Drumcondra F.C.

Drumcondra F.C.'s heritage goes back to the late nineteenth century, using variations of the name Drumcondra A.F.C, and Drumcondra Botanic (when they began to play in 1901 on Botanic Road where Santry RFC used to play). Drumcondra's won the Leinster Junior League in 1899 and the Leinster Junior Shield Winners 1911–12. Early figures in the club's history included former player and club honorary secretary Larry Sheridan (who served as chairman and honorary secretary of the Football Association of Ireland (FAI), as well as honorary secretary of the League of Ireland) and Jack A. Ryder (who served as Secretary of the LFA and the FAI). The club lapse during the great war and was refounded in 1924.

Drumcondra came to national prominence, in 1926–27, while playing in the Leinster Senior League and with a team that included Joe Grace and Johnny Murray, Drums won the inaugural FAI Intermediate Cup. They then completed a cup double by also winning the 1926–27 FAI Cup. In the FAI Intermediate Cup final they defeated Cobh Ramblers while in the FAI Cup final they defeated Brideville. In 1927–28 Drums won the Leinster Senior League and also reached the 1927–28 FAI Cup final.[2][3]

In 1928–29 Drumcondra made their League of Ireland debut and finished a respectable fourth in their first season. However Drums would have to wait until the late 1940s before they won their first league title. Then with a team that included, among others, Benny Henderson, Dessie Glynn, Chris Giles, Kevin Clarke, Kit Lawlor and Tim Coffey, they won two in a row in 1947–48 and 1948–49.[4]

In 1953 Sam Prole, a wealthy man from Dundalk who had made his money from the Great Northern Railway, bought Drumcondra from the Hunter family. Prole introduced pitch-side advertising and in 1953 installed floodlights at Tolka Park. As a result, Drumcondra became the first League of Ireland club to have floodlights.[5][6][7]

During their time in the League of Ireland Drumcondra enjoyed a strong rivalry with Shamrock Rovers. In 1928–29 when Drums made their League of Ireland debut, their first opponents were Rovers. This first meeting between Drums and Rovers ended in a 1–1 draw. During the 1940s and 1950s large crowds gathered to see the Northside/Southside derby fixtures between the two clubs. During this time Drumcondra played Rovers in four FAI Cup finals in 1946, 1948, 1955 and 1957. The two clubs shared the honours, winning two finals each. In 1946 with a team that featured Con Martin, Robin Lawler, Kevin Clarke and Jimmy Lawlor, Drums won their third FAI Cup final after defeating Rovers 2–1 with goals from Tommy McCormack and Benny Henderson. The rivalry reached its peak during the late 1950s. At the time Drums squad included, among others, Alan Kelly, John O'Neill and Kit Lawlor. The 1956–57 season saw Rovers win the League of Ireland title, while Drums finished second. The opening game of the League of Ireland season saw the two teams meet at Tolka Park. The venue was packed to capacity with a crowd of 15,000. Rovers defeated Drums 2–0 in the Leinster Senior Cup final and then won the Dublin City Cup final on corners. However Drums defeated Rovers 2–0 in the 1956–57 FAI Cup final, thanks to goals from Bunny Fullam and Willie Coleman, and then 3–0 in the semi-final of the Top Four Cup a week later. A crowd of 20,000 turned up on 26 December 1956 to watch the Leinster Senior Cup final. The FAI Cup final on 28 April 1957 saw an attendance of 30,000 while the Top Four semi-final on 5 May 1957 was watched by 16,845. All three games were played at Dalymount Park. The rivalry continued into the 1957–58 season with Rovers and Drums meeting in the finals of the Leinster Senior Cup, the Top Four Cup, the Dublin City Cup and the LFA President's Cup. Rovers won all four. However Drums did finish the season as League of Ireland champions, finishing two points clear of second placed Rovers. Drums and Rovers games continued to attract large crowds and on occasions this created some issues. On 26 January 1958 the first-ever all ticket League of Ireland game between Drums and Rovers had to be abandoned, after sixty-five minutes, after thousands of ticketless fans forced their way into an already packed Tolka Park. This in turn led to crowd encroachment on the pitch. Rovers were leading 2–1 at the time and the result was allowed to stand. In 1964–65 when Drums won their fifth League of Ireland title they finished one point clear of runners-up Rovers.[3][6][8]

In the late 1960s Drumcondra went into decline. In both 1969–70 and 1970–71 Drums finished last place in the league. They were also £6,000 in debt. At the end of the 1971–72 season the team was effectively taken over by Home Farm when, after almost twenty years in charge, Sam Prole agreed to sell the club. Drums final league game in their own right was a 1–1 draw with Shelbourne at Tolka Park on 5 April 1972. It was announced by Brendan Menton Snr, Home Farm honorary secretary, that the amateur club had taken over the entire share capital of their professional neighbouring club. During the 1972–73 season the side played as Home Farm-Drumcondra, however within a season the Drumcondra name was dropped and from the start of 1973–74 the side simply became Home Farm.[6] Sam Prole subsequently became involved with Dundalk F.C. and a number of former Drumcondra players including Shay Noonan, Johnny Robinson, Willie Coleman, Ned Halpin and Tommy Rowe joined him at the Oriel Park club.[9]

Drumcondra F.C. was reformed in the mid-1970s, not long after the demise of the original club. However, by the early 2000s they had relocated to Santry, playing their home games at Morton Stadium. They reached the third round of the 2004 FAI Cup but lost 5–0 to UCD. Over the years there were a number of amalgamations with local clubs coming under the Drumcondra F.C. banner, the most significant of which was with Drumcondra Athletic a club formed in the early 1990s who went on to also achieve LSL Intermediate status prior to amalgamating with Drumcondra F.C.[10][11][12][13]