1921–22 League of Ireland

The 1921–22 League of Ireland was the inaugural season of top-tier football in the Republic of Ireland. It began on 17 September and ended on 17 December 1921.

League of Ireland
Season1921–22
Dates17 September – 17 December 1921
ChampionsSt. James's Gate (1st title)
Matches played56
Goals scored204 (3.64 per match)
Top goalscorerJack Kelly (11 goals)
Biggest home winDublin United 6-0 Frankfort
Biggest away winYMCA 0-5 Bohemians
Highest scoringFrankfort 4-4 YMCA

Teams

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Locations of the 1921-22 League of Ireland teams
Team Location Stadium
Bohemians Dublin (Phibsborough) Dalymount Park
Dublin United Dublin (Donnybrook) Beech Hill
Jacobs Dublin (Crumlin) Rutland Avenue
Frankfort Dublin (Drumcondra) Richmond Road
Olympia Dublin (Inchicore) Bellevue Lodge
St. James's Gate Dublin (Crumlin) St. James's Park
Shelbourne Dublin (Ringsend) Shelbourne Park
YMCA Dublin (Sandymount) Claremount Road

Season overview

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The first season of the League of Ireland featured eight teams in a single division, all of whom were based in Dublin. All eight teams had spent the previous season playing in the Leinster Senior League, while Bohemians and Shelbourne had also played in the 1919–20 Irish League.

The league was won by St James's Gate,[1] who went on to complete a treble by winning both the FAI Cup and the Leinster Senior Cup, while Shelbourne won the League of Ireland Shield.

Frankfort and YMCA withdrew from the league at the end of the season, and together with Rathmines Athletic and Reds United they make up a group of four clubs who have played just one season in the top level of the League of Ireland.[2]

Standings

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Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts
1 St. James's Gate (C) 14 11 1 2 31 8 +23 23
2 Bohemians 14 10 1 3 35 13 +22 21
3 Shelbourne 14 8 2 4 31 21 +10 18
4 Olympia 14 5 4 5 20 21 −1 14
5 Jacobs 14 4 4 6 23 27 −4 12
6 Frankfort 14 3 5 6 22 32 −10 11
7 Dublin United 14 5 0 9 25 39 −14 10
8 YMCA 14 0 3 11 17 43 −26 3
Source: [1][3][4]
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) goal difference; 3) number of goals scored.
(C) Champions

Results

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Home \ Away BOH DBU FRA JAC OLY STG SHE YMC
Bohemians 4–2 0–0 2–0 1–0 1–2 2–0 5–0
Dublin United 2–5 6–0 3–1 0–3 2–0 1–2 3–2
Frankfort 1–3 5–0 3–0 3–3 2–1 0–4 4–4
Jacobs 1–3 4–0 4–1 2–1 0–0 1–4 3–1
Olympia 1–3 2–0 1–1 2–2 0–4 1–1 2–1
St. James's Gate 1–0 5–1 2–0 4–2 0–1 4–1 2–0
Shelbourne 2–1 2–3 3–1 1–1 3–1 0–2 4–1
YMCA 1–5 2–4 1–1 2–2 0–2 0–2 2–4
Source: [3][4]
Legend: Blue = home team win; Yellow = draw; Red = away team win.

Top goalscorers

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Pos Player Club Goals
1 Jack Kelly St James's Gate 11
2 Patrick Smith Jacobs 10
3 Edward Pollock Bohemians 9

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b "A Well-earned Championship for St. James's Gate". The Athletic News. Manchester. 19 December 1921. p. 3. Retrieved 22 September 2019 – via British Newspaper Archive.
  2. ^ "The Abandoned Leinster Senior Cup, One Season Wonders and more". League of Ireland History. 6 February 2015. Retrieved 20 June 2019.
  3. ^ a b McSweeney, Niall. A Record of League of Ireland Football 1921-22 to 1984-85. Association of Football Statisticians.
  4. ^ a b Graham, Alex. Football in the Republic of Ireland a Statistical Record 1921-2005. Soccer Books Limited. ISBN 1-86223-135-4.