Withdean 2000 Football Club were an

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Culture, language and peoples * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England * ''English'', an Amish ter ...

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...

team based in

Withdean Withdean is a former village, now part of Brighton and Hove, East Sussex. Overview The area was originally named in the 12th century, when it was called Wictedene. The area was historically farm land but has been developed, mainly in the 1920 ...

, in

Brighton Brighton ( ) is a seaside resort in the city status in the United Kingdom, city of Brighton and Hove, East Sussex, England, south of London. Archaeological evidence of settlement in the area dates back to the Bronze Age Britain, Bronze Age, R ...

, who most recently played in the

Combined Counties League The Combined Counties Football League is a regional men's football league in south-eastern England with members in Berkshire, Buckinghamshire, Hampshire, Hertfordshire, Kent, Middlesex, Oxfordshire, Surrey, and the western half of Greater Lond ...

. Originally called Westdene, they changed their name to Withdean in the late 1980s and added the "2000" after a reorganisation in that year, after which they moved from the

Sussex County League The Southern Combination Football League (named Premier Sports Southern Combination Football League) is a football league broadly covering the counties of East Sussex, West Sussex, Surrey and South West London, England. The league consists of e ...

to the CCL. They won the CCL championship in 2002–03, winning 40 games, drawing four and losing only two, coming from behind to overwhelm AFC Wallingford, who had won the previous season, and

AFC Wimbledon AFC Wimbledon is an English professional association football club based in Wimbledon, London, Wimbledon, London Borough of Merton, London. The team competes in , the third tier of the English football league system. The club was founded in ...

, who would win the following season. A relentless series of resounding victories in re-arranged postponed games toward the end of the season placed them beyond the reach of their rivals. However, circumstances promptly conspired against them. Since they had given up their home ground to

Brighton & Hove Albion Brighton & Hove Albion Football Club, commonly referred to as Brighton, is a professional football club based in Brighton and Hove, East Sussex, England. The club competes in the Premier League, the top tier of English football. Their home gr ...

after the latter lost the

Goldstone Ground The Goldstone Ground (or The Goldstone) was a football stadium in Hove, East Sussex that was the home ground of Brighton & Hove Albion between 1902 and 1997. History The Goldstone Ground stood on Old Shoreham Road, Hove, opposite Hove Pa ...

, Withdean's playing facilities were not fit to qualify them for promotion from the CCL to the

Isthmian League The Isthmian League () is a regional Association football, football league covering Greater London, East of England, East and South East England, featuring mostly semi-professional clubs. Founded in 1905 by amateur clubs in the London area, th ...

and in the close season of 2003 their wealthy backer Alan Pook and many of the best players left for Isthmian League team

Worthing Worthing ( ) is a seaside town and borough in West Sussex, England, at the foot of the South Downs, west of Brighton, and east of Chichester. With a population of 113,094 and an area of , the borough is the second largest component of the Br ...

. Consequently, in the 2003–04 season Withdean 2000 struggled near the bottom of the table. Unable to finance their outgoings any longer, in June

2004 2004 was designated as an International Year of Rice by the United Nations, and the International Year to Commemorate the Struggle Against Slavery and Its Abolition (by UNESCO). Events January * January 3 – Flash Airlines Flight 60 ...

they withdrew from the CCL for the following season and the club were disbanded.

References

Defunct football clubs in England Association football clubs disestablished in 2004 2004 disestablishments in England Defunct football clubs in East Sussex Association football clubs established in 1983 {{England-footyclub-defunct-stub