The Kildare county football team represents Kildare in men's

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 ki ...

and is governed by

Kildare GAA The Kildare County Board of the Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA), or Kildare GAA, is one of 12 county boards governed by the Leinster provincial council of the GAA in Ireland, and is responsible for the administration of Gaelic games in Cou ...

, the county board of the

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 ...

. The team competes in the three major annual inter-county competitions; the

All-Ireland Senior Football Championship The All-Ireland Senior Football Championship (SFC) ( ga, Craobh Shinsir Peile na hÉireann) is the premier competition in Gaelic football. An annual tournament organised by the Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA), it is contested by the county ...

, the

Leinster Senior Football Championship The Leinster Senior Football Championship, known simply as the Leinster Championship and shortened to Leinster SFC, is an annual inter-county Gaelic football competition organised by the Leinster Council of the Gaelic Athletic Association (G ...

and the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the ma ...

. Kildare's home ground is St Conleth's Park,

Newbridge Newbridge may refer to: Places Australia *Newbridge, New South Wales *Newbridge, Victoria * Newbridge Heights Public School England * Newbridge, Bath, electoral ward *Newbridge, Cornwall, three places in Cornwall with the same name * Newbridge, ...

. The team's manager is

Glenn Ryan Glenn Ryan (born 20 October 1972) is a Gaelic football manager and former player. He has been manager of the Kildare county team since 2021. Ryan previously managed Longford and the Kildare under-21 team. He captained the Kildare team during ...

. The team last won the Leinster Senior Championship in 2000, the All-Ireland Senior Championship in 1928 and has never won the National League.

Colours and crest

The Kildare crest had a serpent on it until 1993, reflecting that of Kildare County Council, itself based on the crest for the town of Naas. When Kildare County Council had the

Heraldic Office of Ireland Heraldry is a discipline relating to the design, display and study of armorial bearings (known as armory), as well as related disciplines, such as vexillology, together with the study of ceremony, rank and pedigree. Armory, the best-known branc ...

create a proper crest in 1991, and with Kildare fans regarding the serpent as a bad omen, the Kildare Supporters' Club requested a new one for their county teams; this featured

acorn The acorn, or oaknut, is the nut of the oaks and their close relatives (genera '' Quercus'' and ''Lithocarpus'', in the family Fagaceae). It usually contains one seed (occasionally two seeds), enclosed in a tough, leathery shell, and bo ...

s above a bunch of lilies (the county council one differed in that it had a Brigid's cross, a harp, a horse's head and acorns). Kildare still lost in the first round of the

(SFC) for three years afterwards, from 1994 until 1996. The 1993 crest is no longer in use.

Kit evolution

History

Donegal beat Kildare in the 2011 All-Ireland Senior Football Championship quarter-final

Kildare first entered the

(SFC) in 1888, and lost to

Dublin Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of the Wicklow Mountains range. At the 2016 ...

by a scoreline of 2–7 to 0–1. Kildare made a major contribution towards the evolution of rules and tactics in Gaelic football. The county was the first to abandon the tradition of playing 21 people on each team, using 16 on each team for a period. Kildare players invented the hand pass: a polished team tactic since 1903; The toe-to-hand was pioneered by the Roseberry (now Newbridge Sarsfields) club. A team made up of players from the two strongest clubs in the county, Roseberry and Clane, played Kerry three times for the All-Ireland Championship of 1903; the matches drew the first mass interest in a field sport in the country, had an aggregate attendance of 50,000, and were regarded as the games which "made the GAA." Kildare's four All-Ireland titles were won between 1905 and 1928: over Kerry in 1905,

Galway Galway ( ; ga, Gaillimh, ) is a city in the West of Ireland, in the province of Connacht, which is the county town of County Galway. It lies on the River Corrib between Lough Corrib and Galway Bay, and is the sixth most populous city ...

in 1919, and Kerry again in the 1927 and 1928 finals. Kildare became the first team to win the Sam Maguire Cup in 1928. They haven't won it since. Tactics such as the hand pass were perfected by those early Kildare teams, but they also developed what became traditional catch-and-kick football. Olympic high jumper

Larry Stanley Larry Stanley (19 May 1896 – 21 September 1987) was an Irish 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 ...

was regarded as one of the greatest fielders in the history of the game, and first winner of the all-time All Star award. Despite winning a

in 1956, reaching the National League final in 1958 and 1968, and winning the All-Ireland Under-21 Football Championship in 1965, Kildare footballers seemed to have difficulty maintaining their proud tradition. The county lost six Leinster finals in the twelve years between 1966 and 1978. Although the

Raheens Raheens is a Gaelic football club based in Caragh, County Kildare, Republic of Ireland, Ireland, winner of the Leinster senior club championship in 1981, 10 county senior football championships, first winners of the Kildare club of the year in ...

club won a Leinster Senior Club Football Championship title in 1983. In 1991, former Kerry manager Mick O'Dwyer took charge of the county football team. Kildare lost two more Leinster finals to

in 1992 and 1993, as well as the

National League The National League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the National League (NL), is the older of two leagues constituting Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada, and the world's oldest extant professional team ...

final of 1991. When

came back for a draw in 1994 and won the replay, O'Dwyer was succeeded by

Dermot Earley Snr Lieutenant-General Dermot Earley DSM (24 February 1948 – 23 June 2010) was a high-ranking military official in Ireland and with the United Nations. He was the Chief of Staff of the Defence Forces from 2007 to 2010. Early life and education E ...

for two years. He returned in 1997, and guided the county to victory over Laois with 13 players and a dramatic, twice replayed series of matches with

Meath Meath may refer to: General * County Meath, Republic of Ireland **Kingdom of Meath, medieval precursor of the county ** List of kings of Meath ** Meath GAA, including the intercounty football and hurling teams ** Diocese of Meath, in the Roman Cath ...

(which they lost) that captured the imagination of the public and steeled the side for further honors. In 1998, the Kildare team became the only team in 110 years of championship football to beat the previous three champions,

and Kerry in turn only to lose to

in the All-Ireland final; despite leading by three points at half time. Another Leinster followed in 2000, but

defeated them in the semi-final. Leinster Final defeats followed in 2002 and 2003, against

and a Laois side back-boned by their All-Ireland MFC winning sides of the late 1990s. In (2005), Kildare enjoyed mixed success and finished in the top six in the

, but was knocked out of the championship by

Sligo Sligo ( ; ga, Sligeach , meaning 'abounding in shells') is a coastal seaport and the county town of County Sligo, Ireland, within the western province of Connacht. With a population of approximately 20,000 in 2016, it is the List of urban areas ...

. In 2008 under the new management of Kieran McGeeney Kildare made a bit of unfortunate history by becoming the first team ever to lose a championship game to Wicklow in

Croke Park Croke Park ( ga, Páirc an Chrócaigh, ) is a Gaelic games stadium in Dublin, Ireland. Named after Archbishop Thomas Croke, it is referred to as Croker by GAA fans and locals. It serves as both the principal national stadium of Ireland and h ...

, losing in the first round by 0–13 to 0–9. However Kildares season took a turn for the better after that by beating

Cavan Cavan ( ; ) is the county town of County Cavan in Ireland. The town lies in Ulster, near the border with County Fermanagh in Northern Ireland. The town is bypassed by the main N3 road that links Dublin (to the south) with Enniskillen, Ba ...

Limerick Limerick ( ; ga, Luimneach ) is a western city in Ireland situated within County Limerick. It is in the province of Munster and is located in the Mid-West which comprises part of the Southern Region. With a population of 94,192 at the 2016 ...

and

Fermanagh Historically, Fermanagh ( ga, Fir Manach), as opposed to the modern County Fermanagh, was a kingdom of Gaelic Ireland, associated geographically with present-day County Fermanagh. ''Fir Manach'' originally referred to a distinct kin group of ...

in the all- Ireland qualifiers to reach their first ever all-ireland quarter-final. To date in 2009, an improved Kildare side reached the Leinster Final only to suffer a defeat to Dublin. Kildare advanced to the All-Ireland quarter-final to play then All-Ireland champions Tyrone after beating Wicklow only to be knocked out by Tyrone. 2010 saw Kildare lose to Louth in the 2nd round. However Kildare had a great run through the qualifiers beating teams like Antrim, Leitrim,

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'. Th ...

and

Monaghan Monaghan ( ; ) is the county town of County Monaghan, Ireland. It also provides the name of its civil parish and barony. The population of the town as of the 2016 census was 7,678. The town is on the N2 road from Dublin to Derry and Letterken ...

to once again reach the All-Ireland Quarter-final to face Leinster champions

which they got a slow start but enjoyed the 2nd half as they ran out winning 2–17 to 1–12. to reach the All-Semi-final for the first time since 2000. On 29 August 2010 Kildare faced

Down Down most often refers to: * Down, the relative direction opposed to up * Down (gridiron football), in American/Canadian football, a period when one play takes place * Down feather, a soft bird feather used in bedding and clothing * Downland, a ty ...

for the first time ever in the championship which turned out to be a very tense game but

ran out winners 1–16 to 1–14 after a very frantic finish. 2011 saw Kildare advance to the Leinster semi-final after defeating

in the Leinster quarter-final only to be defeated by

. Kildare had a good run in the qualifiers beating teams like Laois,

to advance to the All-Ireland quarter-final to face Ulster champions Donegal which turned to be a very poor performance but the 2nd half was a real contest from both sides with the sides finishing level to drag the game into extra-time only to be defeated by a single point by Donegal. Then in 2015 Cian O'Neill became manager after being with the Kerry backroom. In 2017 Kildare reached a first Leinster SFC final in 10 years. Only losing to Dublin by 9 points (Dublin 2–23 Kildare 1–17).

Support

There is a Kildare Supporters' Club. Kildare had songs in the official Irish Top 40 ahead of the 1998 All-Ireland SFC final. These were "C'mon you Lilywhites" by Sean Brennan and "Up the Lilywhites" by Brendan Cummins. Other songs from then included "The Lilywhites Are On The March" by John Rafferty, "Cill Dara Abu" by Paul McCormack and "The Power and the Glory" by the Patrician Primary Pipe and Brass Band.

Current panel

Current management team

:''Appointed October 2021:'' *

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 ...

* Selector: Anthony Rainbow *Selector: Dermot Earley *Selector:

Johnny Doyle John Doyle may refer to: The arts and entertainment * John Doyle (Canadian artist) (born 1950), Toronto artist * John Doyle (comedian) (born 1953), Australian comedian and writer * John Doyle (critic) (born 1957), Canadian television critic * Joh ...

*Selector: Brian Lacey

Managerial history

Players

Notable players

All Stars

;Nominations 1998: Christy Byrne, Ronan Quinn, Anthony Rainbow, Niall Buckley, Willie McCreery, Declan Kerrigan, Martin Lynch, Eddie McCormack
2000: Christy Byrne, Ken Doyle,

, Willie McCreery
2002: Dermot Earley
2003: Enda Murphy
2007:

2008:

2009: James Kavanagh, Alan Smith
2010: Emmet Bolton,

Eamonn Callaghan Eamonn Callaghan is a former Gaelic footballer who played at senior level for the Kildare county team. He captained his county. In 2011, Callaghan was part of the Ireland team that won the 2011 International Rules Series against Australia by ...

, James Kavanagh
2011: Hugh McGrillen
2012: Emmet Bolton
2017:

Kevin Feely Kevin Roderick Feely (born 30 August 1992) is an Irish former professional footballer and Gaelic footballer for Kildare and Athy. His younger brother Rory Feely is a professional footballer. Career Feely began his career with Bohemians in 2010, ...

, Daniel Flynn
2018: Eoin Doyle, Daniel Flynn, Paul Cribben
2021: Daniel Flynn

Honours

National

** Winners (4): 1905,

1919 Events January * January 1 ** The Czechoslovak Legions occupy much of the self-proclaimed "free city" of Pressburg (now Bratislava), enforcing its incorporation into the new republic of Czechoslovakia. ** HMY ''Iolaire'' sinks off the ...

1927 Events January * January 1 – The British Broadcasting ''Company'' becomes the British Broadcasting ''Corporation'', when its Royal Charter of incorporation takes effect. John Reith becomes the first Director-General. * January 7 * ...

, 1928 ** Runners-up (5): 1926, 1929,

1931 Events January * January 2 – South Dakota native Ernest Lawrence invents the cyclotron, used to accelerate particles to study nuclear physics. * January 4 – German pilot Elly Beinhorn begins her flight to Africa. * January 22 – Sir I ...

, 1935,

1998 1998 was designated as the ''International Year of the Ocean''. Events January * January 6 – The ''Lunar Prospector'' spacecraft is launched into orbit around the Moon, and later finds evidence for frozen water, in soil in permanently s ...

** Runners-up (5): 1927–28, 1928–29, 1957–58, 1967–68, 1990–91 * National Football League Division 2 ** Winners (1):

2012 File:2012 Events Collage V3.png, From left, clockwise: The passenger cruise ship Costa Concordia lies capsized after the Costa Concordia disaster; Damage to Casino Pier in Seaside Heights, New Jersey as a result of Hurricane Sandy; People gather ...

* All-Ireland Under-21/Under-20 Football Championship ** Winners (2): 1965, 2018 ** Runners-up (3): 1966, 1976, 2008 * All-Ireland Minor Football Championship ** Runners-up (1): 1973

Provincial

** Winners (13): 1903, 1905, 1919, 1926, 1927, 1928, 1929, 1930, 1931, 1935, 1956, 1998, 2000 ** Runners-up (23): 1891, 1906, 1908, 1916, 1920, 1921, 1925, 1936, 1938, 1946, 1966, 1969, 1971, 1975, 1978, 1992, 1993, 2002, 2003, 2009,

2017 File:2017 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: The War Against ISIS at the Battle of Mosul (2016-2017); aftermath of the Manchester Arena bombing; The Solar eclipse of August 21, 2017 ("Great American Eclipse"); North Korea tests a ser ...

, 2021, 2022 * O'Byrne Cup ** Winners (11): 1962, 1968, 1970, 1973, 1976, 1982, 1989,

2003 File:2003 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The crew of STS-107 perished when the Space Shuttle Columbia Space Shuttle Columbia disaster, disintegrated during reentry into Atmosphere of Earth, Earth's atmosphere; SARS became an 2002– ...

, 2011,

2013 File:2013 Events Collage V2.png, From left, clockwise: Edward Snowden becomes internationally famous for leaking classified NSA wiretapping information; Typhoon Haiyan kills over 6,000 in the Philippines and Southeast Asia; The Dhaka garment ...

2014 File:2014 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Stocking up supplies and personal protective equipment (PPE) for the Western African Ebola virus epidemic; Citizens examining the ruins after the Chibok schoolgirls kidnapping; Bundles of wat ...

Leinster Junior Football Championship The Leinster Junior Football Championship is a junior "knockout" competition in the game of Gaelic football played in the province of Leinster in Ireland. The series of games are organised by the Leinster Council. The competition began in 1906, w ...

** Winners (12): 1927, 1931, 1938, 1956, 1965, 1967, 1970, 1989, 2004, 2011, 2013, 2018 * Leinster Under-21/Under-20 Football Championship ** Winners (12): 1965, 1966, 1967, 1972, 1976, 1983, 1992, 2004, 2008, 2013, 2018, 2022 ** Runners-up (8): 1973, 1977, 1980, 1985, 1989, 2005, 2015, 2016 * Leinster Minor Football Championship ** Winners (9): 1973, 1975, 1983, 1987, 1991, 2013, 2015, 2016, 2019 ** Runners-up (13): 1934, 1940, 1942, 1949, 1953, 1965, 1980, 1989, 1990, 2004, 2009, 2014, 2018

References

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