Northern Ireland national under-21 football team records and statistics
This page details Northern Ireland national under-21 football team records and statistics; the most capped players, the players with the most goals, and Northern Ireland under-21's match record by opponent.
Player records
Most capped players
Caps and goals updated as of 19 November 2019 after the match against.| # | Name | Career | Caps | Goals |
| 1 | Liam Donnelly | 2012–2018 | 24 | 5 |
| 2 | Sean Friars | 1998–2001 | 21 | 2 |
| 3 | Terry McFlynn | 2000–2003 | 19 | 2 |
| 3 | Rory McArdle | 2006–2008 | 19 | 1 |
| 3 | Thomas Stewart | 2006–2008 | 19 | 4 |
| 6 | Chris Casement | 2007–2009 | 18 | 2 |
| 6 | Cameron Dummigan | 2014–2018 | 18 | 0 |
| 8 | Jeff Whitley | 1998–2000 | 17 | 1 |
| 8 | Ciarán Toner | 2000–2003 | 17 | 1 |
| 8 | Josh Magennis | 2009–2012 | 17 | 4 |
| 11 | Richard Graham | 1998–2001 | 15 | 0 |
| 11 | Aaron Callaghan | 2006–2008 | 15 | 0 |
| 11 | David Buchanan | 2006–2008 | 15 | 2 |
| 11 | Trevor Carson | 2006–2009 | 15 | 0 |
| 11 | Craig Cathcart | 2006–2009 | 15 | 0 |
| 11 | Dale Gorman | 2015–2018 | 15 | 1 |
| 17 | Brian McGlinchey | 1998–1999 | 14 | 0 |
| 17 | Dave Waterman | 1998–1999 | 14 | 0 |
| 17 | Tony Capaldi | 2001–2003 | 14 | 0 |
| 17 | Gordon Simms | 2001–2003 | 14 | 0 |
| 17 | Robert Garrett | 2007–2009 | 14 | 0 |
| 17 | Carl Winchester | 2011–2014 | 14 | 0 |
| 17 | Ryan Johnson | 2015–2018 | 14 | 2 |
| 17 | David Parkhouse | 2017– | 14 | 2 |
| 25 | Liam Burns | 1998–1999 | 13 | 0 |
| 25 | Shaun Holmes | 2000–2001 | 13 | 0 |
| 25 | Jonny Tuffey | 2006–2008 | 13 | 0 |
| 25 | Conor Brennan | 2013–2016 | 13 | 0 |
| 25 | Paul Smyth | 2016–2018 | 13 | 1 |
Players with an equal number of caps are ranked in chronological order of reaching the milestone.
Highest goalscorers
Caps and goals updated as of 19 November 2019 after the match against.| # | Name | Career | Caps | Goals | Goals per game |
| 1 | Liam Donnelly | 2012–2018 | 24 | 5 | 0.21 |
| 1 | Shayne Lavery | 2016– | 12 | 5 | 0.42 |
| 3 | Adrian Coote | 1998–1999 | 12 | 4 | 0.33 |
| 3 | David Healy | 1989–1999 | 8 | 4 | 0.50 |
| 3 | Sam Morrow | 2005–2006 | 4 | 4 | 1.00 |
| 3 | Thomas Stewart | 2006–2008 | 19 | 4 | 0.21 |
| 3 | Josh Magennis | 2009–2012 | 17 | 4 | 0.24 |
| 3 | Oliver Norwood | 2009–2012 | 11 | 4 | 0.36 |
| 9 | Gary Hamilton | 2000–2001 | 12 | 3 | 0.25 |
| 9 | Mo Harkin | 2000–2001 | 3 | 3 | 0.33 |
| 9 | Grant McCann | 2000–2001 | 11 | 3 | 0.27 |
| 9 | Lee McEvilly | 2002–2003 | 9 | 3 | 0.33 |
| 9 | Chris Turner | 2006–2008 | 12 | 3 | 0.25 |
| 9 | Andrew Little | 2008–2010 | 6 | 3 | 0.50 |
| 9 | Billy Kee | 2009–2011 | 10 | 3 | 0.30 |
Players with an equal number of goals are ranked in chronological order of reaching the milestone.
Hat-tricks
The result is presented with Northern Ireland's score first.| Player | Goals | Date | Opponent | Venue | Result | Type of Game | Ref |
| Billy Kee | 3 | 10 August 2011 | The Oval, Belfast, Northern Ireland | 4–0 | 2013 UEFA U-21 Group 4 Qualifier |
Red cards
The result is presented with Northern Ireland's score first.| Player | Date | Opponent | Venue | Result | Type of Game | Ref |
| Dave Waterman | 21 April 1998 | Mourneview Park, Lurgan, Northern Ireland | 2–1 | International Friendly | ||
| Damien Johnson | 2 June 1999 | Caledonian Stadium, Inverness, Scotland | 0–1 |  1999 Presidents Cup | ||
| Paul McAreavey | 6 October 2000 | The Oval, Belfast, Northern Ireland | 0–3 |  2002 UEFA U-21 Group 3 Qualifier | ||
| Wayne Carlisle | 10 October 2000 | Kaplakriki, Hafnarfjörður, Iceland | 2–5 | 2002 UEFA U-21 Group 3 Qualifier | ||
| Hugh Dickson | 5 October 2001 | National Stadium, Ta' Qali, Malta | 2–2 | 2002 UEFA U-21 Group 3 Qualifier | ||
| Paddy McCourt | 1 April 2003 | The Oval, Belfast, Northern Ireland | 2–6 |  2004 UEFA U-21 Group 6 Qualifier | ||
| Kieran McKenna | 14 November 2006 | Hafenstadion, Torgau, Germany | 1–2 | International Friendly | ||
| Johnny Flynn | 11 August 2009 | Estádio Municipal da Guarda, Guarda, Portugal | 1–2 | International Friendly | ||
| James Knowles | 10 August 2011 | The Oval, Belfast, Northern Ireland | 4–0 |  2013 UEFA U-21 Group 4 Qualifier | ||
| Conor McLaughlin | 2 September 2011 | Stadion Karađorđe, Novi Sad, Serbia | 0–1 | 2013 UEFA U-21 Group 4 Qualifier | ||
| Shane Ferguson | 10 May 2012 | Milano Arena, Kumanovo, Macedonia | 0–1 | 2013 UEFA U-21 Group 4 Qualifier | ||
| Conor McLaughlin | 7 September 2012 | The Oval, Belfast, Northern Ireland | 1–3 | 2013 UEFA U-21 Group 4 Qualifier | ||
| Liam Donnelly | 9 September 2013 | Den Dreef, Leuven, Belgium | 0–1 |  2015 UEFA U-21 Group 9 Qualifier | ||
| Dale Gorman | 5 September 2015 | Mourneview Park, Lurgan, Northern Ireland | 1–2 |  2017 UEFA U-21 Group 3 Qualifier | ||
| Conor Hazard | 14 October 2019 | Stadionul Anghel Iordănescu, Voluntari, Romania | 0–3 |   2021 UEFA U-21 Group 8 Qualifier |
Individual and Team records
Goal records
- First goal: Gary Blackledge – 8 March 1978 vs
- Most goals scored in one game by a player: 3 – Billy Kee, 10 August 2011 vs
Firsts
- First under-21 international: 8 March 1978 vs
- First home under-21 international: 3 April 1990 vs
- First win: 3 April 1990 vs
- First overseas opponent:, 3 April 1990
- First win over an overseas opponent: 3 April 1990 vs
Streaks
- Most consecutive victories: 6
- * 6 February 2006 – 16 May 2016
- * 6 September 2018 – 25 March 2019
- Most consecutive matches without defeat: 11
- * 9 September 2003 – 16 May 2006
- Most consecutive draws: 3
- * 29 May 2000 – 1 September 2000
- Most consecutive matches without a draw: 25
- * 6 February 2006 – 18 November 2008
- Most consecutive matches without victory: 14
- * 2 September 2011 – 14 November 2013
- Most consecutive defeats: 14
- * 2 September 2011 – 14 November 2013
- Most consecutive matches scoring: 8
- * 8 February 2005 – 16 May 2006
- Most consecutive matches without scoring: 4
- * 2 September 2011 – 10 May 2012
- Most consecutive matches conceding a goal: 29
- * 2 June 1999 – 9 September 2003
- Most consecutive matches without conceding a goal: 3
- * 6 February 2006 – 28 February 2006
- * 11 October 2018 – 22 March 2019
Biggest wins
Heaviest defeats
Performance
Performance by competition
Last updated after the match against on 19 November 2019.| Competition | Win % | Draw % | Loss % | |||||||
| UEFA European Under-21 Championship | 87 | 20 | 16 | 51 | 89 | 147 | -58 | 22.99% | 18.39% | 58.62% |
| International Friendlies | 34 | 15 | 7 | 12 | 40 | 47 | -7 | 44.12% | 20.59% | 35.29% |
| Minor Tournaments | 8 | 1 | 4 | 3 | 7 | 11 | -4 | 12.50% | 50.00% | 37.50% |
| Total | 129 | 36 | 27 | 66 | 136 | 205 | -69 | 27.91% | 20.93% | 51.16% |
Performance by manager
Last updated after the match against on 19 November 2019.Performance by venue
Last updated after the match against on 19 November 2019.| Venue | Played | Won | Drawn | Lost | Win % | Draw % | Loss % | |||
| Home | 60 | 18 | 15 | 27 | 80 | 101 | -21 | 30.00% | 25.00% | 45.00% |
| Away | 64 | 16 | 11 | 37 | 52 | 100 | -48 | 25.00% | 17.19% | 57.81% |
| Neutral | 5 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 4 | 4 | 0 | 40.00% | 20.00% | 40.00% |
| Total | 129 | 36 | 27 | 66 | 136 | 205 | -69 | 27.91% | 20.93% | 51.16% |
Performance by decade
Last updated after the match against on 19 November 2019.| Decade | Win % | Draw % | Loss % | |||||||
| 1970s | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0.00% | 100.00% | 0.00% |
| 1990s | 16 | 5 | 6 | 5 | 15 | 15 | 0 | 31.25% | 37.50% | 31.25% |
| 2000s | 59 | 18 | 11 | 30 | 73 | 105 | -32 | 30.51% | 18.64% | 50.85% |
| 2010s | 53 | 13 | 9 | 31 | 47 | 84 | -37 | 24.53% | 16.98% | 58.49% |
| Total | 129 | 36 | 27 | 66 | 136 | 205 | -69 | 27.91% | 20.93% | 51.16% |
All-time records
Head to head records
Last updated after match against on 19 November 2019.UEFA under-21 teams yet to play against Northern Ireland
Last updated after match against on 19 November 2019.| UEFA Members |
Competitive record
Champions Runners-up Third Place Fourth PlaceUEFA European Under-21 Championship Record
Minor tournaments
Honours
Titles
- Presidents Cup
- *Winners : 1998