HEARTBREAK FOR TIGRESSES AFTER ROARING TO TITLE   

It was mixed emotions for Maidstone Tigresses after winning the Southern Division title but then finding themselves expunged by the FA from the Women’s National League following the club’s decision to refuse promotion to the top flight.

Maidstone confirmed themselves as champions in their final game of the season, beating bottom club Horsham 2-1. Carole Osborne’s first half opener was equalised by Horsham’s Nicki Inglis just after the interval, but Michelle Mangan’s late strike proved the victory-clincher.

Cue huge celebrations from the Tigresses, not knowing at the time that the match they had just won would turn out to be the last game ever played by the club in the National League.

“When we won the league it was brilliant,” recalls star player Tara Proctor, who would go on to win the top flight three times with Croydon and become England captain in 2001.

“It was a great feeling. ‘It’s fabulous,’ we were thinking,” she adds. “We were all excited to think we’d be playing some really big teams the next season. We knew we might get hammered a bit, but to go up and have the experience of playing against these teams would have been amazing.”

It was not such a ‘great feeling’ when the players discovered that the club was being dropped from the National League. “We were gutted,” says Proctor, “but we just had to take it on the chin.

“I always think things happen for a reason though, and (in retrospect) I think deep down that it was maybe something that was meant to happen.”

FINAL TABLE

FA WOMEN’S PREMIER LEAGUE SOUTHERN DIVISION RESULTS 1994-95
 
4/9/1994 
Berkhamsted & Hemel 0-2 Maidstone Tigresses
Oxford United 1-1 Brentford
Town & County 1-1 Horsham
Wimbledon 3-1 Brighton & Hove Albion
 
11/9/1994
Brighton & Hove Albion 1-0 Town & County
Horsham 2-4 Oxford United
 
18/9/1994
Berkhamsted & Hemel 6-4 Brentford
Horsham 1-1 Wimbledon
Town & County 2-3 Oxford United
 
25/9/1994
Berkhamsted & Hemel 0-0 Town & County
Brentford 0-0 Horsham
Oxford United 3-1 Wimbledon
 
2/10/1994
Brighton & Hove Albion 2-1 Horsham
Oxford United 2-2 Maidstone Tigresses
Town & County 2-4 Brentford
 
23/10/1994
Horsham 1-3 Maidstone Tigresses
Oxford United 4-1 Brighton & Hove Albion
 
27/10/1994
Oxford United 0-3 Berkhamsted & Hemel
 
6/11/1994
Brighton & Hove Albion 2-3 Berkhamsted & Hemel
 
20/11/1994
Maidstone Tigresses 1-0 Wimbledon
 
27/11/1994
Maidstone Tigresses 0-1 Brighton & Hove Albion
Oxford United 0-3 Berkhamsted & Hemel
Town & County 1-4 Wimbledon
 
11/12/1994
Town & County 1-0 Maidstone Tigresses
 
5/2/1995
Brentford 3-4 Town & County
 
12/2/1995
Brentford 2-1 Wimbledon
Maidstone Tigresses 3-0 Oxford United
 
5/3/1995
Wimbledon 0-1 Maidstone Tigresses
 
12/3/1995
Brighton & Hove Albion 1-4 Maidstone Tigresses
Horsham 3-6 Brentford
Town & County 1-0 Berkhamsted & Hemel
Wimbledon 1-2 Oxford United
 
19/3/1995
Wimbledon 2-1 Town & County
 
26/3/1995
Horsham 2-6 Town & County
 
2/4/1995
Brentford 0-0 Berkhamsted & Hemel
Oxford United 0-0 Town & County
Wimbledon 5-0 Horsham
 
9/4/1995
Berkhamsted & Hemel 1-0 Horsham 
Brentford 2-4 Brighton & Hove Albion
Maidstone Tigresses 5-0 Town & County 
 
13/4/1995
Berkhamsted & Hemel 7-0 Oxford United
 
16/4/1995
Brighton & Hove Albion 2-2 Brentford
Wimbledon 2-4 Berkhamsted & Hemel
 
17/4/1995
Berkhamsted & Hemel 1-0 Brighton
 
19/4/1995
Wimbledon 3-2 Brentford
 
23/4/1995
Maidstone Tigresses 4-1 Brentford
Horsham 0-1 Berkhamsted & Hemel
 
30/4/1995
Maidstone Tigresses 1-1 Berkhamsted
Oxford United 3-2 Horsham
 
2/5/1995
Brighton & Hove Albion 0-4 Wimbledon
 
7/5/1995
Brighton & Hove Albion 2-1 Oxford United
Maidstone Tigresses 2-1 Horsham 
 
9/5/1995
Horsham 2-3 Brighton & Hove Albion
 
14/5/1995
Berkhamsted & Hemel 1-1 Wimbledon
Brentford 1-5 Oxford United
Town & County 3-0 Brighton & Hove Albion  
 
Date not known
Brentford 1-6 Maidstone Tigresses