FIGURES RELEASED BY the FAI state that Finn Harps enjoyed the highest increase in their average attendance in the whole SSE Airtricity League.
Ollie Horgan’s side finished the regulation season in second place in Division One before coming through the promotion-relegation play-off courtesy of a 3-1 aggregate win over UCD and then a 2-1 success over Limerick FC over two legs.
Photo caption: Scenes of celebration at Finn Park last month as supporters celebrate Finn Harps’ SSE Airtricity League Premier Division play-off win over Limerick FC. Photo courtesy of Gary Foy, newsandsportfiles
Attendances for SSE Airtricity League matches rose in 2015 as interest in the domestic game continues to grow.
SSE Airtricity League Premier Division crowds increased by 9.8% with an overall 6.9% boost for attendances for the League across both the Premier and First Divisions.
A number of clubs posted notable increases on last season with Limerick (48%) leading the way in the Premier Division ahead of the likes of Longford Town (31%), and Galway United (28%).
In the First Division, Finn Harps (77%) attracted big crowds as they went on to win the Promotion/Relegation Play-Off, while Wexford Youths (62%) and Cobh Ramblers (44%) also enjoyed significant increases.
Both Cork City and Dundalk attracted an average attendance of over 3,000 spectators to their home games, while almost 375,000 people attended games across the League.
There was also increased interest in both the Irish Daily Mail FAI Cup and EA Sports Cup with the two respective finals seeing an increase on attendances from 2014 with the former attracting a crowd of 25,103 to Aviva Stadium.
The 2016 SSE Airtricity League season will kick off on March 4, 2016.
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