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| Full name | University College Dublin Association Football Club | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Nickname(s) | The Students, College | ||
| Founded | 1895 (as Catholic University Medical School) | ||
| Ground | UCD Bowl | ||
| Capacity | 3,000 (1,500 seated) | ||
| Manager | William O’Connor | ||
| League | League of Ireland First Division | ||
| 2024 | League of Ireland First Division, 2nd of 10 | ||
| Website | http://www.ucdfc.ie | ||
 Current season | |||
University College Dublin Association Football Club, known commonly asUCD, is thefootball team ofUniversity College Dublin. They play in theLeague of Ireland First Division. Founded in 1895, the club was elected to the League of Ireland in1979 under the management of Dr. Tony O'Neill. Since the2008 season they have played at theUCD Bowl, also home to thecollege's rugby team. 'The Students' play in bright sky blue and navy. Their reserve and freshers teams play in theLeinster Senior League. The current manager is Donegal native William O'Connor.
University College Dublin AFC was founded in 1895 as the Catholic University Medical School Football Club and began playing regular games the following year. A First XI played college games against other universities, and a Second XI entered outside competitions. The club was founder members of the Leinster Junior League in 1896 and reached the semi-finals of theLeinster Senior Cup in 1897. The club became University College Dublin AFC when the new university annexed the Medical School in 1908. UCD won the inaugural Intervarsities competition, theCollingwood Cup, in 1914 and added theIrish Intermediate Cup the following year, beating Portadown 2–1 in a replayed final. When theIrish Free State was formed in 1921 and the newFootball Association of Ireland was formed, UCD participated in theFAI Cup preliminary round against fellow non-League teamShamrock Rovers, losing 6–2 inWindy Arbour. UCD were invited to join theLeague of Ireland in 1922, but had to turn it down on the basis of not being able to field a team in theLeague of Ireland Shield in September as the academic year didn't commence until October. In 1945, they won theFAI Intermediate Cup by beating fellow future League of Ireland membersCobh Ramblers 4–2 in the final. UCD appeared in theFAI Cup in the 1930s, 1940s, and 1950s; their final appearance as a non-League outfit came in 1957, whenCork Athletic beat UCD 4–2 in theMardyke.
In 1970, the club was elected to theLeague of Ireland B Division. From 1976, they embarked on a series of landmark tours, becoming the first western football team to play in China,[1] and following that with tours in places likeIndia,Hong Kong,Taiwan,Malaysia,Jordan, thePhilippines,Macao, theUnited States,Sudan,Kenya, andAustralia. A second invitation to join the League of Ireland was accepted on 22 July 1979, whenCork Celtic were expelled for not having their financial affairs in order. Their first competitive game as a senior club was on 26 August, when they lost 2–1 toDrogheda United in theFAI League Cup. Theo Dunne was appointed first team coach, and apart from a brief spell at Home Farm in 1990–1994, he was in charge of first team affairs until he retired as coach in 2001. Dr. Tony O'Neill, who was General Manager when the club joined the League, remained in that role until his untimely death from cancer in October 1999.
The club struggled initially in the league after their election, never finishing higher than twelfth in the 16-team league, although they did win theLeinster Senior Cup in December 1980, beatingSt Patrick's Athletic 2–1 in the final. However, important changes within the club in 1983 marked a dramatic upturn in fortunes. The previously amateur club turned semi-pro, and players outside of the college were allowed to represent the first team. This is still the situation today, although in practice most of the players are either students or ex-students. By the end of the1983–84 season, UCD had won theFAI Cup, beatingShamrock Rovers 2–1 after a replay. Shamrock Rovers weren't to lose another game in the competition for over three years – until they lost to UCD in 1988.
That win saw UCD qualify for European competition – theEuropean Cup Winners Cup – for the first time. The draw pitted them againstEverton, then one of the leading sides in England and boasting players of the calibre ofNeville Southall,Kevin Sheedy,Graham Sharp,Peter Reid andAndy Gray. The home leg was played inTolka Park and a crowd of 9,000 – many times UCD's average league crowd – saw the Students come away with a scarcely believable 0–0 draw. Another remarkable performance was to follow two weeks later, as a solitary Graham Sharp goal gave Everton a 1–0 win.Joe Hanrahan skimmed the bar for the Students late on; had he scored, UCD would have progressed on away goals – as it was, Everton went on to win the entire competition and smashed several records in winning their nation's league title. UCD's performance was made all the more remarkable by the fact that, at the end of the year, Everton were voted the best club side in the world for 1985 by the managers of world national teams.
That season saw UCD finish fourth in the league, but they were then forced to release many of their best players due to financial difficulties.Joe Hanrahan signed forManchester United for IR£30,000,Ken O'Doherty moved toCrystal Palace, andAlan O'Neill left forDundalk. The team were relegated in 1985/86 with eight points, a record low in the Premier Division. Despite this, in 1987, UCD won the World Collegiate Championships inLas Cruces, New Mexico.
Promotion in1988–89 was followed by an immediate relegation, and it was1994–95 before UCD were to return to the Premier. They did so by recording a then-record points tally for the First Division, also breaking the record for most goals scored and fewest goals conceded.
In1999–00, a late burst saw UCD finish fourth in the league and qualify for theIntertoto Cup. Their opponents were the Bulgarian sidePFC Velbazhd Kyustendil, who boasted a couple of fullBulgaria internationals, includingIlian Stoyanov, who would go on to represent his country in the2004 European Championships. UCD kept up their proud European record with a pulsating 3–3 draw in the first leg inBelfield Park before drawing 0–0 in Bulgaria to bow out on away goals. History unfortunately repeated itself as the Students once again nearly sneaked victory as they hit the post late on.
In 2001,Paul Doolin, one of the most successful players in the League of Ireland, took over as manager from former player Martin Moran. After enjoying a successful first season, the team only just avoided relegation in2002–03 and were eleven points adrift when Doolin left to take over atDrogheda United in September 2003.Pete Mahon was immediately installed as the new manager, and UCD almost staged an incredible Houdini act, losing four games in 16, closing the gap at the bottom to two points and recording the highest points total for a relegated team.
2004 saw more of the same, as UCD, together withFinn Harps, smashed the First Division points record and were promoted with ease. UCD marked their return to the Premier Division with a highly creditable 1–1 draw away to two-time reigning champions Shelbourne. There was a bright point in College's ultimately indifferent season when they got into theLeague Cup final after a last-gasp 2–1 victory overShelbourne in the semi-final at Tolka Park. They went on to lose the final 2–1 toDerry City atBelfield Park.
2006 was one of UCD's most successful seasons in a few years. Despite being knocked out of the League Cup in the first round, The Students recovered well, finishing the season in 6th place and reaching the quarterfinals of theFAI Cup. The performances of many in the squad did not go unnoticed, with Darren Quigley andGary Dicker establishing themselves asunder-21 internationals. Quigley then went one better and became onB international when he appeared as a substitute againstScotland B in November. UCD players also attracted interest from many British clubs. Quigley had trials at many clubs across the water;Stockport County paid €56,000 for Dicker in May 2007,[2] andPatrick Kavanagh signed forBirmingham City after impressing on trial there. The club were relegated at the end of the 2008 season, and Manager Pete Mahon wasn't offered a new contract.
Mahon's assistant since 2005,Martin Russell, took over as manager. With a largely new team, UCD bounced back to the top flight of Irish football at the first time of asking by securing their second First Division title, promoted after a 5–0 away win overAthlone Town in the penultimate match of the season on 30 October 2009, ahead of former Premier Division teamsShelbourne,Longford Town,Waterford United FC as well as a strong challenge from recently formedSporting Fingal FC. In the 2009 FAI Cup, UCD's second team qualified for the first round by virtue of reaching the final of the 2008/09 FAI Intermediate Cup. They lost 2–1 at home to Arklow Town, who were drawn to play UCD's first team in the second round, also in the UCD Bowl. Despite taking the lead, Arklow, who had no eligible goalkeeper for the tie, ultimately lost 3–1.
Under Russell, UCD remained in theAirtricity League Premier Division. In 2011 the club qualified for theSetanta Sports Cup, an All-Ireland competition, where they lost toLisburn Distillery FC 2–0 over two legs. At the beginning of the 2014 season Russell was replaced by former coach Aaron Callaghan, who had to serve out a five-game dug-out suspension awarded while at rivalsBohemian FC. UCD struggled all year, and the Students lost a two-legged relegation/promotion play-off withGalway FC in November 2014.
In July 2015, UCD became the first League of Ireland team from the second tier to progress through a European tie when they saw off Luxembourg championsF91 Dudelange in theEuropa League. A lone Ryan Swan strike at the UCD Bowl gave the college their first win in a European game, and then a remarkable game at theStade Jos Nosbaum saw Swan give UCD the lead early in the game, but after Seán Coyne was sent off, F91 scored twice before halftime throughJoël Pedro and Kevin Nakache. UCD players put up the most incredible defensive display of the season, led by goalkeeperNiall Corbet and kept the second half scoreless to progress on away goals after a 2–2 aggregate draw, winning on the away goals rule.[3] In the second round, UCD lost to a late deflected goal away to aSlovan Bratislava with three players who had played at the2010 FIFA World Cup before losing the return leg 5–1, conceding three goals in the last ten minutes.
In 2017, the club competed in the UEFA Youth League, losing on penalties to aMolde FK which includedErling Haaland. Haaland was introduced as a sub in the return game at theAker Stadion and didn't score in his half-hour on the pitch, although he did score in the penalty shoot-out.
In September 2018, the club won promotion to the Premier Division after a 1–1 draw withFinn Harps F.C. which secured the Students the title.[4] They also reached the semi-finals of the FAI Cup for the first time in 12 years only to lose 1–0 away to reigning double-champions Dundalk. However, a tumultuous 2019 season saw a number of players leave mid-season as they had finished college. A club record 12 consecutive defeats were followed by a record 10–1 defeat away to Bohemians, a match which brought about the end of Collie O'Neill's five years in charge. The club was relegated back to the First Division for 2020.
After finishing third in the table in the2021 League of Ireland First Division, UCD defeatedTreaty United andBray Wanderers in the First Division play-offs before defeatingWaterford FC 2–1 in the promotion/relegation play-off to win promotion back to the2022 League of Ireland Premier Division.[5]
In the2022 League of Ireland Premier Division, UCD spent most of the season battling with Finn Harps to avoid automatic relegation. It was 15 games into the season before UCD managed their first win of the season, a 1–0 win away to Finn Harps. However, a strong finish to the season and a 3–1 win away to Finn Harps in the penultimate game of the season ensured that UCD finished in 9th place and avoided automatic relegation to the First Division, instead qualifying for the promotion/relegation playoff, where they facedWaterford FC in a repeat of the 2021 playoff. A 15th-minute goal byTommy Lonergan, his 12th of the season in all competitions, led UCD to a 1–0 win and ensured their survival in the Premier Division.[6]
UCD AFC is noted for its highly regarded scholarship scheme, which gives players the chance to combine senior football with the opportunity to earn a college degree. This was based on the North American model and created in 1979 on UCD's entry into the League of Ireland Senior Division. The first recipient of the award wasKeith Dignam, sponsored by Irish Potato Crisp manufacturerTayto. Past scholars includeKevin Grogan,Joe Hanrahan and his brotherPeter Hanrahan,Jason Colwell,Jason Sherlock,Clive Delaney,Gary Dicker,Paul Corry and Robbie Benson.
Many famous players have played for UCD down the years.Todd Andrews, future Chairman of CIÉ and RTÉ, and his sonDavid Andrews, a future Minister for Foreign Affairs, both played in the Leinster Senior League for the club, as didBrian Lenihan, who scored in a 1953 FAI Cup tie againstSligo Rovers and later ran for President of Ireland.Willie Browne won numerous international university caps while at UCD, he subsequently went on to win 3 fullRepublic of Ireland caps, 16 amateur caps, oneRepublic of Ireland B cap and six Inter-League caps and captainedBohemian for 3 consecutive seasons. Former Irish internationalKevin Moran, who would later play forManchester United,Sporting de Gijón andBlackburn Rovers played in theLeague of Ireland B Division and was signed for Manchester United from UCD's graduate team, Pegasus. Moran also won anAll-IrelandGaelic football winner's medal withDublin in 1976 while at UCD, as wouldJason Sherlock nineteen years later.Conor Sammon,Enda Stevens andAndy Boyle also won senior international caps having started their careers with UCD.
Hugo MacNeill won the Collingwood with UCD, but went on to greater things with theIreland national rugby union team, winning theTriple Crown in 1985 and playing in the1987 Rugby World Cup in New Zealand. In 1983, theLeeds United legend and record goalscorerPeter Lorimer played three games before returning to England for a final spell with Leeds.Dave Norman played senior international football forCanada while at UCD and went on to play in the1986 World Cup. FormerSky Sports and currentSetanta Sports punditPaul Dempsey played for one season in 1982/83 before taking up a job with theBBC
Gavin Whelan (nephew ofRonnie Whelan) andPat Jennings (son of Northern Irish internationalPat Jennings) played for UCD in the mid-2000s. In August 2016,Dylan Watts signed for English Premiership championsLeicester City from UCD.
A popular rumour has it that Brazilian starSócrates even played for the club; however, there is no evidence for this.
UCD has a small fanbase, which included until his untimely death theFather Ted actorDermot Morgan, an occasional visitor to Belfield. When asked why he attended UCD matches, Dermot reportedly replied "Because I hate crowds".From 2001 to 2010, the unofficial club fanzineStudent Till I Graduate published a record 91 issues. The bookOne Night in Dudelange – Adventures in the UEFA Europa League chronicles the club's 2015 Europa League campaign and was listed for Sports Book of the Year in 2019.[7][8]
TheUCD Superleague is an inter-varsity league consisting of teams predominantly made up of UCD students and alumni. The league has produced a handful of UCD and otherLeague of Ireland players.
| Competition | Matches | W | D | L | GF | GA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| European Cup Winners' Cup | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| UEFA Intertoto Cup | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 3 |
| UEFA Europa League | 4 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 8 |
| TOTAL – SENIOR | 8 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 6 | 12 |
| UEFA Youth League | 4 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 10 | 11 |
Senior
| Season | Competition | Round | Opponent | Home | Away | Aggregate |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1984–85 | European Cup Winners' Cup | 1R |  Everton | 0–0 | 0–1 | 0–1 |
| 2000 | UEFA Intertoto Cup | 1R |  Velbazhd Kyustendil | 3–3 | 0–0 | 3–3 (a) |
| 2015–16 | UEFA Europa League | 1Q |  F91 Dudelange | 1–0 | 1–2 | 2–2 (a) |
| 2Q |  Slovan Bratislava | 1–5 | 0–1 | 1–6 |
Youth
| Season | Competition | Round | Opponent | Home | Away | Aggregate |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2017–18 | UEFA Youth League | 1R |  Molde | 2–1 | 1–2 | 3–3 (p) |
| 2024–25 | UEFA Youth League | 1R |  Stjarnan | 3–0 | 2–3 | 5–3 |
| 2R |  2 Korriku | 1–3 | 1–2 | 2–5 |
Notes
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined underFIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
|
|
Current players excluded. Some players spanned several decades, they are placed in the decade they made their debut for UCD.
1920s 1930s 1950s 1960s 1970s | 1980s 1990s | 2000s | 2010s
2020s
|
| Position | Staff |
|---|---|
| Manager | Andrew Myler |
| Assistant Manager | William O'Connor |
| U-19 Head Coach | JJ Glynn |
| U-17 Head Coach | Rob Sweeney |
| Head of Youth Development | Albert Sugg |
(Players in bold still playing for UCD)
| # | Name | Career | Appearances |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Ciarán Kavanagh | 1990–2002 | 383 |
| 2 | Tony McDonnell | 1993–2007 | 361 |
| 3 | Alan Mahon | 1997–2008 | 306 |
| 4 | Alan McNally | 1999–2009 | 275 |
| 5 | Robbie Griffin | 1990–1998, 2003 | 265 |
| 6 | Mick O'Byrne | 1993–2001 | 254 |
| 7 | Éamonn McLoughlin | 1994–2001 | 249 |
| Darren O'Brien | 1986–1997 | 249 | |
| 9 | Mick O'Donnell | 1995–2005 | 240 |
| 10 | Robert McAuley | 1997–2005 | 237 |
(Players in bold still playing for UCD)
| # | Name | Career | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Mick O'Byrne | 1993–2000 | 87 |
| 2 | Darren O'Brien | 1986–1997 | 70 |
| 3 | Robbie Griffin | 1990–1998, 2003 | 52 |
| 4 | Robbie Martin | 2000–2005 | 43 |
| 5 | Colm Whelan | 2020-2022 | 41 |
| 6 | David McMillan | 2008–2010, 2012–2013 | 40 |
| 6 | Gary O'Neill | 2015–2019 | 40 |
| 8 | Jason Sherlock | 1994–1998 | 39 |
| 8 | Georgie Kelly | 2016–2018 | 39 |
| 10 | Yoyo Mahdy | 2017–2020 | 36 |
| Date | Opposition | H/A | Competition | Score | Scorers |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1978-02-04 | Home Farm B | H | LoI B Division | 9-1 | Martin Moran (3), A Jennings (2), B Devlin (2), P McGovern, B O'Sullivan |
| 1931-10-31 | Trinity College | A | LSL Division 1 | 9-1 | O'Dea (7), Donaghy (2) |
| 2020-09-04 | Wexford FC | H | LoI First Division | 8-0 | Yoyo Mahdy (3),Colm Whelan (3), Isaac Akinsete, Liam Kerrigan |
| 2018-05-07 | Wexford FC | A | LoI First Division | 8-0 | Jason McClelland (3), Yoyo Mahdy (2), Gary O'Neill (2), Liam Scales |
| 1979-04-28 | Tullamore Town | A | LoI B Division | 8-0 | Not reported |
| 2016-09-30 | Waterford United | A | LoI First Division | 8-1 | Jason Byrne (2), Daire O'Connor (2), Tomás Boyle, Georgie Kelly, Jason McClelland, Gary O'Neill |
| 1958-12-20 | Botanic | H | LSL Division 1 | 8-1 | David Andrews (4), John Duffy (2), Paul Moy, Éamon Stubbings |
| 2000-09-26 | Bluebell United | H | League Cup Group | 7-0 | Ken Kilmurray (3), Eóin Bennis, Kevin Grogan, Mick O'Donnell, David Quinn |
| 1971-12-18 | Athlone Town B | H | LoI B Division | 7-0 | Mick Foley (2), E Semple (2), Burke, Newman, Cathal Travers |
| 1943-01-15 | Bray Unknowns | H | LSL Division 1 | 7-0 | Not reported |
| 1931-01-24 | Drumcondra B | H | LSL Division 1 | 7-0 | O'Dea (4), Donaghy (2), Liam Honohan |
| 1930-02-01 | Brideville B | H | LSL Division 1 | 7-0 | Finnegan (3), Donaghy (3), O'Brien |
| 1929-03-02 | Strandville | H | LSL Division 1 | 7-0 | Hollweck (3), Donaghy (2), Cavanagh, Dempsey |
| Date | Opposition | H/A | Competition | Score | Scorers |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2019-08-16 | Bohemians | A | LoI Premier Division | 1-10 | Jason McClelland |
| 1920-11-14 | Shelbourne | H | LSL Division 1 | 1-10 | Jim O'Flaherty |
| 1942-02-14 | Shamrock Rovers B | A | LSL Division 1 | 0-9 | |
| 1947-08-30 | Jacobs | A | Leinster Senior Cup Rd 1 | 2-10 | O'Connor, M... |
| 1937-03-13 | Fearons Athletic | H | LSL Division 1 | 1-9 | M Doherty |
| 1957-02-02 | Shelbourne B | A | Metropolitan Cup Rd 2 | 2-9 | Hall, O'Brien |
| 1962-09-01 | Shelbourne B | A | LSL Division 1 | 1-8 | C Deignan |
| 1951-01-20 | Jacobs | A | LSL Division 1 | 1-8 | Lennon |
| 1947-04-12 | Dundalk B | A | Metropolitan Cup Rd 2 | 1-8 | W Purcell |
| 1933-09-30 | Shelbourne B | A | LSL Division 1 | 1-8 | Bennett |
| Date | Opposition | H/A | Competition | Score | Scorers |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1954-09-18 | Aer Lingus | A | LSL Division 1 | 5-7 | Donnelly (2), John Duffy, Frank Obiakpani, Quinn |
| 1947-08-30 | Jacobs | A | Leinster Senior Cup Rd 2 | 2-10 | O'Connor, M... |
| 1927-09-10 | Vickers | H | LSL Division 1 | 9-3 | P Byrne (4), P Kennedy (2), J Dempsey, Peppard, J McCaffrey |
| 1927-02-12 | Corinthians | H | LSL Division 1 | 6-6 | P Byrne (2), Geary (2), J Dempsey, O'Reilly |
| 2019-08-16 | Bohemians | A | LoI Premier Division | 1-10 | Jason McClelland |
| 1957-02-02 | Shelbourne B | A | Metropolitan Cup Rd 2 | 2-9 | Hall, O'Brien |
| 1952-09-06 | Longford Town | H | Leinster Senior Cup Rd 2 | 5-6 (aet) | P Doris (2), V Gilbride, Brian Lenihan, Frank Obiakpani |
| 1951-05-06 | Longford Town | A | LSL Division 1 | 3-8 | P Doris, McGovern, Frank Obiakpani |
| 1951-02-10 | Shelbourne B | A | Metropolitan Cup Rd 1 | 4-7 | Doran, Cassidy, McGovern (2) |
| 1948-09-25 | Jacobs | A | LSL Division 1 | 3-8 | Walsh (2), Golastegi |
| 1920-11-13 | Shelbourns | H | LSL Division 1 | 1-10 | Jim O'Flaherty |
| Season | Winner |
|---|---|
| 1999–00 | Ciarán Martyn |
| 2000–01 | Clive Delaney |
| 2001–02 | Barry Ryan |
| 2002–03 | Barry Ryan |
| 2003 | Mick O'Donnell |
| 2004 | Seán Finn |
| 2005 | Darren Quigley |
| 2006 | Tony McDonnell |
| 2007 | Conan Byrne |
| 2009 | Evan McMillan |
| 2010 | Ciarán Kilduff |
| 2011 | Gerard Barron |
| 2012 | Michael Leahy |
| 2013 | David O'Connor |
| 2014 | Robbie Benson |
| 2015 | Ryan Swan |
| 2016 |  Maxi Kougoun |
| 2017 | Georgie Kelly |
| Season | League of Ireland | FAI Cup[note 1] | League Cup | Leinster Senior Cup | Other domestic | Europe | Top scorer (all comps) | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | P | W | D | L | F | A | Pts | Pos | ||||||||
| 1922/23 | [note 2] | |||||||||||||||
| 1923/24 | LSL 1 | 24[note 3] | 15 | 2 | 7 | 66 | 47 | 32 | 3rd | R1 | R2 | Metropolitan Cup – R2 | ||||
| 1924/25 | LSL 1 | 23[note 4] | 6 | 1 | 18 | 40 | 66 | 13 | 13th | R2 | R1 | Metropolitan Cup – R2 | J Geary | 11 | ||
| 1925/26 | LSL 1 | 29[note 5] | 8 | 4 | 17 | 56 | 86 | 20 | 12th | R1 | Metropolitan Cup – R1 | J Geary | 17 | |||
| 1926/27 | LSL 1 | 30 | 13 | 5 | 12 | 73 | 69 | 31 | 8th | R3 | R1 | Metropolitan Cup – R1 | P Byrne | 20 | ||
| 1927/28 | LSL 1 | 30 | 10 | 2 | 18 | 60 | 67 | 22 | 12th | SF | R3 | Metropolitan Cup – R1 | Cavanagh, P Byrne | 10 | ||
| 1928/29 | LSL 1 | 29[note 6] | 7 | 5 | 17 | 52 | 71 | 19 | 13th | R1 | QF | Metropolitan Cup – R1 | Cavanagh | 16 | ||
| 1929/30 | LSL 1 | 30 | 10 | 4 | 16 | 51 | 69 | 24 | 11th | R1 | Metropolitan Cup – R2 | Donaghy | 15 | |||
| 1930/31 | LSL 1 | 27[note 7] | 13 | 7 | 7 | 62[note 8] | 41 | 33 | 7th | R3 | R1 | Metropolitan Cup – R1 | O'Dea | 27 | ||
| 1931/32 | LSL 1 | 28[note 9] | 9 | 2 | 17 | 66 | 76 | 20 | 13th | R1 | R1 | Metropolitan Cup – R1 | O'Donnell | 25 | ||
| 1932/33 | LSL 1 | 29[note 10] | 10 | 3 | 16 | 71 | 67 | 23 | 13th | R1 | R1 | Metropolitan Cup – R2 | O'Donnell | 22 | ||
| 1933/34 | LSL 1 | 29[note 11] | 9 | 5 | 15 | 56 | 72 | 23 | 12th | R1 | R1 | Metropolitan Cup – R1 | O'Donnell | 15 | ||
| 1934/35 | LSL 1 | 30[note 12] | 6th | R1 | R1 | Metropolitan Cup – R2 and FAI Senior Cup – R1 | ||||||||||
| 1935/36 | LSL 1 | 29[note 13] | 9 | 8 | 12 | 67 | 59 | 26 | 10th | R1 | R1 | Metropolitan Cup – R1 | Barry Hooper | 30 | ||
| 1936/37 | LSL 1 | 38 | 14 | 4 | 20 | 63 | 92 | 32 | 14th | R3 | R2 | Metropolitan Cup – R2 | Barry Hooper | 15 | ||
| 1937/38 | LSL 1 | 30[note 14] | 10 | 1 | 19 | 43 | 67 | 21 | 15th | R3 | SF | Metropolitan Cup – R2 | Barry Hooper | 17 | ||
| 1938/39 | LSL 1 | 26 | 12 | 3 | 11 | 47 | 44 | 27 | 6th | R1 | R1 | Metropolitan Cup – R2 and FAI Senior Cup – R1 | Paddy Crean | 11 | ||
| 1939/40 | LSL 1 | 26 | 4 | 5 | 17 | 36 | 71 | 13 | 13th | R1 | R1 | Metropolitan Cup – R2 | W Donnelly | 5 | ||
| 1940/41 | LSL 1 | 19[note 15] | 5 | 4 | 10 | 33 | 54 | 14 | 10th | R2 | R1 | Metropolitan Cup – R1 | Paddy Crean | 7 | ||
| 1941/42 | LSL 1 | 22 | 4 | 4 | 14 | 23 | 63 | 12 | 10th | R1 | SF | Metropolitan Cup – R2 | ||||
| 1942/43 | LSL 1 | 20 | 9 | 3 | 8 | 53 | 46 | 21 | 6th | [note 16] | Metropolitan Cup – R2 | |||||
| 1943/44 | LSL 1 | 21[note 17] | 7 | 3 | 11 | 39 | 55 | 17 | 10th | [note 18] | R2 | Metropolitan Cup – R2 | B Rooney | 9 | ||
| 1944/45 | LSL 1 | 18[note 19] | 5 | 2 | 10 | 37 | 46 | 12 | 8th | W | R1 | Metropolitan Cup – SF | Purcell | 10 | ||
| 1945/46 | LSL 1 | 16[note 20] | 1 | 3 | 12 | 26 | 49 | 6 | 11th | R2 | R1 | Metropolitan Cup – R1 | J O'Hagen | 6 | ||
| 1946/47 | LSL 1 | 16[note 21] | 1 | 5 | 10 | 28 | 54 | 7 | 13th | R1 | R1 | Metropolitan Cup – R2 | ||||
| 1947/48 | LSL 1 | 23[note 22] | 4 | 3 | 16 | 40 | 71 | 11 | 12th | R1 | R1 | Metropolitan Cup – R1 | ||||
| 1948/49 | LSL 1 | 23[note 23] | 2 | 5 | 16 | 34 | 84 | 9 | 13th | R3 | R1 | Metropolitan Cup – R1 | Coleman,Brian Lenihan, McGuirk | 6 | ||
| 1949/50 | LSL 1 | 25[note 24] | 7 | 6 | 12 | 47 | 55 | 20 | 7th | R3 | R1 | Metropolitan Cup – R3 | Brian Lenihan | 9 | ||
| 1950/51 | LSL 1 | 23[note 25] | 6 | 1 | 16 | 35 | 78 | 13 | 13th | R1 | R1 | Metropolitan Cup – R1 | ||||
| 1951/52 | LSL 1 | 25[note 26] | 12 | 4 | 9 | 67 | 57 | 28 | 4th | R1 | R1 | Metropolitan Cup – R1 | Brian Lenihan | |||
| 1952/53 | LSL 1 | 25[note 27] | 9 | 4 | 12 | 53 | 58 | 22 | 8th | SF | R2 | Metropolitan Cup – R1 and FAI Senior Cup – R1 | Paddy Doris | |||
| 1953/54 | LSL 1 | 26[note 28] | 6 | 3 | 17 | 47 | 81 | 15 | 13th | R1 | R2 | Metropolitan Cup – R2 | ||||
| 1954/55 | LSL 1 | 27[note 29] | 10 | 7 | 10 | 57 | 51 | 27 | 6th | R1 | R2 | Metropolitan Cup – R2 | John Duffy | 22 | ||
| 1955/56 | LSL 1 | 32[note 30] | 14 | 9 | 9 | 55 | 50 | 37 | 8th | R1 | R2 | Metropolitan Cup – SF | John Duffy, Fidelis Ezemenari, Danny Moy, Jackie Williams | 8 | ||
| 1956/57 | LSL 1 | 28[note 31] | 8 | 3 | 17 | 45 | 84 | 19 | 15th | SF | R1 | Metropolitan Cup – R2 and FAI Senior Cup – R1 | Luke Plunkett | |||
| 1957/58 | LSL 1 | 36[note 32] | 8 | 12 | 16 | 53[note 33] | 73 | 28 | 13th | R1 | R2 | Metropolitan Cup – R2 | John Duffy | |||
| 1958/59 | LSL 1 | 33[note 34] | 13 | 1 | 19 | 52 | 65 | 27 | 16th | R2 | Metropolitan Cup – QF | Éamon Stubbings | 14 | |||
| 1959/60 | LSL 1 | 31[note 35] | 3 | 6 | 22 | 25[note 36] | 76 | 12 | 18th | R2 | R1 | Metropolitan Cup – R2 | Éamon Stubbings | 10 | ||
| 1960/61 | LSL 1 | 32[note 37] | 6 | 7 | 19 | 40[note 38] | 77 | 19 | 16th | R2 | R1 | Metropolitan Cup – R1 | Cahill | 7 | ||
| 1961/62 | LSL 1 | 29[note 39] | 7 | 4 | 18 | 52 | 82 | 18 | 15th | R1 | R1 | Metropolitan Cup – R3 | T O'Reilly | 16 | ||
| 1962/63 | LSL 1 | 25[note 40] | 8 | 3 | 14 | 58 | 84 | 19 | 12th | R1 | R1 | Metropolitan Cup – R2 | T O'Reilly | 15 | ||
| 1963/64 | LSL 1S[note 41] | 21[note 42] | 6 | 5 | 10 | 42 | 54 | 17 | 8th | R2 | R1 | Metropolitan Cup – Group | B O'Rourke | 13 | ||
| 1964/65 | LSL 1 | 22[note 43] | 10 | 5 | 7 | 46 | 44 | 25 | 5th | R2 | R1 | Metropolitan Cup – R2 | Gerry Molloy | 12 | ||
| 1965/66 | LSL 1 | 25[note 44] | 5 | 6 | 14 | 30[note 45] | 55 | 16 | 12th | R1 | [note 46] | Metropolitan Cup – R1 | Gerry Molloy, Mick Hooper | 7 | ||
| 1966/67 | LSL 1 | 26 | 6 | 6 | 14 | 40 | 60 | 18 | 10th | R2 | R1 | Metropolitan Cup – R2 | J Hannon | 10 | ||
| 1967/68 | LSL 1 | 20[note 47] | 6 | 3 | 11 | 33[note 48] | 39 | 15 | 11th | R1 | Metropolitan Cup – SF | Brian Walsh | 12 | |||
| 1968/69 | LSL 1 | 22[note 49] | 6 | 4 | 12 | 37 | 45 | 16 | 13th | R1 | Metropolitan Cup – R1 | Mick Kirby | 11 | |||
| 1969/70 | LSL 1 | 24[note 50] | 3 | 6 | 15 | 22 | 58 | 11 | ↑14th[note 51] | R1 | R1 | Metropolitan Cup – R1 | Joe Cunningham | 5 | ||
| 1970/71 | LoI B | 26 | 4 | 4 | 18 | 32 | 63 | 12 | 12th | R1 | Castrol Trophy – Group and PJ Casey Cup – R1 | Charlie O'Donnell | 9 | |||
| 1971/72 | LoI B | 26 | 7 | 6 | 13 | 36 | 49 | 18 | 11th | R1 | R1 | Castrol Trophy – Group and PJ Casey Cup – R1 | Cathal Travers | 9 | ||
| 1972/73 | LoI B | 23[note 52] | 10 | 5 | 8 | 43 | 37 | 25 | 5th | R1 | R2 | Castrol Trophy – Group | Kevin Henry | 8 | ||
| 1973/74 | LoI B | 22 | 6 | 8 | 8 | 32[note 53] | 30 | 20 | 7th | R2 | R1 | Castrol Trophy – Group | Aldo Martina | 7 | ||
| 1974/75 | LoI B | 21[note 54] | 10 | 5 | 6 | 34[note 55] | 27 | 25 | 4th | R1 | R1 | Castrol Trophy – Group | J McDermott | 10 | ||
| 1975/76 | LoI B | 22 | 10 | 8 | 4 | 44 | 24 | 28 | 3rd | R1 | Egan Trophy – R1 | Kevin Moran, Martin Moran, A Bradford | 6 | |||
| 1976/77 | LoI B | 22 | 8 | 3 | 11 | 34[note 56] | 48 | 19 | 9th | R1 | Blackthorn Trophy – Group | Martin Moran | 9 | |||
| 1977/78 | LoI B | 19[note 57] | 10 | 3 | 6 | 47 | 26 | 23 | 4th | R1 | Blackthorn Trophy – SF[note 58] | Martin Moran | 16 | |||
| 1978/79 | LoI B | 24 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 31[note 59] | 41 | 22 | ↑8th[note 60] | R1 | David Cassidy | 6 | ||||
| 1979/80 | LoI | 30 | 5 | 4 | 21 | 24 | 75 | 14 | 15th | R4 | R1 | R2 | Martin Moran | 11 | ||
| 1980/81 | LoI | 30 | 8 | 9 | 13 | 37 | 49 | 25 | 12th | R4 | R1 | W | Martin Moran | 12 | ||
| 1981/82 | LoI | 30 | 7 | 10 | 13 | 30 | 41 | 37[note 61] | 13th | R4 | R1 | QF | Ken O'Doherty | 6 | ||
| 1982/83 | LoI | 26 | 4 | 4 | 18 | 29 | 63 | 16[note 62] | 13th | R4 | Grp | R3 | Ken O'Doherty | 7 | ||
| 1983/84 | LoI | 26 | 9 | 10 | 7 | 24 | 23 | 28[note 63] | 6th | W | Grp | RU | Dublin City Cup – SF andLeague of Ireland Shield –RU | Ken O'Doherty | 10 | |
| 1984/85 | LoI | 30 | 12 | 14 | 4 | 41 | 26 | 38 | 4th | QF | Grp | RU | President's Cup –RU | ECWC R1 | Joe Hanrahan | 9 |
| 1985/86 | Prem | 22 | 2 | 4 | 16 | 19 | 50 | 8 | ↓12th | R4 | Grp | SF | Brendan Murphy | 8 | ||
| 1986/87 | First | 18 | 8 | 3 | 7 | 22 | 22 | 19 | 5th | R4 | Grp | R2 | First Division Shield – Group | Mark McKenna | 7 | |
| 1987/88 | First | 27 | 9 | 7 | 11 | 37 | 36 | 25 | 5th | R5 | Grp | R1 | Mark McKenna | 8 | ||
| 1988/89 | First | 27 | 11 | 12 | 4 | 36 | 16 | 34 | ↑2nd | R2 | Grp | R2 | Mark McKenna and Dave Tilson | 8 | ||
| 1989/90 | Prem | 33 | 6 | 5 | 22 | 25 | 61 | 17 | ↓12th | R2 | Grp | QF | Paul Cullen | 9 | ||
| 1990/91 | First | 27 | 11 | 5 | 11 | 32 | 25 | 27 | 6th | R1 | Grp | R2 | First Division Shield – Group | Paul Cullen | 12 | |
| 1991/92 | First | 27 | 11 | 8 | 8 | 37 | 25 | 30 | 4th | R2 | Grp | R3 | First Division Shield –W | Paul Cullen and Darren O'Brien | 12 | |
| 1992/93 | First | 27 | 10 | 10 | 7 | 36 | 26 | 30 | 4th | R2 | Grp | First Division Shield – Group | Darren O'Brien | 13 | ||
| 1993/94 | First | 27 | 10 | 10 | 7 | 37 | 23 | 40[note 64] | 4th | R1 | Grp | QF | First Division Shield – Group | Darren O'Brien | 17 | |
| 1994/95 | First | 33 | 20 | 4 | 3 | 56 | 12 | 64 | ↑1st | R1 | Grp | W | First Division Shield –W | Mick O'Byrne | 27 | |
| 1995/96 | Prem | 33 | 12 | 6 | 15 | 38 | 39 | 42 | 7th=[note 65] | R1 | Grp | W | Mick O'Byrne | 17 | ||
| 1996/97 | Prem | 33 | 12 | 7 | 14 | 34 | 39 | 43 | 8th | R1 | Grp | SF | Robbie Griffin | 8 | ||
| 1997/98 | Prem | 33 | 9 | 12 | 12 | 30 | 31 | 39 | 10th[note 66] | QF | Grp | QF | Jason Sherlock | 15 | ||
| 1998/99 | Prem | 33 | 10 | 12 | 11 | 31 | 32 | 42 | 6th | R2 | Grp | QF | Mick O'Byrne | 8 | ||
| 1999/00 | Prem | 33 | 13 | 12 | 8 | 40 | 29 | 51 | 4th | R2 | R2 | R1 | Mick O'Byrne | 12 | ||
| 2000/01 | Prem | 33 | 9 | 10 | 14 | 36 | 44 | 37 | 10th[note 67] | R2 | RU | R1 | FAI Super Cup –W | InterToto R1 | Ciarán Martyn | 8 |
| 2001/02 | Prem | 33 | 12 | 12 | 9 | 40 | 39 | 48 | 7th | QF | R2 | Robbie Martin | 12 | |||
| 2002/03 | Prem | 27 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 23 | 25 | 33 | 6th | R2 | Robbie Doyle | 9 | ||||
| 2003 | Prem | 36 | 7 | 13 | 16 | 27 | 39 | 34 | ↓10th | R3 | Grp | Robbie Griffin | 6 | |||
| 2004 | First | 33 | 22 | 9 | 2 | 63 | 21 | 75 | ↑2nd | QF | Grp | Willie Doyle and Robbie Martin | 15 | |||
| 2005 | Prem | 33 | 7 | 12 | 14 | 28 | 44 | 33 | 9th | QF | RU | Robbie Martin and Pat McWalter | 9 | |||
| 2006 | Prem | 30 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 26 | 26 | 38 | 6th | QF | R1 | Conor Sammon | 8 | |||
| 2007 | Prem | 33 | 7 | 10 | 16 | 31 | 44 | 31 | 10th | SF | SF | Conor Sammon | 11 | |||
| 2008 | Prem | 33 | 4 | 9 | 20 | 19 | 46 | 21 | ↓12th | R2 | R2 | Timmy Purcell | 3 | |||
| 2009 | First | 33 | 23 | 5 | 5 | 62 | 22 | 74 | ↑1st | R3 | SF | Ciarán Kilduff | 16 | |||
| 2010 | Prem | 33 | 11 | 8 | 17 | 47 | 54 | 41 | 7th | R4 | R2 | SF | Ciarán Kilduff | 18 | ||
| 2011 | Prem | 36 | 10 | 4 | 22 | 42 | 80 | 34 | 8th | R2 | R1 | SF | Setanta Sports Cup – R1 | Graham Rusk | 11 | |
| 2012 | Prem | 30 | 8 | 7 | 15 | 32 | 48 | 31 | 9th | R2 | R2 | SF | Graham Rusk | 10 | ||
| 2013 | Prem | 33 | 8 | 6 | 19 | 45 | 73 | 30 | 9th | R1 | R1 | QF | Dave McMillan | 12 | ||
| 2014 | Prem | 33 | 6 | 7 | 20 | 27 | 71 | 25 | ↓11th[note 68] | R2 | R1 | QF | Robbie Benson | 5 | ||
| 2015 | First | 28 | 14 | 7 | 7 | 51 | 26 | 49 | 3rd[note 69] | R2 | R1 | R4 | Europa League QR2[note 70] | Ryan Swan | 15 | |
| 2016 | First | 28 | 14 | 6 | 8 | 57 | 40 | 48 | 4th | QF | R1 | SF | Gary O'Neill | 16 | ||
| 2017 | First | 28 | 13 | 8 | 7 | 42 | 23 | 47 | 3rd | R1 | R1 | SF | UEFA Youth League R1[note 71] | Georgie Kelly | 18 | |
| 2018 | First | 27 | 17 | 6 | 4 | 59 | 29 | 57 | ↑1st | SF | R1 | R4 | Georgie Kelly | 14 | ||
| 2019 | Prem | 36 | 5 | 4 | 27 | 25 | 82 | 19 | ↓10th | QF | QF | QF | Yoyo Mahdy | 9 | ||
| 2020 | First | 18 | 9 | 3 | 6 | 44 | 29 | 30 | 3rd[note 72] | R2 | [note 73] | [note 74] | Yoyo Mahdy | 16 | ||
| 2021 | First | 27 | 13 | 7 | 7 | 55 | 38 | 46 | ↑3rd[note 75] | QF | [note 76] | [note 77] | Colm Whelan | 26 | ||
| 2022 | Premier | 36 | 6 | 8 | 22 | 28 | 67 | 26 | 9th[note 78] | QF | Tommy Lonergan | 12 | ||||
| 2023 | Premier | 36 | 2 | 5 | 29 | 19 | 96 | 11 | ↓10th | R2 | Danú Kinsella-Bishop | 6 | ||||
| 2024 | First | 36 | 14 | 14 | 8 | 47 | 37 | 56 | 2nd[note 79] | QF | Grp | UEFA Youth League R2[note 80] | Jake Doyle | 10 | ||
Ronnie Nolan (–1979) Dr Tony O'Neill (1979–83) Dermot Keely(1983 Player manager July–November) Theo Dunne (1983–90) Dr Tony O'Neill (1990–94) General Manager 1979–1999 Theo Dunne (1994–99) Martin Moran (1999–2001)Paul Doolin (2001–03) Pete Mahon (Sept 15, 2003–Jan 12, 2009)Martin Russell (13 Jan 2009 – Oct 2013)Aaron Callaghan (November 2013-October 2014) Collie O'Neill (2015–August 2019)
Maciej Tarnogrodzki (August 2019–December 2019)Andy Myler (2020-)
