The 2009–10

IFA Championship The Northern Ireland Football League Championship (known as the Lough 41 Championship for sponsorship reasons) is the second level of the Northern Ireland Football League, the national football league in Northern Ireland. Clubs in the Championshi ...

(known as the Ladbrokes.com Championship for sponsorship reasons) was the second season since its establishment after a major overhaul of the league system in

Northern Ireland Northern Ireland ( ga, Tuaisceart Éireann ; sco, label= Ulster-Scots, Norlin Airlann) is a part of the United Kingdom, situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, that is variously described as a country, province or region. Nort ...

. It also marked the first season in which the Championship was divided into two divisions, with the clubs in both divisions having intermediate status. Championship 1 served as the second tier of Northern Irish football, with Championship 2 as the third tier. In Championship 1,

Loughgall 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 Censu ...

were crowned champions on 8 May 2010 after a 2–0 win over

Ards Acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) is a type of respiratory failure characterized by rapid onset of widespread inflammation in the lungs. Symptoms include shortness of breath (dyspnea), rapid breathing (tachypnea), and bluish skin color ...

. However, they were denied promotion because they did not gain the required licence from the IFA. Therefore, runners-up

Donegal Celtic Donegal Celtic Football Club is an intermediate football club based in Belfast, Northern Ireland who currently play in the Ballymena & Provincial Football League. The club, founded in 1970, plays its home matches at Donegal Celtic Park. Club co ...

entered into a two-leg play-off with the bottom club of the

2009–10 IFA Premiership The 2009–10 IFA Premiership (known as the Carling Premiership for sponsorship reasons) was the second season of the league in this format since its establishment after a major overhaul of the league system in Northern Ireland, and the 109th seaso ...

, and achieved promotion with a 1–0 aggregate win. At the other end of the table,

Coagh United Coagh United Football Club is an intermediate, Northern Irish football club playing in the Ballymena & Provincial Intermediate League. The club, founded in 1970, hails from Coagh, near Cookstown, County Tyrone. They play their home games at H ...

and

Armagh City Armagh City was a United Kingdom Parliament constituency in Ireland. Boundaries This constituency was the parliamentary borough of Armagh in County Armagh. It was the successor constituency to the Armagh City constituency of the Parliament of ...

finished in the bottom two, and were relegated to Championship 2 for next season. In Championship 2, Harland & Wolff Welders won the title by 7 points, achieving promotion to Championship 1. Also promoted were Dergview who finished as runners-up. There was no relegation from Championship 2 this season.

Team changes from 2008–09

The 2008–09 Championship consisted of one division of 17 clubs. The bottom 3 clubs ( Tobermore United, Killymoon Rangers and Dergview) were relegated to the newly introduced Championship 2 for this season. Championship 2 was set up to replace the

IFA Interim Intermediate League The IFA Interim Intermediate League was a temporary league in Northern Ireland for one season only (2008–09), consisting of the former members of the IFA Intermediate League (dissolved in 2008) who did not meet the criteria for the new IFA Cha ...

, introduced as a temporary league for the 2008–09 season only, consisting of the former members of the IFA Intermediate League (dissolved in 2008) who did not meet the criteria for the new IFA Championship 2; it consisted of 12 clubs. Members of the Interim League had one year to make improvements in order to gain entry to Championship 2 for this season. 10 of the 12 clubs managed to meet the criteria, along with Sport & Leisure Swifts and Knockbreda who both achieved intermediate status, with only Brantwood and Oxford United Stars failing to do so. Harland & Wolff Welders were the champions. There was no promotion from the Interim League which meant that Championship 1 would be reduced to 14 clubs, with Championship 2 having 15.

Portadown Portadown () is a town in County Armagh, Northern Ireland. The town sits on the River Bann in the north of the county, about southwest of Belfast. It is in the Armagh City, Banbridge and Craigavon Borough Council area and had a population of a ...

were promoted to the

as 2008–09 Championship winners. Bangor entered Championship 1 after they announced that due to financial problems, they would not be able to renew their domestic licence required to take part in the Premiership.

Championship 1

League table

Results

Each team played every other team twice (once at home, and once away) for a total of 26 games.

Championship 2

League table

Results

Each team played every other team twice (once at home, and once away) for a total of 28 games.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:2009-10 IFA Championship NIFL Championship seasons

North North is one of the four compass points or cardinal directions. It is the opposite of south and is perpendicular to east and west. ''North'' is a noun, adjective, or adverb indicating direction or geography. Etymology The word ''north ...

2009–10 in Northern Ireland association football