History

A number of counties laid claim to being the cradle of Ladies Gaelic Football. There is a suggestion that a parish league was organized in Corraclare County Clare in 1926 by Tom Garry of Clonreddin. It lasted for a couple of years but then gradually faded away.

The 60’s seem to provide the first real evidence of this "new craze" as it was called at the time. For years the women of Ireland, like most countries, had stood half a step behind the men folk. The Gaelic Athletic Association had grown and prospered over eighty years.

From a couple of thousand spectators at the turn of the last century to regular attendances of 70,000 plus was a huge improvement. At least one third of these spectators were women. The 60's was a decade of change all around. The city of Liverpool let loose a group called the Beatles and the world would never be the same again. Cries of Liberation for women swept the boards. No longer were the fair sex content to be taken for granted.

In every facet of life they began to enter the spotlight, no longer content with household chores. The career woman was born. Sport was an obvious outlet. Athletics had been well and truly conquered, camogie was also established along with female participation in tennis, badminton and hockey etc. However women playing Gaelic football - Now that was one that was guaranteed to raise the eyebrow.

Gaelic Football was considered a mans game in every sense. A tough physical sport that seemed well beyond the capabilities of Ladies. Women's participation was deemed to be in the role of spectator, cheering (not too loudly) their heroes. Gaelic Games enjoyed a monopoly. Practically every single household had direct involvement, whether it be as a player, official, or spectator. Consequently it was a daily topic on most people's lips.

Man landed on the moon in 1969 but that had to share the top billing around Clonmel with the novelty of Ladies Football. At that particular time Clonmel was a thriving town and drew much of its work force from surrounding areas such as Ballymacarbry, Newcastle, Ardfinnan and Fethard. It was only natural that the players would bring the news of their new pastime back to their native parishes and this is exactly what happened.

The summer of 1970 saw clubs formed in Ballymacarbry, Newcastle, Ardfinnan, Kilsheelan and Fethard. Tournaments were held regularly; amongst the sponsors were Clonmel Junior Chamber. A couple of shrewd clergymen saw the game as a good parish fund-raiser. The interest was phenomenal. Most of the players were young eligible ladies and this brought along the local "garsuns" to help swell the attendances, much to the delight of the organizers. Ballymacarbry club was officially formed on Tuesday 7th July 1970 with Winnie Hallinan as chairperson, Peg Kelleher as Secretary and Noreen Hannigan as Treasurer. The Ardfinnan Festival was a prestigious event for local G.A.A. teams and when they added Ladies Football to the list of events it was a big step. Eight teams took part and were whittled down to the host team and Newcastle.

The early 70's also saw the gradual stemming of the tide of emigration. In the previous two decades employment opportunities were limited so for a large percentage of the youth there was only one alternative - the boat to England and further afield. However economically Ireland began to realize its potential. It was an era of foreign investment particularly by American companies and this helped in no small way to keep the youth in Ireland. However it did necessitate travelling within the country and this flow led to the promotion of Ladies football. A new environment, new friends and a chance to spread the news. Cork began with a divisional championship in 1973. The final was played at Banteer on the 2nd of September and Knockscovane beat Ballydaly 3-4 to 2-3.

1974 brought the revitalization of Gaelic football. It had lost a little bit of its glamour but the emergence of the Dubs with Kevin Heffernan as manager brought the crowds flocking back. Hill 16 became an institution as the spectators introduced a witty repertoire of songs a selection of banners along with the traditional colors as the Sam Maguire Cup went back to the Capital City for the first time since 1963. It became fashionable to play football again as the trend in which the code was under threat from English Soccer was reversed.

Croke Park became a cauldron, the atmosphere was fantastic and the G.A.A. benefited accordingly. Ladies Football also made giant strides. Several county boards were set up. Michael Naughton’s house in Lisnamult Co Roscommon was the venue for a meeting which set up a county board on Wednesday 26th June. Marie Holland was elected chairperson with Michael Naughton as Secretary- Treasurer. The committee included PJ Lennon, Elizabeth O’ Brien, Patrick Burke, Margaret Flanagan, Ann Naughton, Patricia Kilroe and Ann Crean. This led to the commencement of a county championship. Clan na Gael won the first county title defeating Ballintubber in the C.B.S. field in Roscommon in a score line of 3-6 to 4-2 in a cracking game.

A meeting was called at Killurney a little village in Tipperary with a view to setting up a national association. Personnel from a number of counties attended and a few players were in favor of a trip abroad to either England or America. Jim Kennedy and John Donovan were adamant to get the game organized in Ireland first and then talk about trips. It was decided to call another meeting and try and get more delegates. Hayes Hotel in Thurles was the chosen venue. Ninety years earlier the Gaelic Athletic Association was founded in this famous hotel and Thursday evening the 18th July saw four counties - Tipperary, Offaly, Galway, and Kerry represented. The Ladies Gaelic Football Association was officially founded. Tipperary's Jim Kennedy was elected as President. Jim was a native of Killenaule and a Sergeant in the Army. He had served in both the Congo and Cyprus in the 60's and at this particular time he was living in Clonmel and was an instructor in the F.C.A. in Cahir. Mary Nevin from Kilcormac in Offaly took the position of Secretary. Mary worked with the Eastern Health Board in the Mater Hospital in Dublin, but played club football with Kilcormac. Roscommon's Margaret Flanagan became Treasurer. Margaret hailed from and played with Ballintubber. She was a founding member of her club and worked as a physiotherapist at the county hospital in Roscommon. Marie Holland, also from Ballintubber, a Dept of Agriculture official, became Vice President with Offaly's Joe Feighery as Assistant Secretary and Brendan Martin as Assistant Treasurer

It was decided to hold a senior inter-county championship with each county paying a £10 fee to cover medals. Eight counties Roscommon, Laois, Offaly, Galway, Kerry Cork, Waterford and Tipperary indicated of their interest to take part. The four Munster counties were drawn in opposition and agreed to play a Munster championship on a league basis. It was decided to draft a set of rules as there were different interpretations with some counties using the complete set of G.A.A. rules. Roscommon were drawn against Laois, Offaly were drawn against Galway along with the Munster championship.

Thus 1974 came to an end with the game firmly established in eight counties. The players of today owe a great debt of gratitude to the trail blazers both on and off the field, who put down the solid foundation that has stood Ladies football in such a good stand over a quarter of a century.

Ladies Gaelic Football in New York

NEW YORK WINNERS CIRCLE

	Sean Faherty Championship	Annie Kearney Cup	Louis O’Hehir  Cup	Peter Connaughton Cup	Barry Fitzgerald Cup Seven-a-side	Mattie Farrelly Seven-a-side
1992	Cavan	Cavan
1993	Cavan	Cavan
1994	Na Fianna	Na Fianna
1995	Cavan	Leitrim			Monaghan
1996	Cavan	Leitrim	Rockland		Cavan
1997	Cavan	Cavan	An Chiarrai		Philadelphia
1998	Cavan	Cavan	Rockland		Mayo
1999	Cavan	Leitrim	Monaghan		Cavan
2000	Cavan	Cavan	Cavan	Rockland	Cavan
2001	Mayo	Cavan	Cavan	Kerry	Monaghan	Fog City Harps
2002	Mayo	Cavan	Mayo	Donegal	Boston Shamrocks	Cavan
2003	Cavan	Mayo	Na Fianna	Kerry	Roscommon (Boston)	Mayo
2004	Cavan	Mayo	Cavan	Monaghan	Kerry D Gold	Cavan
2005	Mayo	Mayo	Cavan	Monaghan	Mayo ‘B’	Cavan
2006	Cavan	Cavan	Cavan	Fermanagh	Na Fianna	Cavan
2007	Cavan	Cavan	Cavan	Rockland	Fermanagh	Railyard
2008					Na Fianna	Cavan

Players of the Year

1994 Mary Kearney (An Chiarrai)
1995 Norma McCarthy (Monaghan)
1996 Ger Mahon (Cavan)
1997 Sadie Bolger (Leitrim)
1998 Colette McElligott (Leitrim)
1999 Gillian Bennett (Cavan)
2000 Louise McMahon (Mayo)
2001 Sue Bennett (Cavan)
2002 Allison Lineen Leyden (Na Fianna)
2003 Sinead O’Reilly (Cavan)
2004 Mary Maguire (Cavan)
2005 Denise Dunnion (Kerry/Donegal)
2006 Mary O’Rourke (Na Fianna)
2007 Linda McKeon (Cavan)

Young Player of the Year

2007 Allison Traynor

Most Valuable Player Sean Faherty Championship Finals

1992 Brenda Rogers (Cavan)
1993 Rosie O'Reilly (Cavan)
1994 Ann Marie McMunn (Leitrim)
1995 Maggie Kavanagh-Byrne (Cavan)
1996 Olive Wilson (Cavan)
1997 Ger Mahon (Cavan)
1998 Ger Mahon (Cavan)
1999 Gillian Bennett (Cavan)
2000 Gillian Bennett (Cavan)
2001 Ellen McGrail (Mayo)
2002 Diane O'Hora (Cavan)
2003 Ger Mahon (Cavan)
2004 Deirdre O’Reilly
2005 Patti McGrail (Mayo)
2006 Emma Clarke (Cavan)
2007 Mary Maguire (Cavan)

Most Valuable Player Annie Kearney Cup Finals

1997 Anne Holland (Cavan)
1998 Caroline O'Sullivan (Cavan)
1999 Ann Marie McMunn and Kathleen Hickey (Leitrim)
2000 Sharon Levins (Cavan)
2001 Ger Mahon (Cavan)
2002 Nuala Carroll (Cavan)
2003 Denise Dunnion (Mayo)
2004 Fiona Ward (Mayo)
2005 Fiona Ward (Mayo)
2006 Aisling Doonan (Cavan)
2007 Kelly McArdle (Cavan)

Most Valuable Player Peter Connaughton Cup

2002 Mary Casey (Donegal)
2003 Mary Cooney (Kerry)
2004 Mena Tuohey (Monaghan)
2005 Bernie Tuohey (Monaghan)
2006 Caroline Murphy (Fermanagh)
2007 Janet Mordeci (Rockland)
2006 Caroline Murphy (Fermanagh)
2007 Janet Mordeci (Rockland)

Most Valuable Player Railway Cup Final

2003 Eleanor Fox (Ulster/Connaught)
2004 Cathy Hughes (Ulster/Connaught)
2005 Ger Rice (Munster/Leinster)
2006 Aisling Doonan (Ulster/Connaught)
2007 Nora McGrail (Ulster/Connaught)

Railway Cup Winners

2007 Ulster/Connaught
2006 Ulster/Connaught
2005 Munster/Leinster
2004 Ulster/Connaught
2003 Ulster/Connaught
2002 Ulster/Connaught
2001 Munster/Leinster
2000 Ulster
1999 Ulster
1998 Leinster
1997 Not Played
1996 Leinster

O’Neill’s CYC Championships

2004 Under-12 & Under-16
2005 Under-14 & Under-16
2006 Under-8 (Rockland), Under-10, Under-12, Under-14 & Under-18
2007 Under-12, Under-14 & Under-16

New York Junior All-Ireland Results

1995 All-Ireland Junior Semi-Final: New York 1-4 Tyrone 0-8
1997 All-Ireland Junior Semi-Final: New York 0-9 Longford 2-8
1998 All-Ireland Junior Semi-Final: New York 2-4 Roscommon 0-11
1999 All-Ireland Junior Semi-Final: New York 1-12 Waterford 1-11
1999 All-Ireland Junior Final: New York 2-4 Tyrone 3-12
2000 All-Ireland Junior Semi-Final: New York 1-14 Down 2-13
2001 Unable to travel due to 09/11 attack, game awarded to Kildare
2002 All-Ireland Junior Semi-Final: New York 0-4 Galway 1-21

Guests of Honor

1992 Terry Connaughton
1993 Lisa Brady
1994 Philip Sheridan
1995 Catherine Flood
1996 Mary P. Toolan
1997 Marie Flood & Marti Devaney-O’Hehir
1998 Kathleen Rowland
1999 Eamon Duffy
2000 Caroline Conway Bogue
2001 In Memory of 9/11
2002 Rosie O'Reilly
2003 Pauline Boylan
2004 Anne Holland
2005 Ann Leyden
2006 John Conway
2007 Nollaig Cleary

Imelda Tracey Memorial Award

2001 Fr. Tom Flynn
2002 Danny Doohan
2003 Seamus Dooley
2004 Sr. Christine Hennessy

Colette Horkan Memorial Award

2006 Louise Fox
2007 Monica Slevin