Ulster Cup
The Ulster Cup was an annual football competition held by the Irish Football League for senior clubs. It was held on fifty-one occasions until being suspended after the 1998/99 season and discontinued after a one-off re-appearance in 2002/03. The last three editions were only open to First Division sides. From the mid-1980s to the early-1990s the competition was known as the Lombard Ulster Cup due to a sponsorship deal with the Lombard & Ulster Bank. It had previously been sponsored by Morans.
Format
The format of the Ulster Cup varied from season to season. It often employed a league format, with each club playing each other once and the winner declared as the team with the most points; and sometimes a group basis, with the winners decided by a play-off.
The format over the years was as follows:
| Years | No. of seasons | Format |
|---|---|---|
| 1948–1951 and 1952–56 | 7 | group system plus final |
| 1956–1957 | 1 | league |
| 1957–1965 | 8 | group system plus final |
| 1965–1983 | 18 | league |
| 1983–1996 | 16 | group system plus final |
| 1996–1997 | 1 | knock-out |
| 1997–1999 and 2002–03 | 3 | league (First Division clubs only) |
Winners
Winners of the Ulster Cup by season[1]
- 1948/49 Linfield
- 1949/50 Larne
- 1950/51 Glentoran
- 1951/52 (not held)*
- 1952/53 Glentoran
- 1953/54 Crusaders
- 1954/55 Glenavon
- 1955/56 Linfield
- 1956/57 Linfield
- 1957/58 Distillery
- 1958/59 Glenavon
- 1959/60 Linfield
- 1960/61 Ballymena United
- 1961/62 Linfield
- 1962/63 Glenavon
- 1963/64 Crusaders
- 1964/65 Linfield
- 1965/66 Coleraine
- 1966/67 Glentoran
- 1967/68 Linfield
- 1968/69 Coleraine
- 1969/70 Coleraine
- 1970/71 Linfield
- 1971/72 Linfield
- 1972/73 Coleraine
- 1973/74 Ards
- 1974/75 Linfield
- 1975/76 Coleraine
- 1976/77 Glentoran
- 1977/78 Linfield
- 1978/79 Linfield
- 1979/80 Linfield
- 1980/81 Ballymena United
- 1981/82 Glentoran
- 1982/83 Glentoran
- 1983/84 Glentoran
- 1984/85 Linfield
- 1985/86 Coleraine
- 1986/87 Coleraine
- 1987/88 Larne
- 1988/89 Glentoran
- 1989/90 Glentoran
- 1990/91 Portadown
- 1991/92 Bangor
- 1992/93 Linfield
- 1993/94 Crusaders
- 1994/95 Bangor
- 1995/96 Portadown
- 1996/97 Coleraine
- 1997/98 Ballyclare Comrades**
- 1998/99 Distillery**
- 2002/03 Dungannon Swifts**
- *Ballymena United won a one-off Festival of Britain Cup played instead of the Ulster Cup in 1951/52.
- **The last three editions were open to First Division sides only.
Summary of Winners
| Team | Wins | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Linfield | 15 | |
| Glentoran | 9 | |
| Coleraine | 8 | |
| Crusaders | 3 | |
| Glenavon | 3 | |
| Distillery | 2 | |
| Ballymena United | 2 | (plus 1 Festival of Britain Cup) |
| Larne | 2 | |
| Bangor | 2 | |
| Portadown | 2 | |
| Ards | 1 | |
| Ballyclare Comrades | 1 | |
| Dungannon Swifts | 1 |
See also
References
- ^ "Belfast Telegraph Northern Ireland Soccer Yearbook 1999/2000" Ed. Dr. Malcolm Brodie MBE