O'Dempsey's GAA is a

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 ...

club located in the northeast of

County 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 ...

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 ...

History

The club was founded in 1951, won the Laois Junior Football Championship title in that same year and followed up by winning the Laois Intermediate Football Championship title the following year. The club name refers to the Ó Díomasaigh (O'Dempsey) family, the ancient

Gaelic Gaelic is an adjective that means "pertaining to the Gaels". As a noun it refers to the group of languages spoken by the Gaels, or to any one of the languages individually. Gaelic languages are spoken in Ireland, Scotland, the Isle of Man, and Ca ...

rulers of the Clann Mhaolughra (Clanmaliere) region, incorporating

Portnahinch Portnahinch or Portnehinch ( is a barony in County Laois (formerly called ''Queen's County'' or ''County Leix''), Ireland. Etymology The barony is named after the townland of Portnahinch (''Port na hInse''; "port of the island"). Geography P ...

and

Upper Philipstown Upper Philipstown () is a barony in County Offaly (formerly King's County), Republic of Ireland. Etymology The name Upper Philipstown is derived from Philipstown, the former name of Daingean. Location Upper Philipstown is located in northeast ...

on both sides of the

River Barrow The Barrow ( ga, An Bhearú) is a river in Ireland. It is one of The Three Sisters; the other two being the River Suir and the River Nore. The Barrow is the longest of the three rivers, and at 192 km (120 mi), the second-longest ri ...

. O'Dempsey's went on to win two

Laois Senior Football Championship The Laois Senior Football Championship is an annual Gaelic football competition contested by top-tier Laois GAA clubs. The Laois County Board of the Gaelic Athletic Association has organised it since 1888. Portarlington are the title holders ...

titles in 1963 and 1980. Locally well-known county players that have played for the club Include John Costello, Billy Walsh, John Paul Kehoe, Johnny Behan, Brian Nerney, Eddie Kelly, Jack Kenna, Mick Aherne, Leo Turley and Peter O'Leary. O'Dempsey's GAA club grounds are located at the Old Pound, halfway between

Ballybrittas Ballybrittas (, IPA: �bˠalʲəˈbʲɾʲɪt̪ˠaːʃ is a small village in the northeast of County Laois, Ireland situated on the R445 about 5 km SW of Monasterevin, County Kildare. Formerly on the N7 Dublin - Limerick road, the village is ...

and

Killenard Killenard () is a village in County Laois, Ireland. It lies in the historic barony of Portnahinch and within the administrative area of Laois County Council. As of the 2016 census, the village had a population of 671 people, up from 622 inhab ...

Achievements

: (2) 1963, 1980 *

Laois Intermediate Football Championship The Laois Intermediate Football Championship is an annual Gaelic football competition contested by mid-tier Laois GAA clubs. The Laois County Board of the Gaelic Athletic Association has organised it since 1907. The Heath are the title holders ...

: (3) 1952, 1977, 2016 *

Laois Junior Football Championships The Laois Junior Football Championships are the lower-tier Laois Club Football Championships. The Junior A and Junior B Championships use group phases then down to eight-four-two and the Junior C Championship operates similarly to the Senior Cha ...

: (2) 1951, 2019 *

Laois Junior B Football Championship The Laois Junior Football Championships are the lower-tier Laois Club Championships, Laois Club Football Championships. The Junior A and Junior B Championships use group phases then down to eight-four-two and the Junior C Championship operates sim ...

: (2) 1992, 2009 *

Laois Junior C Football Championship The Laois Junior Football Championships are the lower-tier Laois Club Football Championships. The Junior A and Junior B Championships use group phases then down to eight-four-two and the Junior C Championship operates similarly to the Senior Cha ...

: (1) 2011 * Laois Minor Football Championship: (2) 1980, 1997 * Laois Minor B Football Championship: (5) 1983, 1984, 1990, 2014, 2015 * Laois Under 21 Football Championship: (1) 1973 * Laois Under 21 B Football Championship: (2) 2010, 2014 * Laois All-County Football League Div. 1: (4) 1990, 2006, 2017, 2018 * Laois All-County Football League Div. 2: (1) 2010 * Laois All-County Football League Div. 4: (1) 2012 * Laois All-County Football League Div. 5: (1) 2010

Notable players

* Shane Nerney * Robbie Kehoe * Peter O'Leary * Stephen O'Leary * Conor Meredith * John Paul Kehoe *

Johnny Behan John Harris Behan (October 24, 1844 – June 7, 1912) was an American law enforcement officer and politician who served as Sheriff of Cochise County in the Arizona Territory, during the gunfight at the O.K. Corral and was known for his opposit ...

* Jay Keogh

References

Gaelic games clubs in County Laois Gaelic football clubs in County Laois {{Leinster-GAA-club-stub