Rathfriland Rangers Football Club is a

Northern Irish The people of Northern Ireland are all people born in Northern Ireland and having, at the time of their birth, at least one parent who is a British Nationality Law, British citizen, an Irish nationality law, Irish citizen or is otherwis ...

intermediate football club, playing in the

NIFL Premier Intermediate League The NIFL Premier Intermediate League (Known as the Playr-Fit NIFL Premier Intermediate League for sponsorship reasons) is the third level of the Northern Ireland Football League, the national association football league in Northern Ireland, and t ...

. The club has been managed by former

Portadown Portadown ( ) is a town in County Armagh, Northern Ireland. The town is based on the River Bann in the north of the county, about southwest of Belfast. It is in the Armagh City, Banbridge and Craigavon Borough Council area and had a population ...

player and long serving coach Trevor Williamson since August 2024.

Overview

The club is based in

Rathfriland Rathfriland () is a market town in County Down, Northern Ireland. It is north-east of Newry town centre. History In older documents written in English, the town's name was usually spelt ''Rathfylan'' or ''Rathfrilan''.

County Down County Down () is one of the six counties of Northern Ireland, one of the nine counties of Ulster and one of the traditional thirty-two counties of Ireland. It covers an area of and has a population of 552,261. It borders County Antrim to the ...

, was formed in 1962 and joined the Newcastle & District League before attaining intermediate status and then joining the Amateur League in 1986.H. Johnstone & G. Hamilton (n.d.) ''A Memorable Milestone: 75 Years of the Northern Amateur Football League'', p. 213 The club currently consists of four teams: the 1st XI (Rangers), 2nd XI (Reserves) 3rd XI (Swifts) as well as an under-17 squad. The Reserves team plays in the

Mid-Ulster Football League The Daily Mirror Mid-Ulster Football League, or simply referred to as the Mid-Ulster League, is an association football league in Northern Ireland. It contains 9 divisions. These comprise two intermediate sections: the Intermediate A and Intermed ...

Reserve Championship, whilst the Swifts are in Reserve division 2 of the Mid-Ulster Football League. The club won the

Intermediate Cup The Irish Intermediate Cup is a Northern Irish football competition for teams of intermediate status, including NIFL Premiership reserve sides. It is a straight knock-out tournament and is currently sponsored by McCombs Coach Travel. The curre ...

in 2022, defeating Armagh City in the final. In 2023, the club was promoted to the

for the first time. In their first season in PIL, the club would finish in 4th place, narrowly missing out on a

NIFL Championship The Northern Ireland Football League Championship (known as the Playr-Fit Championship for sponsorship reasons) is the second level of the Northern Ireland Football League, the national football league in Northern Ireland. Clubs in the Championsh ...

play-off spot, a commendable achievement for the club. The club is captained by former

Glentoran Glentoran Football Club is a professional football club based in East Belfast, Northern Ireland, that plays in the NIFL Premiership. The club was founded in 1882 and has since won more than 130 major honours. They are one of three Northern Iris ...

, Glenavon and

midfielder Andy Kilmartin.

Current squad

Honours

* Northern Amateur Football League: Premier Division **2021–22, 2022–23 *

IFA Intermediate Cup The Irish Intermediate Cup is a Northern Irish football competition for teams of intermediate status, including NIFL Premiership reserve sides. It is a straight knock-out tournament and is currently sponsored by McCombs Coach Travel. The curre ...

: **2021–22'' * Border Cup: **2016–17 *

Bob Radcliffe Cup The Bob Radcliffe Memorial Cup is an intermediate football competition in Northern Ireland run by the Mid-Ulster Football Association. It was introduced in 1978. The competition culminates in the final which has traditionally been played on Boxi ...

: **2019–20, 2023–24 * Northern Amateur Football League: Division 1A **1997–98, 2015–16 * Northern Amateur Football League: Division 1B **1996–97

External links

nifootball.co.uk
– website for fixtures, results and tables of all Northern Ireland amateur football leagues.

Notes

Association football clubs in Northern Ireland Association football clubs established in 1962 Northern Amateur Football League clubs 1962 establishments in Northern Ireland {{NorthernIreland-footyclub-stub