Limerick F.C.

Limerick Football Club, an association football club based in Limerick, Ireland, competed in the League of Ireland. Its teams now play in the underage National League of Ireland. The original club was established in 1937, and over time it operated under several names: Limerick, Limerick United, Limerick City, and Limerick 37. From 1937 until 2020, each version of the club was the only senior football team representing Limerick city. The club won the League of Ireland championship twice, in the 1959–60 and 1979–80 seasons, and the FAI Cup twice, in 1971 and 1982. It also claimed the League of Ireland Cup on three occasions: 1975–76, 1992–93, and 2001–02. Limerick took part in European competitions six times.

Senior soccer first arrived in Limerick in the early 1930s, when the Limerick District Management Committee arranged friendlies between senior clubs like Waterford and Bray and a local junior selection. The success of these matches led the committee to form a senior side and apply for entry to the Free State League. The application was accepted in June 1937, and a Limerick senior team replaced Dolphin, who had withdrawn from the league. On 19 July 1937, a new private company, Limerick Association Football and Sports Co. Ltd, was registered.

Limerick played its first match on 22 August 1937, a 1–0 win over Shamrock Rovers in the Dublin City Cup, a major competition from the 1930s to the 1970s. The team finished 10th out of 12 in the 1937–38 season but won its first trophy by beating Cork United 1–0 in a replayed Munster Senior Cup final at the Markets Field. In those early seasons, Limerick wore red-and-white striped jerseys and white shorts. When Waterford left the league in 1941, Limerick bought their blue jerseys and wore blue and white for the next 40 years.

During the 1940s, Limerick improved significantly, finishing as league runners-up twice (1943–44 and 1944–45), losing in two FAI Cup semi-finals (1942–43 and 1946–47), and finishing as runners-up in the League of Ireland Shield in 1945–46, a forerunner of the League Cup. They won the Munster Senior Cup again in 1948–49. The club captured its first national title in 1953, winning the Shield, and added the Dublin City Cup in 1958–59 by beating Drumcondra in the final.

Limerick won its first League of Ireland championship in the 1959–60 season under manager Sonny Price, a Limerick native who had played for Limerick, Waterford, and Glentoran. Despite losing their final match 3–2 to St. Patrick's Athletic on 17 April 1960, they finished two points ahead of Cork Celtic. Unlike earlier teams that were mostly local, this squad had a core of Dublin-based players, with six from Dublin, five from Limerick, two from Cork, and the rest from junior circles.

The board then decided to build an all-local team and brought in 29-year-old Ewan Fenton from Wrexham for the 1960–61 season. Fenton was popular with staff, players, and fans, and he built on Price's success by introducing many talented local players to League of Ireland football. Limerick lost FAI Cup finals in 1965 and 1966 to Shamrock Rovers before winning the cup in 1971, beating Drogheda United 3–0 in a replay. That team included Andy McEvoy, Richie Hall, Kevin Fitzpatrick, Al Finucane, Dave Barrett, Sean Byrnes, Tony Meaney, Joe O’Mahony, Hughie Hamilton, and Paddy Shortt. Fenton also advanced the careers of players like Dessie McNamara, Gerry McCarthy, Mick Doyle, Dick O’Connor, Johnny Walsh, Pat Nolan, and Ger Duggan. Limerick won two more Dublin City Cups under Fenton, in 1967 and 1970.

Fenton left in 1967 to manage Linfield, where he won seven titles in three years. The early 1970s brought financial struggles and poor on-field results for Limerick. Fenton returned as manager for the 1975–76 season, introducing young players but achieving little in the league, though the team won the League Cup that season, beating Sligo Rovers 4–0 in the final. Frankie Johnson took over for 1976–77, and Limerick lost the FAI Cup final 2–0 to Dundalk while again performing poorly in the league.

In 1977, the club changed its name to Limerick United. Eoin Hand arrived as player-manager from Portsmouth for the 1979–80 season and led the club to its second League of Ireland championship. Tony Meaney scored a penalty in the final game, a 1–1 draw with Athlone Town, to finish one point ahead of Dundalk. Hand was still in charge when Limerick won the FAI Cup again in 1982, beating Bohemians in the final at Dalymount Park. This was Kevin Fitzpatrick's final match in goal after 22 seasons.

The club then became Limerick City in 1983. Pat Grace, owner of the Kentucky Fried Chicken franchise in Ireland and the main League of Ireland sponsor, joined Limerick United in April 1981 and became chairman. Grace said he was invited by the Markets Field club to help address financial issues.