Four Masters is a GAA club located in the town of

Donegal Donegal may refer to: County Donegal, Ireland * County Donegal, a county in the Republic of Ireland, part of the province of Ulster * Donegal (town), a town in County Donegal in Ulster, Ireland * Donegal Bay, an inlet in the northwest of Ireland b ...

County Donegal County Donegal ( ; ga, Contae Dhún na nGall) is a county of Ireland in the province of Ulster and in the Northern and Western Region. It is named after the town of Donegal in the south of the county. It has also been known as County Tyrconne ...

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 ...

. They are one of the strongholds of

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 ...

in Donegal.

History

Based in the parishes of Townawilly and Killymard, Donegal Town, Four Masters is one of the oldest and most successful clubs in Donegal having won 3

Donegal Senior Football Championship The Donegal Senior Football Championship (abbreviated as Donegal SFC) is an annual football competition organised by Donegal GAA and contested by the highest-level clubs, to determine the best team in County Donegal. Since 2016, it has been known ...

s. The GAA club under Warwickshire County Board in

Coventry Coventry ( or ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city in the West Midlands (county), West Midlands, England. It is on the River Sherbourne. Coventry has been a large settlement for centuries, although it was not founded and given its ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

, is named after the Four Masters club in Donegal. That club was unable to register as a Donegal Club but reserved the Four Masters name. Austin O'Kennedy, a top GAA doctor who oversaw all Donegal county teams for 22 years, has also been involved with Four Masters for even longer. Tom Conaghan who managed the Four Masters to two county championships in 1982 and 1984 went on to manage the county team during the late 80s. He managed Donegal to the 1989 Ulster Final which they lost in a replay to Tyrone. The club has more All Stars Awards than any other club in the county, Donal Monaghan winning one in 1974 (the year he was Man of the Match against Down in the

Ulster Senior Football Championship The Ulster Senior Football Championship is an inter-county competition for Gaelic football teams in the province of Ulster. It is organised by the Ulster Council of the Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA) and begins in early May. The final is ...

final), Joyce McMullan winning one in 1990,

Paul Durcan Paul Durcan (born 16 October 1944) is a contemporary Irish poet. Early life Durcan was born and grew up in Dublin and in Turlough, County Mayo. His father, John, was a barrister and circuit court judge; father and son had a difficult and forma ...

winning two in 2012 and 2014 and

Karl Lacey Karl Lacey (born 10 September 1984) is an Irish Gaelic football coach who plays for Four Masters and also, formerly, for the Donegal county team. His county's most decorated individual, his personal achievements include four All Star awards� ...

winning four in 2006 and 2009 at corner back and 2011 and 2012 at centre-half back. Lacey also won the GAA GPA Player of the year award in 2012. After the 2012 All-Ireland Senior Football Championship Final, Four Masters organised the homecoming for the victorious Donegal county team.

Notable players

Seamus Bonner Seamus Bonner (6 November 1948 – 11 October 2012) was an Irish Gaelic footballer who played for various clubs, as well as for the Donegal county team. Bonner played 129 games for his county between 1972 and 1985, initially in midfield and la ...

— Ulster SFC winner: 1972, 1974, 1983 * Shane Carr — All-Ireland SFC semi-finalist: 2003 *

Barry Dunnion Barry Dunnion is an Irish Gaelic footballer who plays for Four Masters and also, formerly, for the Donegal county team. He plays at wing-back. Early life Dunnion is the son of Danny and Marian Dunnion and came from a family of three, includ ...

— All Star: 2012, 2014 * Luke Keaney * Michael Kelly *

— All Star: 2006, 2009, 2011, 2012 + 2012

All Stars Footballer of the Year The Gaelic Athletic Association & Gaelic Player's Association All Stars Footballer of the Year — known for sponsorship reasons as the Vodafone Footballer of the Year — is a Gaelic football award. It is presented annually to the footballer wh ...

* Kevin McBrearty * Joyce McMullan — All Star: 1990 *

Barry Monaghan Barry Monaghan is an Irish Gaelic footballer who plays for Four Masters and also, formerly, the Donegal county team. Club Monaghan won the Donegal Senior Football Championship with his club in 2003. He scored two points in the final against T ...

— All-Ireland SFC semi-finalist: 2003 * Donal Monaghan — All Star: 1974 *

Paddy Reid Patrick Joseph Reid (17 March 1923 – 8 January 2016) was an Irish dual-code rugby centre. Reid played club rugby under the rugby union code for Garryowen, and played international rugby for Ireland, and was part of the Grand Slam winning team ...

Managers

Honours

: 1982, 1984, 2003 * Donegal Senior Football League Division 1: 1948, 1949, 2010 * Donegal Senior Reserve Football Championship: 2000, 2001, 2010 * Donegal Senior Football League Division 1 Reserves: 2000, 2001, 2009, 2011, 2014 * Donegal Senior Football League Division 2: 1981, 1989, 1996 *

Donegal Intermediate Football Championship The Donegal Intermediate Football Championship (abbreviated as Donegal IFC) is an annual Gaelic football, football competition organised by Donegal GAA. CLG An Clochán Liath, An Clochán Liath are the title holders (2022) defeating CLG Naomh Co ...

: 1996 * Donegal Intermediate Reserve Football Championship: 1995, 1996 * Donegal Football League Shield: 1987, 1993 *

Donegal Junior Football Championship The Donegal Junior Football Championship (abbreviated as Donegal JFC) is an annual football competition organised by Donegal GAA. Na Dúnaibh are the title holders (2022) defeating Letterkenny Gaels in the Final. History The competition has bee ...

: 1943, 1965, 1975 * Donegal Under-21 Football Championship: 1979, 2001 * Donegal Under-21B Football Championship: 1995 * Donegal Minor Football Championship: 1996, 2001, 2002, 2007,2022 * Donegal Minor B Football Championship: 2014

References

External links

Official website

- ''

Irish Independent The ''Irish Independent'' is an Irish daily newspaper and online publication which is owned by Independent News & Media (INM), a subsidiary of Mediahuis. The newspaper version often includes glossy magazines. Traditionally a broadsheet new ...

'' 1932 establishments in Ireland Donegal (town) Gaelic games clubs in County Donegal Gaelic football clubs in County Donegal Hurling clubs in County Donegal {{Ulster-GAA-club-stub