Córas Iompair Éireann CIE Camogie Club, (Córas Iompair Éireann Camogie Club originally Great Southern Railways Camogie Club) was one of the most successful clubs in the history of the Irish women's field sport of camogie.

1948 final

They supplied all of the members of the Dublin team that won the

All-Ireland Senior Camogie Championship The All-Ireland Senior Camogie Championship is a competition for inter-county teams in the women's field sport of game of camogie played in Ireland. The series of games are organised by the Camogie Association and are played during the summer m ...

of 1948 and dominated the Dublin senior championship for part of an era when Dublin won 18 All Ireland titles in 19 years.

Players

Notable members include

Sophie Brack Sophie Brack is a former camogie player who was selected on the camogie team of the century in 2004, and winner of All Ireland medals in 1948, 1949, 1950, 1951, 1952, 1953, 1954 and 1955. Background and career She won eight All Ireland medals ...

Kathleen Mills Kathleen "Kay" Mills-Hill (8 October 1923 – 11 August 1996) was an Irish sportsperson who played senior camogie with Dublin from 1941 until 1961. She is regarded as one of the greatest players of all-time, winning 15 All Ireland Senior Meda ...

, Gerry Hughes, Kathleen Cody,

Judy Doyle Judy Doyle is a former camogie player who was one of the leading goalscorers of her generation, the scorer of three goals for Dublin against Tipperary in the 1961 All Ireland final, four goals for Dublin against Antrim in the 1964 All Ireland ...

, Mona Walsh and Elizabeth McNicholl.

Origin

The club grew out of the Great Southern Railways Athletic Union. Two pence per week were deducted from the worker's wages to go towards the financing of the sports activities in the Railway. The families of members were allowed avail of the facilities. In 1938 this facility attracted to the club the daughters of two men who worked at

Inchicore railway works Inchicore railway works, also known locally as 'Inchicore' or 'The Works', was founded by the Great Southern and Western Railway in 1846 and emerged to become the major engineering centre for railways in Ireland. Located west of Dublin city ...

, Kathleen Cody and

Promotion

The club was promoted from intermediate in 1938 and defeated senior champions UCD in their first match, all their scores being scored by "the young Kathleen Cody," who was 14 at the time. Within weeks another 14-year-old,

played for the juniors and was promoted to the senior team for her second match.

Challenge matches

Much of the success of the GSR team was based on their use of free rail travel facilities to play challenge matches in other parts of the country, often against full-strength teams. They beat full strength county teams from Antrim and Meath in 1940.

Greatest era

In 1951 won the three most prized trophies in club camogie at the time, the Isle of Man cup, the Dublin league and the Dublin championship, a feat never before accomplished by any single team in one season. They were unbeaten for two years 1953-55.

Disunity

The club disaffiliated from Dublin County Board during two periods of unrest in the 1940s and affiliated directly to Central Council o the

Camogie Association The Camogie Association ( ga, An Cumann Camógaíochta, formerly ga, Cumann Camógaíochta na nGael) organises and promotes the sport of camogie in Ireland and around the world. The association has close ties with the Gaelic Athletic Associati ...

, in 1939-41 and 1945-48. This meant that the club had little or no opposition in Dublin or Leinster when their one-club selection represented Dublin, most famously to contest the Al Ireland finals of 1941 and 1947 and winning the All Ireland title in 1948. The club even set up an alternative Dublin county board in 1947 but were asked by central Council not to pursue this policy.

Grounds

Their grounds were at Inchicore.

References

{{reflist Gaelic games clubs in Dublin (city) Camogie clubs in County Dublin