Special Sub-Topic: The Football Conference Click Here To Play: The Football Conference

Which of the non-league divisions provided the most teams for the new Alliance Premier League in 1979?

Southern League. 20 teams founded the original division. 13 came from the Southern League and 7 from the Northern Premier League. The Isthmian League provided the two expansion teams when the division extended to 22 teams for the 1981-82 season.

Altrincham won the title in both of the first two seasons. How many home games in the league did they lose in this period?

3. The first season they were unbeaten at home but they lost three home games against Nuneaton Borough (3-0), Telford United (2-0) and Weymouth (2-1) during the second campaign.

Welsh side Bangor City were one the founding teams of the division. How many seasons in total did they play in it?

4. Bangor's finishing positions were - 9th in 1980, 20th in 1981(relegated), 13th in 1983 and 21st in 1984 (relegated again). The 1983-84 season was the last time Bangor played conference football. Eight years later in 1992 they became one of the founders of another division - The League of Wales.

Which footwear manufacturer become the first company to sponsor the division?

Gola. The 'Gola League' sponsorship only lasted two seasons - 1984-85 & 1985-86. It was then sponsored by General Motors to become the 'G.M. Vauxhall Conference'.

What 'first' did Wealdstone achieved in the conference during the 1984-85 season?

First non-league double winners. Wealdstone finished the season 4 points clear of Nuneaton Borough to win the title, and beat Boston United 2-1 in the FA Trophy Final. Gateshead became the first club to be deducted points during this season. They were 'fined' one point for fielding an ineligible player.

Scarborough won the title in the 1986-87 season and became the first club to win automatic promotion to the Football League (Division 4). Which club narrowly missed out by finishing 2nd?

Barnet. Barnet finished the season 6 points behind Scarborough. Twice in the following three seasons they also finished 2nd, both occasions just 2 points behind the winners. The 1990-91 season finally saw Barnet win the title and achieve promotion to the Football League. That season they finished just ahead of Colchester in the table - by 2 points!

When the Football League switched to the 3 points for a win system for the 1981-82 season, the A.P.L. did the same but only for 2 seasons. Between 1983 & 1987 the division had a different points system. What was it?

3 points for an Away win, 2 points for a Home win & 1 point for a draw. This was an attempt by the league to encourage a more attacking game. Visiting teams now had a little extra incentive to push for a win. This point system lasted four seasons before the league switched back to the standard 3 for a win & 1 for a draw in time for the 1987-88 season.

Which founding club got promoted to the Football League (Division 4) after winning the title for a second time in 1988-89, lost in the Division 3 play-off Semi-Finals the following season then dropped back out of the Football League two seasons after that?

Maidstone United. Maidstone's first season in Division 4 went well. A 5th place finish and defeat in the play-offs. The following two seasons saw them finish 19th & 18th in the table. They withdrew their league status after the end of the 1991-92 season and closed down due to bankruptcy shorty after.

During the 1990-91 season, Altrincham equalled the conference record for most goals (11) scored in a single match. This was a 9-2 vitory over which side?

Merthyr Tydfil. This equalled the record that was set 5 years before when Altrincham beat Nuneaton Borough 7-4 during the 1985-86 season.

Between the 1994 and 1996, the three title winners were denied promotion to ther Football League (Division 3) because they did not meet the financial and/or stadium requirements that the Football League set out. Which of the following teams were not among them?

Cheltenham Town. Kidderminster won the 1993-94 title but had to wait 6 years before they got promoted from their 2nd title in 2000. Macclesfield were denied in 1995 but went up 2 years later after their 2nd title. Stevenage were the last of the 3 denied teams, refused promotion after their 1st title in 1996.

Which two clubs scored 94 points in a season (sharing the record for most points achieved in a single season)?

Colchester United & Wycombe Wanderers. The 1991-92 season saw Colchester as Champions and promoted over Wycombe only on goal difference (+58 for Colchester, +49 for Wycombe). Both clubs ended the season with 94 points. The previous record was 93 points set by Runcorn in their 1981-82 title season. Scarborugh's best was 91 points from the 1986-87 title & promotion season.

When the conference became the Nationwide Confernce in 1999 it was the _______ name that the conference been known as?

6th. 1979 - Started life as The Alliance Premier League
1984 - Gola become the first sponsor - The Gola League
1986 - General Motors become new sponsors - The G.M. Vauxhall Conference
1995 - G.M. ceases sponsorship - The Vauxhall Conference
1998 - The league decided to drop the word Vauxhall - The Football Conference
1999 - Nationwide extended their league sponsorship to include the conference - The Nationwide Conference

The 1986-87 season saw the start of "automatic" promotion/relegation to the Football League. By the end of the 1990s, how many of the clubs relegated from the Football League went straight back up the following season?

2. Lincoln City won promotion back to the Football League (Division 4) in 1988 after being relegated the season before, as did Darlington in 1990. Colchester (who Darlington replaced in 1990) took 2 seasons to get back up after coming down, and Halifax took 5 seasons to do the same after dropping down in 1993.

Which club got relegated from the Football League (Division 3) at the end of the 2001-02 season and became the first team to be relegated to the conference twice?

Halifax Town. Halifax first got relegated at the end of the 1992-93 season, and took 5 seasons to get promoted back up.

From the founding of the division in 1979-80 up until the end of the 2001-02 season only two clubs had played in every one of those 23 seasons. Which two?

Northwich Victoria & Telford United. Yeovil have missed 5 seasons (1985-88 & 1995-97) after being relegated twice. Kettering only missed the 2001-02 season after being relegated the year before (they got promoted back to the conference after winning the Southern Premier League during 2001-02). Only Northwich and Telford played every game during those 23 seasons.