Derry GAA

History

Within a year of the GAA's foundation in 1884, GAA clubs were established around the county in Derry, Desertmartin and Magherafelt.{{cite book

Structure

The GAA in the county is administered by a County Committee (or County Board) with a representative from each GAA club in the County, a Management Committee and a variable number of sub-committees. The county administrative headquarters and centre of excellence are located at Owenbeg, Dungiven.

Facilities and management

Derry home games are played in the county grounds at Celtic Park, Derry and Owenbeg, Dungiven. Home football games are also sometimes held in Watty Graham Park, Glen or Dean McGlinchey Park, Ballinascreen, which are regarded as secondary stadia. Hurling games are also held at Lavey or Fr McNally Park, Banagher.

The current senior football team manager is Paddy Tally, while John McEvoy is the Derry senior hurling team manager. Mickey Donnelly is in charge of the under-20 football team. The minor football manager (under-17) is Martin Boyle. The management teams for the under-20 and minor hurlers include Ryan O'Neill, Martin Birt and Kevin Kelly.

Club scene

Derry has 40 affiliated clubs; 32 of which are football, two of which are hurling and six of which are dual. Many Derry GAA followers take a keener interest in the club scene than the inter-county scene, which can adversely affect attendances at Derry senior matches.

Football

Clubs

Bellaghy have four Ulster Senior Club Football Championships and an All-Ireland Senior Club Football Championship.

Ballinderry Shamrocks have three Ulster Senior Club Football Championships and an All-Ireland Senior Club Football Championship.

Slaughneil have three Ulster Senior Club Football Championships.

The Derry Senior Football Championship is an annual club competition between the top Derry clubs. It is recognised as one of the hardest club championships to get out of successfully in Ireland, as there are a variety of teams like, Ballinderry, Bellaghy, An Lúb, Slaughtneil, Lavey and Dungiven who have previously won Ulster titles, with some winning the All-Ireland title. Attendances at matches are particularly high, with many neutrals from the neighbouring counties of Tyrone, Donegal and Antrim also going to matches, as many view it as the highest standard of club football in Ulster. The winners of the Derry Championship qualify to represent their county in the Ulster Senior Club Football Championship and if they win, go on to the All-Ireland Senior Club Football Championship.

Most football league fixtures are played on Sundays so as to accommodate dual players, who have hurling league fixtures on Wednesdays.

County team

Main article: Derry county football team

thumb|Team of Derry that won the league championship in 1947 The county team won its first Ulster Senior Football Championship (SFC) in 1958. The team advanced to the 1958 All-Ireland Senior Football Championship Final but lost to Dublin.

The county team won its sixth Ulster SFC in 1993 and advanced to the 1993 All-Ireland Senior Football Championship Final. Between appearing in the 1958 and 1993 All-Ireland SFC finals, the county team won four other Ulster SFCs: in 1970, 1975, 1976 and 1987. Since 1993 the county team has won three additional Ulster SFCs, in 1998, 2022, and 2023.

The team won the National Football League in 2000,2008 and 2024 but was at one point in Division 4.

Hurling

Clubs

Derry Senior Hurling Championship

Most hurling league fixtures are played on Wednesdays so as to accommodate dual players, who have football league fixtures on Sundays.

County team

Main article: Derry county hurling team

Derry was a hotbed of early hurling activity, with the city's St Patrick's club winning the Ulster Senior Hurling Championship (SHC) in 1902–03; county teams mainly drawn from the city won the 1906 championship by a walkover, and the contested 1909 final. However, soon afterwards football become the dominant sport in the county, and hurling activity declined, especially in the city where association football clubs were active.

It was the 1970s before Derry claimed any more major hurling honours. The county won two Ulster Junior Championship (JHC) titles in 1974 and 1975, as well as the 1975 All-Ireland Junior Championship. The county also won the Ulster Minor Hurling Championship (MHC) twice during the decade in 1973/4? and 1979, before going on to win the next four at the start of the 1980s (1980, 1981, 1982 and 1983); giving the county five consecutive Ulster Minor titles. Derry also won another Ulster Junior (1984) and All-Ireland Junior Championship (1982), with Rory Stevenson still holding a record of his own, as the youngest person ever to play in a Final in Croke Park, that year (1982), playing for Kevin Lynch's Hurling Club Under 14 All-Ireland Féile na nGael winning team.

The 1990s started with Derry claiming back-to-back Ulster MHC titles in 1990 and 1991. The Under 21 side won two more Ulster Under 21 Championships in 1993 and 1997. Derry won the All-Ireland 'B' Senior Hurling Championship in 1996 and the Ulster Intermediate Hurling Championship (IHC) the following year.

In 2000 Derry won its first Ulster SHC in 92 years, and successfully defended it the following year. The county also won the 2001 Ulster MHC. The Seniors won the Nicky Rackard Cup in 2006. Derry Under 21s claimed back-to-back Ulster Under 21 titles in 2007 and 2008.

Camogie

Derry Camogie operates as a sister body of Derry GAA, but along with ladies' football, handball and the GAA county board, the Derry camogie clubs are working towards greater integration among the Gaelic games units in the county.

History

As early as 1934, there were ten Derry camogie clubs. Under Camogie's National Development Plan 2010–2015, "Our Game, Our Passion", five new camogie clubs were to be established in the county by 2015.

Swatragh qualified for the final of the All-Ireland Senior Club Camogie Championship in 2001. Lavey won the 2009 All Ireland junior club title.

Derry drew with Antrim in the Maguire Cup in 1954, and built on this progress to beat Antrim in that year's Ulster Senior Camogie Championship final by 5–2 to 2–2 - the county's first Ulster Senior Camogie Championship title. They went on to defeat Mayo and London en route to the All-Ireland Senior Camogie Championship final. However they were beaten by an impressive Dublin side, who had not lost a competitive match since 1947, on a scoreline of 10–4 to 4–2. Theresa Halferty, Carrie Rankin, Patsy McCloskey and Pat O'Brien from this team were chosen on the Ulster team for the inaugural Gael Linn Cup inter-provincial series, but the county's appearance in the 1954 All-Ireland decider did little to further the game in Derry. The county won the Ulster championship and contested the All-Ireland Senior Camogie Championship final in 1954. They had previously defeated Antrim in the first round of the 1948 championship, but then surprisingly lost to Down.

Derry reached the final of the All Ireland intermediate championship in 2001, and won the All-Ireland Junior Camogie Championship four times, in 1969, 1978, 2000 and 2007. Derry dominated the new under-16 B championship after its introduction in 2006, winning the finals of 2006, 2007 2008 and 2010 They followed up by winning the Minor B championship in 2010

Derry won further Ulster Senior Camogie Championships in 1989, 1990, 1999, 2001, 2003, 2004 and 2006. The county have also won Ulster Junior Camogie Championships 1960, 1967, 1969, 1978, 1986, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2006 and 2007. The minor camogie side have won the Ulster Minor Championship on nine occasions (1990, 1994, 1995, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003).

Team honours

• Ulster Senior: 8 ::1954, 1989, 1990, 1999, 2001, 2003, 2004, 2006,
• All Ireland junior 4 ::1969, 1978, 2000 and 2007.
• Ulster Junior: 12 ::1960, 1967, 1969, 1978, 1986, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2006, 2007
• Ulster Minor: 9 ::1990, 1994, 1995, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003
• All Ireland Under-16 B: 3 ::2006, 2008, 2010
• All Ireland Minor B: 2 ::2010, 2012

Notes: The above list of honours may be incomplete. Please add any other honours you know of.

Individual honours

All Star Awards for camogie were first introduced in 2004. Three years later, Ashling Diamond of Bellaghy became the first person to be picked from Derry. Gráinne McGoldrick was picked two years later. In 2010, soaring stars, intended for players not at the senior level, were introduced. It took two years for any Derry person to be picked for this award. Then two people were picked at once. They were Sinead Cassidy and Katy McAneny.

Ladies' football

Derry has a ladies' football team.

Bibliography

Books published about Gaelic games in County Londonderry include Oakboys: Derry's Football Dream Come True by Eoghan Corry.

References

References

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