Wicklow GAA

The Wicklow County Board of the Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA) (Irish: Cumann Lúthchleas Gael, Coiste Chontae Cill Mhantáin) or Wicklow GAA is one of the 32 county boards of the GAA in Ireland, and is responsible for Gaelic games in County Wicklow. The county board is also responsible for the Wicklow county teams.

Wicklow GAA
Irish:Cill Mhantáin
Province:Leinster
Nickname(s):The Garden County
County colours:Blue, Gold, White               
Ground(s):Aughrim County Ground
Dominant sport:Gaelic football
Competitions
NFL:Division 4
NHL:Division 2A
Football Championship:Sam Maguire Cup
Hurling Championship:Christy Ring Cup
Ladies' Gaelic football:Brendan Martin Cup
Camogie:Máire Ní Chinnéide Cup
Standard kit
Regular kit
Change kit

The Wicklow county football team play in the Leinster Senior Football Championship. Wicklow have had very little success at senior level, being the only football team in the province and one of two in Ireland to have never won a senior title in either code, the other being Fermanagh.

The Wicklow county hurling team compete in the Christy Ring Cup, the second tier of the All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship. They reached the final in both the 2011 and 2012 cups losing to Kerry and London respectively.

Crest and colours

Wicklow's traditional team colours are royal blue and gold. The kits are usually blue shirts, white shorts and blue socks with a gold trim. Wicklow's alternative jersey is white with blue shorts and blue socks.

The Wicklow crest features the roundtower of Glendalough in the foreground surrounded by a large 'W' standing for the name of the county. In the background of the crest is a green mountain, representing the Wicklow Mountains and below is a hand holding a Gaelic football and a hurley and sliotar.

Sponsorship
Manufacturer Sponsor
Years Sponsor
O'Neills
1999–2003 Wicklow GoI
2004–2005 White Young Green
2006–2009 Ballymore Group
2010–2013 Brennan Hotels
2014–2016 Arklow Bay Hotel
2017– Joule

Schools

There is a very strong emphasis on Gaelic games in schools in Wicklow, both in primary and secondary schools. In almost all cases coaching is done on a voluntary basis by teachers who may have links to local GAA clubs.

The county's vocational schools team has won 12 Leinster and 3 All-Ireland Championships, the last coming in 2006.

Football

Clubs
Further information: List of Gaelic games clubs in Ireland § Wicklow

Wicklow's biggest achievement remains the All-Ireland Senior Club Football Championship won by the Baltinglass club in 1990.

County team
Main article: Wicklow county football team

Wicklow are one of two counties never to have won a senior provincial championship (the other is Fermanagh), but Bray Emmets, the leading side of the early 1900s, won Leinster and All-Ireland honours when they were playing in the Dublin Championship. Wicklow were twice proclaimed Leinster champions for short periods. Bray were representing Wicklow in 1889, and when they beat Newtown Blues of Drogheda by 1-7 to 1-4 they claimed that they had won the "final of Leinster" because Queens County or Kilkenny had not shown up for a final. But four days later the result was quashed. In 1897 they became Leinster champions for a week. A downpour caused Dublin to presume the Leinster final would not be played, Dublin went home, the referee awarded a walk-over to Wicklow. But the following meeting of the Central Council ordered the match to be replayed and Wicklow lost by 1-9 to 0-3.

A League semi-final in frostbound 1947 came about in bizarre fashion: Wicklow were picked to represent an unfinished group in which some of the teams had not yet played. In 1954 Wicklow were leading Meath by two points after sixty minutes of play but Meath were saved by the clock. Nine minutes of lost time had elapsed before Meath scored the winning point! After surviving the "long count" Meath went on to win the All-Ireland, and Wicklow lost their best player of the decade, John Timmons, to Dublin.

In 1986 they pulled off a huge upset beating newly crowned League champions Laois in the Leinster Quarter-final on a scorching hot June day in Aughrim by 2-10 to 1-9, Wicklow legend Kevin O'Brien scored 2-3 in that game. However, they were no match for Meath, who knocked them out in the Leinster semi-final.

A near thing against Meath, just off their four-match with Dublin in 1991 (Wicklow drew 0-12 to 1-9 and lost the replay by three points) heralded a great start to the 1990s. But Wicklow's only championship wins since were against Longford and Westmeath, and a 1996 League quarter-final appearance against Donegal their nearest to a breakthrough. Lying in wait for complacent opponents, particularly in Aughrim, for unsuspecting opposition has been the Wicklow trademark since. Exploits included a 1986 win over newly crowned League champions Laois at Aughrim, and a 1981 defeat by just two points against Dublin in the Leinster quarter-final, after a miracle save in the last minute by Dublin's goalkeeper John O'Leary.

In October 2006, legendary former Kerry manager and player Mick O'Dwyer took over as Wicklow manager. During his tenure Wicklow's championship results improved, while Wicklow had shown promise in 2004 and 2005, they suffered two heavy defeats in the 2006 championship. In 2007 under Mick O'Dwyer they played Louth in the first round of the Leinster Championship, taking Louth to two replays before finally being beaten; however, later that year, they went on to win the Tommy Murphy Cup, defeating Antrim in dramatic fashion with a late Tommy Gill goal in extra-time, securing the Wicklow senior footballers a second ever national trophy, and first ever win in Croke Park. As Wicklow were a Division 4 team they were not permitted to enter the 2007 backdoor. Going into the 2008 championship, Wicklow had not won a championship game since beating London on June 8, 2002 and had not won a Leinster Championship 1st round proper game since beating Longford by 1 point in 1996 (they won a Leinster group game in 2000, but this was the only year under that format). They faced a heavily fancied Kildare in the 1st round and completed arguably their greatest ever championship win beating Kildare 0-13 to 0-9, this was also their first ever championship win in Croke Park, they went on to lose narrowly to Laois in the Quarter-Final. Again as they were a Division 4 team they were not permitted to enter the qualifiers, so they went on to try and defend the Tommy Murphy Cup but ultimately lost to Antrim in the final. The 2009 Championship was one of the most memorable in Wicklow's history, they won their Leinster 1st-round game against Longford by 2-12 to 1-13 before narrowly losing to Westmeath in the next round by 0-16 to 1-10. Division 4 teams were allowed to enter the Qualifiers again by 2009 and so Wicklow began their campaign by beating Fermanagh 0-17 to 1-11 in the 1st round, they then comfortably beat Cavan by 1-12 to 0-8 in the 2nd round, they dramatically beat Down by 1-15 to 0-17 thanks to a late 45' that was scored by Tony Hannon before their famous run finally came to an end when Kildare beat them by 1-16 to 2-9 in the last round of the Qualifiers. In 2010, Wicklow beat Carlow in the 1st round of the Leinster championship but again narrowly lost out in the Quarter-final, this time to Westmeath by a single point, 0-15 to 1-11 but unfortunately they were unable to repeat their historic 2009 Qualifier run losing out to Cavan in the 1st round, agonisingly by a single point again, 0-15 to 2-8. Wicklow's 2011 Leinster campaign started poorly with a 0-12 to 0-5 1st round defeat by Kildare; however, they bounced back well, defeating Sligo by 1-18 to 0-16 in the 1st round of the Qualifiers, in the 2nd round they drew with Armagh 0-19 to 2-13 before losing the replay at home by 2-9 to 0-10. This brought an end to Mick O'Dwyer's five years as manager of the Wicklow footballers.

Hurling

Current squad
  • Manager: Seamus Murphy
  • Selectors: Emmet O'Sullivan, Brian Gleeson, Jonathan O'Neill
  • Trainer: Robert Doyle
  • Equipment Manager: Dave Murray
  • Administrator: Mick O'Hagan
No. Player Position Club
1 Ted Kennedy Goalkeeper Carnew
2 Geoffrey Bermingham Right Corner Back Kiltegan
3 Stephen Kelly Full Back Eire Og
4 Martin O'Brien Left Corner Back Annacurra
5 Gary Byrne Left Half Forward Glenealy
6 John Henderson Centre Back Bray Emmets
7 Shane Byrne Left Half Back Avondale
8 Eamonn Kearns Midfield Avondale
9 Ronan Keddy Midfield Kilcoole
10 Christy Moorehouse Right Half Forward Bray Emmets
11 Mikey Lee Centre Forward Bray Emmets
12 Jonathan O'Neill Left Half Forward Glenealy
13 Andy O'Brien Right Corner Forward St Patricks
14 Wayne O'Gorman Full Forward Glenealy
15 Danny Staunton Left Corner Forward Glenealy

Wicklow also won the All-Ireland Junior Hurling Championships in 1967 and 1971. The Wicklow Senior Huling Championship 2014 consists of 8 clubs: Carnew Emmets, Glenealy (2013 Champions), Kiltegan, St. Patricks Wicklow Town, Eire Og Greystones, Avondale, Kilcoole and Bray Emmets (2013 Finalists). They have won the Kehoe Cup 7 times in 1989, 1991, 1998, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003.

Honours

All Irelands (4)

Provincials (13)

Leagues (4)

Camogie

Wicklow was among the foundation members of the Camogie Association, several Bray members won All Ireland medals with Dublin, and the county supplied all the members of the Irish team that controversially competed in the 1924 Tailteann Games.[1] Lucy Cullen-Byrne served as president of the Camogie Association). The county won the Leinster Junior Championship in 1964, and contested the Máire Ní Chinnéide Cup finals of 2008,[2] 2009 and 2011.[3] They won Division 5 of the National Camogie League in 2009.[4] Knockananna won Division 1 Féile na nGael 1975 while Avoca won the Caithlín Ní Thoimín Shield in 1979 and Kiltegan won the Coiste Chontae an Chláir Shield at Féile na nGael in 1999.

Under Camogie's National Development Plan 2010-2015, "Our Game, Our Passion",[5] five new camogie clubs were to be established in the county by 2015.[6]

Wicklow were beaten by Monaghan in the 2011 All Ireland Junior B Camogie Championship Final and have not fielded an adult team in inter-county competitions since.

Ladies' football

Ann McGillycuddy of Wicklow won the inaugural ladies' All-Ireland Kick Fada Championship in 2001.

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References
  1. Moran, Mary (2011). A Game of Our Own: The History of Camogie. Dublin, Ireland: Cumann Camógaíochta. p. 460.
  2. 2008 Jun B Tyrone 4-11 Wicklow 0-3 on Camogie.ie
  3. {http://www.camogie.ie/Home/tabid/54/mid/411/newsid412/1782/Grennan-propels-Monaghan-to-victory/Default.aspx 2011 Máire Ní Chinnéide Cup final Monaghan 1-12 Wicklow 1-7 report on Camogie.ie
  4. 2009 Div 5 Wicklow 2-7 Monaghan 1-1 report on Camogie.ie
  5. "Final goal for camogie". Independent.ie.
  6. National Development Plan 2010-2015, Our Game, Our Passion information page on camogie.ie, pdf download (778k) from Camogie.ie download site
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