Ulster F.C.
Full name | Ulster Football Club |
---|---|
Founded | 1877 |
Ground | Ulster Cricket Ground Ormeau Road Ballynafeigh Belfast |
League | Irish Football League |
Ulster Football Club is a defunct Irish association football club that was based in Ballynafeigh, Belfast. It was initially founded in 1877 as a rugby club, but later switched codes to association football. It was subsequently a founding member of the Irish Football League in 1890. The club later switched back to rugby and continued playing into the 1930s.[citation needed]
The club was founded by members of Ulster Cricket Club and played its home games at the Ulster Cricket Ground. It is listed as a rugby club in Richard M. Peter’s Irish Football Annual 1880 and during the 1879-80 season it played 24 games, taking on, among others, local rivals North of Ireland and Queen's College, Belfast.[1] On October 24, 1878 the club hosted a demonstration game between two Scottish association football teams, Queen's Park and Caledonian. This game is recognised as one of the earliest organised association football games to be played in Ireland. A second demonstration game in 1879 saw an Ulster XI take on another Scottish club side, Lenzie.[2] During the 1880s and early 1890s, both Ulster and its home ground played a prominent role in the early history of association football in Ireland. Ulster reached the Irish Cup final on three occasions, winning the competition in 1887 after defeating Cliftonville 3-0 in the final.[3] They were also founder members of the Irish Football League and finished as runners-up during its first two seasons, 1890-91 and 1891-92. The club was a member of the League for six seasons in total: four between 1890 and 1894 and two from 1901 to 1903.[4] During the 1880s, Ballynafeigh also hosted several Irish Cup finals and Ireland international games.[5][6]
Honours
- Irish Cup :
- Winners 1886-87: 1
- Runners Up : 1882-83, 1890-91: 2
Notable former players
Ireland
Twelve Ulster F.C. players represented Ireland at international level, winning 44 caps between them.[7][8] Reynolds also went on to play for England.
See also
References
- ^ Neal Garnham The Origins and Development of Football in Ireland. Ulster Historical Foundation, 1999. ISBN 0-901905-93-3
- ^ Garnham
- ^ Northern Ireland - Cup Finals
- ^ Northern Ireland - Final League Tables 1890-1998
- ^ England - International Results 1872-1899
- ^ Scotland - International Matches 1881-1890
- ^ Northern Ireland’s Footballing Greats
- ^ "Fred McKee" (in German). weltfussball.de. Retrieved 22 Aug 2014.