The 2021 League of Ireland Premier Division, known as the SSE Airtricity League Premier Division for sponsorship reasons,[1] was the 37th season of the League of Ireland Premier Division, the top Irish league for association football clubs since its establishment in 1985. Shamrock Rovers were the defending champions,[2] having won their sixth league title the previous season. Shamrock Rovers went on to retain the title.[3][4]
| Season | 2021 |
|---|---|
| Dates | 19 March – 19 November 2021 |
| Champions | Shamrock Rovers (19th title) |
| Relegated | Longford Town F.C., Waterford |
| Champions League | Shamrock Rovers |
| Europa Conference League | St Patrick's Athletic Sligo Rovers Derry City |
| Matches played | 180 |
| Goals scored | 458 (2.54 per match) |
| Top goalscorer | Georgie Kelly (21 goals) |
| Biggest home win | Bohemians 5–0 Drogheda United (18 June 2021), Finn Harps 5-0 Longford Town (19 November 2021) |
| Biggest away win | Waterford 0–7 Drogheda United (8 May 2021) |
| Highest scoring | Waterford 0–7 Drogheda United (8 May 2021) |
| Longest winning run | Shamrock Rovers (7 games) |
| Longest unbeaten run | Shamrock Rovers (11 games) |
| Longest winless run | Longford Town (25 games) |
| Longest losing run | Waterford (7 games) Longford Town (7 games) |
| Highest attendance | 7,765 Shamrock Rovers 2-1 Drogheda United (19 November 2021) |
| Lowest attendance | 0 |
← 2020 2022 → | |
Due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on sports in the Republic of Ireland, the FAI met with the National League Executive Committee on 2 January 2021 and a decision was reached to move the start date for the Premier Division until at least 19 March 2021.[5]
Ten teams compete in the league – the top eight teams from the previous season and the two teams promoted from the First Division. The promoted teams are Drogheda United and Longford Town, after respective top flight absences of four and five years. They replaced Cork City (relegated after nine years in the top flight), and Shelbourne (relegated via play-off after only a year back in the top flight).[6][7]
Dublin
Dublin teams
Bohemians
Shamrock Rovers
St Patrick's Athletic
| Team | Location | Stadium | Capacity |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bohemians | Dublin (Phibsborough) | Dalymount Park | 3,640 |
| Derry City | Derry | Ryan McBride Brandywell Stadium | 3,700 |
| Drogheda United | Drogheda | Head In The Game Park | 3,500 |
| Dundalk | Dundalk | Oriel Park | 4,500 |
| Finn Harps | Ballybofey | Finn Park | 6,000 |
| Longford Town | Longford | Bishopsgate | 5,097 |
| St Patrick's Athletic | Dublin (Inchicore) | Richmond Park | 5,340 |
| Shamrock Rovers | Dublin (Tallaght) | Tallaght Stadium | 8,000 |
| Sligo Rovers | Sligo | The Showgrounds | 3,873 |
| Waterford | Waterford | Regional Sports Centre | 5,500 |
Note: Flags indicate national team as has been defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
| Team | Manager | Captain | Kit manufacturer | Shirt sponsor |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bohemians |  Keith Long
|
Keith Buckley
|
O'Neills | Des Kelly Interiors |
| Derry City |  Ruaidhrí Higgins
|
Eoin Toal
|
Adidas | Diamond Corrugated |
| Drogheda United | Tim Clancy
|
Jake Hyland
|
Umbro | Scotch Hall Shopping Center |
| Dundalk | Vinny Perth
|
Brian Gartland
|
Umbro | Bet Regal |
| Finn Harps | Ollie Horgan
|
David Webster
|
Joma | Guild Esports |
| Longford Town | John Martin
|
Dean Zambra
|
Macron | Bishopsgate |
| St Patrick's Athletic | Stephen O'Donnell
|
Ian Bermingham
|
Umbro | MIG Insurance Brokers |
| Shamrock Rovers | Stephen Bradley
|
Ronan Finn
|
Umbro | 888sport |
| Sligo Rovers | Liam Buckley
|
David Cawley
|
Joma | Avant Money |
| Waterford |  Marc Bircham
|
Oscar Brennan
|
Umbro | WIT Arena |
| Team | Outgoing manager | Manner of departure |
Date of vacancy | Position in table | Incoming manager | Date of appointment |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dundalk |  Filippo Giovagnoli
|
Change of role | 10 March 2021 | Pre-season | Shane Keegan
|
10 March 2021 |
| Dundalk | Shane Keegan
|
Resigned | 19 April 2021 | 9th | Jim Magilton (interim)
|
19 April 2021 |
| Derry City | Declan Devine
|
Sacked | 22 April 2021 | 10th | Ruaidhrí Higgins
|
23 April 2021 |
| Waterford | Kevin Sheedy
|
Resigned | 5 May 2021 | 10th | Mike Geoghegan (interim)
|
5 May 2021 |
| Waterford | Mike Geoghegan (interim)
|
End of interim spell | 12 May 2021 | 10th | Marc Bircham
|
12 May 2021 |
| Dundalk | Jim Magilton (interim)
|
End of interim spell | 16 June 2021 | 8th | Vinny Perth
|
16 June 2021 |
| Longford Town | Daire Doyle
|
Sacked | 2 November 2021 | 10th | John Martin (interim)
|
2 November 2021 |
| Waterford | Marc Bircham
|
Sacked | 23 November 2021 | 9th |  Ian Hendon
|
24 November 2021 |
| Pos | Team
|
Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification or relegation |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Shamrock Rovers (C) | 36 | 24 | 6 | 6 | 59 | 28 | +31 | 78 | Qualification to Champions League first qualifying round |
| 2 | St Patrick's Athletic | 36 | 18 | 8 | 10 | 56 | 42 | +14 | 62 | Qualification to Europa Conference League second qualifying round[a] |
| 3 | Sligo Rovers | 36 | 16 | 9 | 11 | 43 | 32 | +11 | 57 | Qualification to Europa Conference League first qualifying round |
| 4 | Derry City | 36 | 14 | 12 | 10 | 49 | 42 | +7 | 54 | |
| 5 | Bohemians | 36 | 14 | 10 | 12 | 60 | 46 | +14 | 52 | |
| 6 | Dundalk | 36 | 13 | 9 | 14 | 44 | 46 | −2 | 48 | |
| 7 | Drogheda United | 36 | 12 | 8 | 16 | 45 | 43 | +2 | 44 | |
| 8 | Finn Harps | 36 | 11 | 11 | 14 | 44 | 52 | −8 | 44 | |
| 9 | Waterford (R) | 36 | 12 | 6 | 18 | 36 | 56 | −20 | 42 | Qualification to Relegation play-offs |
| 10 | Longford Town (R) | 36 | 2 | 9 | 25 | 22 | 71 | −49 | 15 | Relegation to League of Ireland First Division |
The table lists the positions of teams after each week of matches. In order to preserve chronological evolvements, any postponed matches are not included in the round at which they were originally scheduled but added to the full round they were played immediately afterward.
| Team ╲ Round | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 | 24 | 25 | 26 | 27 | 28 | 29 | 30 | 31 | 32 | 33 | 34 | 35 | 36 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bohemians | 8 | 7 | 9 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 8 | 7 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 5 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 5 | 5 | 6 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 4 | 4 | 5 |
| Derry City | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 7 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 7 | 7 | 6 | 7 | 6 | 6 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 5 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 5 | 5 | 4 |
| Drogheda United | 2 | 5 | 6 | 4 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 4 | 5 | 5 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 5 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 7 | 7 | 7 |
| Dundalk | 4 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 9 | 8 | 7 | 6 | 6 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 8 | 8 | 7 | 6 | 7 | 7 | 6 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 8 | 8 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 6 | 6 | 6 |
| Finn Harps | 2 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 6 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 9 | 8 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 8 | 8 | 8 |
| Longford Town | 1 | 2 | 4 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 9 | 10 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 |
| St Patrick's Athletic | 4 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 |
| Shamrock Rovers | 4 | 6 | 5 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| Sligo Rovers | 4 | 3 | 1 | 3 | 3 | 1 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 |
| Waterford | 8 | 9 | 7 | 8 | 8 | 9 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 8 | 9 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 9 | 9 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 9 | 9 | 9 |
Teams will play each other four times (twice at home, twice away).
| Home \ Away | BOH | DER | DRO | DUN | FHA | LON | SHM | SLI | STP | WAT |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bohemians | — | 1–2 | 5–0 | 5–1 | 4–0 | 2–2 | 1–0 | 1–3 | 0–1 | 3–0 |
| Derry City | 1–1 | — | 1–1 | 1–1 | 1–2 | 1–1 | 0–2 | 1–1 | 2–2 | 1–2 |
| Drogheda United | 1–1 | 1–2 | — | 0–1 | 1–1 | 4–1 | 0–1 | 1–1 | 3–1 | 1–0 |
| Dundalk | 0–1 | 2–1 | 2–1 | — | 1–2 | 1–1 | 2–1 | 0–1 | 1–1 | 1–3 |
| Finn Harps | 1–0 | 1–2 | 0–1 | 1–1 | — | 1–1 | 0–2 | 1–2 | 0–2 | 2–1 |
| Longford Town | 0–2 | 2–0 | 0–4 | 2–2 | 0–0 | — | 0–1 | 0–1 | 1–3 | 1–2 |
| Shamrock Rovers | 2–1 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 2–1 | 1–1 | 2–1 | — | 0–1 | 1–1 | 3–0 |
| Sligo Rovers | 4–0 | 0–1 | 1–2 | 1–1 | 1–0 | 2–0 | 1–1 | — | 1–1 | 3–0* |
| St Patrick's Athletic | 2–1 | 2–0 | 2–1 | 0–2 | 4–1 | 3–0 | 1–2 | 2–0 | — | 1–0 |
| Waterford | 0–1 | 0–1 | 0–7 | 0–3 | 1–2 | 1–0 | 1–4 | 1–2 | 1–1 | — |
*Note Sligo Rovers were awarded a 3–0 victory by the FAI after Waterford opted out of playing the game due to COVID-19 cases in their squad.[9]
| Home \ Away | BOH | DER | DRO | DUN | FHA | LON | SHM | SLI | STP | WAT |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bohemians | — | 3–3 | 2–1 | 1–1 | 1–2 | 1–1 | 3–1 | 1–0 | 3–2 | 1–2 |
| Derry City | 1–1 | — | 3–0 | 1–0 | 2–2 | 3–0 | 2–4 | 2–0 | 1–0 | 2–0 |
| Drogheda United | 3–2 | 1–0 | — | 0–1 | 3–1 | 2–0 | 0–1 | 0–0 | 0–1 | 1–2 |
| Dundalk | 2–1 | 1–2 | 1–2 | — | 1–0 | 2–0 | 1–0 | 4–1 | 1–4 | 1–0 |
| Finn Harps | 1–2 | 1–1 | 0–0 | 2–2 | — | 5–0 | 2–1 | 2–2 | 3–1 | 0–1 |
| Longford Town | 1–4 | 0–2 | 1–1 | 1–0 | 0–3 | — | 0–1 | 0–1 | 1–4 | 1–1 |
| Shamrock Rovers | 1–1 | 2–1 | 2–1 | 3–1 | 3–0 | 1–0 | — | 2–0 | 3–1 | 2–0 |
| Sligo Rovers | 1–1 | 1–2 | 2–0 | 2–1 | 0–1 | 1–0 | 0–1 | — | 2–0 | 1–1 |
| St Patrick's Athletic | 2–2 | 1–0 | 2–0 | 1–0 | 2–2 | 3–2 | 0–1 | 0–3 | — | 2–1 |
| Waterford | 1–0 | 2–2 | 1–0 | 1–1 | 4–1 | 4–1 | 1–3 | 1–0 | 0–0 | — |
Last updated after fixtures on 19 November 2021.
| Rank | Player | Club | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Georgie Kelly
|
Bohemians | 21 |
| 2 | Danny Mandroiu
|
Shamrock Rovers | 15 |
| 3 | Mark Doyle
|
Drogheda United | 13 |
| 4 | Patrick Hoban
|
Dundalk | 12 |
| 5 |  Matty Smith
|
St Patrick's Athletic | 11 |
| Johnny Kenny
|
Sligo Rovers | ||
| Graham Burke
|
Shamrock Rovers | ||
| 8 | John Martin
|
Waterford | 10 |
 Tunde Owolabi
|
Finn Harps | ||
| 10 | Chris Lyons
|
Drogheda United | 9 |
| Liam Burt
|
Bohemians |
Last updated after fixtures on 19 November 2021.
| Rank | Player | Club | Clean sheets |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Alan Mannus
|
Shamrock Rovers | 13 |
| 2 | Ed McGinty
|
Sligo Rovers | 12 |
| 3 |  Vítězslav Jaroš
|
St Patrick's Athletic | 11 |
| 4 | Nathan Gartside
|
Derry City | 9 |
| 5 | James Talbot
|
Bohemians | 8 |
| 6 | David Odumosu
|
Drogheda United | 7 |
| 7 | Mark McGinley
|
Finn Harps | 6 |
| 8 | Peter Cherrie
|
Dundalk | 5 |
| 9 | Brian Murphy
|
Waterford | 3 |
 Alessio Abibi
|
Dundalk |
| 3 November 2021 | Bray Wanderers | 0–0 | Galway United | Carlisle Grounds |
| 19:45 IST |
| 3 November 2021 | Treaty United | 0–3 | UCD | Markets Field |
| 19:45 IST | Tadhg Ryan  34' (o.g.)Colm Whelan 79', 92' |
| 7 November 2021 | Galway United | 0–1 (0–1 agg.) | Bray Wanderers | Eamonn Deacy Park |
| 17:00 IST | Brandon Kavanagh 22' |
| 7 November 2021 | UCD | 1–2 (4–2 agg.) | Treaty United | UCD Bowl |
| 17:00 IST | Adam Verdon 67' |
Conor Melody 8' Anthony O’Donnell 52' |
| 19 November 2021 | Bray Wanderers | 0–2 | UCD | Dalymount Park |
| 19:45 IST | Colm Whelan 68' Paul Doyle 86' |
Referee: Oliver Moran |
| 26 November 2021 | Waterford | 1–2 | UCD | Richmond Park |
| 19:45 IST | Anthony Wordsworth 5' Niall O'Keeffe  87'  |
Report | Dara Keane 26' Colm Whelan 34' |
Referee: Paul McLaughlin |
| Month | Player of the Month | Ref. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Player | Club | ||
| March/April | Chris Forrester
|
St Patrick's Athletic | [10] |
| May | Greg Bolger
|
Sligo Rovers | [11] |
| June | Georgie Kelly
|
Bohemians | [12] |
| July | Dawson Devoy
|
Bohemians | [13] |
| August | Ali Coote
|
Bohemians | [14] |
| September | Georgie Kelly
|
Bohemians | [15] |
| October | Danny Mandroiu
|
Shamrock Rovers | [16] |
| November | Colm Whelan
|
UCD | [17] |
| Award | Winner | Club |
|---|---|---|
| PFAI Player of the Year | Georgie Kelly
|
Bohemians |
| PFAI Young Player of the Year | Dawson Devoy
|
Bohemians |
| PFAI Premier Division Manager of the Year | Stephen Bradley
|
Shamrock Rovers |
| PFAI Team of the Year | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Goalkeeper | James Talbot (Bohemians)
| ||||||||||||
| Defenders | Ronan Boyce (Derry City)
|
 Roberto Lopes (Shamrock Rovers)
|
Liam Scales (Shamrock Rovers)
|
James Brown (Drogheda United)
| |||||||||
| Midfielders | Chris Forrester (St Patrick's Athletic)
|
Dawson Devoy (Bohemians)
|
Will Patching (Derry City/Dundalk)
| ||||||||||
| Forwards | Rory Gaffney (Shamrock Rovers)
|
Georgie Kelly (Bohemians)
|
Liam Burt (Bohemians)
| ||||||||||
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