The
Northern Ireland national football team represents
Northern
Ireland
in international football. Before 1921, all of
Ireland
was represented by a single side, the Ireland
national football team, organised by the Irish Football Association
(IFA). In 1921, the jurisdiction of the IFA was reduced to
Northern Ireland, following the secession of clubs in the
soon-to-be
Irish Free State,
although its team purported to remain the national team for all of
Ireland until 1950, and to use the name Ireland until the 1970s.
The
Football Association
of Ireland (FAI) organises the separate
Republic of Ireland
national football team.
History
On 18 February 1882, two years after the founding of the Irish FA,
Ireland made their international debut against
England, losing 13-0 in a
friendly played at Bloomfield Park in Belfast. This remains the
record win for England and the record defeat for the Northern
Ireland team. On 25 February 1882 Ireland played their second
international against Wales at the Racecourse Ground, Wrexham and
an equaliser from Johnston became Ireland’s first ever goal.
In 1884 Ireland competed in the inaugural
British Home Championship and lost
all three games. Ireland did not win their first game until 19
February 1887, a 4-1 win over Wales in Belfast. Between their debut
and this game, they had a run of 14 defeats and 1 draw, the longest
run without a win in the 1800s. Despite the end of this run, heavy
defeats continued. On 3 March 1888 they lost 11-0 to Wales and
three weeks later on 24 March they lost 10-2 to Scotland. Further
heavy defeats came on 15 March 1890 when they lost 9-1 to England,
on 18 February 1899 when they lost 13-2 to England and on 2
February 1901 when they lost 11-0 to Scotland.
In 1899 the Irish FA also changed its rules governing the selection
of non-resident players. Before then the Ireland team selected its
players exclusively from the Irish League, in particular the three
Belfast-based clubs Linfield, Cliftonville and Distillery. On 4
March 1899 for the game against Wales, McAteer included four Irish
players based in England. The change in policy produced dividends
as Ireland won 1-0. Three weeks later, on 25 March one of these
four players,
Archie Goodall, aged 34
years and 279 days, became the oldest player to score in
international football during the 19th century when he scored
Ireland’s goal in a 9-1 defeat to Scotland.
In 1920
Ireland was partitioned into Northern Ireland and Southern
Ireland. In 1922, Southern Ireland gained independence
as the Irish Free State, later to
become a republic under the name of Ireland
. Amid these political upheavals, a rival
football association, the
Football Association of
Ireland, emerged in Dublin in 1921 and organised a separate
league and international team.
In 1923, at a time when the home nations had
withdrawn from FIFA
, the FAI was
recognised by FIFA as the governing body of the Irish Free State on the condition that it
changed its name to the Football Association of the Irish Free
State. The Irish FA continued to organise its national team
on an all-Ireland basis.
Between
1928 and 1946 the IFA were not affiliated to FIFA and the two
Ireland teams co-existed, never competing in the same
competition. However, on 8 March 1950, in a 0-0 draw with
Wales at the Racecourse Ground, Wrexham, the IFA fielded a team
that included four players who were born in the Irish Free State.
As well as being part of the qualifier for the 1950 FIFA World Cup.
All four players had previously played for the FAI in their
qualifiers and as a result had played for two different
associations in the same FIFA World Cup tournament.
After complaints from the FAI, FIFA intervened and restricted
players' eligibility based on the political border. In 1953 FIFA
ruled neither team could be referred to as Ireland, decreeing that
the FAI team be officially designated as the Republic of Ireland,
while the IFA team was to become Northern Ireland.
Current player eligibility rules
After the
Good Friday
Agreement, players holding either a British or Irish passport,
but otherwise eligible for Northern Ireland, could play for the
national team For a brief period in 2006, a FIFA ruling stated NI
players must carry British passports due to difficulties for match
commissioners, but it was quickly modified to state that players
must merely prove their eligibility to the IFA In 2008, the rules
were changed so that merely holding a passport did not
automatically qualify players as eligible; players eligible for
Northern Ireland who wished to declare for the Republic of Ireland,
or vice versa, must have been resident in the target country for
two years, or have family ties. Due to the 2008 rule changes,
goalkeeper
Maik Taylor is said to be
unique among Northern Ireland national team players in never having
had a background in the country.
Past performances
British Home Championship
Until the 1950s, the major competition for Northern Ireland/Ireland
was the
British Home
Championship. The team had won the competition eight times,
taking the title outright on three occasions, they were the last
winners of the now defunct competition held in 1984, and hence
still are the British champions, and the trophy remains the
property of the Irish FA. This is much celebrated by their
fans.
World Cup
Northern Ireland's best
World Cup
performance was in their first appearance in the competition, the
1958 World Cup, where they
reached the quarter-finals after beating
Czechoslovakia 2-1 in
the play-off. They were knocked out by
France, losing 4-0. In the
1958 competition Northern Ireland became the smallest country to
have qualified for the World Cup, a record that stood until
Trinidad
& Tobago qualified for the
2006 World Cup. Northern Ireland
remains, however, the smallest country to have qualified for more
than one World Cup, and the smallest country to have reached the
World Cup quarter-finals.
Northern Ireland also qualified for the
1982 World Cup.Gerry Armstrong was a
Northern Irish football player, who played during the 1970s and
1980s. He is best remembered for scoring the goal in the 1982 World
Cup that enabled Northern Ireland to beat the tournament's hosts,
Spain, in a shock 1-0 win again reaching the quarter-finals after
topping the first stage group,
Norman
Whiteside became the youngest ever player in the World Cup
finals, a record that still stands. In the
1986 World Cup, they reached the first
round.
Billy Bingham, a member of the
1958 squad, was manager for both of these tournaments. They have
not qualified for any other World Cups.
European Championship
The side have yet to participate in their first
European Championship finals.
This is in despite of the fact that Northern Ireland beat the
former West Germany 1-0 home and away in qualifiers for Euro 84.
More recently, David Healy broke the record for goals scored in one
Euro campaign, previously held by Davor Suker of Croatia, by
scoring 13 times in Northern Ireland's brave, but ultimately
doomed, attempt to qualify for Euro 2008. Healy scored thrice
against Spain, twice against Sweden, 5 times against Liechtenstein,
once against Denmark, once against Latvia, and also scored against
Iceland. He also became the first player ever to score 2 hat tricks
for Northern Ireland. He had previously been one of only three
players to score a hat-trick for Northern Ireland - the others
being
George Best and
Colin Clarke.
Recent history
The Our Wee Country mural in east
Belfast commemorating Northern Ireland beating England at home in
2005.
Lawrie Sanchez was appointed in
January 2004 after a run of ten games without a goal under the
previous manager
Sammy McIlroy, which
was a world record for any international team. That run ended after
his first game in charge, a 1-4 defeat to
Norway in a friendly in
February 2004. The run of sixteen games without a win ended after
his second game, a 1-0 victory in a friendly over
Estonia, with a largely
experimental side, in March 2004.
On 7
September 2005 Northern Ireland beat England 1-0 in a 2006 World Cup Qualifier at
Windsor
Park
. David Healy scored the winner in the 73rd
minute. Almost a year later, on 6 September 2006, Northern Ireland
defeated Spain 3-2 in a qualifier for
Euro
2008, with Healy scoring a hat-trick.
In the following
match, Healy became the only Northern Irish player to score two
hat-tricks after scoring all of Northern Ireland's goals in their
3-1 win over Liechenstein
. Healy also scored a brace in the 2-1
victory over Sweden in the same qualification group. Healy scored
thirteen out of Northern Ireland's fifteen Euro 2008 qualification
goals in seven matches, and was the leading goalscorer in the
competition. In June 2007 Nigel Worthington was named manager in
the place of Lawrie Sanchez who tookover at Fulham. Initially
Worthington tookover until the end of the euro 2008 qualifiers but
was later given a contract until 2010.
Summary of all Northern Ireland's competitive results
- All competitive matches ‡
| P |
W |
D |
L |
F |
A |
Gd |
| 466 |
116 |
100 |
250 |
503 |
952 |
-451 |
- All matches including friendlies ‡
| P |
W |
D |
L |
F |
A |
Gd |
| 558 |
139 |
126 |
293 |
592 |
1114 |
-522 |
Data correct as of Northern Ireland v Serbia, 14 November
2009
The team have also won the Home Championship 8 times, including 5
shared.
Fixtures and results
2010 FIFA World Cup qualification
Northern Ireland were drawn from the third pot during
the UEFA group
draw. They began their campaign to qualify for the
2010 FIFA World Cup on September 6, 2008
playing away against
Slovakia, (lost 2–1). Four
days later they hosted the
Czech Republic and
held them to a scoreless draw. Northern Ireland then lost their
third qualification match 2–0 at
Slovenia, leaving the
Northern Ireland side with only one point and one goal scored
through three matches. However, they bounced back for back-to-back
victories over UEFA minnows
San Marino by scores of
4–0 and 3–0, lifting them to second equal in the group with seven
points and a goal difference of +4 with half of their group matches
remaining. In the following round of matches Northern Ireland
maintained their winning streak by defeating Poland 3-2 at Windsor
Park, however the match was marred by the riots before kick-off.
Northern Ireland then defeated Slovenia 1-0 in their next
qualification match to ensure they remained 2nd in their qualifying
group. In September 2009 the team travelled to Poland, where
pre-match planning by the footballing federations of both teams and
the police ensured that a repeat of the riots in Belfast did not
happen this time around. The game ended 1-1 after Northern Ireland
took the lead through Kyle Lafferty, but Poland levelled in the
78th minute through Lewandowski.
2009 international matches
Northern Ireland matches scheduled for 2009:
Controversy and sectarianism
Some of Northern Ireland's fans have been perceived as sectarian by
opposing elements in Northern Irish society.
Neil Lennon, who had been subject to boos and
jeers from some supporters while playing for Northern Ireland in
Windsor Park, was given a death-threat, due to his association with
Celtic F.C..
Steps have been taken to eradicate the sectarian element within the
support, and these have proved to be very successful. Lennon has
been quick to heap praise on the Northern Ireland fans, and in
particular "Football For All" Outstanding Achievement Award Winner
Stewart MacAfee, for the work they have carried out to create a
more inclusive atmosphere at international games.
Stadium
Windsor Park - a view from the Kop
Stand, showing the two-tiered North Stand and the low Railway stand
behind the opposite goal
Northern
Ireland play their home matches at Windsor Park, Belfast
, home of
Linfield F.C., which they have use of
on a one hundred and eight year lease, giving the owners 15% of
revenue, including gate receipts and TV rights..
There was
a proposal to build a multisports stadium for Northern Ireland at
the disused Maze
prison
outside Lisburn
for the use of Rugby,
Gaelic games and football. This
plan was given an "in principle" go-ahead by the Irish Football
Association. However, it was opposed by fans, over 85% of whom in a
match day poll conducted by the Amalgamation of Northern Ireland
Supporters' Clubs ("AONISC") preferred to stay at a smaller new or
redeveloped ground in the city of Belfast. The AONISC organised a
protest against the move to the Maze at the game against
Estonia in March 2006.
The issue assumed ever greater urgency by 2007, following a series
of inspections which questioned the suitability of Windsor Park to
host international football. Following a reduction of capacity due
to the closure of the Railway Stand, the IFA made it known that
they wished to terminate their contract for the use of the stadium.
A report on health and safety in October 2007 indicated that the
South Stand might have to be closed for internationals, which would
further reduce the stadium's capacity to 9,000.In April 2008,
Belfast City Council announced that they had commissioned Drivers
Jonas to conduct a feasibility study into the building of a Sports
Stadium in Belfast which could accommodate international football,
which was followed at the beginning of May 2008 by speculation that
the Maze Stadium project was going to be radically revised by Peter
Robinson, the Finance and Personnel Minister in the Northern
Ireland Assembly, so that any construction might be used for
purposes other than football, rugby union and Gaelic games.Given
the time that is needed to build a new stadium, in the absence of
significant work improving Windsor Park, Northern Ireland may be
forced to play their home games at a venue outside Northern Ireland
for a period.
Everton FC's Goodison Park
in Liverpool has been touted as a possible
alternative.
In
March 2009, proposals
were announced for the construction of a new 25,000 seat stadium in
the
Sydenham area of East Belfast
as an alternative to the Maze proposal.
This would form part
of a major development, with links to both George Best
Belfast City Airport
and the Bangor railway line. The
development would also include a hotel, and retail/leisure areas.
The stadium itself would be used for both football and
rugby union, with
Glentoran and
Ulster
Rugby intended as tenants.
However, Ulster
GAA, who were a partner in the Maze proposal, have stated that
in the event of a new stadium being built in East Belfast, which is
a major unionist area, their
preference would then be to remain at Casement Park
in nationalist
West Belfast.
The IFA were initially non-committal about any of the proposals for
improving their facilities, be it rebuilding Windsor Park, or
supporting either the Maze or Sydenham proposals. However, in
September 2009, they
issued an announcement in favour of the redevelopment of Windsor
Park. Although there were no specifics to this,
Linfield had previously released a study with
two proposals, of which the major one would be a £20m rebuilding of
the stadium, raising capacity to 20,000.
Popular culture
Since the defeat of England in 2005 there has been an increase of
"national" pride in the team, with demand for tickets outstripping
supply. Tongue-in-cheek songs such as "We're not Brazil, we're
Northern Ireland" (sung rather ironically to the tune of Battle
Hymn of the Republic), 'It's Just Like Watching Brazil' and 'Stand
up for the Ulstermen' are popular at home matches.In 2006, Northern
Ireland's supporters were awarded the Brussels International
Supporters Award, for their charity work, general good humour and
behaviour and efforts to stamp out sectarianism. Representatives of
the Amalgamation of Official Northern Ireland Supporters' Clubs
received the award from UEFA and EU representatives prior to the
Northern Ireland versus Spain game at Windsor Park in September
2006. The team have various supporters' clubs and the Our Wee
Country fans' website.
Current players
The following players were called up for the match against
Serbia on 14 November
2009.
Recent call ups
The following players have been called up to the Northern Ireland
squad since the appointment of Nigel Worthington as manager.
Coaching staff
History in major tournaments
World Cup
European Championship
Managers
Player records
Northern Ireland players with 50 or more caps
As of 9 September 2009, the players with the most caps for Northern
Ireland are:
Alan McDonald who played in the 1986 world cup finals
Top Ireland / Northern Ireland goalscorers
Media coverage
Sky Sports currently have the rights to
show Northern Ireland's home international fixtures after many
years of the games being exclusively live on
BBC Northern Ireland. The decision to
sell to Sky was met with disapproval. , however BBC Northern
Ireland have bought the rights to some away games and highlights of
all home matches.
Setanta Sports
bought rights to all but one of Northern Ireland away games.
However the future of these rights are up in the air as Setanta has
gone bust in the UK. Coincidently, the match that wasn't bought by
Setanta was shown on BBC NI on
Match of the Day from
Northern Ireland.
See also
References
- Irish Football Association (2009). Official Souvenir Programme:
Northern Ireland vs Serbia. Belfast:Irish Football Association
- BBC:Northern Ireland 0-1 Serbia
- BBC SPORT | Football | Irish | IFA wants out of
Windsor contract
- Report slams Windsor Park safety BBC News
- IFA wants out of Windsor contract BBC News
- South Stand future under threat BBC News
- Plans for £128m Belfast stadium unveiled - The
Independent, 25/03/09
- IFA 'backs Windsor as NI stadium' - BBC News,
07/09/09
- Linfield FC has £20m stadium plan - BBC News,
12/06/09
-
http://www.shamrockrovers.ie/news/35-news/911-mannus-joins-hoops
- Beeb in World cup TV woe - International - Football
- Sport - Belfast Telegraph
External links
, Serravalle
, Pisa
, Chorzow
, Prague
.jpg/150px-David_Healy_(footballer).jpg)
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