Portrush Hockey Club is a

hockey Hockey is a term used to denote a family of various types of both summer and winter team sports which originated on either an outdoor field, sheet of ice, or dry floor such as in a gymnasium. While these sports vary in specific rules, numbers o ...

club affiliated to the Ulster Branch of the

Irish Hockey Association Hockey Ireland, previously known as the Irish Hockey Association, is the governing body for field hockey in both the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland. It is responsible for organising both the Ireland men's national field hockey team and ...

based in

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 railway station as well as most hotels, restaurants and bars, ...

, County Antrim. The club currently plays in the Intermediate League of Ulster Hockey.

Formation

The club was founded on 29 September 1909 at a meeting held in the Osborne Hotel, Portrush. The club initially joined and played in the North West Hockey League.

Grounds

The first home ground from 1911 to 1935 was at Metropole, moving to Randal Park from 1935 to 1948. After 1948 the club found a permanent home at Seaview Park. The advent of artificial turf pitches has necessitated playing home fixtures away from Portrush. Currently the club uses Ballycastle artificial turf pitches and UUC pitches for the occasional game

1920s and 1930s

After

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

Portrush achieved success in 1922 by winning the Braddell Shield. A win in the Intermediate Cup was gained the following year. The North-West Senior Cup was won in 1924, 1927 and 1928. Portrush won their first Major trophy when the Irish Junior Cup was secured in 1932. This team featured

Fred Daly Fred Daly may refer to: * Fred Daly (American football), American football player at Yale, head football coach at Williams College (1913–1914) * Fred Daly (politician) Frederick Michael Daly (13 June 1912 – 2 August 1995) was an Aust ...

, who went on to become the Open Golf champion in 1947. At this time, Portrush moved to play in the Senior Qualifying League of the Ulster Senior League. At the end of the 1930s they won the Ulster Section of the Irish Senior Cup.

1940s to 1970s

Portrush won the Irish Junior Cup for the second time in 1943, a feat that was repeated in 1946. Senior status was granted in 1947, and was marked by the club winning 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 ...

and the Ulster Section of the Irish Senior Cup. The

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 ...

was won for the first time in the 1949–50 season. In the 1957–58 Portrush tied a Test match against

Banbridge Banbridge ( , ) is a town in County Down, Northern Ireland. It lies on the River Bann and the A1 road and is named after a bridge built over the River Bann in 1712. It is situated in the civil parish of Seapatrick and the historic barony of Iv ...

and both were declared joint winners of the Keightley Cup for the Ulster Senior League champions. In 1963–64, Portrush beat

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 ...

in the Ulster Final of the Irish Senior Cup, but went on to lose to Cork Church of Ireland in the all-Ireland semi-final. The following year, 1964–65, was the club's most successful year. Portrush won the

for the third time and they also beat

in the Kirk Cup Final. In addition, the Final of the Irish Senior Cup was reached for the only time in Club history. After a 1–1 draw in

Belfast Belfast ( , ; from ga, Béal Feirste , meaning 'mouth of the sand-bank ford') is the capital and largest city of Northern Ireland, standing on the banks of the River Lagan on the east coast. It is the 12th-largest city in the United Kingdom ...

, Portrush lost after extra time to Dublin YMCA in the replay.Ireland's Saturday Night 17 April 1965 Page 2; 24 April 1965 Page 14 The

success in 1969–70 was the last time that Portrush would win a Senior trophy.

1970s to present day

The closure of Busmills Grammar School in 1975, meant that Portrush no longer had a feeder school. A long decline eventually led to the loss of Senior status in 1988. Senior status was obtained again for three years from 1993 to 1994 until 1995–96 and for two years in 1999-00 and 2000–01. In 2007 the club moved their Home matches to The Quay Road, Ballycastle. As a result Ballycastle High School now became an excellent feeder school for the club and the club now has 7 players who are still attending Ballycastle High School. Portrush won their first trophy since the Linden Cup victory in 1999. Portrush claimed a 3–2 victory over Ballynahinch on 1 January 2014 to claim the Sussex Regiment Cup. Senior Status was again obtained after a 13-year wait in 2014 after losing only one league game all season. Portrush will now play Senior League 1 hockey in the 2014/15 season.

Honours

* Irish Junior Cup ** 1931–32, 1942–43, 1945–46. * Ulster Senior League **Shared 1957–58. *

** 1948–49, 1964–65, 1969–70. *

** 1949–50, 1962–63, 1964–65. Sussex Regiment Cup 2014 Senior Two (Cliftonville Cup) 2014 Irish Hockey Challenge Cup 2020

Irish Internationals

* James McVicker was capped for Ireland against Wales in 1914. * Don Minihan * Ronnie McManus * Jimmy Shanks Recent Junior Ulster representatives *Aaron Kerr *Graeme Christie

References

{{Reflist

External links

Portrush Hockey Club websiteUlster Branch of Irish Hockey Association
1909 establishments in Ireland Field hockey clubs established in 1909 Field hockey clubs in Northern Ireland Sports clubs and teams in County Antrim Hockey Club