Ballaghaderreen GAA 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

Ballaghaderreen Ballaghaderreen () is a town in County Roscommon, Ireland. It was part of County Mayo prior to 1898. It is located just off the N5 National primary road. The population was 1,808 in the 2016 census. History As of 1837, the town was recorde ...

County Roscommon "Steadfast Irish heart" , image_map = Island of Ireland location map Roscommon.svg , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Ireland , subdivision_type1 = Province , subdivision_name1 = Connacht , subdi ...

. The main sport played is

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 ...

. When the club was founded in 1885, the town was located in

County Mayo County Mayo (; ga, Contae Mhaigh Eo, meaning "Plain of the Taxus baccata, yew trees") is a Counties of Ireland, county in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. In the West Region, Ireland, West of Ireland, in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Conn ...

and went under the name "Faugh A Ballagh". Ballaghaderreen GAA Club is almost as old as the

itself. A note in the ''

Western People The ''Western People'' is a weekly local newspaper published in Ballina, County Mayo in the Republic of Ireland. It was first published in 1883. The newspaper was part of the Thomas Crosbie Holdings group. Thomas Crosbie Holdings went into rec ...

'' newspaper states that the club met in 1886 for a practice match. This was the first meeting of the club since the previous year-1885. The game referred to was played in a field given by Mrs. Deane, a cousin of Mr. John Dillon. The Sports field was situated next door to the Convent and was vested in (and still is) in local trustees. The Congested Districts Board gave it to Bishop John Lyster, Fr. J O’Connor Administrator and Mr. James Gordon, a local business man. It also included a cinder running track for cycling and many athletic meetings were held there. In

1898 Events January–March * January 1 – New York City annexes land from surrounding counties, creating the City of Greater New York as the world's second largest. The city is geographically divided into five boroughs: Manhattan, B ...

Ballaghaderreen was transferred from

under the

Local Government Act Local Government Act (with its variations) is a stock short title used for legislation in Australia, Malaysia, New Zealand, Ireland and the United Kingdom, relating to local government. The Bill for an Act with this short title may have been known ...

relating to Poor Law Unions. The Gaelic Athletic Club retained its affiliation to the Mayo Board. The new GAA pitch and clubhouse were developed and opened in 1980. The new stand was constructed in 1995. The club's facilities went under major reconstruction in the naughties with the pitches being redeveloped into a full sized pitch and a slightly smaller training pitch with proper drainage and the addition of a sanded area for winter training. The clubhouse was also redeveloped with the dressing rooms and shower getting a complete overhaul and the meeting rooms and gym being extended upstairs. The club has been well represented at county level through the years, with

Andy Moran Andy Moran (born 2 November 1983) is an Irish Gaelic football manager and former player for Ballaghaderreen and the Mayo county team. He made his 150th league and championship appearance for Mayo in June 2017, his 13th season. Playing care ...

and

David Drake David A. Drake (born September 24, 1945) is an American author of science fiction and fantasy literature. A Vietnam War veteran who has worked as a lawyer, he is now a writer in the military science fiction genre. Biography Drake graduated Phi ...

recently on the senior panel. David McBrien currently represents the club on the May senior panel.

Notable players

Noel Durkin Noel Durkin (born 25 December 1963) is an Irish former Gaelic footballer. His league and championship career at senior level with the Mayo county team spanned ten seasons from 1983 until 1993. Career statistics Honours ; Galway * Connacht ...

Dermot Flanagan Dermot Flanagan is a former Gaelic footballer who played for the Mayo county team and received two All Stars awards. He is the son of Irish Minister and Mayo Gaelic footballer Seán Flanagan. Playing career Dermot Flanagan began playing for ...

Pearce Hanley Pearce Hanley (born 1988 in England) is a former Australian rules footballer who played for the Gold Coast Football Club in the Australian Football League (AFL). He previously played with the Brisbane Lions from 2008 to 2016. A former Gaelic f ...

John Morley John Morley, 1st Viscount Morley of Blackburn, (24 December 1838 – 23 September 1923) was a British Liberal statesman, writer and newspaper editor. Initially, a journalist in the North of England and then editor of the newly Liberal-leani ...

Honours

Mayo Senior Football Championship The Mayo Senior Football Championship (currently known for sponsorship reasons as the ''Connacht Gold Mayo Senior Football Championship'') is an annual Gaelic football competition contested by the top Mayo GAA clubs. Westport are the title hol ...

s (3): 1972, 2008, 2012 *

Mayo Senior Hurling Championship The Mayo Senior Hurling Championship is an annual hurling competition contested since 1923 by the top Mayo GAA clubs. Tooreen are the current (2022) title holders, defeating Ballyhaunis in the final. Presently the competition has four teams: T ...

s (4): 1923, 1924, 1950, 1953

References

Gaelic football clubs in County Mayo Gaelic football clubs in County Roscommon Gaelic games clubs in County Mayo {{Connacht-GAA-club-stub