2003–04 as the Crues achieved a mid-table finish, an improvement compared to preceding seasons. Dornan's next season in charge was not as successful. He was sacked just after midway through the season, as the Crues lay at the bottom of the table, despite having guided the team to the County Antrim Shield final, which they lost to Linfield. Dornan was the first ever Crusaders manager to be sacked. Former striker and fans' favourite Stephen Baxter was appointed as manager but despite an improvement in results, he could not keep the club in the Premier League, with the Crues losing out to Glenavon in a relegation play-off, the first ever Premier League team to lose to a First Division side in the play-offs. The relegation was the first time Crusaders had ever been relegated from any league, and meant an end to 56 consecutive seasons of senior football. Stephen Baxter era (2005–present) They immediately bounced back the following year under Baxter by winning the IFA Intermediate League, the Intermediate League Cup, and Steel & Sons Cup. After their first season back in the top flight after promotion, the Hatchetmen finished in a creditable 6th place, after briefly topping the table at the beginning of the season. In the 2007–08 season, the Crues finished in 7th position in the League after a somewhat inconsistent start to the season. They appeared in two finals, losing both the County Antrim Shield 1–2 to Glentoran, and the Irish League Cup, 2–3 to Linfield. During 2008–09 season, they finished in the top three of the League for the first time in 10 years. The club also won their first Irish Cup final since 1968, thanks to a Mark Dickson goal, in a 1–0 victory over Cliftonville at Windsor Park on 9 May 2009. The same season, Crusaders began a partnership with fellow North Belfast club Newington in a cross-community initiative, which saw Newington play their home matches at Seaview. This became their permanent venue for home matches in 2011. As a result, Crusaders entered Europe for the first time in 12 years and faced Macedonian side FK Rabotnički in the Europa League second qualifying round. The game was drawn 1–1 with David Rainey scoring on the 89th minute. On 23 July 2009 in their second leg encounter with FK Rabotnicki in Macedonia they lost the game 4–2 and exited the competition 5–3 on aggregate. In a