Ballyhea GAA is a

hurling Hurling ( ga, iománaíocht, ') is an outdoor team game of ancient Gaelic Irish origin, played by men. One of Ireland's native Gaelic games, it shares a number of features with Gaelic football, such as the field and goals, the number of p ...

club in the village of

Ballyhea Ballyhea or Ballyhay () is a townland and civil parish in north County Cork, Ireland, on the main N20 Cork–Limerick road, 3.5 km south of Charleville. It lies approximately 110 m above sea level. Area and etymology Ballyhea covers a ...

Cork Cork or CORK may refer to: Materials * Cork (material), an impermeable buoyant plant product ** Cork (plug), a cylindrical or conical object used to seal a container ***Wine cork Places Ireland * Cork (city) ** Metropolitan Cork, also known as G ...

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...

. The club is affiliated to the Avondhu, division of

Cork GAA The Cork County Board of the Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA) ( ga, Cumann Luthchleas Gael Coiste Contae Chorcaí) or Cork GAA is one of the 32 county boards of the GAA in Ireland, and is responsible for Gaelic games in County Cork and the C ...

. As of 2015, the club was competing in the

Cork Senior Hurling Championship The Cork Premier Senior Hurling Championship (known for sponsorship reasons as the Co-Op Superstores Cork Premier Senior Hurling Championship and abbreviated to the Cork PSHC) is an annual club hurling competition organised by the Cork County B ...

. It does not field

Gaelic football Gaelic football ( ga, Peil Ghaelach; short name '), commonly known as simply Gaelic, GAA or Football is an Irish team sport. It is played between two teams of 15 players on a rectangular grass pitch. The objective of the sport is to score by kic ...

teams.

History

Ballyhea GAA Club has been in existence for over 126 years. The history of the club published in 1984 say the first GAA meeting took place in Jim Powers's Forge in the townland of Pruntas in late 1885 or early 1886. During its history the club has won County Championships in Senior, Intermediate, Junior and Juvenile Hurling. Over the years, Ballyhea players have helped Avondhu to County success. 1952 saw Lack Morrissey play in goal, Mick Quinn was corner-back, Jim Walshe was full-forward. 1966 saw Billy Fitzgibbon, Jack Russell, and Pat Behan win Senior County medals. All-Ireland medals have come to the parish from most grades, Vocational Schools Colleges, Minor, Under-21 and the two Senior, Johnny O'Callaghan in 1986 and Neil Ronan in 1999 and 2005.. The club has also produced a number of Inter County Referees like John Sexton and Dave Copps for hurling while Ciarán O' Regan, a new younger referee is on the Munster panel and also the National Support Panel. Mike O' Kelly also represented the club as a referee in Camogie. Mike ref'd 4 All Ireland Finals in 2010 (Club, League, Minor and Championship) The club's website, ballyheagaa.com, was named best website at the McNamee Awards in 2010. These awards are presented annually for contributions in the area of media and communications. The award was presented by GAA President Criostóir Ó Cuana, at a function in Croke Park on 24 July 2010.

Roll of honour

(1): 1896 *

Cork Premier Intermediate Hurling Championship The Cork Premier Intermediate Hurling Championship (known for sponsorship reasons as the Co-Op Superstores Cork Premier Intermediate Hurling Championship and abbreviated to the Cork PIHC) is an annual hurling competition organised by the Cork ...

(1): 2014 *

Cork Intermediate Hurling Championship The Cork Intermediate A Hurling Championship (known for sponsorship reasons as the Co-Op Superstores Cork Intermediate A Hurling Championship and abbreviated to the Cork IAHC) is an annual hurling competition organised by the Cork GAA, Cork Coun ...

(2): 1931, 1980 *

Cork Junior A Hurling Championship The Cork Junior A Hurling Championship (known for sponsorship reasons as the Co-Op Superstores Cork Junior A Hurling Championship and abbreviated to the Cork JAHC) is an annual hurling competition organised by the Cork County Board of the Gael ...

(3): 1930, 1955, 1976 *

Cork Junior B Hurling Championship The Cork Junior B Hurling Championship (known for sponsorship reasons as the Co-Op Superstores Cork Junior B Hurling Championship and abbreviated to the Cork JBHC) is an annual hurling competition organised by the Cork County Board of the Gael ...

(1): 2022 *Cork Minor A Hurling Championship (1): 2001 *Cork Minor C Hurling Championship (1): 2011 *

North Cork Junior A Hurling Championship The North Cork Junior A Hurling Championship (known for sponsorship reasons as the Hibernian Hotel Junior A Hurling Championship) is an annual hurling competition organised by the Avondhu Board of the Gaelic Athletic Association since 1925 fo ...

(10): 1930, 1949, 1950, 1953, 1955, 1958, 1959, 1965, 1975, 1976 * Cork Junior B Inter-Divisional Hurling Championship(1): 2022 *North Cork Junior "B" Hurling Championship (5): 1944, 1948, 2002, 2007, 2011, 2022

Notable players

Paddy Behan Patrick Behan (1936 – 10 June 1992) was an Irish hurler. At club level he played with Ballyhea and Churchtown, divisional side Avondhu and at inter-county level was a member of the Cork senior hurling team. Behan usually lined out as a forw ...

Johnny O'Callaghan John "Johnny" O'Callaghan (born 1964) is an Irish retired hurler who played as a left wing-back for the Cork senior team. Born in Ballyhea, County Cork, O'Callaghan first arrived on the inter-county scene at the age of seventeen when he first ...

Darren Ronan Darren Ronan (born 4 November 1976) is an Irish hurler who played for the Cork senior team. Born in Ballyhea, County Cork, Ronan first played competitive hurling whilst at school at Charleville CBS. He arrived on the inter-county scene at the ...

* Neil Ronan

References

External sources

Official Ballyhea GAA website

Cork GAA Results

Official McNamee Press Release
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ballyhea Gaa Gaelic games clubs in County Cork Hurling clubs in County Cork 1884 establishments in Ireland