Sands MacSwineys Gaelic Football Club 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 ...

team formed in 1986 and based in the

Lanarkshire Lanarkshire, also called the County of Lanark ( gd, Siorrachd Lannraig; sco, Lanrikshire), is a historic county, lieutenancy area and registration county in the central Lowlands of Scotland. Lanarkshire is the most populous county in Scotlan ...

town of

Coatbridge Coatbridge ( sco, Cotbrig or Coatbrig, gd, Drochaid a' Chòta) is a town in North Lanarkshire, Scotland, about east of Glasgow city centre, set in the central Lowlands. Along with neighbouring town Airdrie, Coatbridge forms the area known as ...

, Scotland. It is the longest running GAA club in Scotland. The club plays its home matches at St Ambrose Gaelic Ground.

History

Sands MacSwineys were founded in 1986, being named using an amalgam of the names of hunger strikers

Bobby Sands Robert Gerard Sands ( ga, Roibeárd Gearóid Ó Seachnasaigh; 9 March 1954 – 5 May 1981) was a member (and leader in the Maze prison) of the Provisional Irish Republican Army (IRA) who died on hunger strike while imprisoned at HM Prison Maze ...

and

Terence MacSwiney Terence James MacSwiney (; ga, Toirdhealbhach Mac Suibhne; 28 March 1879 – 25 October 1920) was an Irish playwright, author and politician. He was elected as Sinn Féin Lord Mayor of Cork during the Irish War of Independence in 1920. He ...

. The club was formed out of the Pearse Harps club in

Glasgow Glasgow ( ; sco, Glesca or ; gd, Glaschu ) is the most populous city in Scotland and the fourth-most populous city in the United Kingdom, as well as being the 27th largest city by population in Europe. In 2020, it had an estimated popul ...

when

-based players within Pearce Harps setup felt "it would be more appropriate to give birth to a more local based team in an area previously renowned for its Gaelic sports activities".

Honours

In Sands' first season in existence the club went all the way 1986 final of the

Championship before being beaten by St Patrick's. In 1988 Sands won their first major trophy, the Ó Fiaich Cup. The Ó Fiaich Cup was brought back to

again in 1996. Sands MacSwineys won the Championship in 1990, 1991 and 1999, and have also won the Pearse Cup. Sands' also won the League two years in succession, 1998 and 1999. The club would go on to win the inaugural Junior Championship in 2015. The GAA currently have a full-time development officer based in

References

External links

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GAA Provincial Council of Britain
Coatbridge Sport in North Lanarkshire Gaelic Athletic Association clubs established in 1986 1986 establishments in Scotland Gaelic football clubs in Scotland {{Scotland-sport-team-stub