Irish Intermediate League
| Organising body | Irish Football Association |
|---|---|
| Founded | 1915 |
| Abolished | 1954 |
| Region |  Northern Ireland (since 1921) Ireland (1915–1921) |
| Most successful club(s) | Crusaders (9 titles) |
The Irish Intermediate League was a Northern Irish football competition for teams of intermediate status, which also included reserve sides of senior teams. The league ran from 1915 until 1954.
History
It began in 1915 after the amalgamation of the Irish Junior League and Irish Senior Reserve League,[1][2] and ran until 1954, when the majority of the remaining clubs applied to join the Irish League B Division, which had been formed in 1951.[3][4] Until the introduction of the Irish League B Division it was the second tier of the Northern Ireland football league system.[5]
The tournament also ran a cup tournament for members of the league, the McElroy Cup.[6]
List of champions
- 1915–16 Glentoran II*
- 1916–17 Belfast Celtic II*
- 1917–18 Belfast Celtic II*
- 1918–19 Glentoran II*
- 1919–20 Glentoran II*
- 1920–21 Brantwood
- 1921–22 Dundela
- 1922–23 Crusaders
- 1923–24 Dunmurry
- 1924–25 Brantwood
- 1925–26 Crusaders
- 1926–27 Crusaders
- 1927–28 Willowfield
- 1928–29 Crusaders
- 1929–30 Glentoran II*
- 1930–31 Crusaders
- 1931–32 Belfast Celtic II*
- 1932–33 Crusaders
- 1933–34 Belfast Celtic II*
- 1934–35 Belfast Celtic II*
- 1935–36 Belfast Celtic II*
- 1936–37 Belfast Celtic II*
- 1937–38 Crusaders
- 1938–39 Crusaders
- 1939–40 Linfield Swifts*
- 1940–41 Bangor Reserves*
- 1941–42 Aircraft United
- 1942–43 Bangor Reserves*
- 1943–44 Bangor Reserves*
- 1944–45 Dundela
- 1945–46 Linfield Swifts*
- 1946–47 Dundela
- 1947–48 Brantwood
- 1948–49 Crusaders
- 1949–50 Dundela
- 1950–51 Dundela
- 1951–52 Brantwood
- 1952–53 Larne
- 1953–54 Brantwood
NB - * denotes reserve teams of senior clubs
Performance by club
| Team | No. of wins | Winning years |
|---|---|---|
| Crusaders | 9 | 1922–23, 1925–26, 1926–27, 1928–29, 1930–31, 1932–33, 1937–38, 1938–39, 1948–49 |
| Belfast Celtic II* | 7 | 1916–17, 1917–18, 1931–32, 1933–34, 1934–35, 1935–36, 1936–37 |
| Dundela | 5 | 1921–22, 1944–45, 1946–47, 1949–50, 1950–51 |
| Brantwood | 5 | 1920–21, 1924–25, 1947–48, 1951–52, 1953–54 |
| Glentoran II* | 4 | 1915–16, 1918–19, 1919–20, 1929–30 |
| Bangor Reserves* | 3 | 1940–41, 1942–43, 1943–44 |
| Linfield Swifts* | 2 | 1939–40, 1945–46 |
| Aircraft United | 1 | 1941–42 |
| Willowfield | 1 | 1927–28 |
NB - * indicates reserve team
List of McElroy Cup winners
- 1915–16 Glentoran II*
- 1916–17 Belfast Celtic II*
- 1917–18 Glentoran II*
- 1918–19 Distillery II*
- 1919–20 Cliftonville Olympic*
- 1920–21 Distillery II*
- 1921–22 St Mary's
- 1922–23 Belfast United
- 1923–24 St Mary's
- 1924–25 Brantwood / Dunmurry (shared)
- 1925–26 Linfield Rangers
- 1926–27 Dunmurry
- 1927–28 Broadway United
- 1928–29 Linfield Swifts*
- 1929–30 Crusaders
- 1930–31 Newington Rangers
- 1931–32 Crusaders
- 1932–33 Belfast Celtic II*
- 1933–34 Summerfield / Glentoran II* (shared)
- 1934–35 Belfast Celtic II*
- 1935–36 Belfast Celtic II*
- 1936–37 Belfast Celtic II*
- 1937–38 Linfield Swifts*
- 1938–39 Glentoran II*
- 1939–40 Linfield Swifts*
- 1940–41 Ards II*
- 1941–42 Ballyclare Comrades*
- 1942–43 Belfast Celtic II*
- 1943–44 Belfast Celtic II*
- 1944–45 Linfield Swifts*
- 1945–46 Dundela / Linfield Swifts* (shared)
- 1946–47 Bangor Reserves
- 1947–48 Crusaders
- 1948–49 Larne
NB - * denotes reserve teams of senior clubs
Performance by club
| Team | No. of wins | Winning years |
|---|---|---|
| Belfast Celtic II* | 7 | 1916–17, 1932–33, 1934–35, 1935–36, 1936–37, 1942–43, 1943–44 |
| Linfield Swifts* | 5 | 1928–29, 1937–38, 1939–40, 1944–45, 1945–46 (shared) |
| Glentoran II* | 4 | 1915–16, 1917–18, 1933–34 (shared), 1938–39 |
| Crusaders | 3 | 1929–30, 1931–32, 1947–48 |
| Distillery II* | 2 | 1918–19, 1920–21 |
| St Mary's | 2 | 1921–22, 1922–24 |
| Dunmurry | 2 | 1924–25 (shared), 1926–27 |
| Cliftonville Olympic* | 1 | 1919–20 |
| Belfast United | 1 | 1922–23 |
| Linfield Rangers | 1 | 1925–26 |
| Broadway United | 1 | 1927–28 |
| Newington Rangers | 1 | 1930–31 |
| Ards II | 1 | 1940–41 |
| Ballyclare Comrades | 1 | 1941–42 |
| Bangor Reserves* | 1 | 1946–47 |
| Larne | 1 | 1948–49 |
| Brantwood | 1 | 1924–25 (shared) |
| Summerfield | 1 | 1933–34 (shared) |
| Dundela | 1 | 1945–46 (shared) |
NB - * indicates reserve team
References
- ^ "Association Football - Amalgamation of local leagues". Belfast News-Letter. 24 April 1915. p. 3.
- ^ "Field & Pavilion - News About Clubs And Players". Daily Record. 15 June 1915. p. 2.
- ^ "Intermediate League likely to end soon". Belfast Telegraph. 15 June 1954. p. 10.
- ^ ""Jaymac" sums up Larne's hopes in new season". Larne Times. 12 August 1954. p. 2.
- ^ "Irish Intermediate league". Irish Football Club Project. Archived from the original on 31 October 2015. Retrieved 3 January 2019.
- ^ "McElroy Cup". Irish Football Club Project. Archived from the original on 31 October 2015. Retrieved 3 January 2019.