Category: Tales From The Homeland
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Ballymacash Rangers: The rapid rise of a Lisburn club making major gains on and off the pitch
The year 2023 is almost done, and throughout the Irish League, it has proved to be 12 pulsating and eventful months where a great deal of new memories were made for all involved to savour. In Ballymacash Rangers’ case, 2023 was also the first total year the club has spent as a NIFL-associated club –…
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A tale of champions: How Larne fulfilled their Irish League title-winning dream
The Irish League. So often full of surprises. 2022-23 was no exception to the rule on that front, with what was shaping up to be a congested and closely-fought title race baying out for a challenger to put forth their calm and composure and nerves of steel ahead of the rest. Bit by bit, game…
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The Irish League pre-split: 10 things we learned as the action nears a thrilling climax
With the pre-split in the Premiership, Championship and Premier Intermediate League divisions of the Irish League winding down, the drama that has proved such a valuable selling point of Northern Ireland club football has again been reprised with five games of the split to go. In the Premiership, a first-time title winner could be upon…
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The birth of Cliftonville: How Ireland’s oldest football club laid the blueprint for others to follow
The Irish League is flourishing. With ever-rising attendances and a continually heightening standard of playing personnel, football in Northern Ireland is on a sustained path towards future growth and a superb product has been cultivated. It could also be on the verge of a new dawn. Be it improved television deals or the recent rise…
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Omagh Town: The tale of a brave, brilliant Tyrone team leaving a forever unfillable void
The demise of Omagh Town in 2005 left a significant void. In Omagh itself and in the Irish League. The abruptness with which it all happened, how swiftly they ceased to be after their relegation from the Premiership, how speedily St Julian’s Road simply became a structural memorial of their old occupiers. A club who,…
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