April is now upon us and this means we are entering the final few weeks of another football season, however, it also means we are entering the most important period of the campaign where titles are won or lost and cup semi-finals and finals are played. I would like to take this opportunity to thank our sponsors A&S Interiors and Thirst Fitness who are vital to the success of the league in what has been an entertaining season so far.
FIXTURES – We have been extremely lucky this season with the weather so far and it means that we haven’t had many weekends where we have had a washout with all the games getting postponed. Normally as we enter this period of the season we have a backlog of games but thankfully this campaign is different with 206/240 games played and 12/15 ThirstFitness League Cup games played. Dartmouth and Budleigh Salterton have also become the first two clubs to complete all their home fixtures this season with Plymstock United, Beer Albion, Ipplepen Athletic and Appledore all having just one game left!
LEAGUE BALLS – Clubs are reminded that only official league match balls should be used for all A&S Interiors Devon League and ThirstFitness League Cup matches as per league rules. If any club are unhappy with the league balls or the quality of these, please report any concerns to the league secretary and this can be looked into with the ball supplier. If clubs require more match balls these can be purchased directly from the supplier on the league website.
THIRST FITNESS LEAGUE CUP – As we enter April and towards the end of the season it means we also enter cup final season. In April we see both of our Thirst Fitness League Cup semi-finals take place with the final due to take place at Budleigh Salterton on Saturday 10th May 2025. It would be great to see as many people as possible supporting these matches in what should be a memorable event for all those involved. The semi-finals are as follows:
Tuesday 15th April 2025
Topsham Town v Alphington
Played at Ottery St Mary
7.30PM KO
Wednesday 23rd April 2025
Appledore v Ottery St Mary
Played at Elmore
7.30PM KO
We will have a new name on the trophy this season as previous winners have all been knocked out of the competition.
NEW REFEREE SUPPORT OFFICER – The league are pleased to announce Dan Uren as our new referee support officer who has taken over the role from Nick Chapman who stood down from the league committee. As a former referee Dan is excited to take over the role and looks forward to getting to know the wonderful volunteers behind all the clubs in the league. If anyone has any questions or wants to get in touch with Dan his contacts can now be found on the online league handbook and in the league officials section on the league website.
REGISTRATION OFFICER VACANCY – The league are looking for a new player registration officer to take over for the 2025/2026 season. Experience with the FA Full Time system would be an advantage but it is not mandatory and can be learnt during the role. Anyone who wants more information or to apply for this role can contact the league secretary at secretarydevonfootballleague@gmail.com Deadline for all applications is Saturday 31st May 2025.
SPORTSLIGHTING DEVON PREMIER CUP – Everyone from the A&S Interiors Devon League would like to congratulate University of Exeter on reaching the final of the Devon Premier Cup following a semi-final victory against Fremington. The Students found themselves 2-0 up early into the game but were pegged back at 2-2 before half time. With neither side able to add any more goals in the second half the dreaded penalty shootout was required which ended in the University winning 4-3 to progress to the final. The University of Exeter will take on Lapford at the Devon FA ground on Saturday 10th May 2025.
LEAGUE CUP SPONSOR FOR 2025/2026 SEASON ONWARDS – Everyone involved with the Devon Football League would like to thank ThirstFitness for their sponsorship of our League Cup for the last two seasons as they have decided they will no longer sponsor the competition after next month’s final. We would be delighted to speak with any business or organisation who would be interested in taking over sponsorship for the competition and would invite them to get in contact with any league official.