Tobermore United Football Club is an intermediate, Northern Irish football club playing in the NIFL Premier Intermediate League.
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| Full name | Tobermore United Football Club | ||
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| Nickname(s) | "The Reds" | ||
| Founded | 1965 | ||
| Ground | Fortwilliam Park, Tobermore | ||
| Capacity | 1,000 (100 seated) | ||
| Chairman | Rainey Lyle | ||
| Manager | Graeme McKenzie | ||
| League | NIFL Premier Intermediate League | ||
| 2023–24 | NIFL Premier Intermediate League, 13th of 14 | ||
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History
editThe club, founded in 1965, is based in Tobermore, near Magherafelt, County Londonderry and currently plays its home matches at Fortwilliam Park. Club colours are red and black. The current manager is Graeme McKenzie .
Tobermore United is the only football club in Northern Ireland that George Best ever played competitively for. However, it was only for one match, on 11 February 1984, after many years of his decline, and Tobermore lost 7–0 to Ballymena.[1]
The club has an extensive and highly popular youth development scheme which has led to it being awarded official Football Development Centre (FDC) status by the IFA. It currently has teams at under-11, under-12, under-14 and under-16 level.
In the 2010–11 season, the club gained promotion to IFA Championship 1 by finishing 2nd in IFA Championship 2, but were relegated again two-years later.
In the 2016/17 season, the IFA Championship 2 was changed to the NIFL Premier Intermediate League. In its inaugural season, Tobermore finished 5th.
In the 2018/19 season Tobermore achieved a success of 3rd place in the Premier Intermediate League.
Following the curtailed 2019–20 Premier Intermediate League season, Tobermore finished 11th and technically bottom of the league however weren't relegated due to no appropriate promotion candidates, and given the league had already lost Lurgan Celtic who had withdrawn.
Due to Covid-19, the 2020/21 season wasn't played, and the Premier Intermediate League began again in the 2021/22 season. Tobermore finished bottom once again, but were not relegated as there were 11 teams in the league when there were meant to be 12 (Ballymacash Rangers F.C. were promoted to the Premier Intermediate League and nobody was relegated to allow a 12-team league for the following season).
In the 2022/23 season, Tobermore finished 6th in the NIFL Premier Intermediate League, making it into the top section of the split but finishing bottom of it.
Current squad
editNote: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
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Honours
editSenior honours
edit- North West Senior Cup: 3
- 1980–81, 1989–90, 2006–07
Intermediate honours
edit- IFA Intermediate League Second Division: 1
- 2004–05
- Craig Memorial Cup: 6
- 1980–81, 1988–89, 1989–90, 1997–98, 2005–06, 2009–10
- Northern Ireland Intermediate League: 3
- 1978–79, 1981–82, 1982–83
- Northern Ireland Intermediate League Cup: 2
- 1978–79, 1981–82
- North West Intermediate Cup Winners: 2
- 1989–90, 2005–06
References
edit- ^ "The day Manchester United icon George Best played for Tobermore United". News Letter. 9 January 2018. Retrieved 15 September 2021.