Whitehawk Football Club, nicknamed “The Hawks,” is a non-league football club based in Brighton, East Sussex.
Established in 1970, they currently compete in the Pitching In Isthmian League Premier Division, which is part of the seventh tier of English football. The team calls Enclosed Ground their home ground.
At the time of writing, Shaun Saunders is the current manager.
History
Whitehawk, Brighton’s prominent non-league football club, was established in 1945. Originally named Whitehawk & Manor Farm Old Boys FC, they commenced in the Brighton, Hove & District Football League. The club achieved early success, winning four league titles and the Sussex Senior Cup in 1951. In 1952, Whitehawk joined the Sussex County League Division 1 and secured their first County League One title in 1962. They gained further prominence with a civic reception and a grant from Brighton Corporation, which facilitated the construction of a 500-seat grandstand.
The club’s progress continued with the acquisition of floodlights in 1988 and another County League 1 title in 2010 under Darren Freeman, paving their way to the Isthmian League Division One South. In the Isthmian League, Whitehawk won back-to-back promotions, reaching the National League South in 2013. Their tenure in the National League South, from 2013 to 2018, was highlighted by reaching the play-off final in the 2014-15 season and a notable FA Cup run in 2015-16, including a dramatic draw against Dagenham & Redbridge.
However, managerial instability and a high turnover of players led to successive relegations, dropping them to the Isthmian South-East Division. In 2023, under Shaun Saunders, Whitehawk secured promotion to the Isthmian Premier League through the play-offs, marking a return to higher-tier football.
Staff
Current management and coaching staff
Alumni
Former players and managers elsewhere in the non-league pyramid