The Irish Football Pyramid – or lack of (part 3 - Connacht)

Following on from our deep-dives into the current ‘non-league’ systems in Munster and Ulster, it’s now time to delve into the Connacht scene.  

Similar to its Ulster counterpart, the Connacht Senior League once operated as the sole intermediate level of football for the province.

In its most modern format the league ran from 1981 to 2001 and was dominated for the most part by Galway’s Mervue United. 

Reserve sides from Sligo Rovers, Longford Town and Galway United also entered the league but by the late 1990s participation was dwindling and the Mervue clinched their fourth title in a row in the final campaign of 1999/2000. 

Efforts were made in 2013 to revive the CSL but this failed to gain traction and the Connacht clubs remained playing junior football in their respective counties. 

Galway

Looking at the current junior scene in Connacht, Galway is certainly a hotbed for football in the region. 

The Galway FA run four divisions from their Premier League downwards, as well as reserve and under-21 leagues. 

Former League of Ireland clubs Salthill Devon and Mervue United are the dominant outfits, with Salthill winning the past three league titles. 

Surprisingly neither have yet to add the FAI Junior Cup to their trophy cabinet. University of Galway added a collegiate element to the league set-up. 

Mayo Super League

Further north in the province, the Mayo Super League sees clubs throughout Ireland’s third largest county compete across four divisions. 

An early adopter of the summer football calendar, the league has gone from strength to strength in recent times. Castlebar Celtic, formerly of the League of Ireland A Championship, were the 2024 winners ahead of previous champions Westport, Ballina and Ballyheane.

Sligo Leitrim and District League 

The Sligo Leitrim and District League is the only league within the province that operates across multiple counties, although unsurprisingly Sligo constitutes the majority of its clubs. Finally Roscommon operates its own league.

Since commencing this series of articles the FAI has now formally commenced its process of recruiting 20 teams for its new FAI National League, that will act as a direct connection between grassroots and professional football for the first time in Ireland.  

The future

At least one entity of some description from Mayo is very likely to be a part of this, given the county is one of the largest currently without a League of Ireland team. 

Mayo FC already competes at underage LOI level while Castlebar’s previous experience in the A Championship could be a factor. 

In Galway, Mervue and Salthill are prime candidates for this new tier of Irish football but with Galway United already on the scene over-saturation may be a concern here. 

Traditionally football in Connacht was focused on the urban centres of the province. Galway and Sligo are well-known in this regard. In recent years however the game is gaining a foothold right across the region. Mayo has been exemplified as a league system ahead of its time following its early conversion to calendar year football.  

Grassroots football in Connacht needs all the support it can get, and if this arrives then the region could become very important indeed for Irish football in the coming years. 

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— extratime.com (@extratime.com) January 2, 2025 at 5:48 PM