![]() | |
Full name | Newcastle West Association Football Club |
---|---|
Nickname(s) | The Magpies |
Founded | 1948 |
Ground | Ballygowan Park Newcastle West |
Coordinates | 52°27′10″N9°03′56″W / 52.4527°N 9.0655°W |
Chairman | Martin Smallwood |
Manager | Noel Murphy |
League | Limerick Desmond League |
Newcastle West A.F.C. is an association football club based in Newcastle West in the Republic of Ireland. As of 2024, the club fields a team in the Premier Division of the Limerick Desmond League. The club plays its home games at Ballygowan Park.
The club was founded in 1948 and was originally called Newcastle United. They were founding members of the Limerick Desmond League in 1955, and were its first champions. [1] In 1985 they became one of the founding members of the League of Ireland First Division, finishing eighth in their first season in the league. [2] The following season the club adopted its current name. [2]
During their spell in the League of Ireland, the club twice reached the quarter-final of the FAI Cup, in 1988 and 1990. The first occasion was controversial; they faced Cobh Ramblers in the fifth round. The first match was drawn, and Newcastle West won the replay on their own ground 4–2 after extra time. According to the Irish Times' correspondent, "the style they put on in this nail biting thriller that produced four stunning goals in extra time made one wonder just why such a fine football side was having its troubles at league level." [3] However, Cobh's protest, on the grounds that their former player Billy Daly had signed for Newcastle West too late to be eligible to play in the match, was upheld by the Football Association of Ireland (FAI), and they were awarded the tie. [4] In response, Newcastle West decided to pull out of the League with immediate effect. After urgent meetings involving all parties, [5] a compromise was reached which saw Newcastle West remain in the league and the cup replay replayed. They beat Cobh 1–0, with Daly scoring the winning goal, [6] but lost to Longford Town in the quarter-final, missing out on a potentially lucrative semi-final meeting with Derry City. [7] In the 1989–90 season, they produced "a shock victory" away to Sligo Rovers in a match where "high-flying tackles and off-the-ball confrontations marred the day", [8] before losing at home in the quarter-final to intermediate club St Francis, who had already knocked out two other League of Ireland clubs in their first FAI Cup campaign. [9]
After finishing ninth in the 1989–90 League of Ireland First Division, the club resigned from the league in order to make improvements to their Demesne ground, [10] and were replaced in the league by St James's Gate. [2] They had continued to run a team in the Limerick Desmond League, winning Division One for four consecutive seasons between 1989–90 and 1992–93. [11] They won the league again in 2001–02, by which time Division One had become the Premier Division. Further titles were won in 2005–06, 2007–08, 2008–09 and 2012–13.
Cobh Ramblers Football Club is an Irish football club. The club, founded in 1922 and elected to the League of Ireland in 1985, hails from Cobh, County Cork and play their home matches at St. Colman's Park. The club's colours are claret and blue. The club was a founding member of the Cork Athletic Union League in 1947 and is the only one of the 14 founding clubs still in existence today.
Sligo Rovers Football Club is an Irish professional football club playing in the Premier Division of the League of Ireland. The club is based in Sligo in the west of Ireland.
The League of Ireland First Division, also known as the SSE Airtricity League First Division for sponsorship reasons, is the second-highest division in both the League of Ireland and the Republic of Ireland football league system. The division was formed in 1985 as it replaced the League of Ireland B Division as the League of Ireland's second level division. Since 2003 the First Division has operated as a summer league. The division is contested by 10 clubs.
Wexford Football Club is an Irish association football club based in Crossabeg, County Wexford. They compete in the League of Ireland First Division. The club joined the league after being awarded a First Division licence for the 2007 League of Ireland season. The opportunity to join the League of Ireland arose as Dublin City became bankrupt before the end of the 2006 season, leaving an uneven number of clubs. The 2007 season coincided with the takeover of the running of the league by the FAI and all existing clubs had to apply for entry into what was effectively a new league. Limerick was the only existing club refused a licence and so Wexford Youths and Limerick 37 were admitted to the new league. The club previously wore pink and black, before switching to a purple and gold combination in 2024. The club rebranded for the start of the 2017 season by dropping the 'Youths' from their title and changing the club crest.
Alan Kirby is an Irish former footballer. He played as a midfielder, most often on the right wing.
The Connacht Senior League was an association football league featuring amateur, intermediate, and League of Ireland reserve teams affiliated to the Connacht Football Association. It was a third level league in the Republic of Ireland football league system. An earlier provincial league, the Western League, had been active, on and off, since the 1930s before the Connacht Football Association decided to establish a more permanent league. The CSL was active between 1981 and 2000. In 2013 discussions were held about relaunching the league.
Stephen Henderson is an Irish football coach and former player who played as a goalkeeper.
The 2011 FAI Senior Challenge Cup, also known as the 2011 FAI Ford Cup, is the 91st season of the national football competition of the Republic of Ireland. The winners of the competition will earn spots in both the second qualifying round of the 2012–13 UEFA Europa League and the 2012 Setanta Sports Cup.
The 2013 FAI Senior Challenge Cup, also known as the 2013 FAI Ford Senior Cup, was the 93rd season of the national football competition of the Republic of Ireland. The winners of the competition earned a spot in the first qualifying round of the 2014-15 UEFA Europa League.
The 2015 FAI Senior Challenge Cup, also known as the 2015 FAI Irish Daily Mail Senior Cup for sponsorship reasons, was the 95th season of the national football competition of the Republic of Ireland. The winners of the competition earned a spot in the first qualifying round of the 2016–17 UEFA Europa League.
The 2016 season was St. Patrick's Athletic F.C.'s 87th year in existence and was the Supersaint's 65th consecutive season in the top-flight of Irish football. It was the fifth year that Liam Buckley was the team's manager, following replacing Pete Mahon in December 2011. The league season was poor from the Saints, finishing 7th, meaning they would be without European football next season for the first time since 2010. They did however knock Jeunesse Esch out of the Europa League before being narrowly knocked out by Dinamo Minsk of Belarus. They also retained their League Cup crown by winning the 2016 League of Ireland Cup by beating Limerick 4–1 at the Markets Field on 17 September 2016.
The 2016 FAI Senior Challenge Cup, also known as the 2016 FAI Irish Daily Mail Senior Cup for sponsorship reasons, was the 96th season of the national Football competition of the Republic of Ireland. The winners of the competition earned a spot in the First qualifying round of the 2017–18 UEFA Europa League.
The 2017 League of Ireland Cup, known for sponsorship reasons as the 2017 EA Sports Cup, was the 44th season of the League of Ireland's secondary knockout competition. The EA Sports Cup features teams from the SSE Airtricity League Premier and First Divisions, as well as some intermediate level teams.
The 2017 FAI Senior Challenge Cup was the 97th season of the knockout national Football competition of the Republic of Ireland. The winners of this season's cup earned a place in the 2018–19 Europa League and would have entered in the first qualifying round.
The 2018 FAI Cup was the 98th edition of the Republic of Ireland's primary national cup competition. It began with the qualifying round on 21 April 2018, and concluded with the final on 4 November 2018. The winner qualified for the 2019–20 Europa League first qualifying round.
The 2019 FAI Cup was the 99th edition of the annual Republic of Ireland's cup competition. Forty teams participated in the competition, including all teams from the Premier Division and First Division. The competition began on 19 April 2019 with the first of five rounds and ended on 3 November 2019 with the final at the Aviva Stadium in Dublin, a nominally neutral venue, which has hosted the final since 2010.
The 2019 League of Ireland Cup, also known for sponsorship reasons as the 2019 EA Sports Cup, was the 46th season of the League of Ireland's secondary knockout competition. The EA Sports Cup featured teams from the SSE Airtricity League Premier and First Divisions, as well as some intermediate level teams. Dundalk defeated Derry City in the final in a penalty shoot-out, following a 2-2 draw.
The 2020 FAI Cup was the 100th edition of the Republic of Ireland's primary national cup competition. This edition featured clubs exclusively from the League of Ireland Premier Division and the First Division, whereas usually non-league teams are involved. The number of teams was reduced due to the ongoing Coronavirus pandemic. The restrictions also meant that crowds were restricted or prohibited from attending. The competition began on 10 August 2020 with the first of four rounds and concluded on 6 December 2020 with the final at the Aviva Stadium in Dublin, a nominally neutral venue, which has hosted the final since 2010.
The 2021 FAI Cup was the 101st edition of the Republic of Ireland's primary national cup competition. This edition features teams from the League of Ireland Premier Division and the First Division, as well as non-league teams. The competition is to begin with qualifying on the week ending 11 July 2021.
The 2023 League of Ireland Premier Division, known as the SSE Airtricity League Premier Division for sponsorship reasons, was the 39th season of the League of Ireland Premier Division, the top Irish league for association football clubs since its establishment in 1985.