Glen GAC
Watty Graham's GAC Glen (Irish: An Ghleann) is a Gaelic Athletic Association club based outside Maghera, County Londonderry, Northern Ireland. Players are drawn from Maghera and some surrounding townlands. The club competes in gaelic football, Ladies' Gaelic football and camogie.
| An Ghleann | |||||||||
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| Founded: | 1948 | ||||||||
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| County: | Derry | ||||||||
| Nickname: | Wattys | ||||||||
| Colours: | Green, white and yellow | ||||||||
| Grounds: | Watty Graham Park | ||||||||
| Coordinates: | 54°50′23.44″N 6°41′17.98″W | ||||||||
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| Senior Club Championships | |||||||||
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Name
The club is named after Watty (Walter) Graham who was a resident of Maghera in the 18th century. He was an educated Presbyterian who became an Elder of his church. Frustrated at the many restrictions on his liberty he joined the United Irishmen. At the time of the 1798 rebellion he was captured and subsequently hanged in Maghera.[1]
2019 Championship Football
| Championship Football – Glen – 2019 | |
|---|---|
| Match Details | Date |
| Senior Football Championship | |
| Glen 1-14 1-10 The Loup First Round | 8 September |
| Glen 1-15 2-06 Lavey Quarter Final | 22 September |
| Glen 3-07 1-11 Slaughtneil Semi Final | 6 October |
| Glen 0-11 0-12 Magherafelt Final | 20 October |
2018 Championship Football
| Championship Football – Glen | |
|---|---|
| Match Details | Date |
| Senior Football | |
| Glen 1-15 0-13 Swatragh First Round | 8 September |
| Glen 1-15 0-17 Ballinderry Quarter Final | 22 September |
| Glen 1-06 2-11 Lavey Semi Final | 7 October |
2017 Championship Football
| Championship Football – Glen | |
|---|---|
| Match Details | Date |
| Senior Football | |
| Glen 4–11 0–13 Lavey First Round | 12 August |
| Glen 2–17 1–13 Kilrea Quarter Final | 29 August |
| Glen 0-06 0–13 Slaughtneil Semi-final | 10 September |
| Minor B1 Football | |
| Glen 5–18 0-05 Banagher First Round | 25 September |
| Glen 5–10 0-07 Castledawson Quarter Final | 1 October |
| Glen 4–12 3–10 Greenlough Semi-final | 8 October |
| Glen 4–14 5-08 Coleraine Final | 14 October |
2016 season
2016 Championship Football
| Championship Football – Glen | |
|---|---|
| Match Details | Date |
| Senior Football | |
| Glen 3–12 0–7 Swatragh Preliminary Match | 7 August |
| Glen 0–17 1–8 Dungiven First Round | 20 August |
| Glen 0–13 0–16 Loup Quarter Final | 4 September |
| Reserve Football | |
| Glen 0–6 4–17 Loup First Round | 29 August |
| Under 21 15-a-side Football | |
| Glen v City Oaks City Oaks conceded Jack Cassidy Quarter Final | — |
| Glen 2–14 0–4 Loup Jack Cassidy Semi-final | 17 November |
| Glen 1–17 1–8 Swatragh Jack Cassidy Final | 30 November |
| Glen 3–8 2–7 Ramor United Ulster U21 Quarter Final | 21 January 2017 |
| Glen 2–11 1–10 Gweedore After extra time Ulster U21 Semi-final | 29 January 2017 |
| Glen 2–12 2–10 Crossmaglen Ulster U21 Final | 4 March 2017 |
| Minor B1 Football | |
| Glen 1–14 3–9 Coleraine First Round | 8 August |
| Under 16 A Football | |
| Glen 1–11 1–4 Faughanvale Quarter Final | 11 August |
| Glen 0–12 3–17 Bellaghy Semi-final | 25 August |
| Under 14 A Football | |
| Glen 1–4 7–6 Lavey Quarter Final | 23 August |
- Match Info Source derrygaa.ie
2016 Ladies' Football Season
| Ladies' Championship Football – Glen | |
|---|---|
| Match Details | Date |
| Ladies' Senior Football | |
| Glen 2–8 1–2 Ballinascreen Final | 10 September |
| Glen 5–10 1–8 Glenavy (Antrim) Ulster Quarter Final | 2 October |
| Glen 2–4 3–10 Kinawly (Fermanagh) Ulster Semi-final | 16 October |
Camogie
Glen fields Camogie teams at U12, U14, U16, Minor and Senior levels. The senior team competes in the Credit Union Derry Premier League.
Ladies' football
Glen Ladies football club was formed in 1995.[2] The club has won the Derry Senior Ladies' Football Championship 11 times and currently have won nine in a row.
Watty Graham Park
The club's home ground is Watty Graham Park. It was opened in 1982 by then GAA President Paddy Buggy.[3] The first game was an over-35s game, which was followed by an inter-county match between Derry and Armagh.[3] Celtic Park in Derry City is officially recognised as Derry's main county ground,[4] but Watty Graham Park has hosted a number of National League and Dr. McKenna Cup games. Watty Graham Park currently has a capacity of six thousand.[3]
History
The Watty Graham club evolved from the Pearse's club formed around 1933, when Fr Anthony Doherty among others arranged a South Derry league. The club reached the 1944 South Derry final and a few of their players represented Derry.[5]
After the folding of the Pearse's club, Watty Graham's GAC Glen was officially formed in 1948. In the early 1950s it competed in a number of South Derry Finals and in 1953 they defeated St John's Mullan (a townland of Ballinderry) to win the South Derry Junior Championship. They won the same title six years later defeating The Loup in the final.
In 1964 they won the South Derry Junior and Derry Junior Football Championship by beating Littlebridge (part of the modern day Ógra Colmcille club) and Sarfield's respectively.[5] The side repeated this feat in 1966 by beating The Loup in the South Derry Junior final before going on to win the Derry Junior final. The 1970s proved a barren decade for Watty Graham's and they have little apart from a McGlinchey Cup success in 1974 to show for it.[5] Glen opened a new social club in Maghera in April 1976.
The club won its first Derry Intermediate Football Championship in 1980. They overcame Drumsurn in the final by 0–06 to 0–03. Glen won a second Intermediate Championship in 1983 defeating Drum in the final.[5]
In 1985 Watty Graham's won the All-Ireland Óg Sport title. They competed in county, provincial and All Ireland phases to come out winners. Two years later they won the Derry Minor Football Championship with a success over Ballinascreen. The same year Glen won the Larkin Cup and also the Senior Division 1 League. The side added another Larkin Cup in 1995. Glen won their fourth and fifth Junior Championship in 2004 and 2005, the competitions this time won by the Glen Thirds team. This same Thirds team went on to win three in a row by winning the Thirds Championship in 2006.
After a prolonged period of dominance in underage football Glen won their fourth successive Ulster Minor Championship on 1 January 2015.
Glen's current manager is Enda Gormley.
Football Titles
Senior
- Derry Senior Football Championship: 0
- Runner-Up 2019
- Derry Senior Football League: 1
- 1987
- Derry Senior Reserve Football Trophy: 1
- 2008
- Derry Intermediate Football Championship: 2
- 1980, 1983
- Derry Intermediate Football League: 1
- 2014
- Derry Junior Football Championship: 5
- 1959, 1964, 1966, 2004 (won by Glen Thirds team), 2005 (won by Glen Thirds team)
- South Derry Junior Football Championship: 4
- 1953, 1959, 1964, 1966
- Derry Thirds Football Championship: ?
- 2006
- Larkin Cup 3
- 1987, 1995, 2005
- McGlinchey Cup 1
- 1974
- Derry Senior Football championship (division 1):21
- 1924–31
- 1945
- 1951–55
- 1979–84
- 1988–92
Under 21
- South Derry Under-21 Football Championship: 1
- 2014
- Derry Under-21 Football Championship: 3
- 2014, 2015, 2016
- Ulster Under-21 Football Championship: 3
- 2014–15, 2015–16, 2016–17
Minor
- Derry Minor Football Championship: 5
- 1987, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014
- Ulster Minor Club Football Championship: 4
- 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014
- Derry Minor Football League: 3
- 2011, 2012, 2013
Under 16
- Derry Under-16 Football Championship:2
- 2010, 2011
- Derry Under-16 Football League:1
- 2011
- South Derry Under-16 Football Championship: 1
- 1984
- South Derry Under-16 'B' Football Championship: 1
- 2002, 2005
- South Derry Under-16 'B' Football League: 2
- 2004, 2006
Under-15
- All-Ireland Óg Sport: 1
- 1985
- Ulster Óg Sport: 3
- 1985, 2009, 2010, 2012
- Derry Óg Sport: 4
- 1985, 2009, 2010, 2012
Under-14
- Ulster Féile na nÓg: 1
- 2009
- Derry Féile na nÓg: 3
- 1994, 2008, 2011
- Derry Under-14 Football Championship: 4
- 1984, 2008, 2009, 2010
- Derry Under-14 Football League: 4
- 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011
- South Derry Under-14 Football Championship: 1
- 1982
- South Derry Under-14 'B' Football Championship: 2
- 1998, 2004
- South Derry Under-14 'B' Football League: 1
- 1998
Under-13
- Derry Under-13 Football Championship: 3
- 2008, 2009, 2010
Ladies' Gaelic Football Titles
- Derry Football Championship: 13
- 1996, 1997, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2012, 2016
- Derry Football League: ?
- 1999, 2000, 2001
- Ulster Intermediate Football Championship: 2
- 2003, 2007
- All Ireland Intermediate Sevens: 1
- 2007
- Powerscreen Sevens: 1
- 2000
- Antrim 7-a-side Shield: 1
- 2002
- Under-14 Derry Féile na nÓg: 2
- 2010, 2011
Note 1: The above lists may be incomplete. Please add any other honours you know of.
Note 2: Most of the Ladies' honours are only updated as far as 2002. Please add any other honours you know of.
Notable Players
- Cathal Mullholland (c)
- Ciaran McFaul – Current Derry player
- Emmett Bradley
- Danny Tallon – Derry u-21 player
- Enda Gormley – Two-time All Star winning Derry footballer. Part of Derry's 1993 All-Ireland Senior Football Championship winning side. Gormley managed Glen to their first ever Ulster Minor Championship at St Paul's Belfast on 1 January 2012, defeating Armagh Harps.
- Damien McCusker – Goalkeeper in Derry's 1993 All-Ireland Senior Football Championship winning side.
- Fergal McCusker – Part of Derry's 1993 All-Ireland Senior Football Championship winning side.
- Séamus Lagan – Former Derry footballer. Won All-Ireland Minor and All-Ireland U-21 Championships. Also won Hogan Cup with St Columb's College, Derry.[5]
External links
References
- "History of Watty Graham". Retrieved 5 September 2019.
- "A brief history of Glen Ladies' Gaelic football team". Archived from the original on 8 August 2009. Retrieved 8 September 2007.
- Scott, Ronan (20 March 2009). "Glen next stop on Derry magical mystery tour". Gaelic Life. p. 5.
- Scott, Ronan (13 February 2009). "'Screen to win back hearts of Derry fans". Gaelic Life. p. 3.
- "A history of the Watty Graham Club by Eamonn Higgins". Archived from the original on 23 August 2007. Retrieved 7 September 2007.