Home Farm FC
Home Farm FC
are one of the most famous, and most successful schoolboy football clubs in
Ireland. The club have produced a lot of players that have had very successful
careers in England, and some have even gone onto become full Irish
Internationals. In fact, the club have had forty-six players gone on to wear
the green jersey of Ireland. Three of those had duel-international appearances
for both the IFA and Irish Free state sides. Players like liam Brady, Ian
Harte, Joe Haverty and Ronnie Whelan all wore both Home Farm and Ireland
jerseys. But this article isn’t about them, it is about the history of the
football club and why they are a Forgotten Football Club. That is because they
were once a League of Ireland club. But of course, they are not anymore. Here
is their story.
Founded in
1928, when a street football league was set-up in the in the Whitehall area,
the Northside of Dublin. In this league, five clubs competed. These were
Drumcondra Road, Ormond Road, Hollybank Road, Richmond Road and Home Farm Road.
The latter two decided to join up and form Home Farm FC. One of the founders,
Don Seery, was the farther of Ronan Seery, the founder of another Forgotten
Football Club, Dublin City.
Originally, the
clubs colours were gold and black, after a kit was purchased at a jumble sale,
however, the clubs colours were changed to blue and white stripes a year later.
The club began playing their home games at Griffith Avenue.
T wasn’t until
1972 when the club got a chance to join the League of Ireland when the club
merged with Drumcondra AFC. The Drums had gotten into finically difficulties
and despite their League of Ireland success they knew that they could not
continue in the League. Their only option was joining up with Home Farm.
The club were
known as Home Farm Drumcondra as part of the deal. The other part was that Home
Farm Drumcondra would play their games at Tolka Park. However after just one
year they dropped the Drumcondra from the club name and continued as just Home
Farm FC.
It was in 1975,
when the club had their most famous win. It came in the form of the FAI Cup,
beating St Patricks Athletic Cork Celtic and Dundalk on their way to the final.
In the final, they met Shelbourne FC who were the overwhelming favourites.
However, Home Farm turned their Dublin rivals over, by beating them 1-0 at
Dalymount, becoming the first amateur side to win the FAI Cup. It also meant
they qualified for the next seasons European Cup Winners Cup.
They came up
against French side RC Lens, who they drew with 1-1 in the home leg, however,
their French counterparts proved too strong in the away leg, beathing the
Dubliners, 6-0.
Despite their
FAI Cup success, they couldn’t replicate it in their league form and the club
were relegated to the League of Ireland First Division in 1987. They continued
to under perform until the 1990’s when they underwent another name change.
In 1995-96 the
club became Home Farm Everton after lining up with English club, Everton. The
agreement between the clubs meant Everton would get first pick on any talented
young players that played for Home Farm. Richard Dunne is one name that comes
to mind when thinking back about this arrangement. The club eventually gained
promotion in the 1995 as well, finishing third in the regular season and
qualifying for the promotion/relegation play-off. They faced Athlone Town and
defeated them, reaching the Premier Division once again.
Their return to
the League of Ireland Premier Division didn’t last long and they were relegated
after just one season. The club continued to play under the name Home Farm
Everton until 1999, when the club decided to pull out of the League of Ireland
altogether. However, Dublin City where founded in their place, with Home Farm
continuing on as a schoolboy club and at various different levels.
Home Farm FC
were essentially part of a triology of clubs that started off with Drumcondra,
forming into Home Farm and then ending with Dublin City, all of which had
various levels of success. Will we see Home Farm return to League of Ireland
level? Probably not unless sufficient investment is made in the club and the
league itself, and even then, they probably feel that they can continue to
prevail at schoolboy level.