A | B | C | D | E | F | G | H | CH | I | J | K | L | M | N | O | P | Q | R | S | T | U | V | W | X | Y | Z | 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9
Founded | 1889 |
---|---|
Region | ![]() |
Number of teams | 24 (2023–24) |
Current champions | Maidstone United |
Most successful club(s) | Maidstone United (19 times) |
Website | 2023–24 Fixtures / Results |
The Kent Senior Cup is an English football knock-out competition played between senior clubs in the county of Kent. It is administered by the Kent County Football Association (KCFA).
History
Now known as the Kent Senior Cup it was originally named, until the 1897–98 season, as the Kent Cup with the first competition played during the 1888–89 season. The cup itself, engraved as the "Kent County Football Association Challenge Cup",[1] cost £33 and is made of 62 ounces of silver and surmounted by the rampant horse of Kent.[2] (2018 Photograph[3]). The Kent Cup competition was preceded as the KCFA's County knock-out tournament by the Kent County Badge: this was first competed for in 1886 and won for each of its three seasons by Chatham – who were also the first winners of the Kent Cup.
Following the founding of the Kent League in 1894 for the three seasons from 1894–95 until 1896–97 the Kent Cup was awarded to the champions of the League. The knock-out competition for the cup resumed from the 1897–98 season when it was renamed the Kent Senior Cup,[4] with Gravesend United the winners. For the 1919–1920 season only a trophy presented as a gift to the KCFA named as the Victory Cup[5] replaced the Kent Senior Cup trophy. The competition was suspended for four seasons between 1914 and 1918 owing to the World War I and there have been two other seasons in which the Kent Senior Cup has not been competed for: in 1940–1941 owing to World War II; and 2020–2021 owing to the COVID-19 pandemic.[6]
Initially the final of the competition was played at a venue pre-selected by the KCFA: for the first six seasons this was at Chatham, then after taking place at New Brompton, Ashford, Tunbridge Wells and returning to Chatham for one season the final was held at Faversham for the next six years. For a long spell between 1908 until 1950 the venue for the final was the Athletic Ground, Maidstone (except 1942 at Belvedere). Thereafter the final was held mostly at the Priestfield Stadium, Gillingham until 1965 after which for the next eight seasons it was contested (as it had been in the 1961–62 season) over two legs held at each of the finalists ground with the aggregate score determining the winner. The venue for the final then reverted to Maidstone then to Gillingham for fourteen seasons. Then following playing the final at Sittingbourne and for the first time outside Kent at Millwall, since 1998 (with several exceptions) the winner of a coin toss between the final protagonists decided which would have the choice to host the final match. The semi–finals were played on neutral grounds until the mid-1950s.
From 1902 until 1961 the final took place on Easter Monday and into the 1950s would attract in excess of ten thousand spectators – 13,119 were at the 1951–1952 final between Kent League club Dover and Southern League club Dartford.[7] Between 1983 until 2002 the final was held on the early May bank holiday however since then the final has struggled for a set date owing to end of season promotion and relegation play-off matches and in the 2007–2008 season was even deferred until the 2008–2009 pre–season.[8]
For five seasons from 1980–1981 until 1985–1986 the Kent Senior Cup competition was sponsored by the Chatham Reliance Building Society. The Swedish office business machine company Facit was then the sponsor for the next eleven seasons until 1996–1997. Bose were the sponsor in the early 2000s after which between 2003–04 and 2006–07 the cup was sponsored and named after Kent football patron John Ullmann. Between 2010–11 and 2013–14 portablefoodlights.com sponsored the cup, then for the 2014–15 season Kent Reliance Building society revived their sponsorship from thirty years previously[9] and this continued through to the 2017–18 season. In 2022 the KCFA announced that all Kent County Cups, including the Senior Cup, would be sponsored by the ferry operator DFDS.[10]
The 2013–14 Kent Senior Cup competition marked the 125th anniversary since its inception in the 1888–89 season;[11] to celebrate the landmark the final took place at Priestfield Stadium, home of Gillingham FC. The match was won by Ebbsfleet United who beat Dover Athletic 4–0[12] – the winning club being a descendant of Northfleet United who in the 1920s achieved an enduring record of five consecutive season Kent Senior Cup wins.
Past winners of the Kent Senior Cup include Royal Arsenal (now Arsenal) in 1889–90, and Gillingham in 1945–46 and 1947–48; the two sides went on to become members of the Premier League and Football League respectively. Both Charlton Athletic and Maidstone United won the cup whilst members of the Football league and Gillingham have continued to compete. The Football League clubs field a development team rather than their full league side in the competition.
Cup Final Matches
KENT SENIOR CUP: THE CUP FINAL MATCHES (includes Kent County Badge finals and seasons’ semi-finalists) | ||||||||
Season | Winner | Score | Runner-up | Notes | Date | Venue | Beaten semi-finalists (by: Winner / Runner-up) | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
KENT COUNTY BADGE FINALS | ||||||||
1885–86 | Chatham United | 3–1 | South Eastern Rangers |
10 Apr 1886 | Ashford (Victoria Grnd) |
(bye) / Chatham Victoria | ||
1886–87 | Chatham United | 8–0 | Chatham Victoria | 26 Mar 1887 | Chatham (The Lines) |
(bye) / Chatham Standard | ||
1887–88 | Chatham | 0–0 | South Eastern Rangers |
17 Mar 1888 | Bromley | Gravesend / Folkestone | ||
6–1 | Replay | 31 Mar 1888 | Ashford (Vic) | |||||
KENT SENIOR CUP FINALS (KENT CUP 1889–1897) | ||||||||
1888–89 | Chatham | 3–1 | South Eastern Rangers |
6 Apr 1889 | Chatham | Gravesend / Folkestone | ||
1889–90 | Royal Arsenal | 3–0 | Thanet Wanderers |
22 Mar 1890 | Chatham | Chatham / South Eastern Rangers | ||
1890–91 | Lincoln Regiment |
2–1 | South Eastern Rangers |
11 Apr 1891 | Chatham | Chatham / Royal Arsenal | ||
1891–92 | Highland Light Infantry |
11–0 | Gravesend | 12 Mar 1892 | Chatham | Chatham / Ashford United | ||
1892–93 | Ashford United | 2–0 | Chatham | 8 Apr 1893 | Chatham | West Kent Regiment / Sheppey United | ||
1893–94 | Royal Ordnance Factories |
4–2 | Dartford | 7 Apr 1894 | Chatham | Folkestone / New Brompton | ||
1894–95 | Chatham | Cup awarded to the Kent League champions | ||||||
1895–96 | Northfleet | |||||||
1896–97 | Woolwich Arsenal Reserves | |||||||
1897–98 | Gravesend United |
3–1 | Dartford | 2 Apr 1898 | New Brompton | Sheppey United / Chatham | ||
1898–99 | Maidstone United | 1–0 | Folkestone | 25 Mar 1899 | Ashford | Royal Engineers Utd / Dartford | ||
1899– 1900 |
Gravesend United |
1–1 | Maidstone United | 14 Apr 1900 | Tunbridge Wells | Dartford / Folkestone | ||
4–1 | Replay | 30 Apr 1900 | Chatham | |||||
1900–01 | Maidstone United | 3–0 | Cray Wanderers | 13 Apr 1901 | Chatham | Sheppey United / Chatham Amateurs | ||
1901–02 | Sittingbourne | 2–2 | Ashford United | 31 Mar 1902 | Faversham | Swanscombe / Sheppey United | ||
4–1 | Replay | 12 Apr 1902 | Ramsgate | |||||
1902–03 | Maidstone United | 2–1 | Ashford United | 13 Apr 1903 | Faversham | Sittingbourne / Eltham | ||
1903–04 | Eltham | 4–1 | Sittingbourne | 4 Apr 1904 | Faversham | Cray Wanderers / Dover | ||
1904–05 | Chatham | 3–1 | Sittingbourne | 24 Apr 1905 | Faversham | Dover / Eltham | ||
1905–06 | Eltham | 1–0 | Bromley | 16 Apr 1906 | Faversham | Southern United / Sittingbourne | ||
1906–07 | Maidstone United | 1–0 | Sittingbourne | 1 Apr 1907 | Faversham | Eltham / Sheppey United | ||
1907–08 | Tunbridge Wells Rangers |
1–0 | Sittingbourne | 20 Apr 1908 | Maidstone | Sheppey United / Maidstone United | ||
1908–09 | Maidstone United | 4–2 | Northfleet United | 12 Apr 1909 | Maidstone | Tunbridge Wells Rngrs / Sittingbourne | ||
1909–10 | Northfleet United | 2–0 | Chatham | 28 Mar 1910 | Maidstone | Dartford / Maidstone United | ||
1910–11 | Chatham | 2–1 | Sittingbourne | 17 Apr 1911 | Maidstone | Sheppey United / Gravesend United | ||
1911–12 | Catford Southend | 3–0 | Chatham | 8 Apr 1912 | Maidstone | Bromley / Sittingbourne | ||
1912–13 | Northfleet United | 2–1 | Gravesend United |
24 Mar 1913 | Maidstone | Tunbridge Wells Rngrs / Chatham | ||
1913–14 | Maidstone United | 1–0 | Northfleet United | 13 Apr 1914 | Maidstone | Folkestone / Chatham | ||
1914–18 | Competition suspended for 4 seasons owing to World War I | |||||||
1918–19 | Chatham | 3–0 | Maidstone United | Victory Cup | 21 Apr 1919 | Maidstone | Royal Marines (Deal) / Royal Ordnance (W'wich) | |
1919–20 | Maidstone United | 2–1 | Northfleet United | 5 Apr 1920 | Maidstone | Sheppey United / Sittingbourne | ||
1920–21 | Northfleet United | 1–0 | Ramsgate | 28 Mar 1921 | Maidstone | Sittingbourne / Chatham | ||
1921–22 | Maidstone United | 1–0 | Folkestone | 17 Apr 1922 | Maidstone | Margate Town / Dartford | ||
1922–23 | Maidstone United | 3–2 | Sittingbourne | 2 Apr 1923 | Maidstone | Ashford Railway Wks Folkestone | ||
1923–24 | Northfleet United | 1–0 | Dartford | 21 Apr 1924 | Maidstone | Sittingbourne / Sheppey United | ||
1924–25 | Northfleet United | 8–2 | Sittingbourne | 13 Apr 1925 | Maidstone | Grays Thurrock Utd / Folkestone | ||
1925–26 | Northfleet United | 1–0 | Folkestone | 5 Apr 1926 | Maidstone | Chatham / Dartford | ||
1926–27 | Northfleet United | 1–0 | Sheppey United | 18 Apr 1927 | Maidstone | Chatham / RN Depot | ||
1927–28 | Northfleet United | 3–1 | Sittingbourne | 9 Apr 1928 | Maidstone | RN Depot / Cray Wanderers | ||
1928–29 | Sittingbourne | 1–1 | Sheppey United | 1 Apr 1929 | Maidstone | Chatham / Folkestone | ||