Monaghan United F.C. ( ga, Cumann Peile Mhuineacháin Aontaithe) is an Irish association football club based in

Monaghan Monaghan ( ; ) is the county town of County Monaghan, Ireland. It also provides the name of its civil parish and barony. The population of the town as of the 2016 census was 7,678. The town is on the N2 road from Dublin to Derry and Letterken ...

currently playing in the Ulster Senior League. The club joined the

League of Ireland The League of Ireland ( ga, Sraith na hÉireann), together with the Football Association of Ireland, is one of the two main governing bodies responsible for organising association football in the Republic of Ireland. The term was originally use ...

in 1983 and subsequently went on to play in the B Division, the First Division and the

Premier Division Premier is a title for the head of government in central governments, state governments and local governments of some countries. A second in command to a premier is designated as a deputy premier. A premier will normally be a head of gov ...

. They resigned from the league midway through the

2012 File:2012 Events Collage V3.png, From left, clockwise: The passenger cruise ship Costa Concordia lies capsized after the Costa Concordia disaster; Damage to Casino Pier in Seaside Heights, New Jersey as a result of Hurricane Sandy; People gather ...

season. The club continued to field a women's team in the

Dublin Women's Soccer League The Dublin Women's Soccer League was a women's association football league featuring teams from the Republic of Ireland. While the majority of the participating clubs were based in the Greater Dublin Area, the DWSL had regularly included teams f ...

and, together with the Cavan Monaghan Underage League, they entered a combined team in the League of Ireland U13 Division, League of Ireland U15, U17 and the U19 League of Ireland Divisions, until 2020, whereupon the partnership was ended, the CMUL continued to field a team in the national underage leagues. In 2019 the club entered a senior team into the Monaghan Cavan League, and in 2021, the club joined the Ulster Senior League.

History

League of Ireland

Monaghan United were founded in

1979 Events January * January 1 ** United Nations Secretary-General Kurt Waldheim heralds the start of the ''International Year of the Child''. Many musicians donate to the ''Music for UNICEF Concert'' fund, among them ABBA, who write the song ...

. Among the club's founding members was

Sean McCaffrey Sean McCaffrey (12 September 1959 – 30 December 2017) was an Irish football manager. He was the first team manager of League of Ireland Premier Division The League of Ireland Premier Division ( ga, Príomhroinn Sraith na hÉireann), also k ...

who was also the manager of the club when they joined the

League of Ireland B Division The League of Ireland B Division is a former league within the Republic of Ireland football league system. Its debut season was 1964–65. It was originally a second level league. However following the emergence of the League of Ireland First ...

in 1983–84. In 1985–86 Monaghan United became founder members of the

League of Ireland First Division The League of Ireland First Division ( ga, Céad Roinn Sraith na hÉireann), also known as the SSE Airtricity League First Division, is the second level division in both the League of Ireland and the Republic of Ireland football league system. ...

. United played eight seasons in the First Division before winning their first promotion. After finishing third in

1992–93 Year 199 ( CXCIX) was a common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was sometimes known as year 952 ''Ab urbe condita''. The denomination 199 for this year has been used since th ...

they became the first

club to gain promotion via a promotion/relegation play off. They defeated

Waterford United Waterford Football Club ( ga, Cumann Peile Phort Láirge) formerly Waterford United Football Club is an Irish association football club based in Waterford who play in the League of Ireland First Division. The club was founded and elected to the ...

5–2 on aggregate and were subsequently promoted to the 1993–94 Premier Division. They survived just two seasons in the Premier Division before being relegated at the end of the 1994–95 season. Monaghan United gained promotion to the Premier Division for a second time in 2000–01 after finishing second to

Dundalk Dundalk ( ; ga, Dún Dealgan ), meaning "the fort of Dealgan", is the county town (the administrative centre) of County Louth, Ireland. The town is on the Castletown River, which flows into Dundalk Bay on the east coast of Ireland. It is hal ...

. This time their stay in the Premier Division last just one season. After managing to win just two league games, they finished last and were relegated following the conclusion of the 2001–02 season. Monaghan United reached the final of the

2010 League of Ireland Cup The 2010 League of Ireland Cup, also known as the 2010 EA Sports Cup, was the 37th season of the League of Ireland knockout competition. The competition was won by Sligo Rovers who defeated Monaghan United in the final on 25 September 2010 at ...

but lost 1–0 in the final to

Sligo Rovers Sligo Rovers Football Club ( ga, Cumann Peile Ruagairí Shligigh) is an Irish professional football club playing in the Premier Division of the League of Ireland. The club is based in Sligo in the west of Ireland. The club was founded in 192 ...

. They also finished third in the 2010 First Division and qualified for the promotion/relegation play off. They subsequently beat Waterford United before losing to

Bray Wanderers Bray Wanderers Football Club ( ga, Cumann Peile Fánaithe Bhré) are an Irish association football club playing in the League of Ireland First Division. The club in its present form was founded in 1942 in Bray, and was known until 2010 as ''B ...

on penalties. In 2011, under the management of

Roddy Collins Roderick Collins (born 7 August 1962), is an Irish former professional football player and manager. During a playing career of 18 years, Collins played for many sides across England, Ireland and Northern Ireland. While towards the end of his ...

, Monaghan United again qualified for the promotion/relegation play off. This time they won promotion after beating

Galway United Galway United Football Club ( Irish: ''Cumann Peile Ghaillimh Aontaithe'') is an Irish association football club based in Galway. They play in the League of Ireland First Division. They were founded as Galway Rovers F.C. during the 1930s. The ...

5–1 on aggregate. However, midway through the

season, Monaghan United withdrew from the league for "mainly but not only financial" reasons. ;Statistics

Dublin Women's Soccer League

Monaghan United formed a ladies football team in 2006. They won Division Four of the

in their first season and were promoted to Division Two. In 2007 they again won the league along with the

Leinster Junior Cup The Leinster Schools Junior Challenge Cup is an under-age rugby union competition for schools affiliated to the Leinster Branch of the IRFU. Background The Leinster Schools Junior Cup competition is confined to students under the age of 16. The ...

. In 2008 they won the DWSL Intermediate Cup after defeating Santry 3–1 in the final. In 2012 they reached the semi-finals of the

WFAI Intermediate Cup Football Association of Ireland, Women's (FAI Women's) (formerly the Women's Football Association of Ireland) is the governing body for women's association football in the Republic of Ireland. It is responsible for organising the Republic of Irel ...

Monaghan Cavan League

In 2019, Monaghan United formed a senior team to play in the Monaghan Cavan League First Division. They finished off their debut season by winning the Sean Woods Cup and Jimmy Smith Shield Cup in September 2020, beating Glaslough Villa in both finals.

Ulster Senior League

2021 saw Monaghan United join the Ulster Senior League, the first club from Cavan or Monaghan to do so. In 2022, The Mons decided to withdraw from the league to continue football in the MCL.

Grounds

Monaghan United originally played their home games at Belgium Park which served as their home ground between 1979 and 1988. Since 1988 they have played at Gortakeegan, the first ever game being against

Drogheda United Drogheda United Football Club ( ga, Cumann Peile Dhroichead Átha Aontaithe) is a semi-professional Irish association football club based in Drogheda, County Louth playing in the League of Ireland Premier Division. They play their home matches ...

in the 1988-89

League Cup In several sports, most prominently association football, a league cup or secondary cup generally signifies a cup competition for which entry is restricted only to teams in a particular league. The first national association football tournament t ...

Honours

;Men *

League of Ireland Cup The League of Ireland Cup ( ga, Corn Sraithe na hÉireann), also referred to in Ireland as the 'League Cup', is an annual knockout competition in men's football in the Republic of Ireland. It is contested by League of Ireland clubs and invite ...

**''Runners Up'':

2010 File:2010 Events Collage New.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2010 Chile earthquake was one of the strongest recorded in history; The Eruption of Eyjafjallajökull in Iceland disrupts air travel in Europe; A scene from the opening ceremony of ...

: 1 *

**''Runners Up'': 2000–01: 1 * Sean Woods Cup **''Winners'': 2019-20: 1 * Jimmy Smith Shields Cup **''Winners'': 2019-20: 1 ;Women * DWSL Intermediate Cup **''Winners'': 2008: 1

Notable former players

Internationals

;

Republic of Ireland Ireland ( ga, Éire ), also known as the Republic of Ireland (), is a country in north-western Europe consisting of 26 of the 32 Counties of Ireland, counties of the island of Ireland. The capital and largest city is Dublin, on the eastern ...

internationals *

Jonathan Douglas Jonathan Michael Douglas (born 22 November 1981) is an Irish professional footballer who last played for Ipswich Town and has also represented the Republic of Ireland at international level. Club career Blackburn Rovers Born in Monaghan, D ...

;

League of Ireland XI The League of Ireland XI, more recently referred to as the ''Airtricity League XI'' for sponsorship reasons, is the representative team of the League of Ireland, the national association football league of the Republic of Ireland. For much of it ...

representatives * Mick Byrne *

John Coady John Coady (born 25 August 1960 in Dublin) is an Irish former footballer who played at both the left back position and in left midfield. Early years He attended Synge Street CBS,

* Joe Hanrahan *

Brian Mooney Brian Mooney, (born 2 February 1966 in Dublin) is an Irish former footballer who made his name as a skilful winger in English football. Mooney was spotted in 1983 by Liverpool playing for Irish schoolboy club Home Farm F.C. where he had won a F ...

; Republic of Ireland B internationals *

; Republic of Ireland U23 internationals *

Derek McGrath Derek McGrath (born June 4, 1951) is a Canadian actor and writer. Life and career McGrath was born in Timmins, Ontario. His career began as Linus in '' You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown''. He is known for his roles in ''Cheers'' as Andy Schroe ...

* Stephen Rice ; Republic of Ireland U21 internationals ; Republic of Ireland U19 internationals *

Robert Bayly Robert Sean Bayly (born 22 February 1988) is an Irish footballer. His two uncles Ritchie Bayly and Martin Bayly had distinguished careers in the League of Ireland. Career Leeds United Capped at Ireland youth and Under-18 level while playi ...

Ricky McEvoy Richard Patrick McEvoy (born 6 August 1967) is a Gibraltarian born Irish retired footballer. Career A schoolboys international from Patrician College Finglas McEvoy along with Martin Russell helped his school win the Leinster Junior Schools C ...

; Republic of Ireland U17 internationals * David Freeman *

John Lester John Ashby Lester (August 1, 1871September 3, 1969) was an American cricketer, active in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, and a teacher. Lester was one of the Philadelphian cricketers who played from the end of the 19th century until the ...

Ger Robinson Ger Robinson (born 9 June 1982 in Dunboyne) is an Irish football striker, who last played for Kildare County in the League of Ireland. He is also involved in Gaelic football and has managed the Meath under-20 county team. Biography Robinson ...

;Other Internationals *

Alvin Rouse Alvin Rouse (born 13 August 1982) is a former Barbadian footballer who most recently played as a goalkeeper for Fivemiletown United F.C. Club career From 1999–2003 he played for Barbados Defence Force SC in his native homeland, before signi ...

Goal scorers

; First Division Top Scorer ;Most League Goals in a Season ;Most League Goals

Others

Paddy Andrews – All-Ireland football winner with

Dublin Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of the Wicklow Mountains range. At the 2016 ...

Managers

* Bobby Browne (1999–2003) *

Mick Cooke Mick Cooke (born 15 December 1973) is a Scottish muli-instrumentalist who was the trumpet player of the indie band Belle & Sebastian for fifteen years before leaving in 2013 to concentrate on composing full-time.Taylor, Luke (2013)Interview: Mi ...

(2003–11) *

(2011–12)

References

{{Authority control Association football clubs in Ulster Association football clubs established in 1979 Former League of Ireland clubs Former League of Ireland Premier Division clubs Former League of Ireland First Division clubs League of Ireland B Division clubs Monaghan (town) Sports clubs in County Monaghan 1979 establishments in Ireland Dublin Women's Soccer League teams