The 2011 League of Ireland Cup, also known as the 2011 EA Sports Cup, was the 38th season of the League of Ireland Cup knockout competition.
| EA Sports Cup | |
|---|---|
| Tournament details | |
| Country |  Ireland &  Northern Ireland |
| Teams | 27 |
| Defending champions | Sligo Rovers |
| Final positions | |
| Champions | Derry City |
| Runner-up | Cork City |
| Tournament statistics | |
| Matches played | 26 |
| Goals scored | 85 (3.27 per match) |
| Top goal scorer(s) | Jeffrey Judge Stephen McLaughlin Eoin Doyle (3 goals) |
The competition was won by Derry City who defeated Cork City in the final on 24 September 2011 in Turners Cross.
A total of 27 teams entered the 2011 competition. The ten Premier Division and eleven First Division clubs were joined by four A Championship teams plus the 2010 Ulster Senior League champions, Cockhill Celtic and the Kerry District League representative side. For the Preliminary, First and Second Rounds of the competition, all participating clubs were split into 4 regional pools with the further rounds of the competition having an open draw. Shamrock Rovers, Sligo Rovers, Bohemians and St. Patrick's Athletic all received automatic byes into the second round of the competition due to each club's European football participation. The 2011 competition commenced with the preliminary round in March 2011.
Teams
| Pool 1 | Pool 2 | Pool 3 | Pool 4 |
|---|---|---|---|
Preliminary round
The draw for the preliminary round took place on 2 March 2011.[1]
The Preliminary Round games were played on 14 March 2011.
| Tie no | Home team | Score1 | Away team | Attendance |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Longford Town | 2 – 1 | Athlone Town | — |
First round
The draw for the first round took place on 2 March 2011.[1]
The First round Games were played on 25 March, 28 March and 30 March 2011.
Pool 1
| Tie no | Home team | Score | Away team | Report |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Cobh Ramblers | 1 – 3 | Wexford Youths | |
| 2 | Kerry District League | 0 – 1 | Limerick | |
| 3 | Tralee Dynamos | 0 – 4 | Waterford United |
Pool 2
| Tie no | Home team | Score | Away team | Report |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Galway United | 1 – 3 | Cockhill Celtic | |
| 2 | Mervue United | 1 – 0 AET | Finn Harps | |
| 3 | Salthill Devon | 2 – 4 AET | Derry City |
Pool 3
| Tie no | Home team | Score | Away team | Report |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Bray Wanderers | 0 – 1 | Drogheda United | |
| 2 | Longford Town | 2 – 3 | UCD |
Pool 4
| Tie no | Home team | Score | Away team | Report |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | FC Carlow | 0 – 4 | Shelbourne |
Second round
The draw for the second round took place on 30 March 2011.[1]
The Second Round games were played on 25 April 2011.
Pool 1
| Tie no | Home team | Score | Away team | Report |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Limerick | 1 – 0 | Waterford United | Report |
| 2 | Wexford Youths | 0 – 1 | Cork City | Report |
Pool 2
| Tie no | Home team | Score | Away team | Report |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Cockhill Celtic | 0 – 4 | Sligo Rovers | |
| 2 | Derry City | 2 – 1 | Mervue United |
Pool 3
| Tie no | Home team | Score | Away team | Report |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Drogheda United | 2 – 3 | UCD | |
| 2 | St Patrick's Athletic | 1 – 1 AET | Shamrock Rovers | Report |
| St Patrick's Athletic Athletic won 3 – 1 on penalties | ||||
Pool 4
| Tie no | Home team | Score | Away team | Report |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Monaghan United | 2 – 1 AET | Dundalk | Report |
| 2 | Shelbourne | 4 – 2 | Bohemians | Report |
Quarterfinals
The draw for the Quarterfinals was made on 2 May 2011 on MNS on RTÉ Two.[2]
The Quarterfinal games were played on 06/27/28 June 2011.
| Tie No | Home team | Score | Away team | Report |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Shelbourne | 1 – 2 | Sligo Rovers | |
| 2 | Limerick | 5 – 0 | Monaghan United | |
| 3 | Cork City | 2 – 1 | St Patrick's Athletic | Report |
| 4 | UCD | 0 – 3 | Derry City |
Semi−Finals
The Semifinal games were played on the 8/23 August 2011.
| Tie No | Home team | Score | Away team | Report |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Cork City | 3 – 1 AET | Limerick | Report[usurped] |
| 2 | Derry City | 3 – 3 AET | Sligo Rovers | Report |
| Derry City won 5 – 3 on penalties | ||||
Final
The final was played on Saturday 24 September 2011 in Turners Cross, Cork.[3][4]
| Team 1 | Score | Team 2 |
|---|---|---|
| Cork City | 0 − 1 | Derry City |
Match
| Cork City | 0 − 1 | Derry City |
|---|---|---|
| Report | Zayed  66' (pen.) |