2001–02 League of Ireland Premier Division

League of Ireland Premier Division
Season 2001–02
Champions Shelbourne
Relegated Dundalk
Galway United
Monaghan United
UEFA Champions League Shelbourne
UEFA Cup Shamrock Rovers
Dundalk
UEFA Intertoto Cup St Patrick's Athletic
Top goalscorer Glen Crowe: 21
(Bohemians) [1][2]

The 2001–02 League of Ireland Premier Division was the 17th season of the League of Ireland Premier Division. The division was made up of 12 teams. Shelbourne were crowned champions for the tenth time.

Regular season

The season saw each team playing three rounds of games, playing every other team three times, totalling 33 games. The 2002–03 season would see the League of Ireland Premier Division reduced from 12 to 10 teams. As a result, three teams were automatically relegated. [2][3] The season is best remembered for the controversy involving allegations of St Patrick's Athletic fielding ineligible players. St. Pat's originally had 9 points deducted for fielding Paul Marney in the first three games of the season. This was later revoked after arbitration. However Shelbourne appealed against this decision which was taken to the High Court where the appeal was rejected. It was then discovered by the Shelbourne chief executive, Ollie Byrne, that Charles Livingstone Mbabazi had not been registered by St. Pat's for the first five games of the season and so the club had 15 points deducted, three points for each game. The decision of the FAI appeal board to dismiss St. Pat's appeal in the Livingstone case saw Shelbourne confirmed as league champions.[2][4]

Final Table

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification or relegation
1 Shelbourne F.C. 33 19 6 8 50 28 +22 63 Qualified for 2002–03 UEFA Champions League
2 Shamrock Rovers F.C. 33 17 6 10 54 32 +22 57 Qualified for 2002–03 UEFA Cup
3 St Patrick's Athletic F.C. 33 20 8 5 59 29 +30 53[lower-alpha 1] Qualified for 2002 UEFA Intertoto Cup
4 Bohemian F.C. 33 14 10 9 57 32 +25 52
5 Derry City F.C. 33 14 9 10 42 30 +12 51
6 Cork City F.C. 33 14 7 12 48 39 +9 49
7 University College Dublin A.F.C. 33 12 12 9 40 39 +1 48
8 Bray Wanderers A.F.C. 33 12 10 11 54 45 +9 46
9 Longford Town F.C. 33 10 10 13 41 51 −10 40 Won promotion/relegation play-off
10 Dundalk F.C.[lower-alpha 2] 33 9 12 12 37 46 −9 39 Relegated to First Division
11 Galway United F.C. 33 5 4 24 28 73 −45 19
12 Monaghan United F.C. 33 2 6 25 19 85 −66 12
Source: www.rsssf.com
Notes:
  1. ↑ St Patrick's Athletic had 15 points deducted for fielding an ineligible player.
  2. ↑ Dundalk F.C. qualified for the 2002–03 UEFA Cup after winning the 2001–02 FAI Cup.

Promotion/Relegation Play-off

Longford Town who finished in ninth place played off against Finn Harps, the third placed team from the 2001–02 League of Ireland First Division.

1st Leg

2nd Leg

Longford Town win 6-5 on penalties after extra time and retain their place in the Premier Division. [2][5]

See also

References

  1. ↑ "Ireland - List of Topscorers". www.rsssf.com. Archived from the original on 6 April 2012. Retrieved 6 July 2016.
  2. 1 2 3 4 Graham, Alex. Football in the Republic of Ireland a Statistical Record 1921–2005. Soccer Books Limited. ISBN 1-86223-135-4.
  3. ↑ "(Republic of) Ireland League Tables". www.rsssf.com. Archived from the original on 21 February 2008. Retrieved 6 July 2016.
  4. ↑ "St Pats keep mum 'til report published". www.irishexaminer.com. 12 April 2002. Retrieved 14 July 2016.
  5. ↑ "(Republic of) Ireland League Tables - Second Level". www.rsssf.com. Archived from the original on 3 June 2009. Retrieved 10 July 2016.
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