1926–27 Dundalk F.C. season

Dundalk G.N.R.

1926–27 season
Manager	Joe McCleery
League of Ireland	8th
FAI Cup	First round
League of Ireland Shield	7th
Leinster Senior Cup	First round
Top goalscorer	Matthew Armstrong, George Silcock (5)
Home colours

Dundalk G.N.R. made their debut in the Free State League, the top tier of Irish football, in 1926–27. They had played the previous four seasons in the Leinster Senior League. The team was managed by Joe McCleery, previously of Belfast Celtic F.C., who used his connections to Northern Irish football to ensure a supply of players for the season ahead. Home matches were played at the Dundalk Athletic Grounds (a facility near the town centre shared by several sporting codes), but on weekends when the Athletic Grounds were unavailable, matches would usually move to the Carroll's Recreation Ground.

Season summary

On 15 June 1926 Dundalk G.N.R. were elected to the Free State League to replace Pioneers, as the nascent League looked to spread to the provinces.^[1][2][3] As it was entering its sixth season, nine clubs had already dropped out of the Free State League, so the challenge facing the new club was great. The cost of travel was one of the biggest issues facing provincial clubs in the League, and the club had sought support from its parent company, the Great Northern Railway (Ireland), with regard to travel expenses, but were refused.^[4] Three players were retained from the Leinster Senior League squad - Joey Quinn, Paddy McMahon and Hugh Craig.^[5]

The season opened with the 18-match League schedule, and on 21 August 1926 the team travelled to Cork to face fellow works-team Fordsons in the opening match of the season. The 30-strong group of players, officials and supporters who travelled were treated to a tour of the Ford factory before the game. The result was a 2–1 defeat for the new boys in a match the Cork Examiner described as being "one of the best ever seen in Ballinlough",^[6] Joey Quinn with Dundalk's first ever Free State League goal. Their first win would come at home to Jacobs on 19 September.^[7] They only managed two points away from home, including one in the first ever league match in Glenmalure Park,^[8] and finished their first league season in eighth position.^[9]

The nine-match League of Ireland Shield schedule commenced after Christmas, again with a visit to Cork to play Fordsons. The team managed two home wins and a draw, finishing seventh.^[10] Old Leinster Senior League rivals, Drumcondra, defeated them in a replay in the first round of the Leinster Senior Cup;^[11] while a heavy defeat to Bohemians saw them exit the FAI Cup in the first round,^[12] with the result that a number of players were released, including Quinn. A total of 47 players lined out for the team during the season, 11 of whom appeared only once, as manager McCleery tapped into his Northern Irish connections in his attempts to build a competitive side. Only two players would be retained for the following season - Gordon McDiarmuid (who had joined early in the Shield campaign) and Fred Norwood.^[13]

First-Team Squad (1926–27)

Source:^[13]
Note: Only players making a minimum of five appearances included

No.	Name	Years	League	FAI Cup	League of Ireland Shield	Leinster Senior Cup	Total	Goals
1	Con Drum	1926–1927	13	0	0	0	13	0
2	Gordon McDiarmuid	1926–1933	0	0	6	1	7	0
3	Davy Nelson	1926–1927	4	1	5	2	12	0
4	Fred Norwood	1926–1928	18	1	8	2	29	0
5	Billy Pollock	1926–1927	4	0	5	0	9	1
6	Bob Thompson	1926–1927	12	1	8	2	23	5
7	Edward Swindle	1926–1927	15	1	6	2	24	3
8	George Silcock	1926–1927	9	1	1	0	11	5
9	Matthew Armstrong	1926–1927	10	0	1	0	11	5
10	Fred Bell	1926–1927	15	1	9	2	27	5
11	Frank Rushe	1926–1927	15	1	4	1	21	4
12	Joey Quinn	1919–1927	10	1	0	0	11	3
13	Paddy McMahon	1920–1927	10	0	2	0	12	1
14	Jimmy Wilson	1926–1927	5	1	6	1	13	0
15	Arthur Farrelly	1926–1927	11	0	0	0	11	1
16	William Smith	1926–1927	0	0	8	2	10	0
17	Hugh Reid	1926–1927	8	0	0	0	8	0
18	Harry Bowden	1926–1927	5	1	2	0	8	0
19	Jack McKinney	1926–1927	7	0	1	0	8	2
20	Jimmy Carroll	1926–1927	0	0	4	2	6	4
21	Jimmy Doyle	1926–1927	0	0	5	0	5	3

Competitions

League

Source:^[14]

Fordsons v Dundalk

21 August 1926 Round 1

Fordsons

2–1

Dundalk

Athlone Town v Dundalk

28 August 1926 Round 2

Athlone Town

3–1

Dundalk

Dundalk v Bohemians

4 September 1926 Round 3

Dundalk

1–1

Bohemians

Shamrock Rovers v Dundalk

11 September 1926 Round 4

Shamrock Rovers

3–3

Dundalk

Dundalk v Jacobs

19 September 1926 Round 5

Dundalk

3–0

Jacobs

Bray Unknowns v Dundalk

25 September 1926 Round 6

Bray Unknowns

2–1

Dundalk

Dundalk v Brideville

2 October 1926 Round 7

Dundalk

1–1

Brideville

Shelbourne v Dundalk

9 October 1926 Round 8

Shelbourne

3–0

Dundalk

Dundalk v St James's Gate

16 October 1926 Round 9

Dundalk

1–1

St James's Gate

Dundalk v Fordsons

23 October 1926 Round 10

Dundalk

4–2

Fordsons

Dundalk v Athlone Town

30 October 1926 Round 11

Dundalk

2–3

Athlone Town

Bohemians v Dundalk

6 November 1926 Round 12

Bohemians

4–2

Dundalk

Dundalk v Shamrock Rovers

13 November 1926 Round 13

Dundalk

0–5

Shamrock Rovers

Dundalk v Bray Unknowns

27 November 1926 Round 14

Dundalk

4–1

Bray Unknowns

Brideville v Dundalk

4 December 1926 Round 15

Brideville

4–3

Dundalk

Dundalk v Shelbourne

12 December 1926 Round 16

Dundalk

0–2

Shelbourne

Dundalk v St James's Gate

18 December 1926 Round 17

Dundalk

2–2

St James's Gate

Jacobs v Dundalk

1 January 1927 Round 18

Jacobs

1–1

Dundalk

League table

Pos	Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts
1	Shamrock Rovers	18	14	4	0	60	20	+40	32
2	Shelbourne	18	13	3	2	63	24	+39	29
3	Bohemians	18	10	5	3	36	24	+12	25
4	Fordsons	18	7	3	8	34	32	+2	17
5	Athlone Town	18	6	5	7	41	43	−2	17
6	Bray Unknowns	18	6	1	11	37	58	−21	13
7	Jacobs	18	5	3	10	23	47	−24	13
8	Dundalk GNR	18	3	6	9	30	40	−10	12
9	St. James's Gate	18	5	2	11	30	49	−19	12
10	Brideville	18	2	6	10	22	39	−17	10

Source: www.rsssf.com
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) goal average

Shield

Source:^[14]

Fordsons v Dundalk

27 December 1926 Round 1

Fordsons

0–1

Dundalk

Dundalk v Shelbourne

15 January 1927 Round 2

Dundalk

3–6

Shelbourne

Bohemians v Dundalk

29 January 1927 Round 3

Bohemians

2–1

Dundalk

Dundalk v Athlone Town

6 February 1927 Round 4

Dundalk

3–2

Athlone Town

Dundalk v Jacobs

6 March 1927 Round 5

Dundalk

5–1

Jacobs

St James's Gate v Dundalk

12 March 1927 Round 6

St James's Gate

0–0

Dundalk

Dundalk v Bray Unknowns

19 March 1927 Round 7

Dundalk

3–4

Bray Unknowns

Brideville v Dundalk

26 March 1927 Round 8

Brideville

4–0

Dundalk

Dundalk v Shamrock Rovers

10 April 1927 Round 9

Dundalk

1–3

Shamrock Rovers

Shield table

Pos	Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts
1	Shamrock Rovers	9	8	1	0	25	11	+14	17
2	Shelbourne	9	8	0	1	42	12	+30	16
3	Bohemians	9	6	2	1	24	16	+8	14
4	Fordsons	9	4	2	3	27	21	+6	10
5	St. James's Gate	9	4	2	3	21	27	−6	10
6	Brideville	9	2	2	5	13	16	−3	6
7	Dundalk GNR	9	2	1	6	16	23	−7	5
8	Bray Unknowns	9	2	1	6	21	35	−14	5
9	Athlone Town	9	2	0	7	20	30	−10	4
10	Jacobs	9	1	1	7	11	32	−21	3

Source: ^[10]
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) goal average

FAI Cup

Source:^[14]

First Round

Bohemians v Dundalk

8 January 1927	Bohemians	6–1	Dundalk	Dublin
				Stadium: Dalymount Park

Leinster Senior Cup

Source:^[14]

First Round

Drumcondra v Dundalk

27 February 1927	Drumcondra	1–1	Dundalk	Dublin
				Stadium: Tolka Park

First Round Replay

Dundalk v Drumcondra

3 March 1927	Dundalk	0–1	Drumcondra	Dundalk
				Stadium: Athletic Grounds

References

Bibliography

• Murphy, Jim (2003). The History of Dundalk F.C.: The First 100 Years. Dundalgan Press. ASIN B0042SO3R2.
• Graham, Alex. Football in the Republic of Ireland a Statistical Record 1921–2005. Soccer Books Limited. ISBN 1-86223-135-4.
• MacSweeney, Niall (1985). A Record of League of Ireland Football 1921/2 - 1984/5. Association of Football Statisticians. ASIN B008H2CBJQ.
• Ryan, Sean; Dunne, Noel (24 October 1975). The Bass Book of Irish Soccer. Mercier Press. ISBN 9780853424505.

Citations

1. "Reforms and Rumors". Evening Herald. 2 June 1926. Retrieved 22 April 2019 – via Irish Newspaper Archives.
2. "Dundalk Get in on Ballot (headline)". Irish Independent. 16 June 1926. Retrieved 22 April 2019 – via Irish Newspaper Archives.
3. "Dundalk Get in on Ballot (body)". Irish Independent. 16 June 1926. Retrieved 24 September 2019 – via Irish Newspaper Archives.
4. Murphy, Jim (2003). History of Dundalk FC – the First 100 Years. Dundalk: Jim Murphy. p. 42.
5. Murphy, Jim (2003). History of Dundalk FC – the First 100 Years. Dundalk: Jim Murphy. p. 44.
6. "Fordson v. Dundalk". Cork Examiner. 23 August 1926. Retrieved 22 April 2019 – via Irish Newspaper Archives.
7. "Dundalk's First Brace". Irish Independent. 20 September 1926. Retrieved 15 December 2019.
8. "Shamrock Rovers, 3; Dundalk, 3". Irish Independent. 12 September 1926. Retrieved 15 December 2019.
9. "(Republic of) Ireland League Tables". The Rec.Sport.Soccer Statistics Foundation. Retrieved 15 October 2019.
10. 'Nat.' (9 May 1927). "Closing Soccer Games". Evening Herald. Retrieved 15 December 2019.
11. "Exciting Cup Tie in Dundalk". Irish Independent. 4 March 1927. Retrieved 15 December 2019.
12. "Bohs.' convincing victory". Sunday Independent. 9 January 1927. Retrieved 15 December 2019.
13. Murphy, Jim (2013). A Dundalk FC Miscellany. Ireland: Self-published. p. 183.
14. Murphy, Jim (2003). History of Dundalk FC - the First 100 Years. Dundalk: Jim Murphy. p. 448.