Kenmare GAA (

Irish Irish may refer to: Common meanings * Someone or something of, from, or related to: ** Ireland, an island situated off the north-western coast of continental Europe ***Éire, Irish language name for the isle ** Northern Ireland, a constituent unit ...

: ) 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 from

Kenmare Kenmare () is a small town in the south of County Kerry, Ireland. The name Kenmare is the anglicised form of ''Ceann Mara'', meaning "head of the sea", referring to the head of Kenmare Bay. Location Kenmare is located at the head of Kenmare ...

County Kerry County Kerry ( gle, Contae Chiarraí) is a county in Ireland. It is located in the South-West Region and forms part of the province of Munster. It is named after the Ciarraige who lived in part of the present county. The population of the co ...

. The club competes as a joint divisional side with other clubs from the Kenmare area like

Templenoe Templenoe () is a civil parish in County Kerry, Ireland. It is situated four miles from Kenmare, on the N70 road to Sneem, which forms part of the Ring of Kerry. Templenoe is the location of the Ring of Kerry golf club. There is a Gaelic Athle ...

in the underage county championship and as an individual club in senior competitions including the Kerry county senior football championship.

History

The Kenmare Athletic Club was founded on 25 September 1888 when they held a meeting with the newly formed GAA. The club was originally named after

Daniel O'Connell Daniel O'Connell (I) ( ga, Dónall Ó Conaill; 6 August 1775 – 15 May 1847), hailed in his time as The Liberator, was the acknowledged political leader of Ireland's Roman Catholic majority in the first half of the 19th century. His mobilizat ...

, a famous Kerry politician. Kenmare played in the inaugural Co. Kerry Championships in Football and Hurling in 1889. The footballers lost that year in the quarter final to eventual champions

Laune Rangers Laune Rangers is a Gaelic football and Hurling club based in town of Killorglin, County Kerry, Ireland. The club is affiliated to Kerry GAA. Rangers won the All-Ireland Senior Club Football Championship in 1996. History The club was formed in ...

. Hurling They played in the 1889

Munster Senior Hurling Championship The Munster GAA Hurling Senior Championship, known simply as the Munster Championship, is an annual Inter county, inter-county hurling competition organised by the Munster GAA, Munster Council of the Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA). It is the h ...

final as Kerry rep Hurling used to be the dominant game in the

Roughty River Kenmare () is a small town in the south of County Kerry, Ireland. The name Kenmare is the anglicised form of ''Ceann Mara'', meaning "head of the sea", referring to the head of Kenmare Bay. Location Kenmare is located at the head of Kenmare ...

valley as indicated by the fact that on St. Patrick's Day in 1858 a game of hurling was played between two games called ''Kenmare Guards'' in

Hoboken, New Jersey Hoboken ( ; Unami: ') is a city in Hudson County in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2020 U.S. census, the city's population was 60,417. The Census Bureau's Population Estimates Program calculated that the city's population was 58,690 i ...

, USA. Kenmare also won the first

Kerry Senior Hurling Championship The Kerry Senior Hurling Championship (known for sponsorship reasons as Garvey's SuperValu Senior Hurling Championship) is an annual hurling competition organised by the Kerry County Board of the Gaelic Athletic Association since 1889 for the t ...

on 19 May 1889 versus

Kilmoyley GAA Kilmoyley are a Gaelic Athletic Association club in County Kerry, Ireland. They are located in North Kerry, the main hurling area of Kerry and are primarily hurlers. They are one of the most successful hurling clubs in Kerry. The club competes ...

. In 1895 Kenmare were in another hurling final but this time lost to

. They won the 1902 County Hurling final against Tralee Celtic, lost the 1904 final to the same team and then won in 1916 and lost the final in 1917. Kenmare's last hurling County title was won in 1942 although they did reach the final 4 more times in 1943, '45, '47 and 1991. In 1983 & and 1988 Kenmare won the County Minor Championship and lost the 1986 final to Austin Stacks. In 1984 and 1992 All Ireland Hurling Féile na nGael titles were won. In the 2000s the club won 3 County Intermediate Chamampionships in 2000, 2004 and 2005, they also played in finals in 2008, 2009 and 2010. In 2010 they won another County Minor Championship. They won another county Intermediate title in 2012. In under age hurling Kenmare have for long teamed up with the neighbouring parish Kilgarvan to field teams in County competitions. Football In 1940 the County Intermediate Football title was won. From the 1970s onwards Gaelic Football became the dominant sport in Kenmare. In 1974 the Kenmare District Team won the

Kerry Senior Football Championship The Kerry Senior Football Championship (known for sponsorship reasons as Garvey’s SuperValu Senior Football Championship) is an annual Gaelic football competition organised by the Kerry County Board of the Gaelic Athletic Association since 188 ...

. In 1972 & 1983 Kenmare represented Kerry in the

Munster Senior Club Football Championship The Munster Senior Club Football Championship (known for sponsorship reasons as the AIB Munster GAA Football Senior Club Championship) is an annual Gaelic football competition for the champion clubs of each county. It has been organised by the Mu ...

and on each occasion were narrowly beaten by the club championship specialists

Nemo Rangers Nemo Rangers Hurling & Football Club is a Cork-based Gaelic Athletic Association club on the southside of Cork city, Ireland. The club was founded in 1922 and is involved in Gaelic football, hurling, Ladies football and Camogie. History Nemo R ...

from Cork The 1980s proved to be an era for under age successes at football with many Co. competitions being won. U21 Football and a host of other under age hurling and football titles came our way. In 1982 the Club won an All Ireland Minor Football competition. The club colours today are red & black and these were adopted in the late 1960s; the previous colours being blue & gold. The Club's home ground is Father Breen Park and it has two playing fields with a new synthetic training ground being developed. A new sports hall has also been completed and this should add to the promotion of hurling as indoor hurling has contributed hugely to the present day position of hurling in the greater Kenmare area. In fact Kenmare Kenmare Club pioneered the concept of indoor coaching in hurling and football in Kerry in the late 1970s.

Honours

Football *

Munster Intermediate Club Football Championship The Munster Football Intermediate Club Championship is an annual Gaelic football competition organised by the Munster Council of the Gaelic Athletic Association since 2003 for the top intermediate clubs in the province of Munster in Ireland. It ...

** Winners (1): 2016 *

Munster Junior Club Football Championship The Munster Junior Club Football Championship, formally known for sponsorship reasons as the AIB Munster GAA Junior Club Football Championship, is a Gaelic football competition, organized by the Munster provincial council of the Gaelic Athleti ...

** Winners (1): 2012 *

All-Ireland Junior Club Football Championship The All-Ireland Junior Club Football Championship is a Gaelic football competition which began in 2002 and is played by the junior club champions of each county. Prior to that a number of unofficial competitions were held. The winners of each cou ...

** Runners-Up (1): 2013 *

Kerry Club Football Championship The Kerry Club Football Championship is a Gaelic football championship played between senior clubs in Kerry, south-west Ireland. In the event of the Kerry Senior Football Championship being won by a divisional team, the winner of this competit ...

** Winners (1): 1983 *

Kerry Intermediate Football Championship The Kerry Intermediate Football Championship is an annual Gaelic football competition contested by mid-tier Kerry GAA clubs. Rathmore are the title holders (2022).. Teams 2022 Teams Honours The winners can be promoted to play in the Kerry ...

** Winners (5): 1940, 1968, 1970, 1972, 2016 ** Runners-Up (3): 1942, 1949, 1991 * Kerry Junior Football Championship ** Winners (1): 2012 * Kenmare District Senior Football Championship ** Winners (8): 1979, 1982, 1983, 1986, 1987, 1988, 2000, 2003 Hurling *

** Winners (3): 1889, 1902, 1942 ** Runners-Up (8): 1895, 1904, 1910, 1916, 1917, 1945, 1947, 1991 *

Kerry Intermediate Hurling Championship The Kerry Intermediate Hurling Championship is an annual hurling competition contested by mid-tier Kerry GAA clubs. Kilgarvan are the title holders (2022). Extra-time can be used to determine the winners of games. Honours The winners play in ...

** Winners (4): 2000, 2004, 2005, 2014 ** Runners-Up (4): 2008, 2009, 2010, 2019 * Kerry Under-21 hurling championship ** Winners (4): 1987, 1988, 1989, 2019 (with

Kilgarvan Kilgarvan () is a small village in County Kerry, Ireland. It is situated on the banks of the Roughty River which flows into Kenmare Bay. By car, the village is a ten-minute trip from Kenmare, and thirty minutes from Killarney. History Kilgarva ...

Dr Crokes Dr Crokes is a Gaelic football and hurling club based in Killarney in County Kerry, Ireland. Notable players include Colm Cooper. Founded in 1886, the club's successes include the capture of the All-Ireland Senior Club Football Championship i ...

) ** Runners-Up (3): 1984, 1986, 1999 *

Kerry Minor Hurling Championship The Kerry Minor Hurling Championship (known for sponsorship reasons as Keane’s SuperValu Killorglin Kerry County Minor Hurling Championship) is an annual hurling competition organised by the Kerry County Board of the Gaelic Athletic Associat ...

** Winners (4): 1959 (with

) 1983, 1988, 2010 ** Runners-Up (1): 1986 *

Féile na nGael Féile na nGael (; Irish for "Festival of the Gaels") is an annual tournament comprising the sports of hurling, camogie and handball organised by the Gaelic Athletic Association. Its stated aim is to bond communities, forge friendships, provid ...

Division 3 Michael Cusack Trophy ** Winners (1): 1984 *

Division 4 Dr Birch Trophy ** Winners (1): 1992

Notable players

Stephen O'Brien Sir Stephen Rothwell O'Brien, (born 1 April 1957) is a British politician and diplomat who was the United Nations Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator. O'Brien assumed office on 29 May 2015, succeed ...

Seán O'Shea Seán O'Shea (Irish: ''Seán Ó Sé'') (born 17 July 1998) is an Irish Gaelic footballer who plays for Kerry SFC club Kenmare Shamrocks and at inter-county level with the Kerry senior football team. He usually lines out as a forward. Career ...

* P. J. McIntyre *

Seamus McIntyre Seamus McIntyre (1971–22 April 2001) was a dual player from Kenmare, County Kerry. Background McIntyre was born in 1971 to PJ and Mamie McIntyre. His father was a Garda as well as a former Kerry hurler and footballer and a GAA administr ...

Paul O'Connor (Gaelic footballer) Paul O'Connor is an Irish Gaelic footballer with the Kenmare GAA club and Kerry county team. Playing career Paul O'Connor was Kerry's forward in the 2004 and 2005 All-Ireland Minor Football Championship, scoring 6 points in the 2004 final wh ...

Mickey O'Sullivan Mickey "Ned" O'Sullivan (born 14 April 1952) is an Irish former Gaelic football manager, selector and former player. His league and championship career at senior level with the Kerry county team spanned ten seasons from 1971 to 1980. Born in K ...

References

External links

Official Kenmare GAA Club website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kenmare Shamrocks Hurling and Football Club Gaelic games clubs in County Kerry Gaelic football clubs in County Kerry Hurling clubs in County Kerry Kenmare