Irish Intermediate League
| Organising body | Irish Football Association |
|---|---|
| Founded | 1915 |
| Abolished | 1954 |
| Region |  Northern Ireland (since 1921) Ireland (1915–1921) |
| Most successful club(s) | Crusaders (9 titles) |
The Irish Intermediate League was a Northern Irish football competition for teams of intermediate status, which also included reserve sides of senior teams. The league ran from 1915 until 1954.
History
[edit]It began in 1915 after the amalgamation of the Irish Junior League and Irish Senior Reserve League,[1][2] and ran until 1954, when the majority of the remaining clubs applied to join the Irish League B Division, which had been formed in 1951.[3][4] Until the introduction of the Irish League B Division it was the second tier of the Northern Ireland football league system.[5]
The tournament also ran a cup tournament for members of the league, the McElroy Cup.[6]
List of champions
[edit]- 1915–16 Glentoran II*
- 1916–17 Belfast Celtic II*
- 1917–18 Belfast Celtic II*
- 1918–19 Glentoran II*
- 1919–20 Glentoran II*
- 1920–21 Brantwood
- 1921–22 Dundela
- 1922–23 Crusaders
- 1923–24 Dunmurry
- 1924–25 Brantwood
- 1925–26 Crusaders
- 1926–27 Crusaders
- 1927–28 Willowfield
- 1928–29 Crusaders
- 1929–30 Glentoran II*
- 1930–31 Crusaders
- 1931–32 Belfast Celtic II*
- 1932–33 Crusaders
- 1933–34 Belfast Celtic II*
- 1934–35 Belfast Celtic II*
- 1935–36 Belfast Celtic II*
- 1936–37 Belfast Celtic II*
- 1937–38 Crusaders
- 1938–39 Crusaders
- 1939–40 Linfield Swifts*
- 1940–41 Bangor Reserves*
- 1941–42 Aircraft United
- 1942–43 Bangor Reserves*
- 1943–44 Bangor Reserves*
- 1944–45 Dundela
- 1945–46 Linfield Swifts*
- 1946–47 Dundela
- 1947–48 Brantwood
- 1948–49 Crusaders
- 1949–50 Dundela
- 1950–51 Dundela
- 1951–52 Brantwood
- 1952–53 Larne
- 1953–54 Brantwood
NB - * denotes reserve teams of senior clubs
Performance by club
[edit]| Team | No. of wins | Winning years |
|---|---|---|
| Crusaders | 9 | 1922–23, 1925–26, 1926–27, 1928–29, 1930–31, 1932–33, 1937–38, 1938–39, 1948–49 |
| Belfast Celtic II* | 7 | 1916–17, 1917–18, 1931–32, 1933–34, 1934–35, 1935–36, 1936–37 |
| Dundela | 5 | 1921–22, 1944–45, 1946–47, 1949–50, 1950–51 |
| Brantwood | 5 | 1920–21, 1924–25, 1947–48, 1951–52, 1953–54 |
| Glentoran II* | 4 | 1915–16, 1918–19, 1919–20, 1929–30 |
| Bangor Reserves* | 3 | 1940–41, 1942–43, 1943–44 |
| Linfield Swifts* | 2 | 1939–40, 1945–46 |
| Aircraft United | 1 | 1941–42 |
| Willowfield | 1 | 1927–28 |
NB - * indicates reserve team
List of McElroy Cup winners
[edit]- 1915–16 Glentoran II*
- 1916–17 Belfast Celtic II*
- 1917–18 Glentoran II*
- 1918–19 Distillery II*
- 1919–20 Cliftonville Olympic*
- 1920–21 Distillery II*
- 1921–22 St Mary's
- 1922–23 Belfast United
- 1923–24 St Mary's
- 1924–25 Brantwood / Dunmurry (shared)
- 1925–26 Linfield Rangers
- 1926–27 Dunmurry
- 1927–28 Broadway United
- 1928–29 Linfield Swifts*
- 1929–30 Crusaders
- 1930–31 Newington Rangers
- 1931–32 Crusaders
- 1932–33 Belfast Celtic II*
- 1933–34 Summerfield / Glentoran II* (shared)
- 1934–35 Belfast Celtic II*
- 1935–36 Belfast Celtic II*
- 1936–37 Belfast Celtic II*
- 1937–38 Linfield Swifts*
- 1938–39 Glentoran II*
- 1939–40 Linfield Swifts*
- 1940–41 Ards II*
- 1941–42 Ballyclare Comrades*
- 1942–43 Belfast Celtic II*
- 1943–44 Belfast Celtic II*
- 1944–45 Linfield Swifts*
- 1945–46 Dundela / Linfield Swifts* (shared)
- 1946–47 Bangor Reserves
- 1947–48 Crusaders
- 1948–49 Larne
NB - * denotes reserve teams of senior clubs
Performance by club
[edit]| Team | No. of wins | Winning years |
|---|---|---|
| Belfast Celtic II* | 7 | 1916–17, 1932–33, 1934–35, 1935–36, 1936–37, 1942–43, 1943–44 |
| Linfield Swifts* | 5 | 1928–29, 1937–38, 1939–40, 1944–45, 1945–46 (shared) |
| Glentoran II* | 4 | 1915–16, 1917–18, 1933–34 (shared), 1938–39 |
| Crusaders | 3 | 1929–30, 1931–32, 1947–48 |
| Distillery II* | 2 | 1918–19, 1920–21 |
| St Mary's | 2 | 1921–22, 1922–24 |
| Dunmurry | 2 | 1924–25 (shared), 1926–27 |
| Cliftonville Olympic* | 1 | 1919–20 |
| Belfast United | 1 | 1922–23 |
| Linfield Rangers | 1 | 1925–26 |
| Broadway United | 1 | 1927–28 |
| Newington Rangers | 1 | 1930–31 |
| Ards II | 1 | 1940–41 |
| Ballyclare Comrades | 1 | 1941–42 |
| Bangor Reserves* | 1 | 1946–47 |
| Larne | 1 | 1948–49 |
| Brantwood | 1 | 1924–25 (shared) |
| Summerfield | 1 | 1933–34 (shared) |
| Dundela | 1 | 1945–46 (shared) |
NB - * indicates reserve team
References
[edit]- ^ "Association Football - Amalgamation of local leagues". Belfast News-Letter. 24 April 1915. p. 3.
- ^ "Field & Pavilion - News About Clubs And Players". Daily Record. 15 June 1915. p. 2.
- ^ "Intermediate League likely to end soon". Belfast Telegraph. 15 June 1954. p. 10.
- ^ ""Jaymac" sums up Larne's hopes in new season". Larne Times. 12 August 1954. p. 2.
- ^ "Irish Intermediate league". Irish Football Club Project. Archived from the original on 31 October 2015. Retrieved 3 January 2019.
- ^ "McElroy Cup". Irish Football Club Project. Archived from the original on 31 October 2015. Retrieved 3 January 2019.
External links
[edit]- Intermediate League Archive at the Irish Football Club Project
- McElroy Cup Archive at the Irish Football Club Project
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