Dr Cullen Park, known for sponsorship reasons as Netwatch Cullen Park, is a GAA stadium in

Carlow Carlow ( ; ) is the county town of County Carlow, in the south-east of Ireland, from Dublin. At the 2016 census, it had a combined urban and rural population of 24,272. The River Barrow flows through the town and forms the historic bounda ...

County Carlow County Carlow ( ; ga, Contae Cheatharlach) is a county located in the South-East Region of Ireland, within the province of Leinster. Carlow is the second smallest and the third least populous of Ireland's 32 traditional counties. Carlow Cou ...

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 ...

. It is the home of the

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 ...

and

hurling Hurling ( ga, iománaíocht, ') is an outdoor team game of ancient Gaelic Irish origin, played by men. One of Ireland's native Gaelic games, it shares a number of features with Gaelic football, such as the field and goals, the number of p ...

teams. It has a capacity of 21,000.

History

The ground's establishment was first mooted in 1935. Dr Cullen Park was officially opened on 9 August 1936 by Patrick McNamee of the GAA. A total expenditure of £3,590 and 15 shillings was accounted for at the first audit. This sum included the purchase of the land. Dr Cullen Park was officially opened on Sunday 9 August 1936. It was named in honour of Dr Matthew Cullen (

Catholic The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

Bishop of Kildare and Leighlin The Bishop of Kildare and Leighlin is the ordinary of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Kildare and Leighlin, one of the suffragan dioceses of the Archdiocese of Dublin. The episcopal title takes its name from the towns of Kildare and Old Leighlin ...

1927–36) who had died on 2 January 1936. The late Bishop was honoured as "a great churchman, a true-hearted gael and a patriotic Irishman". Thomas Ryan President of County Carlow GAA presided at the ceremony. Padraig McNamee, President of the Ulster Council of the GAA represented the President of the Association. A number of local dignitaries also attended including James Reddy, who was the County Secretary during the early 1898–1890 period. By the 1960s, Dr Cullen Park still lacked a stand. However, it did have a fine playing pitch newly fenced, to prevent encroachment by spectators. The park was also equipped with good dressing rooms, hot and cold water and showers, a referee's dressing room and board rooms. In the summer of 1967, major improvements were carried out. A tarmac apron around the main entrance was provided. Wrought iron entrance gates, inscribed "Páirc an Cullainaigh" were built by Joseph Bennett Steel Contractors of Stradbally, Co. Laois. This firm were also the builders of the entrance gates to Fr. Maher Park in Graiguecullen on the Laois side of Carlow town. The first match played in Dr Cullen park was the Leinster Junior Football Final Kildare v Wicklow, this match was played on 2 August 1936 a week before the official opening.opening. The ground hosted the first Friday night game in the history of the All-Ireland Senior Football Championship - a first round qualifier between Carlow and

Laois County Laois ( ; gle, Contae Laoise) is a county in Ireland. It is part of the Eastern and Midland Region and in the province of Leinster. It was known as Queen's County from 1556 to 1922. The modern county takes its name from Loígis, a medie ...

References

{{Carlow GAA Buildings and structures in Carlow (town) Carlow GAA Gaelic games grounds in the Republic of Ireland Sport in Carlow (town) Sports venues in County Carlow

History

See also

References