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The new Danske Bank Premiership season is almost upon us.

The 2017/18 campaign kicks off on Friday night with Ballymena United hosting Crusaders at the Showgrounds.

There are five more fixtures on Saturday, including champions Linfield's curtain-raiser against Carrick Rangers at Windsor Park.

Irish League football is great, and its popularity is increasing as every season passes.

Attendances are steadily on the rise, and even the more casual spectator is passing through the turnstiles for a second glance.

We just love it, and thankfully there are others who are embracing the beautiful game in Northern Ireland.

In honour of local football, and the dawn of the new season, we revisited this wonderful piece from Cliftonville supporter Brian Smyth, better known as Smitty on the terraces, who gave us seven stellar reasons why the Irish League is wonderful.

And they are all brilliant!

1 It's our own

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It's local and on your doorstep, so why not follow your Irish League side? Yes, we know that it's not the quality of La Liga, but it averages over three goals per game, and is among the highest scoring in Europe. It's also old school proper football, with the type of tackles that are frowned upon elsewhere. It's also backed up with a plethora of comedy style referees, that have to be seen to be believed.

2 The terrace culture

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In an age of all-seater stadiums around most of the big leagues in Europe, the Irish League still has some proper terraces left. Football should be watched standing up and within shouting distance of assistant referees and opposition players.

Then you do your best to reduce them to rubble, with a constant barrage of dog's abuse and banter. Make sure you don't run into opposition players in Belfast city centre bars though, as this may prove problematic when you've given them pelters a few weeks earlier.

3 The away days

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Whenever in your wildest dreams did you think you would end up in a place like Ballinamallard on a Saturday afternoon in October? Where is Ballinamallard, I hear you ask? It's somewhere in Fermanagh, apparently. Other exotic places include Lurgan (home of Glenavon) and Coleraine, which is possibly the coldest place in Western Europe, anytime of the year.

4 The price

When some EPL sides, especially in London, are charging anywhere up to £100 a ticket, the Irish League has been about a tenner for adults for years and many clubs operate kids for a quid. A tenner for an afternoon's entertainment? What more do you want?

5 The cost of a pint

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Cliftonville's social club does a pint for an average of £3, so do many other side's social clubs. Dirt cheap value to celebrate or drown your sorrows. The regulars in most social clubs are a sight to behold. Think Attenborough's Planet Earth, and you get the picture. Although they are, on the whole, very decent.

6 Quality of the food

I cannot stress how good the chips at Dungannon or the chicken goujons at Coleraine are. The less we say about the burgers at the Oval or Solitude the better, and for the love of God the cheesy chip at Seaview is something to behold.

7 The rivalries/fans

(Image: Presseye)

In an era when we have seen the frightening rise of the half and half scarf in the English Premier League, it's reassuring to know that this outbreak of football political correctness will never happen in the Irish League.

To put it simply, most fans of most clubs can't stand anyone else. Yes, everyone dislikes Linfield, apart from Linfield themselves, yet in over three decades of following the Irish League, I can safely say that the people that follow their clubs week in, week out are among the finest I've ever come across, and are what make this little league special.

Instead of following football, like my mother follows EastEnders, from the sofa, do yourself a favour and take the plunge into the Irish League, you may just surprise yourself and love it.