1), in the semi-finals.

Townmead, who I saw last season in The Russell Grant Division 2, a league which they won promotion from at the end of that season, are currently in eighth place (after 15 league matches played) in the Division One West standings. Having beaten Hayes Town on penalties, following a 0-0 draw in round one, Townmead would face a very good FH Whistlers side, away, in the second round of this league cup. After normal time that cup tie would finish 3-3, but once again Townmead would get the better of their opponents on penalties, to make it into the quarter-finals. Townmead would then beat Ickenham 5-1 at home, before setting-up a home semi-final tie with Division One East FC Marylebone, which they won 2-0.

That takes us up to this Saturday’s league cup final, and a good game of football awaits between two sides at different ends of their league table. But, a very good AFC Southall side certainly won’t be underestimating Townmead, who have beaten some strong sides on their way to the final, and as league press officer, I’m looking forward to covering this interesting final on my blog, on Saturday. I would like to wish both AFC Southall and Townmead all the very best of luck for the cup final.