Mossley Hockey Club is a

field hockey Field hockey is a team sport structured in standard hockey format, in which each team plays with ten outfield players and a goalkeeper. Teams must drive a round hockey ball by hitting it with a hockey stick towards the rival team's shooting ci ...

club based in the village of Mossley in

Newtownabbey Newtownabbey ( ) is a large settlement in North Belfast in County Antrim, Northern Ireland. It is separated from the rest of the city by Cavehill and Fortwilliam golf course. It surrounds Carnmoney Hill, and was formed from the merging of severa ...

County Antrim County Antrim (named after the town of Antrim, ) is one of six counties of Northern Ireland and one of the thirty-two counties of Ireland. Adjoined to the north-east shore of Lough Neagh, the county covers an area of and has a population o ...

. It was formed in 1929 following a meeting of employees of Henry Campbell's Mill in the village. The club currently fields five men's teams, with the first team playing in the Premier League of the Ulster Senior League. In 1994 the Club won a coaching award in recognition of its work with young players.

Early years

During the 1930s the Club enjoyed great success in the Intermediate and Junior League. In 1942 the first team won through to the Irish Junior Cup, but were on the receiving end of a 4–0 defeat by Pembroke Wanderers II. Two years later fortunes were reversed when Mossley won the Irish Junior Cup for the first time with a 3–0 win over Graiguenamanagh. The First XI were promoted to Qualifying League B and Senior status was attained when that section was won in 1951.

1950s and 1960s

The first Senior trophy final was in the

Kirk Cup The Kirk Cup is the oldest hockey tournament in Ulster and the oldest provincial hockey trophy in Ireland. It has become a tradition since the 1966-67 season for the final to be played on Boxing Day, a date previously reserved for the Anderson Cup ...

in 1953–54, when defeat was suffered at the hands of

Lisnagarvey Lisnagarvey or Lisnagarvy () is a townland in County Antrim, Northern Ireland. Lisnagarvey is also an Anglicisation of the original name of Lisburn. The townland was named after an earthen ringfort (''lios''), which was in the area of present-day ...

by 2 goals to one after extra time. The First XI were beaten in the Ulster Final of the Irish Senior Cup in 1964-65 by

Portrush Portrush () is a small seaside resort town on the north coast of County Antrim, Northern Ireland. It neighbours the resort of Portstewart. The main part of the old town, including the Portrush railway station, railway station as well as most hote ...

. In 1966 the Second team won the Irish Junior Cup with a 4–0 win over the Catholic Institute II, Limerick.Belfast Newsletter 25/04/1966 Page 13 The Anderson Cup was won by the First XI in 1966-67 and the following season promotion was gained to the top section of the Ulster Senior League. This position would be held until the end of 2002–03.

1970s and 1980s

In 1973 Mossley made a second appearance in the

Final, losing to

after a replay. In 1983, a third Kirk Cup Final appearance, again against Lisnagarvey was won 2–0. The Second XI were successful in the 1986 Irish Junior Cup defeating Banbridge Second XI in the Final. The team was captained by David McKinstry, who was also a member of the 1966 Cup winning team.

Grounds

The original grass pitches at Mossley were abandoned in 1976 and the Club played home games at the City of Belfast Playing Fields at Mallusk. The present site at The Glade was purchased in 1984, and in 1991 the Club installed a synthetic surface. In 2004 the original artificial surface was replaced with a water based pitch.

Notable players

Men's internationals

; In 1952 Bryan Gilroy the became the first Mossley player to represent

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 ...

. * Harold Burns Jnr * Paul Cooke * Bryan Gilroy * David Gordon *

John Jackson John or Johnny Jackson may refer to: Entertainment Art * John Baptist Jackson (1701–1780), British artist * John Jackson (painter) (1778–1831), British painter * John Jackson (engraver) (1801–1848), English wood engraver * John Richardson ...

* Richard Willis * Simon Todd

Honours

(1) 1983-84 *

Anderson Cup The United States Hockey League (USHL) is the top junior ice hockey league sanctioned by USA Hockey. The league consists of 16 active teams located in the midwestern United States, for players between the ages of 16 and 21. The USHL is strictly ...

1966–67, 1988–89, 2013-2014 * Irish Junior Cup (3) 1943–44, 1965–66, 1985–86

Sources

{{Reflist

External links

Mossley Hockey Club
Field hockey clubs in Northern Ireland Sports clubs and teams in County Antrim Field hockey clubs established in 1929 1929 establishments in Northern Ireland Newtownabbey