Saint Trea's Ballymaguigan GFC ( ga, Naomh Trea Baile Mhic Uiginn CLG) is a

Gaelic Athletic Association The Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA; ga, Cumann Lúthchleas Gael ; CLG) is an Irish international amateur sporting and cultural organisation, focused primarily on promoting indigenous Gaelic games and pastimes, which include the traditional ...

club based in

Ballymaguigan Ballymaguigan () is a hamlet and townland in County Londonderry, Northern Ireland. It is near the northwest shore of Lough Neagh and close to Magherafelt. The hamlet forms one part of a parish named Ardtrea North. Ballymaguigan is part of the ...

County Londonderry County Londonderry ( Ulster-Scots: ''Coontie Lunnonderrie''), also known as County Derry ( ga, Contae Dhoire), is one of the six counties of Northern Ireland, one of the thirty two counties of Ireland and one of the nine counties of Ulster. B ...

, Northern Ireland. It plays in

Derry Derry, officially Londonderry (), is the second-largest city in Northern Ireland and the fifth-largest city on the island of Ireland. The name ''Derry'' is an anglicisation of the Old Irish name (modern Irish: ) meaning 'oak grove'. The ...

league and championships. It currently caters for both

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 ...

and

Ladies' Gaelic football Ladies' Gaelic football ( ga, Peil Ghaelach na mBan) is a women's team sport. It is the women's equivalent of Gaelic football. Ladies' football is organised by the Ladies' Gaelic Football Association. Two teams of 15 players kick or hand-pass a ...

. The club was founded in 1944 and has won the

Derry Senior Football Championship The Derry Senior Football Championship is an annual Gaelic football competition contested by the top sixteen Derry GAA clubs. The winners receive the John McLaughlin Cup and qualify to represent Derry in the Ulster Senior Club Football Champi ...

once. Ballymaguigan fields Gaelic football teams at U-8, U-10, U-12, U-14, U-16,

Minor Minor may refer to: * Minor (law), a person under the age of certain legal activities. ** A person who has not reached the age of majority * Academic minor, a secondary field of study in undergraduate education Music theory *Minor chord ** Barb ...

, Reserve and

Senior Senior (shortened as Sr.) means "the elder" in Latin and is often used as a suffix for the elder of two or more people in the same family with the same given name, usually a parent or grandparent. It may also refer to: * Senior (name), a surname ...

levels. Teams up to U-12 level compete in South Derry league and championships and U-14 level teams and upwards compete in All-Derry competitions.

History

Gaelic games Gaelic games ( ga, Cluichí Gaelacha) are a set of sports played worldwide, though they are particularly popular in Ireland, where they originated. They include Gaelic football, hurling, Gaelic handball and rounders. Football and hurling, the ...

had been organised on the western shores of

Lough Neagh Lough Neagh ( ) is a freshwater lake in Northern Ireland and is the largest lake in the island of Ireland, the United Kingdom and the British Isles. It has a surface area of and supplies 40% of Northern Ireland's water. Its main inflows come ...

for over 50 years before St Trea's GFC was formed. Before 1944 one team (

Newbridge GAC Seán O'Leary's GAC Newbridge ( ga, CLG Seán Ó Laoghaire Droichead Nua) is a Gaelic Athletic Association club based in Newbridge, County Londonderry, Newbridge, County Londonderry, Northern Ireland. The club is a member of Derry GAA and curre ...

) catered for the Ballymaguigan and Newbridge areas. Both areas are part of Ardtrea North parish. The American Army built Toome airfield during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

. This effectively split the parish in two, making it very difficult for the Ballymaguigan-based players to travel to the pitch. Paddy Bateson suggested a ball be bought so the Ballymaguigan players could train among themselves. Soon friendlies were arranged against established clubs. The first of these was against

Castledawson Castledawson is a village in County Londonderry, Northern Ireland. It is mostly within the townland of Shanemullagh (, IPA: �anˠˈʃanˠˌwʊl̪ˠəx, about four miles from the north-western shore of Lough Neagh, and near the market town of Mag ...

. The first home fixture was against Greenlough. St Trea's GFC was soon formed on 23 April 1944. The name was in honour of Saint Trea who has many traditional associations with the area. The first chairman was John McCartney, with Paddy Bateson as vice-chairman. Ballymaguigan is a very small rural community, consisting approximately of in area. The club played in the Moneyglass 7-a-side tournament on 26 June 1944 and in a Ballinderry tournament on 6 July 1944. The clubs first ever full team game was away at Castledawson in early June 1944, their first home fixture was against Greenlough on 17 September 1944. The clubs first ever competition was the Winter League of 1944/45. In 1949 the team were promoted to the senior division, they had a play off with Drumullan. In 1950 the club built a small meeting hall. The erection of "the hut" was never seen as anything other than a temporary measure and plans proceeded for more permanent premises. That year the team won 3 matches in Division 1, against Desertmartin, Castledawson and Loup but lost against Newbridge in the McGlinchey Cup. The club reached the Semi Final of the Junior Championship but lost to Kilrea. In 1951 Ballymaguigan were awarded the South Derry Championship title, they beat Bellaghy II in the first round, Magherafelt in the second round and played Ballinderry in the final. The game was cancelled due to fighting and Ballinderry refused to play the replay because they accused a Ballymaguigan player of being ineligible. Ballymmaguigan also won the All-County Junior Championship on 22 September 1951 by defeating Ervey in Magherafelt, the scoreline was 2-06 1-03. The club also won the Derry Junior League in 1951. They finished 6th place in the Winter League. The club reached the semi-final of the South Derry Championship in 1952. They beat Magherafelt in the first round on a scoreline of 2-08 to 2-03 but lost to Lavey in the Semi-final. The club finished 3rd place in the league in 1953. In December 1954 a farm came on the market and the club committee decided to purchase. The farm of approximately eight acres was acquired for £1,230. The task of converting this property into a playing area began immediately. Apart from hiring a bulldozer to level the ground, this work was carried out completely by voluntary labour. In 1956 the team beat Desertmartin in the championship first round on a scoreline of 3-10 to 2-06 but went on to lose to Bellaghy in the next round on a scoreline of 2-10 to 0.05 An all-enclosed pitch, considered to be one of the best in the county, was officially opened in 1957 by the then GAA President Séamus McFerran. Thus St Trea's were back playing on the grounds where the club had its beginnings in 1944. That year they defeated Slaughtneil, Newbridge and Ballinascreen in league games that season and they won the Coalisland Tournament beating Omagh by one point in the final. On 6 October 1957 the club played Newbridge in the South Derry Championship Final, the game was played at Newbridge and Ballymaguigan won on a scoreline of 3-06 to 2-06. On 13 October 1957 Ballymaguigan played Ballerin in the All-County final at Dungiven, they lost to a scoreline of 3-08 to 2-06. Ballymgauigan also finished 2nd in the league that year. Ballymaguigan played Newbridge in the Semi-final of the championship on a Sunday in January 1958 at the Ballymaguigan field in front of 600 spectators. Ballymaguigan won on a scoreline of 1-04 to 0-06. The county championship final that year was against Bellaghy, Bellaghy won the game on a scoreline of 3-06 to 0-07. In 1958 the Derry Championship changed to an open draw system so this meant that the old South Derry Championship wasn't played, the competition was replaced with the Sean Larkin Cup, Ballymaguigan won this cup in 1958, they beat Bellaghy in an early round, then Kilrea and they beat Ballinascreen in the final. The club retained the Larkin Cup in December 1959 beating Ballinascreen in the final again, the scoreline was 1-04 to 1-02. In 1967 steel was purchased for building a hall and during the July holidays the foundations were laid. The hall was completed, again by voluntary labour, in 1969 and hall was officially opened at a variety concert, by GAA past President Alf Murray. Three playing members of St Trea's, John Bateson (aged 19), James Sheridan (20) and Martin Lee (18), all members of the South Derry Brigade of the

Provisional Irish Republican Army The Irish Republican Army (IRA; ), also known as the Provisional Irish Republican Army, and informally as the Provos, was an Irish republican paramilitary organisation that sought to end British rule in Northern Ireland, facilitate Irish reun ...

died when the bomb they were carrying exploded prematurely in Magherafelt on 18 December 1971. The trophy for the

Derry Intermediate Football Championship The Derry Intermediate Football Championship (currently also known for sponsorship reasons as the ''M&L Contracts Derry Intermediate Football Championship'') is an annual competition between the mid-tier Gaelic football clubs affiliated to Der ...

is named after the three.

Notable players

Eamonn Coleman Eamonn Coleman (1947 or 1948 – 11 June 2007) was a Gaelic football manager who had previously played for the Ballymaguigan club and the Derry county team. He had two separate stints as manager of the senior Derry county team, and his chief ...

- former

manager Management (or managing) is the administration of an organization, whether it is a business, a nonprofit organization, or a government body. It is the art and science of managing resources of the business. Management includes the activities o ...

and footballer. *

Gary Coleman Gary Wayne Coleman (February 8, 1968 – May 28, 2010) was an American actor and comedian. Coleman was the highest-paid child actor on television throughout the late 1970s and 1980s. He was rated first on a list of VH1's "100 Greatest Kid S ...

– All Star winning Derry footballer. Son of Eamonn Coleman. *

Jim McKeever James McKeever (6 December 1930 – 5 April 2023) was a Northern Irish Gaelic footballer who played for the Derry county team in the late 1940s, 1950s and early 1960s and played club football for St Trea's GFC Ballymaguigan and Seán O'Lear ...

– 1958 Footballer of the Year. *

Paddy Crozier Paddy Crozier ( ga, Pádraig Crúiseír) is an Irish people, Irish Gaelic football Manager (Gaelic games), manager and former player who managed the Derry county football team, Derry county team between 2006 and 2008, guiding the county to a Nat ...

– former Derry manager.

Honours

Senior

*Derry Senior Football Championship: 1 **1962 :''(runners-up)'' - 1957, 1958, 1961 *Derry Senior Football League: 1 **1962 *South Derry Senior Football Championship: 1 **1957 *South Derry Senior Football League: 1 **1949 *Derry Intermediate Football Championship: 5 **1971, 1993, 2001, 2003, 2009 :''(runners-up)'' - 1981, 2008, 2018 *Derry Intermediate Football League: 3 **1993, 1998, 2006 *

Derry Junior Football Championship The Derry Junior Football Championship (known for sponsorship reasons as the Premier Electrics Derry Junior Football Championship) is an annual Gaelic football competition contested by lower-tier Derry clubs. The competition receives coverage in ...

: 2 **1951, 1970 *Derry Junior Football League: 2 **1951, 2021 *South Derry Junior Football Championship: 2 **1951, 1969, 1970 *Seán Larkin Cup: 2 **1958, 1959 *Graham Cup: 2 **1970, 1971 *McGlinchey Cup: 1 **2011 *South Derry Winter League: 1 **1980

Reserves

*Derry Intermediate Reserve Football Championship: 2 **2003, 2004 :''(runners-up)'' - 2005

Minor

* Derry Minor 'B2' Championship: 1 **2018 *Tommy O'Neill Cup (Derry Minor 'B' Championship): 2 **1997, 2003 *South Derry Minor 'B' Football Championship: 2 **1997, 2003 *South Derry Minor 'B' Football League: 2 **1997, 2003

Under-16

* Derry Under-16 11 a Side Shield (C) **2008 *South Derry Under-16 'C' Football League: 1 **1998

Under-14

* South Derry U-14 'B' Football Championship: 1 **1999 :''(runners-up)'' - 2006 * South Derry U-14 'B' Football League: 1 ** 1999 * Derry U-14 'C' Football League: 1 ** 2009 * Derry U-14 'C' Football Championship: 1 ** 2017

Under-12

* South Derry U-12 'B' League: ** 2003 :''(runners-up)'' - 2002

Ladies' football

* Senior Ladies Derry Intermediate League: 1 ** 2006 *U-16 Ladies 'B' Championship 1 ** 2004 * U-16 Ladies 'A' Championship 5 * U-16 Ladies League 5 *U-14 Ladies Féile na nÓg ** 2004, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2022 * U-14 South Derry League: 5 ** 2003 *U-14 Derry Championship: 5 ** 2003 *U-13 'B' Derry Championship: 1 ** 2011 Note: The above lists may be incomplete. Please add any other honours you know of.

References

External links

St. Trea's GFC website
{{Derry clubs Gaelic games clubs in County Londonderry Gaelic football clubs in County Londonderry