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2023–24 NIFL Premiership
The 2023–24 NIFL Premiership (known as the Sports Direct Premiership for sponsorship reasons) was the 16th season of the NIFL Premiership (the highest level of league football in Northern Ireland), the 123rd season of Northern Ireland Football League, Irish League football overall, and the 11th season of the league operating as part of the Northern Ireland Football League. The 38-game season commenced on 4 August 2023 and concluded on 27 April 2024. The champions (Larne F.C., Larne, their second consecutive title win) qualified for the 2024–25 UEFA Champions League#First qualifying round, 2024–25 UEFA Champions League first qualifying round. The 2023–24 Irish Cup winners (Cliftonville F.C., Cliftonville or Linfield F.C., Linfield) qualify for the 2024–25 UEFA Conference League#Second qualifying round, 2024–25 UEFA Conference League second qualifying round, with the Irish Cup runner-ups and #Conference League play-off, Conference League play-off winners qualifying for th ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
NIFL Premiership
The NIFL Premiership, known as the Danske Bank Premiership for sponsorship purposes, and colloquially as the Irish League or Irish Premiership, is a professional association football league which operates as the highest division of the Northern Ireland Football League – the national league in Northern Ireland. The Premiership was established as the ''IFA Premiership'' in 2008 under the auspices of the Irish Football Association, before the Northern Ireland Football League was created for the start of the 2013–14 season. At the end of the season, the champion club is presented with the Gibson Cup. Linfield are the current champions, having won their fourth consecutive title and 56th Irish League championship overall, after a 2–0 victory over Coleraine on 30 April 2022. This meant Linfield set a new world record for the most top division league titles won by any club, one ahead of Scottish club Rangers on 55 titles. Origin The current Irish Premiership format was introd ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Loughgall F
Loughgall ( ; ) is a small village, townland (of 131 acres) and civil parish in County Armagh, Northern Ireland. It is in the historic baronies of Armagh and Oneilland West. It had a population of 282 people (116 households) in the 2011 Census. Loughgall was named after a small nearby loch. The village is surrounded by orchards. History In the Middle Ages the chiefs of the Uí Nialláin, a Gaelic clan, resided at Loughgall crannog, a fortified lake dwelling. By the 16th century the O'Neills of Tír Eoghain had taken over the area, and the crannog became the residence of the O'Neill chief's brother or eldest son. In the early 1600s, the area was settled by English and Scottish Protestants as part of the Ulster Plantation. During the 1641 Irish Rebellion, settlers were held at a prison camp at Loughgall by Catholic rebels led by Manus O'Cane. In 1795, rival sectarian gangs, the Catholic Defenders and Protestant Peep-o'-Day Boys fought a bloody skirmish near the village, call ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Solitude (football Ground)
Solitude is a Association football, football stadium in Belfast, Northern Ireland. It is the oldest football stadium in Ireland, and the home ground of Ireland's oldest football club, Cliftonville F.C., Cliftonville. The stadium holds 6,224, but is currently restricted to 2,530 under safety legislation. The stadium was built in 1890 and has undergone several renovations. In 2002, a new stand was built at one end of the ground to house visiting supporters, and in 2008, a new stand was completed behind the goal at the east end of the ground. A synthetic 3G pitch was installed to replace the previous grass surface in 2010. History Solitude was opened in 1890 after Cliftonville moved across the road from Oldpark Avenue. The ground holds the distinction of having the first ever penalty in International football (soccer), Football taken there. Previously consisting of two pitches (the second of which was sold off and now contains housing), Solitude is the oldest football ground in I ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Carrickfergus
Carrickfergus ( , meaning " Fergus' rock") is a large town in County Antrim, Northern Ireland. It sits on the north shore of Belfast Lough, from Belfast. The town had a population of 27,998 at the 2011 Census. It is County Antrim's oldest town and one of the oldest towns in Ireland as a whole. Carrickfergus Castle, built in the late 12th century at the behest of Anglo-Norman knight John de Courcy, was the capital of the Earldom of Ulster. After the earldom's collapse, it remained the only English outpost in Ulster for the next four centuries. Carrickfergus was the administrative centre for Carrickfergus Borough Council, before this was amalgamated into the Mid and East Antrim District Council in 2015, and forms part of the Belfast Metropolitan Area. It is also a townland of 65 acres, a civil parish and a barony. The town is the subject of the classic Irish folk song "Carrickfergus", a 19th-century translation of an Irish-language song (''Do Bhí Bean Uasal'') from Munster, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Taylors Avenue
Taylors Avenue is a football stadium in Carrickfergus, County Antrim, Northern Ireland. It is the home stadium of local football team Carrick Rangers F.C. Taylors Avenue has a capacity of 6,000. There are two covered stands, with the rest of the ground made up of open terracing. History The ground, known before 1952 as the Barn Field, was the home of Barn F.C. from 1889 until the club folded in 1928. Taylors Avenue was originally founded as Barn Avenue where it was owned by James Taylor who owned the land as part of his converted barn estate. He set aside the land for the nearby Barn Mills National School to host sports events. In 2011, Carrick Rangers earned promotion to the IFA Premiership for the first time. However, Taylors Avenue did not meet Irish Football Association standards. Work to get the ground up to standards started with the aim of allowing Carrick Rangers to play their at least part of the season. In the meantime, they groundshared with Crusaders at their ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ballymena
Ballymena ( ; from ga, an Baile Meánach , meaning 'the middle townland') is a town in County Antrim, Northern Ireland. It is part of the Borough of Mid and East Antrim. The town is built on land given to the Adair family by King Charles I in 1626, with a right to hold two annual fairs and a free Saturday market in perpetuity. , the Saturday market still runs. Ballymena is a shopping hub within Northern Ireland, and is home to Ballymena United F.C. Ballymena incorporates an area of and includes large villages such as Cullybackey, Galgorm, Ahoghill and Broughshane. It had a population of 29,551 people at the 2011 Census, making it the eighth largest town in Northern Ireland by population. History Early history The recorded history of the Ballymena area dates to the Early Christian period from the fifth to the seventh centuries. Ringforts are found in the townland of Ballykeel and a site known as Camphill Fort in the townland of Ballee may also have been of this type. T ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ballymena Showgrounds
The Ballymena Showgrounds is a football stadium in Ballymena, County Antrim, Northern Ireland. It is home to Ballymena United F.C. and Ballymena United Allstars F.C. It is owned by Ballymena Borough Council. In addition to men's soccer a variety of other sports and events are held at the stadium and surrounding facilities, including women's association football, field hockey, and formerly hosted stock car racing. The stadium was redeveloped in 2001 at a cost of £30m. This reconstruction included the building of a new stand and new dressing room facilities. In 2010 the Warden Street stand was redeveloped to all-seater standard with a new capacity of 2,200 seats. The stadium now holds 4,100 spectators, but is limited to 3,600 due to health and safety. Main Stadium Home to Ballymena United New Stand The New Stand replaced the old 'Clock Stand' which ran parallel to the side of the pitch and was knocked down in 2001, in preparation for the new construction. The stand incorporates ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Glentoran F
Glentoran Football Club is a professional football club that plays in the NIFL Premiership. The club was founded in 1882. History Early history In 1914, Glentoran won the Vienna Cup, becoming the first United Kingdom team to win a European trophy, although as this competition took place several decades before the formation of UEFA, it is not recognised as such. 1960s George Best watched Glentoran with his grandfather as a youth, but was rejected by the club for being "too small and light". However, Best did make one appearance for Glentoran, in the club's centenary match against Manchester United. In 1964–65, Glentoran faced Panathinaikos in the European Cup and drew 2–2 at home and lost 3–2 away. In the following season's Fairs Cup, they faced Antwerp resulting a 1–0 defeat away and 3–3 draw at home. The Cup-Winners' Cup in 1966–67 saw Glentoran draw 1–1 with Rangers in front of a packed Oval before losing the away leg 4–0. Glentoran's finest hour came in ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Crusaders F
The Crusades were a series of religious wars initiated, supported, and sometimes directed by the Latin Church in the medieval period. The best known of these Crusades are those to the Holy Land in the period between 1095 and 1291 that were intended to recover Holy Land, Jerusalem and its surrounding area from Muslim conquests, Islamic rule. Beginning with the First Crusade, which resulted in the recovery of Jerusalem in 1099, dozens of Crusades were fought, providing a focal point of European history for centuries. In 1095, Pope Pope Urban II, Urban II proclaimed the First Crusade at the Council of Clermont. He encouraged military support for List of Byzantine emperors, Byzantine emperor Alexios I Komnenos, AlexiosI against the Seljuk Empire, Seljuk Turks and called for an armed pilgrimage to Jerusalem. Across all social strata in western Europe, there was an enthusiastic response. The first Crusaders had a variety of motivations, including religious salvation, satisfying feud ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Glenavon F
Glenavon Football Club is a Northern Irish semi-professional football club that competes in the NIFL Premiership. Founded in 1889, the club hails from Lurgan and plays its home matches at Mourneview Park. Club colours are blue and white. Gary Hamilton has been player-manager of the Lurgan Blues since December 2011 following the resignation of Marty Quinn. Glenavon's bitter rivals are Portadown, with their matches known as the "Mid-Ulster Derby". History Glenavon was the first provincial club to win the Irish League title (1951–52) and also the first provincial club to do the league and cup double (1956–57). The latter triumph also made them the first Northern Irish team to enter the European Cup. Glenavon has had a number of talented and famous players, none more so than Wilbur Cush and Jimmy Jones, who were to the fore in "the glory years" of the Fifties. The success of the 1950s is still the benchmark at the club – the closest the club have come to achieving a le ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Dungannon Swifts F
Dungannon () is a town in County Tyrone, Northern Ireland. It is the second-largest town in the county (after Omagh) and had a population of 14,340 at the 2011 Census. The Dungannon and South Tyrone Borough Council had its headquarters in the town, though since 2015 it has been covered by Mid-Ulster District Council. For centuries, it was the 'capital' of the O'Neill dynasty of Tír Eoghain, who dominated most of Ulster and built a castle on the hill. After the O'Neills' defeat in the Nine Years' War, the English founded a plantation town on the site, which grew into what is now Dungannon. Dungannon has won Ulster in Bloom's Best Kept Town Award five times. It currently has the highest percentage of immigrants of any town in Northern Ireland. History For centuries, Dungannon's fortunes were closely tied to that of the O'Neill dynasty which ruled a large part of Ulster until the 17th century. Dungannon was the clan's main stronghold. The traditional site of inauguration ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Coleraine F
Coleraine ( ; from ga, Cúil Rathain , 'nook of the ferns'Flanaghan, Deirdre & Laurence; ''Irish Place Names'', page 194. Gill & Macmillan, 2002. ) is a town and Civil parishes in Ireland, civil parish near the mouth of the River Bann in County Londonderry, Northern Ireland. It is northwest of Belfast and east of Derry, both of which are linked by major roads and railway connections. It is part of Causeway Coast and Glens district. Description Coleraine had a population of 24,634 people in the United Kingdom Census 2011, 2011 Census. The North Coast (Coleraine and Limavady) area has the highest property prices in Northern Ireland, higher even than those of affluent South Belfast. Coleraine during the day is busy but relatively quiet at night. Much of the nightlife in the area centres on the nearby seaside resort towns of Portrush and Portstewart, with the three towns forming a combined visitor area known as “The Triangle”. Coleraine is home to one of the largest Pol ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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