Everything about Waterford United F C totally explained
Gareth Cronin |
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Waterford United (
Irish:
Cumann Peile Phort Láirge Aontaithe) is an
Irish football club playing in the
Football League of Ireland. The club was founded and elected to the league in 1930 and hails from
Waterford. Originally the club was based at
Kilcohan Park greyhound stadium, but have now moved to the Waterford
Regional Sports Centre. Club colours are blue and white, and the club goes by the nicknames 'The Blues' or 'United'. Waterford United are the reigning
Munster Senior Cup champions, having beaten non-league
Passage A.F.C. of Cork in the June 21st decider.
History
Waterford F.C. 1930-1982
Waterford first participated in the league in the 1930-1931 season finishing ninth and again from 1931-1932 before dropping out of the league for two seasons. Waterford re-entered the league in the 1935-1936 season along with
Sligo Rovers. Waterford FC won the Shield in their first season.
Waterord won the FAI cup for the first time in their history in 1937 beating
St. James's Gate F.C. and also won the Shield.
The club were league runners up in 1937-1938 season and again in the 1940-1941 season. Both Waterford and League winners
Cork United finished on equal points but Cork were awarded the title as Waterford were unable to compete in the play-off due to a dispute regarding payment to players.
Waterford won the Shield again in the 1952-1953 season and were again runners-up in the League this time to
St. Patricks Athletic in the 1954-1955 season and again in the 1962-1963 season.
The club eventually won the league title for the first time in the 1965-1966 season and this was the beginning of a hugely successful spell for the club domestically. The following season they played in the preliminary round of the Champions cup against
Vorwärts Berlin, an East German and Army side, losing 6-1 at
Dalymount Park and 6-0 in
East Berlin.
They won the Shield once again in 1968 -1969 season. Waterford won the league title three times in a row, in 1968,1969 and in 1970. The title was won by
Cork Hibernians in 1971 but returned to Waterford in the 1971-1972 season and again in the 1972-1973 season.
The following season Waterford won the
FAI League Cup, however failed to regain the league title. They won the
FAI Cup in 1980 beating St. Patricks Athletic and this was the clubs final honour as Waterford F.C.
Waterford's success in the league brought European football playing against famous clubs such as
Manchester United and
Celtic.
Waterford United 1982-Present
In 1982 due to financial problems, the Club changed its name to Waterford United and
Alfie Hale was appointed manager. In 1985 the league's membership rose to 22 clubs with the election of six new clubs in 1985. This resulted in the introduction of the present two Division (Premier and First) structure in 1985/86 of which Waterford was a member of the Premier Division. Waterford has had twenty four different managers since 1985, suffering relegation and promotion between both divisions Waterford were relegated to the First Division in the 1988-1989 season. Their stay there was short, gaining promotion and winning the First Division title the following season 1989-1990. They were unable to retain their Premier Division status the following season finishing in eleventh.
The club was promoted to the top flight in the 1991-1992 season finishing as runners up to
Limerick F.C.. But again the club were unable to remain in the Premier Division for more than a single season suffering relegation on goal difference to
Drogheda United.
Waterford United were promoted to the Premier Division, finishing top of the First Division in the 1997-1998 season and remained there until the 1999-2000 season suffering relegation by one point to
Galway United. They were promoted to the Premier division again in the 2002-2003 season and have since remained there.
In 2006 Waterford United were relegated to the First Division. The F.A.I took over the running of the Eircom League at the end of the 2006 season. Part of this takeover involved the assessment of all Eircom League sides and the manner in which they were being run including finances, infrastructure, future plans, marketability and previous finishing positions since the 2002 season, (this was due to
Kildare County only joining the Eircom League in 2002). Despite finishing in 11th and last place (
Dublin City F.C. being the 12th team in the league and subsequently folding during the season) the club were forced to play a relegation/promotion playoff against
Dundalk F.C.. Despite being defeated Waterford United still stood a chance of remaining a Premier Division side due to the FAI assessment. However on the 8th December 2006 the
FAI decided to relegate Waterford to the 1st Division with
Shamrock Rovers and
Galway United replacing them and now defunct Dublin City. Dundalk, despite beating Waterford in a playoff were controversially overlooked and remain in the 1st Division. However on the 20th February it was announced that Waterford United had been invited to participate in the Premier Division for the forthcoming season. Club secretary Larry Gough stated "The club considered the proposal carefully and decided to accept the invitation in the best interests of football in Waterford and the eircom league".
Reinstatement to Premier Division
Despite the FAI's original decision to relegate Waterford United, the club was reinstated to the new FAI run Premier Division following the relegation of
Shelbourne F.C. to the FAI First Division on 20 February 2007.
Personnel
Board Members
Directors: Chris Everett and Michael Drohan
Honorary President: Bertie Rogers
Management Committee: Tony Burke, John Douglas, Michael Drohan, Chris Everett, Greg Pheasey, Larry Gough, John O'Driscoll, John O'Sullivan, Ray Scott, Sam White.
Staff
Club Administrator: Michael Drohan
Club Promotions Officer (CPO): Liam Fraiser
Finance Officer: Ger McGinn
Media Officer: Ray Scott
Programme Editor: Sam White
Club Chaplain: Fr. Joe Condon
Stadium
Uefa Licensing Officer: Chris Everett
Event Controller: Billy McGrath
Safety Officer: Brendan McGrath
Stadium Announcer: Michael Butler
Current squad
Players in 2007/08
Technical Staff
Manager: Gareth Cronin
Assistant Manager: Sean Francis
Head Coach/U21 Manager: Tom Browne
Coach:Gary Coad
Goalkeeping Coach: Billy Ahern
Club Doctor: Dr. Liam McCann
Physio: Eddie Jackman
Equipment Manager: Michael Walsh
U-21 Squad
Players
(W.I.T.)(W.I.T.)
Note 2: Players listed with a W.I.T. symbol are part of the Waterford United/Waterford Institute of Technology scholarship scheme
Fans
The club draws its support not only from Waterford City and the surrounding area, but also from Waterford County and the South East region as a whole. There are a number of supporters groups and clubs, which are:
Ultras
Blue Army Ultras (B.A.U.)
The Blue Army Ultras (also known as the B.A.U. and BA Ultras for short), were formed in September 2006 bringing a new style of support to Waterford United. They stand in Block E of the Main Stand and like all Ultra groups the B.A.U. choreograph Tifo displays and encourage singing. Since the groups introduction, the R.S.C. has seen greatly improved atmosphere on match nights. B.A.U. members usually count for most, if not all of the travelling support for the club.
Other Groups
Independent Blues Supporter Club (I.B.S.C.)
The Independent Blues Supporters Club was formed in July 2002. It organises and represents a section of Waterford United fans. The IBSC aims to provide transport for fans to away matches. Regular fundraisers are held to cover travel expenses for away games. One of the man sources of funds is the Golden Goal competition at Waterford United home games. During the 2005 season the IBSC sold WUFC lottery tickets helping alleviate the clubs financial stress.
SINGING THE BLUES.
In November 2006, Waterford author Brian Kennedy released "Singing The Blues", the first ever book written on the famous old club. It went on to sell over 1,000 copies before the end of the year.
Dublin Blues Supporters Club
The Dublin Blues Supporters Club (D.B.S.C.) was formed in January 2007 as an outlet for Dublin based Waterford United fans. They cooperate mainly with the Ultras.
Honours
Senior
» Includes titles won by Waterford F.C.
- League of Ireland titles: 6
- 1965-66, 1967-68, 1968-69, 1969-70, 1971-72, 1972-73
- FAI Cups: 2
- League Cups: 2
- FAI First Division: 3
- 1989-1990, 1997-1998, 2002-2003
- Munster Senior Cup: 11
- 1934-35, 1945-46 (shared with Cork United), 1947-48, 1955-56, 1956-57, 1965-66, 1966-67, 1975-76, 1980-81, 1985-86, 1986-87, 2007
- Top Four Cup: 5
- 1967-68,1968-69,1969-70,1970-71,1972-73
- League of Ireland Shield: 5
- 1930-1931, 1936-1937, 1952-1953, 1958-1959, 1968-1969
U-21
U-21 League titles: 1
U-21 Cups: 1
European Competition
European Cup 1966-67
Preliminary round:
Waterford United 1 - 12 ASK Vorwärts Berlin (East Germany)
Home Leg: 1 - 6
Away Leg: 0 - 6
European Cup 1968-69
Round One
Waterford United 2 - 10 Manchester United (England)
1 - 3 (Home Leg) 1 - 7 (Away Leg)
European Cup 1969-70
Round One
Galatasaray SK (Turkey) 5 - 2 Waterford United
2 - 0 (Away Leg) 3 - 2 (Home Leg)
European Cup 1970-71
Round One
Glentoran F.C. (Northern Ireland) 1 - 4 Waterford United
1 - 3 (Away Leg) 0 - 1 (Home Leg)
Round Two
Waterford United 2 - 10 Celtic FC (Scotland)
0 - 7 (Home leg) 2 - 3 (Away Leg)
European Cup 1972-73
Round One
Waterford United 2 - 3 AC Omonia (Cyprus)
2 - 1 (Away leg) 0 - 2 (Home Leg)
European Cup 1973-74
Round One
Waterford United 2 - 6 Újpesti TE (Hungary)
2 - 3 (Home Leg) 0 - 3 (Away Leg)
UEFA Cup Winners' Cup 1979-80
Round One
IFK Göteborg (Sweden) 2 - 1 Waterford United
1 - 0 (Away Leg) 1 - 1 (Home Leg)
UEFA Cup Winners' Cup 1980-81
Round One
Hibernians FC (Malta) 1 - 4 Waterford United
1 - 0 (Away Leg) 0 - 4 (Home Leg)
Round Two
Waterford United 0 - 5 FC Dinamo Tbilisi (Georgia)
0 - 1 (Home Leg) 0 - 4 (Away Leg)
UEFA Cup Winners' Cup 1986-87
Round One
Waterford United 1 - 6 FC Girondins de Bordeaux
1 - 2 (Home Leg) 0 - 4 (Away Leg)
Selected Former Players
see also
Selected Former Managers
Con Martin
Frank Davis
Paddy Coad
Alfie Hale
Johnny Matthews
Jimmy McGeough
see also Further Information
Get more info on 'Waterford United F C'.
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