Ballymena Football Club was a

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...

club from

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 i ...

County Antrim County Antrim (named after the town of Antrim, ) is one of six counties of Northern Ireland and one of the thirty-two counties of Ireland. Adjoined to the north-east shore of Lough Neagh, the county covers an area of and has a population o ...

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 ...

that was founded in

1928 Events January * January – British bacteriologist Frederick Griffith reports the results of Griffith's experiment, indirectly proving the existence of DNA. * January 1 – Eastern Bloc emigration and defection: Boris Bazhanov, J ...

, but dissolved in 1934 following expulsion by the Irish League for making payments to amateurs. It holds the distinction of having won the

Irish Cup The Irish Football Association Challenge Cup, commonly referred to as the Irish Cup (currently known as the Samuel Gelston's Whiskey Irish Cup for sponsorship purposes) is the primary football knock-out cup competition in Northern Ireland. Ina ...

in its first ever season.

History

The club was formed by four Ballymena businessmen on 7 April 1928, immediately gaining membership of the Irish League at the expense of

Barn A barn is an agricultural building usually on farms and used for various purposes. In North America, a barn refers to structures that house livestock, including cattle and horses, as well as equipment and fodder, and often grain.Allen G. ...

. The first competitive game was a 0-3 defeat at home to

Belfast Celtic Belfast Celtic Football Club was a football club. Founded in 1891 in Belfast, Northern Ireland, it was one of the most successful teams in Ireland until it withdrew permanently from the Irish League in 1949. The club left the league for polit ...

on 20 August 1928. The club finished sixth in its first season and won the

, beating Belfast Celtic 2-1 in the final. A replica of the trophy was produced and awarded to the club for winning the Cup in their first season. The club reached the Irish Cup final again the following season, but lost to Linfield. They finished fifth in the League and Jimmy McCambridge became the club's first full international when he was capped for

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...

against

Wales Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the Wales–England border, east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the ...

in February 1930. A third Cup final in a row followed in 1930-31, but they lost again to Linfield, and finished fifth in the League again. In 1931-32, the club reached the final of the Gold Cup, but lost to

Coleraine 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 parish near the mouth of the River Bann in County Londonderry, Northern I ...

and finished sixth in the League. A second player - Jock McNinch - was capped for Ireland in February 1931 (the first of three caps). 1932-33 was a disappointing season, with an early exit from the Cup and an eighth-place finish in the League. 1933-34 turned out to be the club's last season. A remark by club chairman Albert McClelland about making payments to amateurs was overheard and led to suspension and investigation by the

Irish Football Association The Irish Football Association (IFA) is the governing body for association football in Northern Ireland. It organised the Ireland national football team from 1880 to 1950, which after 1954, became the Northern Ireland national football team. ...

. An IFA commission requested sight of Ballymena's accounts, but the club refused and was suspended by the IFA, and was thus unable to continue its membership of the Irish League. The club was eventually voluntarily wound up in 1936. A new club,

Ballymena United Ballymena United Football Club is a semi-professional football club from Northern Ireland. Based in Ballymena, County Antrim, the team competes in the NIFL Premiership and plays home matches at the Ballymena Showgrounds which is owned by the Mi ...

was quickly formed and was elected to the Irish League as Ballymena's replacement for the following season.Neil Coleman, ''Ballymena United Football Club: The Official History'' (Donaghadee: Ballyhay Books, 2015), pp. 35-36

Honours

Senior honours

: 1 ** 1928–29

References

{{Former Irish League senior clubs Sport in Ballymena Association football clubs in County Antrim Association football clubs established in 1928 Association football clubs disestablished in 1934 1928 establishments in Northern Ireland 1934 disestablishments in Northern Ireland Defunct association football clubs in Northern Ireland Defunct Irish Football League clubs Former senior Irish Football League clubs Ballymena United F.C.