The 2016–17 NIFL Championship was the first season of the second-tier Irish League since gaining senior status. The fixtures were announced on 7 July 2016. The season began on 13 August 2016 and concluded on 29 April 2017.
On 1 April 2017,
Warrenpoint Town came from 0–2 down to defeat
Institute 3–2 to clinch the league title and an instant return to the
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 Northe ...
for the
2017–18 season.
Teams
The 2016–17 NIFL Championship consisted of 12 teams.
Ards were champions of Championship 1 in the
previous season and were promoted to the
2016–17 NIFL Premiership
The 2016–17 NIFL Premiership (known as the Danske Bank Premiership for sponsorship reasons) was the ninth season of Northern Ireland's highest national football league in this format since its inception in 2008, the 116th season of Irish leag ...
.
The next highest place team eligible for promotion, fifth-placed finishers
Institute were defeated by
Ballinamallard United
Ballinamallard United Football Club is a semi-professional Northern Irish football club playing in the NIFL Championship. The club, re-formed in 1975 after being dormant since the 1960s, hails from Ballinamallard, near Enniskillen, County Ferma ...
in the
Premiership play-off; therefore failing to achieve promotion.
The bottom two teams from the previous season,
Lisburn Distillery
Lisburn Distillery Football Club is a Northern Irish intermediate football club who are based in Ballyskeagh, County Down. A founder member of the Irish League, they currently play in the NIFL Premier Intermediate League, the third tier of t ...
and
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 ...
were relegated to the third-tier
NIFL Premier Intermediate League; they were joined by
Bangor after they failed to gain the Championship Licence, required for playing at second-tier level. They were replaced by
PSNI, runners-up of the (now defunct) Championship 2 in the
previous season; champions
Limavady United were ineligible for promotion after failing to gain the required licence.
Stadia and locations
League table
Results
Matches 1–22
During matches 1–22 each team played every other team twice (home-and-away).
Matches 23–32
During matches 23–32 each team played every other team in their half of the table twice (home-and-away).
Top six
Bottom six
Play-offs
NIFL Premiership play-offs
The second and third-placed teams from the Championship,
Institute and
Ballyclare Comrades respectively, took part in the Premiership play-off semi-final. The winners will then play
Carrick Rangers
Carrick Rangers Football Club is a semi-professional Northern Irish football club playing in NIFL Premiership. The club, founded in 1939, hails from Carrickfergus, County Antrim and plays its home matches at
Taylors Avenue which is known as ...
in the play-off final; the winners of this tie will play in the top-flight next season.
NIFL Championship play-off
The eleventh-placed team from the Championship,
Armagh City, played the runners-up from the 2016–17
Premier Intermediate League,
Newry City
Newry (; ) is a city in Northern Ireland, divided by the Clanrye river in counties Armagh and Down, from Belfast and from Dublin. It had a population of 26,967 in 2011.
Newry was founded in 1144 alongside a Cistercian monastery, although ...
, over two legs for one spot in the
2017–18 NIFL Championship.
----
''Newry City won 7–1 on aggregate and are promoted to the
2017–18 NIFL Championship; Armagh City are relegated to the 2017–18 NIFL Premier Intermediate League.''
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:2016-17 NIFL Championship
NIFL Championship seasons
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 ...
2016–17 in Northern Ireland association football