Athlone Town A.F.C.
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| Full name | Athlone Town Association Football Club | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Nickname(s) | The Town | ||
| Founded | 1887 | ||
| Ground | Athlone Town Stadium, Lissywollen, Athlone | ||
| Capacity | 5,000 (2,500 seated) | ||
| Chairman | John Hayden | ||
| Manager | Dario Castelo | ||
| League | League of Ireland First Division | ||
| 2023 | League of Ireland First Division, 5th of 10 | ||
| Website | Club website | ||
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Athlone Town Association Football Club (Irish: Cumann Peile Bhaile Áth Luain) is an Irish football club from Athlone who are playing in the League of Ireland. The club is the oldest in the League as it was founded in 1887.[1] First elected to the League of Ireland in 1922, they play their home matches in Lissywollen, their new stadium which opened in 2007. The club's colours are blue and black. Away kits vary from year to year although orange and black has been worn most recently.
History[edit]
1920s[edit]
Athlone first competed in the League of Ireland in the 1922–23 season, finishing sixth. They were the first non-Dublin club in the Irish Free State to compete in the national Free State League. They competed in the league until 1928 and not again until the 1969–70 season.
Athlone Town won the FAI Cup, their first domestic success in 1924, beating Fordsons. Dinny Hannon scored the only goal of the game, as Athlone went through the whole competition without conceding a goal.
Hannon was one of five Athlone Town players chosen to represent the Irish Free State at the 1924 Paris Olympic Games. The other players were Tommy Muldoon, Frank Ghent, John Joe Dykes and Paddy O'Reilly.[2]
Domestic success and European competition[edit]
The club finished second in the league in the 1974–75 season, earning a place in the UEFA Cup, the first time they had ever qualified for European competition. Their first-round game was against Norwegian side Vålerenga who they beat 3-1 at home before drawing 1-1 away. Athlone's second round tie was against Italian side AC Milan, drawing 0–0 in the first leg at St. Mel's Park, setting a record attendance of 9,000 before losing the second leg at the San Siro 3–0.[3]
Athlone won their first league title in the 1980–81 season. They played KB in Europe the following season, earning a draw in the first leg in Denmark and again at St. Mel's Park, going out on the away goal rule.
In the 1981–82 season Athlone Town won the League Cup for the second time, beating Shamrock Rovers. However, they failed to retain their league title that year finishing 4th. Athlone Town were again crowned league champions in the 1982–83 season and qualifying for Europe, and also retained the League Cup, beating Dundalk. Their opponents in Europe on this occasion were Belgian outfit Raymond Goethals managed Standard Liège, losing 3–2 at home and 8–2 in Liège.
In 1985 six new clubs were elected to the league, increasing the league's participation to 22. As a result, the current two division (Premier and First) structure was adapted with Athlone Town in Premier Division. In 1987 the club finished last and were relegated to the First Division. Their stay there was short, finishing top of First Division the following season, gaining promotion to the Premier Division. The club remained in the top flight until the 1991–92 season, when they finished eleventh and were subsequently relegated to the First Division.
Athlone Town again gained promotion to the Premier Division in the 1993–94 season, finishing runners-up to Sligo Rovers that season.
Relegation[edit]
The club were once again relegated in 1996, narrowly missing out on promotion in 2001 by one point to Monaghan United.
Since 2001 Athlone have finished each season in the bottom half of the first division. In that time eight different managers have been appointed. In 2007 the club moved from St Mel's Park to a new stadium, which was opened on 9 March when the home side hosted Kilkenny City in the opening game of the season.
On 15 December 2008, the club held an emergency E.G.M. with supporters stating that they were in financial difficulties. Part finance had been raised and the club worked towards raising the rest. The club received funds through the patron scheme with over 350 fans contributing.
On 27 September 2013, Athlone clinched the First Division title with a 1–0 win over Waterford United.
In 2014, Athlone Town had a bad campaign in the Premier Division, finishing last in the championship, in the Leinster Senior Cup it was eliminated in the quarterfinals by St Patrick's Athletic, in the FAI Cup it was eliminated in the second round by Longford Town, and in the League Cup lost to Longford Town again in the first round.
In September 2017 the FAI banned goalkeeper Igors Labuts and midfielder Dragos Sfrijan for 12 months after a UEFA investigation found "clear and overwhelming betting evidence" of fixing of Athlone's 29 April match against Longford Town in the 2017 League of Ireland First Division.[4] The Professional Footballers' Association of Ireland said the decision was based on "half-baked innuendo".[5]
In 2018, a dispute over ownership of Athlone Town Stadium arose.[6][7][8]
In November 2020, Athlone Town lost 11-0 to Dundalk F.C. in the FAI Cup semi final, a new record for the biggest win from a team in the history of the competition[9]
There are many youth teams, ranging from u13 boys' to u17 women's team.
The club currently plays in the League of Ireland First Division.
European record[edit]
Overview[edit]
| Competition | Matches | W | D | L | GF | GA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| European Cup | 4
|
0
|
1
|
3
|
7
|
14
|
| UEFA Cup | 4
|
1
|
2
|
1
|
4
|
5
|
| TOTAL | 8
|
1
|
3
|
4
|
11
|
19
|
Matches[edit]
| Season | Competition | Round | Opponent | Home | Away | Aggregate |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1975–76 | UEFA Cup | 1R |  Vålerengen
|
3–1 | 1–1 | 4–2 |
| 2R |  Milan
|
0–0 | 0–3 | 0–3 | ||
| 1981–82 | European Cup | 1R |  KB
|
2–2 | 1–1 | 3–3 (a) |
| 1983–84 | European Cup | 1R |  Standard Liège
|
2–3 | 2–8 | 4–11 |
Honours[edit]
- League of Ireland: 2
- FAI Cup: 1
- League of Ireland Cup: 3
- 1979–80, 1981–82, 1982–83
- Leinster Senior Cup (association football): 3
- 1969–70, 1987–88, 1991–92
- LFA President's Cup: 1
- 1983–84
- Tyler Cup: 1
- League of Ireland First Division: 2
- League of Ireland B Division: 2
- 1968–69, 1983–84
- FAI Junior Cup
- 1934–35, 1937–38: 2
- FAI Youth Cup
- 1983–84: 1
Players[edit]
- As of 15 February 2024
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
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Coaching and medical staff[edit]
| Position | Staff |
|---|---|
| Director of Football | Michael O'Connor |
| Head Coach | Dario Castelo |
| Coach | Emmett Egan |
| Kitman | Lee Bolger |
| Chairman | John Hayden |
| Vice Chairman | Martin Collins |
| Club Secretary | David Dully |
| Club Finance Officer | Joey Boland |
| Physio | Mark Quaerney |
Former managers[edit]
 |
Billy Young (1969)- Mick Dalton (1970)
- Amby Fogarty (1974–76)
Trevor Hockey (1976)- Tommy Carroll (1976–77)
- Seán Thomas (1977–79)
- Turlough O'Connor (1979–85)
- Padraig O'Connor (1987–89)
- Mick Leech (1990–91)
- Pat Devlin (1991–92)
- Michael O'Connor (1992–95)
- Tony Mannion (1995–96)
- Dermot Keely (1996)
- Terry Eviston (1996–97)
- Liam Buckley (1997–98)
- Jimmy Greene (1999–00)
- Liam Buckley (2000–02)
- Aaron Callaghan (2004)
- Stephen Kelly (2004–05)
- John Gill (2005)
- Michael O'Connor (2005–07)
- Dermot Lennon (2007–09)
- Brendan Place (2009–10)
- Mike Kerley (2011–12)
- Padraig Moran (2012)
- Roddy Collins (2012–13)
- Mick Cooke (2014)
- Keith Long (2014)
- Eddie Wallace (2014–15)
- Alan Mathews (2015–16)
- Colin Fortune (2016–17)
Ricardo Monsanto (2017)- Ricardo Cravo (2017)
- Roddy Collins (2017–18)
- Aaron Callaghan (2018)
- Terry Butler (2018–2019)
- Adrian Carberry (2019–2021)
- Paul Doolin (2021)
- Martin Russell (2022)
- Dermot Lennon (2022–2023)
- Gordon Brett (2023)
References[edit]
- ^ Lynch, Frank (1991). A History of Athlone Town F.C. – the first 101 years. Athlone. p. 1.
The record books give 1892 as the year of our founding ... as it was in that year that the club became affiliated to the Leinster Football Association, with the object of competing in the newly inaugurated Leinster Junior Cup. However, for the real date of birth we must refer to our esteemed local paper the Westmeath Independent, which in its issue dated 8 January 1887 stated 'We are in a position to announce that O.R. Coote Esq., Larkfield is organising a club under Association rules and already a large number of young men of the town have become members...'
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link) - ^ Carey, Tadhg (2009). When We Were Kings – The Story of Athlone Town's 1924 FAI Cup Triumph. Athlone: Tadhg Carey. p. 9.
That five of the winning team – Paddy O'Reilly, Tommy Muldoon, John Joe Dykes, Denis Hannon and Frank Ghent – would make history as the first Olympians to compete for the new Irish Free State later that same year in Paris only added to the fairytale.'
- ^ "'It came on BBC News: 'In Ireland today, a team of postmen, butchers and bakers drew 0-0 with AC Milan". The 42. 17 September 2020. Retrieved 3 November 2023.
- ^ "Athlone players suspended for match fixing to serve 12-month ban after appeal is thrown out". Independent.ie. 5 October 2018. Retrieved 7 November 2018.
- ^ "Athlone players banned for 12 months by FAI". RTÉ.ie. 7 September 2017. Archived from the original on 8 September 2017. Retrieved 7 November 2018.
- ^ Carolan, Mary (19 February 2018). "Athlone Town Football Club secretary seeks to remove Athlone Stadium Ltd as trustee on property". The Irish Times. Retrieved 7 November 2018.
- ^ Managh, Ray (30 August 2017). "Athlone Town FC wins right to draw down Government grant". The Irish Times. Retrieved 7 November 2018.
- ^ "Dully v Athlone Town Stadium". vLex.com. Retrieved 20 June 2023.
- ^ "Dundalk put 11 past Athlone in record-breaking FAI Cup hammering". The42. 29 November 2020.
- ^ "FAI Umbro Youth Challenge Cup Previous Winners". www.fai.ie. 2 February 2016. Retrieved 2 February 2016.
- ^ "FAI Junior Cup Winners". stadium.aviva.ie. Retrieved 10 April 2016.
- ^ Mark Herbert, Donie Butler (1994–95). FAI Yearbook & Diary 1995. Dublin: Sportsworld Ltd.
- ^ Lynch, Frank (1991). A History of Athlone Town F.C: The First 101 Years. Athlone: Arcadia.
External links[edit]
- Athlone Town A.F.C.
- 1887 establishments in Ireland
- Association football clubs established in 1887
- Association football clubs in Leinster
- Fan-owned football clubs
- Former Athletic Union League (Dublin) clubs
- Former Leinster Senior League clubs
- League of Ireland B Division clubs
- League of Ireland First Division clubs
- Organisations based in Athlone
- Sport in Athlone