Pioneers FC
Founded in 1908, and competing in the Leinster League, Pioneers FC played their football out in the coastal town of Clontarf, at Strand Hall. The club wore the colours blue and white, with their crest donning the same colours.
The club did not join the League of Ireland when it was first created in 1921-22, they waited a season to see how the whole thing would get on. The league was extended to a 12 club format and so, Pioneers alongside, Shamrock Rovers, Athlone Town, Midlands Athletic, Rathmines Athletic and Shelbourne United all joined the league for the 1922-23 season. Frankfort and YMCA were not re-elected.
Playing at Strand Hall, the club finished a respectable 8th place, winning eight, drawing three and losing eleven. The big problem was conceding goals, with the team conceding 65 goals in 22 games, with two of these games ending in 7-0 defeats, once to Bohemians and the other to Shelbourne FC.
Their FAI Cup campaign wasn't any better and the club crashed out in the first round to Jacobs, losing the tie, 4-0, on the 6th January, 1923.
The 1923-24 season was cut down to 10 teams, with Dublin United, Olympia and Rathmines Athletic all failing to get re-elected. Brooklyn FC were elected in that year. However, Pioneers, who had finished above all of those who had not been re-elected, finished 9th that season, only above Midlands Athletic. They only won two games all season and once again suffered heavy defeats to Bohemians (7-1) and Shelbourne FC (7-1). They were also once again knocked out of the FAI Cup in the First Round, losing to St James Gate, 3-2, on the 5th January, 1924.
The 1924-25 season was no better. In fact, it was worse, with the club finishing bottom of the table, winning only two games all season once again. They did, however, play in the games with the most goals scored in them, entertaining the crowd in their two wins, a 5-3 win versus St James Gate and a 5-3 win versus Bray Unknowns. Shamrock Rovers, however, put them to the sword that season, inflicting Pioneers to their heaviest defeat that campaign, losing 7-1.
By now, Pioneers were seen as the whipping boys of the league, but somehow managed to keep getting re-elected into the league. This may be because of the recognition they gained with the French Football Association. As a way of recognising the FAI as a proper football organisation, the French sent over a club, Gallia Club Paris to play two Irish club sides. One was Bohemians, while the other was Pioneers. The FAI were cautious about this, evidently, as they suggested that a League of Ireland IX play instead of Pioneers, but the French insisted that it should be played against a club if the league. In the end, Pioneers played the game, but it was effectively a League of Ireland IX with no player in the side actually being registered with Pioneers. Instead the likes of Bohemians, Nex Brooks and Shamrock Rovers Bob Fulham were invited as 'Guest players'. The game itself ended 0-0, but the whole cause behind it worked, even if Pioneers name was the only thing the club contributed to the whole ordeal.
That season would prove to be another failure for the club in the league, with the club finishing bottom once again, winning just one out of their 18 games. They were once again subjected to a few heavy defeats at the hands of Shamrock Rovers (10-2) and Shelbourne FC (9-0).
Finally, the club were not re-elected to the league and so their four seasons in the League of Ireland were up, being replaced by Dundalk GNR or what we know as Dundalk FC today.
The club continued to play at an amateur level, playing in the Amateur Football League. They did go out of existence until 2015 when the club was revived, playing their football in the Leinster Senior League, playing their home games at the ALSSA Sports Complex right beside Dublin Airport.
A club with an uninspiring history in the League of Ireland, one that many will probably see as a waste of time, with the bigger clubs just using these games seemingly to increase their goals for ratio. The interesting thing about Pioneers though is why they were picked to play that French team. Why not Shamrock Rovers, which at the time would have been a more glamour tie? In my research it seems as though it was the French Football Association that selected Pioneers. Maybe they saw their record and thought that would be an easy win. Unfortunately for the French, the FAI probably saw the same thing and acted quickly and smartly enough to stop what may have been an embarrassing episode that would have dented the FAIs hopes of gaining credibility in establishing themselves as a footballing organisation. As bad as they were in the League of Ireland, they are still around today, which is more than can be said about other former League of Ireland clubs, ones who won league titles, FAI cups and competed in Europe. So, maybe the real winners here are Pioneers FC?