Moyola Park Association Football Club is a semi-professional, Northern Irish football club playing in the NIFL Championship. The club, founded in 1880, hails from Castledawson, near Magherafelt, County Londonderry, and plays its home matches at Mill Meadow. Club colours are royal blue and yellow. The club won the inaugural Irish Cup in 1881. The club is managed by Martin Smith.

History

Moyola Park was formed during season 1879–80 under the patronage of Lord Spencer Chichester, the landlord of the Moyola Park estate. The first recorded game was a friendly at home against Cliftonville, on 14 February 1880, in which the visitors recorded a 3–0 victory. Lord Spencer Chichester was the inaugural president of the Irish Football Association, which was formed in November 1880. On 9 April 1881, Moyola Park became the first winners of the Irish Cup, defeating Cliftonville 1–0 in the final.

After those prestigious early days the club became less prominent and did not become a senior club, playing as a junior club outside the Irish League. In the early years of the twentieth century, the club played in the South Derry District League and it continued to do so until the Second World War, with the exception of the 1929–30 season during which the club participated in the Belfast-based Minor League. After the war, Moyola Park was a founding member of the Ballymena and District Junior League in 1948–49, where it played until season 1977–78 (with the exception of 1950–51, when it participated in the Irish Football Alliance). During this time, the club won the league championship outright on five occasions: 1948–49, 1949–50, 1973–74, 1976–77, 1977–78, and shared the championship in 1959–60 with Ballymoney United. The club also won the Irish Junior Cup in 1972–73 and 1973–74 and was also runner-up the following year. The first match at the new ground was on 16 January 2010 against Lurgan Celtic.

Honours

Senior honours

  • Irish Cup: 1
  • 1880–81

Intermediate honours

  • Irish League Second Division: 1
  • 2001–02
  • B Division Knock-out Cup: 1
  • 1999–2000
  • Craig Memorial Cup: 6
  • 1981–82, 2000–01, 2001–02, 2002–03, 2004–05, 2006–07

Junior honours

  • Irish Junior Cup: 2
  • 1972–73, 1973–74
  • Ballymena and District Junior League: 6
  • 1948–49, 1949–50, 1959–60 (shared with Ballymoney United), 1973–74, 1976–77, 1977–78

References