2009 League of Ireland

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League of Ireland
Season 2009
← 2008
2010 →

The 2009 League of Ireland season consists of the League of Ireland Premier Division, the League of Ireland First Division and the Newstalk A Championship. The Premier Division and First Division seasons began on 6 March 2009, while the A Championship commenced on 4 April 2009. Bohemians were the defending Premier Division champions.

On 6 November 2009, Bohemians retained the title after a 1-1 draw against Bray Wanderers.[1]

Location of teams in FAI League of Ireland 2009

Changes from last season

Promotion and relegation

Finn Harps, Cobh Ramblers and UCD were relegated to the First Division for finishing in the last three places of the 2008 Premier Division. Cobh Ramblers were only awarded an A licence by the Licensing board, and thus play in the A Championship. Dundalk won the First Division in 2008 and were promoted to the Premier Division. This season is the first to include a completely professional Premier Division, after the promotion of Dundalk and relegation of Finn Harps, Cobh Ramblers and UCD.

Kildare County and Mervue United competed in a two-legged play-off for one spot in the First Division. Mervue United won 5–2 on aggregate and therefore earned promotion to the First Division, while Kildare County were due to compete in the A Championship, but take Cobh Ramblers' place in the First Division.

Castlebar Celtic, Dundalk A, FC Carlow, Sporting Fingal A and Tralee Dynamos joined the A Championship, while Cobh Ramblers A, Limerick FC A and University College Dublin A withdrew.

Structural changes

The Premier Division was reduced from twelve to ten teams. In turn, the First Division increased its size from ten to twelve teams. Hence the promotion/relegation scheme between both divisions was modified as well. In contrast to 2008, only the last-placed team of the Premier Division will be directly relegated to the First Division. The First Division champions will be promoted to the Premier Division. The eight-placed and ninth-placed Premier Division teams will play in a one-legged play-off (at the ground of the eight-placed club) with the loser entering into a two-legged play-off for one spot in Premier Division 2010. The opponents in this two-legged play-off will be the winners of a one-legged play-off between the runners-up and third-placed in the First Division (with the runners-up being at home).

The A Championship was increased from 16 teams to 18. These teams are geographically divided into two groups of 9. The two group winners will play off in the title decider on 2 November 2009. The highest placed non-reserve team, provided they finish in the top 3, will play a two-legged play-off against the bottom team of the First Division.

Name change

Limerick 37 now play as Limerick F.C. which was also the name of a separate club previously from Limerick which played in the League of Ireland.

Clubs information

Premier Division

Team Base Manager Stadium Capacity Founded
Bohemians Dublin Republic of Ireland Pat Fenlon Dalymount Park 7,955 1890
Bray Wanderers Bray, Co. Wicklow Republic of Ireland Eddie Gormley Carlisle Grounds 3,250 1942
Cork City Cork Republic of Ireland Paul Doolin Turners Cross 7,485 1984
Derry City Derry Republic of Ireland Stephen Kenny The Brandywell 7,700 1928
Drogheda United Drogheda, Co. Louth Republic of Ireland Alan Mathews United Park 2,400 1975
Dundalk Dundalk, Co. Louth Northern Ireland Seán Connor Oriel Park 6,000 1903
Galway United Galway England Ian Foster Terryland Park 5,000 1937
Shamrock Rovers Dublin Northern Ireland Michael O'Neill Tallaght Stadium 5,700 1901
Sligo Rovers Sligo England Paul Cook The Showgrounds 5,500 1928
St. Patrick's Athletic Dublin Republic of Ireland Pete Mahon Richmond Park 5,340 1929

First Division

Team Base Manager Stadium Capacity Founded
Athlone Town Athlone, Co. Westmeath Republic of Ireland Brendan Place Lissywoolen Stadium 5,000 1887
Finn Harps Ballybofey, Co. Donegal Republic of Ireland James Gallagher Finn Park 7,500 1954
Kildare County Newbridge, Co. Kildare Republic of Ireland Joe Somerville Station Road, Newbridge 2,500 2002
Limerick Limerick Republic of Ireland Pat Scully Jackman Park 3,000 2007
Longford Town Longford Republic of Ireland Gareth Cronin Flancare Park 6,850 1924
Mervue United Galway Republic of Ireland Johnny Glynn Terryland Park 6,500 1960
Monaghan United Monaghan Republic of Ireland Mick Cooke Century Homes Park 5,000 1979
Shelbourne Dublin Republic of Ireland Dermot Keely Tolka Park 9,680 1895
Sporting Fingal Dublin Republic of Ireland Liam Buckley Morton Stadium 8,800 2007
University College Dublin Dublin Republic of Ireland Martin Russell UCD Bowl 3,000 1895
Waterford United Waterford Republic of Ireland Stephen Henderson Waterford Regional Sports Centre 3,100 1930
Wexford Youths Crossabeg, Co. Wexford Republic of Ireland Mick Wallace Ferrycarraig Park 2,500 2007

League

Rules

Procedure

There are ten participating clubs in the Premier Division and twelve participating clubs in the First Division for 2009. During the course of the 2009 season each Premier club play their respective others four times, for a total of 36 matches per team. First Division sides play each other three times throughout the season for a total of 33 matches per team. A pre-season draw decided which clubs have the benefit of two home games in these matches. The A Championship contains six first team sides and the reserve sides from Premier Division and some First Division clubs, for a total of 18 clubs.

Teams receive three points for a win and one point for a draw. No points are awarded for a loss. Teams are ranked by total points, then goal difference and then goals scored. If there is equality in points, goal difference and goals for tallies, the clubs involved must partake in a play-off to decide their finishing positions.

Qualification for 2010–11 European competitions

According to the domestic league coefficients earned during last five years, Republic of Ireland ended up in 30th place among 53 European national football associations.[2] This means that the top team in the Premier Division will qualify for the second qualifying round of the UEFA Champions League. The second-placed team, as well as the winners of the domestic FAI Cup, will qualify for the second, while the third-placed team will qualify for the first qualifying round of the UEFA Europa League.

If it were to happen that cup-winners have already qualified for the UEFA Europa League via the league, the cup-win qualification will take prominence and the league-place qualification will be transferred to the next team who finished below them in the league. However, if the case is that the cup-winner has already won the league, that team will take a place in the UEFA Champions League qualifying rounds, by way of its league-win. The cup-winner spot will then be awarded to the second-placed team, with the third-placed team and the cup final losers (or the fourth-placed team if the cup losers finish second or third in the league) taking the original spots from the league.

Season

Tables

Premier Division

Pos
 Team
 Pld
 W
 D
 L
 GF
 GA
 GD
 Pts
 Qualification or relegation
1 Bohemians (C) 36 24 5 7 62 21 +41 77 2010–11 UEFA Champions League Second qualifying round
2 Shamrock Rovers 36 21 10 5 51 27 +24 73 2010–11 UEFA Europa League Second qualifying round
3 Cork City 36 17 9 10 42 28 +14 60 Club demoted
4 Derry City 36 18 5 13 49 31 +18 59 Club demoted
5 Dundalk 36 12 8 16 46 51 −5 44 2010–11 UEFA Europa League First qualifying round 2
6 Sligo Rovers 36 11 10 15 41 51 −10 43
7 St Patrick's Athletic 36 13 4 19 29 46 −17 43
8 Galway United 36 12 6 18 36 57 −21 42
9 Drogheda United (O) 36 7 11 18 32 50 −18 32 Relegation/Promotion play-off
10 Bray Wanderers 36 6 10 20 30 56 −26 0282

Source: loi.ie
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) goal difference; 3) number of goals scored
1 The Board of Management of the FAI terminated Derry City Football Club’s contract to participate in the League of Ireland on 7 November 2009. The decision came after Derry admitted to holding second unofficial contracts with players to the FAI. Despite the termination, a meeting over the future of the club regarding the participation in the League of Ireland on a different level than the Premier Division will be held during the week of 9 November 2009.[3]
The club was subsequently dissolved and a new club, also called Derry City took its place in 2010's First Division.

2 Following the demotion of Cork City F.C. on 22nd February 2010, Dundalk F.C. are set to take their place in the 2010-11 Europa League First qualifying round.[4] Bray Wanderers also retained their places within the top tier despite originally slated for relegation.
(C) = Champion; (R) = Relegated; (P) = Promoted; (E) = Eliminated; (O) = Play-off winner; (A) = Advances to a further round.
Only applicable when the season is not finished:
(Q) = Qualified to the phase of tournament indicated; (TQ) = Qualified to tournament, but not yet to the particular phase indicated; (RQ) = Qualified to the relegation tournament indicated; (DQ) = Disqualified from tournament.

First Division

Pos
 Team
 Pld
 W
 D
 L
 GF
 GA
 GD
 Pts
 Qualification or relegation
1 UCD (C) 33 23 5 5 62 22 +40 74 Promotion to Premier Division 2010
2 Shelbourne 33 22 7 4 66 31 +35 73 Relegation/Promotion play-off
3 Sporting Fingal (P) 33 21 6 6 68 28 +40 69 Relegation/Promotion play-off
2010–11 UEFA Europa League Second qualifying round 1
4 Waterford United 33 20 6 7 52 20 +32 66
5 Monaghan United 33 16 7 10 58 48 +10 55
6 Wexford Youths 33 15 5 13 27 31 −4 50
7 Limerick FC 33 12 8 13 50 43 +7 44
8 Finn Harps 33 8 9 16 35 51 −16 33
9 Longford Town 33 8 4 21 46 62 −16 28
10 Athlone Town 33 6 9 18 32 63 −31 27
11 Mervue United 33 6 5 22 28 64 −36 23
12 Kildare County (R) 33 4 3 26 25 85 −60 15 Relegation/Promotion play-off

Source: loi.ie
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) goal difference; 3) number of goals scored
1Sporting Fingal are the winners of the 2009 FAI Cup competition and therefore qualify for the second qualifying round of the UEFA Europa League.
(C) = Champion; (R) = Relegated; (P) = Promoted; (E) = Eliminated; (O) = Play-off winner; (A) = Advances to a further round.
Only applicable when the season is not finished:
(Q) = Qualified to the phase of tournament indicated; (TQ) = Qualified to tournament, but not yet to the particular phase indicated; (RQ) = Qualified to the relegation tournament indicated; (DQ) = Disqualified from tournament.

A Championship

Group 1
Pos
 Team
 Pld
 W
 D
 L
 GF
 GA
 GD
 Pts
 Qualification or relegation
1 Salthill Devon (P) 16 11 3 2 37 17 +20 36 Qualification to A Championship Final 1
2 Drogheda United A 16 10 2 4 39 18 +21 32
3 Finn Harps Reserves 16 9 3 4 37 17 +20 30
4 Castlebar Celtic 16 8 1 7 31 31 0 25
5 Derry City Reserves 16 7 2 7 32 21 +11 23
6 Tullamore Town 16 5 3 8 13 19 −6 18
7 Dundalk A 16 5 3 8 24 34 −10 18
8 Sligo Rovers Reserves 16 4 3 9 16 32 −16 15
9 Galway United Reserves 16 1 4 11 8 48 −40 7

Source: loi.ie
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) goal difference; 3) number of goals scored
Note: Reserve teams are ineligible for promotion.
(C) = Champion; (R) = Relegated; (P) = Promoted; (E) = Eliminated; (O) = Play-off winner; (A) = Advances to a further round.
Only applicable when the season is not finished:
(Q) = Qualified to the phase of tournament indicated; (TQ) = Qualified to tournament, but not yet to the particular phase indicated; (RQ) = Qualified to the relegation tournament indicated; (DQ) = Disqualified from tournament.

Group 2
Pos
 Team
 Pld
 W
 D
 L
 GF
 GA
 GD
 Pts
 Qualification or relegation
1 Shamrock Rovers A (C) 16 11 3 2 29 10 +19 36 Qualification to A Championship Final
2 Bohemians A 16 10 1 5 26 21 +5 31
3 Bray Wanderers A 16 8 4 4 30 21 +9 28
4 Sporting Fingal A 16 8 2 6 32 21 +11 26
5 Tralee Dynamos 16 8 1 7 20 21 −1 25
6 Cork City A 16 7 3 6 20 19 +1 24
7 St Patrick's Athletic A 16 3 6 7 16 18 −2 15
8 FC Carlow 16 3 3 10 14 35 −21 12
9 Cobh Ramblers 16 1 3 12 11 32 −21 6

Source: loi.ie
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) goal difference; 3) number of goals scored
Note: Reserve teams are ineligible for promotion.
(C) = Champion; (R) = Relegated; (P) = Promoted; (E) = Eliminated; (O) = Play-off winner; (A) = Advances to a further round.
Only applicable when the season is not finished:
(Q) = Qualified to the phase of tournament indicated; (TQ) = Qualified to tournament, but not yet to the particular phase indicated; (RQ) = Qualified to the relegation tournament indicated; (DQ) = Disqualified from tournament.


Play-Offs

Premier Division Promotion/Relegation play-off

Semi-finals

10 November 2009
19:45 GMT
Drogheda United 2 – 0 Bray Wanderers
James Chambers Goal 60'
Brian King Goal 82'		 Report John Mulroy Red card 84'
United Park, Drogheda
Referee: D. Hancock

10 November 2009
19:45 GMT
Shelbourne 1 – 2 Sporting Fingal
David McAllister Goal 72' (pen.)
Anto Flood Red card 73'		 Report Éamon Zayed Goal 39'
Shaun Williams Goal 41'
Tolka Park, Dublin
Attendance: 1,632
Referee: T. Connolly
Final

13 November 2009
19:45 GMT
Sporting Fingal 2 – 0 Bray Wanderers
Stephen Paisley Goal 51'
Conan Byrne Goal 67'		 Report
Morton Stadium, Dublin
Attendance: 740
Referee: D. Tomney

16 November 2009
19:45 GMT
Bray Wanderers 2 – 2 Sporting Fingal
John Flood Goal 83'
Chris O'Connor Goal 90+1'		 Report Éamon Zayed Goal 59'
Robert Bayly Goal 90+2'
Carlisle Grounds, Bray
Referee: D. Hanney

Sporting Fingal won 4–2 on aggregate and earned promotion to the 2010 League of Ireland Premier Division.

First Division Promotion/Relegation play-off

Following the decision by Kildare County to withdraw from the League of Ireland, the two-legged play-off games were cancelled and Salthill Devon won promotion to the League of Ireland First Division for the 2010 League of Ireland, pending the licensing process.[5]

A Championship Final

31 October 2009
14:00 GMT
Salthill Devon 0 – 1 Shamrock Rovers A
Report Don Cowan Goal 90+7'

Results

Premier Division

First half of season
Home ╲ Away BOH BRW COR DER DRO DUN GAL SHM SLI StP
Bohemians 2–0 0–1 1–1 1–0 5–0 2–0 2–0 2–0 3–0
Bray Wanderers 1–3 0–2 1–1 0–1 1–1 2–2 0–0 3–1 2–1
Cork City 0–1 2–1 1–0 1–0 1–2 1–0 0–0 1–0 0–1
Derry City 3–2 2–0 2–1 1–0 0–1 1–1 0–0 1–2 1–0
Drogheda United 0–1 0–0 2–1 0–3 1–1 0–1 2–2 0–0 1–0
Dundalk 0–1 3–0 1–2 1–0 3–0 1–0 0–1 0–2 0–1
Galway United 0–2 3–0 0–2 0–3 1–1 1–0 1–3 0–0 2–1
Shamrock Rovers 2–1 0–1 1–1 1–2 1–1 3–1 1–0 2–1 2–0
Sligo Rovers 0–0 2–1 1–1 0–1 2–2 1–3 2–0 0–3 0–1
St Patrick's Athletic 3–1 1–1 0–3 0–3 2–1 2–0 0–3 1–2 2–2

Source: loi.ie
1 ^ The home team is listed in the left-hand column.
Colours: Blue = home team win; Yellow = draw; Red = away team win.

Second half of season
Home ╲ Away BOH BRW COR DER DRO DUN GAL SHM SLI StP
Bohemians 1–2 1–0 1–0 4–0 3–2 5–0 0–0 3–1 3–1
Bray Wanderers 1–1 3–2 0–1 1–2 1–1 1–2 1–2 2–2 0–1
Cork City 0–2 1–0 2–0 0–0 2–1 4–2 0–0 0–0 0–1
Derry City 0–1 3–0 1–1 0–1 3–0 1–3 0–1 1–2 1–0
Drogheda United 1–1 1–2 0–1 1–3 2–2 4–0 0–1 2–2 1–2
Dundalk 0–2 0–0 1–0 1–2 4–2 3–0 2–4 2–2 0–0
Galway United 0–2 3–1 2–2 3–1 0–2 0–3 0–1 1–0 2–1
Shamrock Rovers 1–0 3–1 1–2 2–1 2–0 2–2 1–1 3–1 1–0
Sligo Rovers 1–0 1–0 0–3 0–4 3–1 3–4 2–0 1–2 2–0
St Patrick's Athletic 0–2 2–0 1–1 0–2 1–0 1–0 1–2 1–0 0–2

Source: loi.ie
1 ^ The home team is listed in the left-hand column.
Colours: Blue = home team win; Yellow = draw; Red = away team win.

First Division

Regular home/away matches
Home ╲ Away ATH FHA KIL LIM LON MER MON SHE SFI UCD WAT WEX
Athlone Town 2–2 3–1 0–2 2–5 2–2 2–3 2–2 1–2 0–1 1–2 0–1
Finn Harps 1–1 2–1 1–2 1–0 2–0 1–2 1–1 3–2 1–2 1–3 0–2
Kildare County 0–1 1–1 0–0 2–3 0–3 0–2 0–3 0–8 0–1 0–2 0–3
Limerick FC 0–0 1–1 3–0 1–4 4–1 0–0 0–1 1–4 0–0 0–2 2–0
Longford Town 0–1 0–0 4–0 2–3 3–0 3–3 0–2 1–3 0–3 1–3 0–1
Mervue United 0–1 1–1 1–4 1–0 3–2 1–5 0–1 1–1 1–2 0–2 0–0
Monaghan United 0–0 1–0 5–1 1–0 2–0 1–2 0–1 0–3 2–3 0–0 0–0
Shelbourne 2–0 2–1 2–0 1–0 2–2 7–0 2–1 1–0 1–3 1–0 2–1
Sporting Fingal 2–0 1–0 1–0 1–1 3–0 2–0 4–0 1–0 0–1 1–4 2–0
UCD 1–1 1–1 4–0 2–1 3–1 1–0 3–0 0–1 0–1 0–0 0–1
Waterford United 2–1 4–0 2–0 2–1 1–0 2–0 6–0 0–1 1–1 0–1 1–2
Wexford Youths 1–0 2–1 0–3 0–2 2–1 1–0 0–2 1–2 0–1 0–1 0–1

Source: loi.ie
1 ^ The home team is listed in the left-hand column.
Colours: Blue = home team win; Yellow = draw; Red = away team win.

Extra home matches
Home ╲ Away ATH FHA KIL LIM LON MER MON SHE SFI UCD WAT WEX
Athlone Town 0–6 2–2 1–2 0–5 1–2 2–0
Finn Harps 1–0 0–2 1–3 0–5 1–1
Kildare County 0–2 0–1 1–5 2–3 1–2
Limerick FC 6–1 3–0 2–3 2–1 3–3 2–1
Longford Town 3–0 1–2 1–2 1–4 0–4
Mervue United 3–1 0–1 0–1 2–4 1–4 1–2
Monaghan United 6–1 4–2 0–3 2–2 3–0
Shelbourne 0–0 3–3 4–5 2–2 1–2
Sporting Fingal 2–3 4–1 2–1 2–2 1–0 0–1
UCD 5–0 2–1 2–1 3–0 2–3 2–0
Waterford United 2–0 1–0 1–0 0–2 0–1 0–0
Wexford Youths 1–0 2–0 1–1 0–0 0–0

Source: loi.ie
1 ^ The home team is listed in the left-hand column.
Colours: Blue = home team win; Yellow = draw; Red = away team win.

A Championship

Group 1
Home ╲ Away CAS DER DRO DUN FHA GAL SAL SLI TUL
Castlebar Celtic 1–2 2–3 5–0 2–5 3–0 3–2 3–1 0–0
Derry City Reserves 6–1 0–1 3–1 1–1 6–0 1–3 2–0 1–2
Drogheda United A 1–2 1–0 1–2 3–1 10–0 2–2 1–3 3–2
Dundalk A 2–3 2–5 2–1 3–3 4–1 0–1 2–1 1–1
Finn Harps Reserves 5–1 3–0 1–2 2–0 3–04 3–1 0–0 0–1
Galway United Reserves 0–35 1–1 0–32 1–1 0–4 1–3 0–0 0–0
Salthill Devon 3–0 2–0 1–1 3–03 2–1 4–2 3–3 2–0
Sligo Rovers Reserves 1–0 1–4 0–5 1–3 1–3 3–1 0–1 1–0
Tullamore Town 0–2 1–0 0–1 2–1 0–2 0–1 0–4 4–0

Source: loi.ie
1 ^ The home team is listed in the left-hand column.
2The match was awarded to Drogheda United A with a score of 0–3 due to Galway United A being unable to field a team.
3The match was awarded to Salthill Devon with a score of 0–3 due to Dundalk A failing to travel to the match.
4The match was awarded to Finn Harps A with a score of 3-0 due to Galway United A failing to show up.
5The match was awarded to Castlebar Celtic with a score of 3-0 due to Galway United A failing to show up.
Colours: Blue = home team win; Yellow = draw; Red = away team win.

Group 2
Home ╲ Away BOH BRW COB COR CAR StP SHA SFI TRA
Bohemians A 0–32 3–1 1–5 2–1 2–0 2–3 0–0 0–1
Bray Wanderers A 0–2 4–2 5–0 4–0 2–2 0–1 1–7 1–0
Cobh Ramblers 0–1 2–5 0–2 0–0 1–0 1–1 1–4 0–1
Cork City A 0–1 0–0 2–0 2–0 1–0 0–2 3–0 2–1
FC Carlow 0–5 1–2 1–0 1–1 2–0 0–3 2–4 3–1
St Patrick's Athletic A 4–0 2–0 1–1 0–0 3–3 0–0 2–0 2–2
Shamrock Rovers A 1–2 1–1 2–0 1–0 3–0 1–0 2–1 5–0
Sporting Fingal A 1–3 0–0 2–1 6–2 2–0 2–0 1–2 1–2
Tralee Dynamos 1–2 1–2 3–1 1–0 3–0 1–0 2–1 0–1

Source: loi.ie
1 ^ The home team is listed in the left-hand column.
2The match originally finished 4–0, but it was later awarded to Bray Wanderers A with a score of 0–3 due to Bohemians A having fielded an ineligible player.
Colours: Blue = home team win; Yellow = draw; Red = away team win.

Top goalscorers

The following sections contain only goals which have been scored in the respective divisions of the League of Ireland.

League of Ireland clubs in Europe 2009-10

UEFA Champions League

After winning the 2008 Premier Division, Bohemians represented the league in the Champions League. Thanks to the league's vast improvement in European competition over the past five seasons the Irish club started in the Second Qualifying Round. However they were not seeded and were given a tough tie with Austrian champions Red Bull Salzburg. Despite being underdogs going into the tie, they produced a wonderful performance in the away leg and went back to Dublin with a slight advantage after getting a 1-1 draw. 85 minutes into the home leg and with Bohs apparently going through, disaster struck as Janko headered in an 87th-minute winner for the Austrians which knocked Bohs out of Europe.

UEFA Europa League

Sligo Rovers were the first to represent the league in 2009, as they were in the first qualifying round. They got a good draw with Albanian side Vllaznia however an unbelievable home leg ended up 2-1 to the Albanians. Sligo failed to recover in the away leg, drawing 1-1 and so were knocked out of Europe at the first attempt.

St Patrick's Athletic and Derry City started into the second qualifying round. In the first leg St Pats drew 1-1 at home with Maltese side Valletta and Derry City drew 1-1 with Skonto Riga in Latvia. A good second leg saw both qualify for the next round, with Pats winning 1-0 in Malta and Derry beating Skonto 1-0 at the Brandywell.

In the next round St Pats were drawn against Russian club Krylia Sovetov Samara. They were not fancied to get through, however they won the first leg at Richmond Park 1-0. There were higher hopes for Derry against CSKA Sofia of Bulgaria but they lost the first leg 1-0. Despite their best efforts in the second leg, they could only manage a 1-1 draw and so were knocked out. St Pats also seemed to be heading out as they were 3-0 down to Krylia Sovetov in Russia with just twenty minutes remaining, but Declan O'Brien struck twice to send them through on the away goals tule.

In the last round before the groups stages, St Pats were drawn against Romanian giants Steaua Bucharest, who in the previous round had hammered Scottish club Motherwell 6-1. It didn't look good for Pats but at half time in the away leg they had held them scoreless. In the second half however they found their scoring touch and ran out comfortable 3-0 winners. Steaua expected an easy match in Dublin, however on 48 minutes Pats went ahead and a minute later hit the post from a free-kick. Steaua recovered their composure however and won 2-1, thus knocking out Ireland's last team in European competition in 2009. Despite falling in the final round, Pats were acknowledged by fellow league fans for their impressive displays in the competition throughout the summer.

UEFA Ranking

The League of Ireland accumulated a respectable score of 1.375 co-efficient points for the season. After the 2009/10 season, Ireland ranked 29th in the co-efficient table, their highest placing since 1986.

See also

External links

References

  1. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  2. ↑ UEFA Country Ranking 2009
  3. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  4. ↑ Gerry Matthews Statement on Licensing Decision
  5. ↑ http://www.loi.ie/index.php/about/press-office/1317-fai-statement
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