The 2006 League of Ireland Premier Division was the 22nd season of the
League of Ireland Premier Division
The League of Ireland Premier Division ( ga, Príomhroinn Sraith na hÉireann), also known as the SSE Airtricity League Premier Division for sponsorship reasons, is the top level division in both the League of Ireland and the Republic of Ireland f ...
. The division was made up of 12 teams. Shelbourne were champions while Derry City finished as runners-up. However Shelbourne were subsequently demoted to the First Division and had to withdraw from the
2007–08 UEFA Champions League
The 2007–08 UEFA Champions League was the 16th season of UEFA's premier European club football tournament, the UEFA Champions League, since it was rebranded in 1992, and the 53rd tournament overall.
The final was played on 21 May 2008 at the L ...
and
2007 Setanta Sports Cup
The 2007 Setanta Sports Cup was the 3rd staging of the Setanta Sports Cup, a cross-border cup competition that took place between football clubs from the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland. The final was played at Windsor Park in Belfast, N ...
because of their financial difficulties.
Club information
Overview
The Premier Division season kicked off on 10 March and concluded on 17 November. The season saw several clubs face financial difficulties. The
Revenue Commissioners
The Revenue Commissioners ( ga, Na Coimisinéirí Ioncaim), commonly called Revenue, is the Irish Government agency responsible for customs, excise, taxation and related matters. Though Revenue can trace itself back to predecessors (with the A ...
took High Court action and threatened to have Shelbourne wound up after it failed to pay more than €104,000 in outstanding taxes. Shelbourne also struggled to pay its players during the season. In July Dublin City also went out of business and withdrew from the league, unable to complete the season. Their results were expunged from the record which benefited both Cork and Derry who had dropped points to them. However Shelbourne's off field problems did not prevent them from winning the title.
Mark Farren
Mark Farren (1 May 1982 – 3 February 2016) was an Irish footballer who played as a forward for Derry City in his prime.Derry City away to
Waterford United
Waterford Football Club ( ga, Cumann Peile Phort Láirge) formerly Waterford United Football Club is an Irish association football club based in Waterford who play in the League of Ireland First Division. The club was founded and elected to the ...
on 13 November ensured that for the third successive year the title would be decided on the final day of the season. Shelbourne clinched the title with a 2–1 win over
Bohemians
Bohemian or Bohemians may refer to:
*Anything of or relating to Bohemia
Beer
* National Bohemian, a brand brewed by Pabst
* Bohemian, a brand of beer brewed by Molson Coors
Culture and arts
* Bohemianism, an unconventional lifestyle, origin ...
at
Tolka Park
Tolka Park ( ga, Páirc na Tulchann) is an Irish football ground located in the north Dublin suburb of Drumcondra, on the northern banks of the River Tolka. It is currently the home ground of League of Ireland club Shelbourne. The stadium fo ...
Glen Crowe
Glen Crowe (born 25 December 1977) is an Irish professional football forward who plays for Malahide United in the Leinster Senior League.
He was a prolific goalscorer in the League of Ireland Premier Division and has represented the Repub ...
scored the vital goals. However Shelbourne's celebrations were cut short when the league decided to demote them to the First Division. They also withdrew from the
2007–08 UEFA Champions League
The 2007–08 UEFA Champions League was the 16th season of UEFA's premier European club football tournament, the UEFA Champions League, since it was rebranded in 1992, and the 53rd tournament overall.
The final was played on 21 May 2008 at the L ...
and
2007 Setanta Sports Cup
The 2007 Setanta Sports Cup was the 3rd staging of the Setanta Sports Cup, a cross-border cup competition that took place between football clubs from the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland. The final was played at Windsor Park in Belfast, N ...
because of their financial difficulties.
Final table
Results
Matches 1–20
Matches 21–30
Promotion/relegation play-off
Dundalk
Dundalk ( ; ga, Dún Dealgan ), meaning "the fort of Dealgan", is the county town (the administrative centre) of County Louth, Ireland. The town is on the Castletown River, which flows into Dundalk Bay on the east coast of Ireland. It is h ...
Waterford United
Waterford Football Club ( ga, Cumann Peile Phort Láirge) formerly Waterford United Football Club is an Irish association football club based in Waterford who play in the League of Ireland First Division. The club was founded and elected to the ...
who finished eleventh in Premier Division.
;1st Leg
;2nd Leg
''
Dundalk
Dundalk ( ; ga, Dún Dealgan ), meaning "the fort of Dealgan", is the county town (the administrative centre) of County Louth, Ireland. The town is on the Castletown River, which flows into Dundalk Bay on the east coast of Ireland. It is h ...
won 3–2 on aggregate but did not meet the criteria set out by the FAI's Independent Assessment Group and were not promoted.''
Independent Assessment Group
In March 2006 it was announced that the
League of Ireland
The League of Ireland ( ga, Sraith na hÉireann), together with the Football Association of Ireland, is one of the two main governing bodies responsible for organising association football in the Republic of Ireland. The term was originally us ...
and the FAI would be merging. As part of this arrangement the league would be restructured and membership of the 2007 Premier Division and 2007 First Division would be decided by an Independent Assessment Group established by John Delaney and chaired by a former FAI honorary secretary, Des Casey. Former
Republic of Ireland
Ireland ( ga, Éire ), also known as the Republic of Ireland (), is a country in north-western Europe consisting of 26 of the 32 counties of the island of Ireland. The capital and largest city is Dublin, on the eastern side of the island. A ...
international footballer,
Niall Quinn
Niall John Quinn (honorary MBE; born 6 October 1966) is an Irish former professional footballer, manager, businessman and sports television pundit.
As a player he was a striker who played top flight football for Arsenal, Manchester City and S ...
was originally a member of the group. However he later withdrew because of his growing commitments to
Sunderland A.F.C.
Sunderland Association Football Club (, ) is an English professional football club based in the city of Sunderland, Tyne and Wear. Formed in 1879, Sunderland play in the Championship, the second tier of English football. The club has won six t ...
He was replaced by Richard Collins, a former chairman of and current director of
Charlton Athletic
Charlton Athletic Football Club is an English professional football club based in Charlton, south-east London, which compete in . Their home ground is The Valley, where the club have played since 1919. They have also played at The Mount in C ...
. Other members of the group included John Fitzgerald, the former city manager of
Dublin City Council
Dublin City Council ( ga, Comhairle Cathrach Bhaile Átha Cliath) is the authority responsible for local government in the city of Dublin in Ireland. As a city council, it is governed by the Local Government Act 2001. Until 2001, the council wa ...
and Pat O'Neill, a former chairman of the
Irish Sports Council
Sport Ireland ( ga, Spórt Éireann), formerly the Irish Sports Council, is a statutory authority that oversees, and partly funds, the development of sport within Ireland. It is located at the National Sports Campus in the townland of Sheephill ...
. The IAG effectively performed a financial stress test on the League of Ireland member clubs. Clubs were assessed on their past five season record in the league. Crucially though, clubs would also be graded on off-field criteria, including attendance, infrastructure, governance, strategic planning, finance, youth development and marketing. The IAG announced their results in December 2006. However the final outcome of the IAG decision was further complicated by the financial difficulties of Shelbourne who, despite initially passing the stress test, were subsequently relegated to the First Division. This provided a reprieve for
Waterford United
Waterford Football Club ( ga, Cumann Peile Phort Láirge) formerly Waterford United Football Club is an Irish association football club based in Waterford who play in the League of Ireland First Division. The club was founded and elected to the ...
, ranked at thirteen by the IAG, who were selected to replace them.
IAG Table
Notes
UEFA coefficient
The
League of Ireland Premier Division
The League of Ireland Premier Division ( ga, Príomhroinn Sraith na hÉireann), also known as the SSE Airtricity League Premier Division for sponsorship reasons, is the top level division in both the League of Ireland and the Republic of Ireland f ...
's
UEFA coefficient
In European football, the UEFA coefficients are statistics based in weighted arithmetic means used for ranking and seeding teams in club and international competitions. Introduced in 1979 for men's football tournaments, and after applied in wome ...
accumulated to a total value of 6.498 for the 2006–07 European season.
;League's 2006 UEFA ranking
* 33
Finland
Finland ( fi, Suomi ; sv, Finland ), officially the Republic of Finland (; ), is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It shares land borders with Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of B ...
* 34
Moldova
Moldova ( , ; ), officially the Republic of Moldova ( ro, Republica Moldova), is a Landlocked country, landlocked country in Eastern Europe. It is bordered by Romania to the west and Ukraine to the north, east, and south. The List of states ...
* 35
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 ...
* 36
Georgia
Georgia most commonly refers to:
* Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia
* Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States
Georgia may also refer to:
Places
Historical states and entities
* Related to the ...
* 37
Liechtenstein
Liechtenstein (), officially the Principality of Liechtenstein (german: link=no, Fürstentum Liechtenstein), is a German-speaking microstate located in the Alps between Austria and Switzerland. Liechtenstein is a semi-constitutional monarchy ...
Top-scorers
Awards
SWAI
The iridescent shark, iridescent shark catfish (''Pangasianodon hypophthalmus'') is a species of shark catfish (family Pangasiidae) native to the rivers of Southeast Asia. Despite its name, it is not a shark. It is found in the Mekong basin as we ...
eircom League Player of the Month award
PFAI
The Professional Footballers' Association of Ireland (PFAI) is the representative body for professional and semi-professional footballers in Republic of Ireland. Players from all nationalities in the League of Ireland are represented, not just Iri ...
eircom League Player of the Year award
*
Joseph Ndo
Joseph Cyrille N'Do (born 28 April 1976) is a Cameroonian former professional footballer who played as an attacking midfielder or forward. He made 21 appearances for the Cameroon national team scoring twice.
Club career
Cameroon
An attackin ...
PFAI
The Professional Footballers' Association of Ireland (PFAI) is the representative body for professional and semi-professional footballers in Republic of Ireland. Players from all nationalities in the League of Ireland are represented, not just Iri ...
eircom League Young Player of the Year award
* Kevin Deery – Derry CityTV3's Goal of the Season award
* Kevin Deery – Derry City
Attendances
Premier Division games had an average attendance of 1,539 people. Derry City's average home attendance of 3,127 was the highest of any league team for the season. The record for the highest attendance in the Premier Division was also set in the
Brandywell Stadium
The Ryan McBride Brandywell Stadium ( ga, Tobar an Fhíoruisce ) is a municipal football stadium with an adjoining greyhound racing track in Derry, Northern Ireland. It is the home ground of League of Ireland team Derry City F.C. and (temporaril ...
on the last night of the season when Derry City met
Cork City
Cork ( , from , meaning 'marsh') is the second largest city in Ireland and third largest city by population on the island of Ireland. It is located in the south-west of Ireland, in the province of Munster. Following an extension to the city' ...
. 6,080 attended the game.
Gallery
File:Football league of ireland season 06.png, The clubs that competed in the 2006 League of Ireland.
2006 League of Ireland Cup
The League of Ireland Cup 2006 was the 33rd staging of the League of Ireland Cup.
The 2006 League Cup kicked off in April. Sixteen league clubs and the Kerry League entered the competition. There were two clubs drawn to face each other in the f ...
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 ...
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 ...