Background on Connemara GAA

Disputes/Disagreements

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Disputes and or disagreements have destroyed many prominent groups over the years and there are many prime examples even to this day. The G.A.A. locally is no exception and several high profile disputes occurred over the years.

In the early 1950s, the decision for Clifden to amalgamate with Oughterard in order to compete at senior level left a lot of disgruntled local players in Clifden and several of them got transfers to Cleggan. Kingstown and Cleggan broke up because they could not agree on a name under which to compete. In 1955 several players from the Clifden area joined the senior regional team competing under the name of St. Patrick’s (Clonbur). Some suggest that this happened because of internal conflict but others suggest that those players wanted to play at senior level. A number of players from Clifden and Kingstown attempted to form a Kingstown team for the Mongan Cup competition but were disqualified. The formation of the Cleggan team in the 1970s also derived from disagreement. The development of the current G.A.A. grounds in Clifden also led to conflict. There are former prominent members of Naomh Feichín who no longer want anything to do with G.A.A. activity locally because of internal conflict from the past.

First Organised Games

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

The first organised games were played in Clifden in the early 1900s. There are statistical records of a match in Clifden between two town teams in 1912 when the Clifden Wild Geese defeated Town Hall St. Joseph’s on a score of 1-2 to 0-1. Games like these were played on a regular basis at that time. The first official club was formed at the beginning of 1912 under the name of Clifden Shamrocks, (there was an attempt to register in 1910 but affiliation fees were not paid) the first secretary was Tobias Joyce and the first captain was P. K. Joyce. The team played in the county senior championship in 1912 and reached the county semi-final but were defeated by one point by Dunmore who later won the title with ease. In folklore and also well documented, is the story of the north Galway man, playing for ‘Shamrocks’, who was believed by his team-mates to have deliberately kicked the ball wide rather than inflict defeat on his home town, with some of his team-mates threatening to throw him off the train on the return journey home. In 1914, ‘Shamrocks’ were the only senior team in the west and competed in one of the senior groups in north/east Galway.

The Early Years

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Gaelic football was played in west Connemara back in the 1800s, but there were no clubs as we know them today. At that time it was town-land or road versus the next town-land or road. A ‘challenge’ was issued to another region, sometimes in the press of the day and it was usually responded to. Many stories remain of such events, for example, the men from Goulane responding to the Clifden Town ‘challenge’ by going into Curvohill and hammering the ‘townies’ (or as at that time referred to by the country lads as the ‘corner-boys’) after a hard day’s work on the farm or bog. Similar stories exist about the men from Inishbofin rowing into Cleggan to face the locals. It also must be remembered that Cleggan football team produced Feichin Mulkerrins, the only man in Ireland that kicked a point and a goal with the one kick of the ball. Several ‘challenges’ were answered in Roundstone as well when Cashel, Recess and Carna (by currach) came to Gurteen to ‘challenge’ the Scottish descendants.

What Type of Transport Was Used?

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

The main difficulty most clubs had was transport to and from games, as there were very few buses available. Another major difficulty was funds to pay for bus-hire. A significant number of players would use ponies/horses and traps or sidecars in the earlier years but bicycles in later years became the norm. There are examples of teams using bicycles to travel to a county final. For example, when Ml. Breathnach’s won their first county final in 1945 they travelled on bicycles to Turloughmore. As an aside, it is interesting to note that ‘Breathnach’s’ had three players from the Clifden area on their team that day. The bicycle, as a type of transport was efficient for local games in west Connemara but when travelling longer distances, for example, from Clifden to Oughterard or Galway, the main type of transport used was the train - for those that could afford the luxury. The Clifden train was possibly the main reason why local football teams could participate in county championship games. The closing of the Clifden railway line in the early 1930s gave rise to other forms of transport being used. The open truck which was used all week for carriage/farming purposes, became the ‘team bus’ on Sunday. The government ban on the use of the open truck in 1935/36 was a devastating blow for rural G.A.A. teams. The ‘winkle’ van was one of many vehicles used for transport in Ballyconneely as late as the 1960s, this at a time when cars were still very scarce. It was not unusual to see up to 20 people cramming into a vehicle for a match on a Sunday.

Where Were the Games Played?

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Games were played in Clifden in the early years where Clifden Glen is today and also at the Railway pitch (Currachmore). The fields were privately owned and were available at the discretion of the owners. Games were played up until the early 1970s where Clifden Glen is today but from then on the club had no playing field suitable for senior matches.

The Ball Alley was developed as a training field in the mid 70s but efforts to expand it to a full-sized field failed. During the 70s and early 80s the senior club used Oughterard pitch generally for home matches. Some league matches were played at Aillebrack beach beside Connemara Golf Club. The search was continually ongoing for a potential full-sized pitch and eventually it was narrowed down to two possible sites, one at Ballyconneely and one at Clifden. The then secretary Tom Feneran sourced the current pitch which at that time was part of the convent grounds. Some legal problems arose but eventually ‘the deal was done’ for the club by the late Tom Mannion (Marty) assisted by Martin Conroy. The acquisition and development of the field was spearheaded by Francie Foley, Sean Vaughan and Tom Connolly. The important role played by the local nuns in ensuring that Naomh Feichín got their own home ground, must also be recognized. The main field was made playable in the late 1980s. The development was organised and funded by a Field Development Committee. Ongoing developments were carried out over the years, the latest being the provision of a training ground in 2009 with some external lighting which was financially supported by Grant Aid from the State and Galway G.A.A. County Board and Clifden Chamber of Commerce provided the lighting.