Current Holders: Needham Market

The Suffolk Premier Cup was first played for in the 1958/59 season. The competition was launched to enable clubs with ‘professional’ players to play their full team as these players were not allowed to play in the Suffolk Senior Cup at that time. 

Not everyone was in favour of the competition and the County Chairman at the time felt it necessary to say “… an appeal is made to all concerned to give the competition a fair chance and do their utmost to make it work smoothly.”

The first winners were Bury Town who went on to win the cup in seven out of its first eight seasons. The unluckiest team at this time was Lowestoft Town who lost four finals in a row, twice after replays.

From 1974 to 1981 the final was played over two legs. During this period Lowestoft Town and Sudbury Town played in six finals each, four times against each other with honours even between them.

In 1982 the final reverted to a one-off match (unless a replay was required) with Sudbury Town winning nine times in 12 seasons and Lowestoft Town suffering four consecutive defeats.

The biggest win was in 2007 when Ipswich Town Reserves beat Leiston 8-0. The most goals in a final was nine which occurred three times during the two-leg final days.

The last replay was in 1998 when Sudbury Wanderers had their only win, by 5-2 after a 0-0 draw.

The last win in extra time was 2015 when Lowestoft Town  won 2-1.

The last win following a penalty shoot-out was in 2008 when Needham Market achieved their first ever Premier Cup win, winning 5-4 on penalties following a 0-0 draw after extra time.

Most wins (17) have been by teams from Sudbury with AFC Sudbury winning three times, with pre-amalgamation Sudbury Wanderers winning once and Sudbury Town 13 times. However with 13 wins apiece both Bury Town and Lowestoft Town only need one more to, arguably, claim the record.

To confirm the dominance of these three clubs, together with their 43 wins they have also lost the final 35 times between them giving a total of 78 final appearances. All other teams have only managed 44 final appearances between them.

The 2019-20 final, along with all the other adult county cup finals, was delayed due to the coronavirus pandemic that forced the country into lockdown in mid-March and was played early in the 2020-21 season. Both finalists - Lowestoft Town and Needham Market - were keen to play a two-legged final, which Needham won 4-3 on aggregate.