Rónán Clarke is an Irish

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 ...

manager Management (or managing) is the administration of an organization, whether it is a business, a nonprofit organization, or a government body. It is the art and science of managing resources of the business. Management includes the activities o ...

and former player who represented

Armagh Armagh ( ; ga, Ard Mhacha, , "Macha's height") is the county town of County Armagh and a city in Northern Ireland, as well as a civil parish. It is the ecclesiastical capital of Ireland – the seat of the Archbishops of Armagh, the Pri ...

. His club football career has been with Armagh city's

Pearse Óg GAC Pearse Óg Gaelic Athletic Club ( ga, Na Piarsaigh Óga) is a Gaelic Athletic Association club in County Armagh, Northern Ireland. 'Na Piarsaigh Óga', which translates as 'the Young Pearses', takes its name from the Irish revolutionaries Pád ...

. Ross Carr, the former Down manager, said: "Armagh have the best forward in the country in Rónán Clarke".

Playing career

Inter-county

Clarke was called up to the Armagh senior panel at a young age and made his inter-county debut against Antrim in 2002. He made his Championship debut in May 2002. That year he helped Armagh win the

Ulster Senior Football Championship The Ulster Senior Football Championship is an inter-county competition for Gaelic football teams in the province of Ulster. It is organised by the Ulster Council of the Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA) and begins in early May. The final is usu ...

as well as the county's first ever

All-Ireland Senior Football Championship The All-Ireland Senior Football Championship (SFC) ( ga, Craobh Shinsir Peile na hÉireann) is the premier competition in Gaelic football. An annual tournament organised by the Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA), it is contested by the county ...

. He scored in seven out of Armagh's eight Championship games that year and contributed three points in the All-Ireland Final. For his performances he was named 2002 Young Footballer of the Year. In 2003 Armagh once again reached the All-Ireland final, but were defeated by neighbours Tyrone. 2004 saw Clarke and Armagh again win the Ulster Championship. In 2005 Clarke helped Armagh win the National League, beating

Wexford Wexford () is the county town of County Wexford, Ireland. Wexford lies on the south side of Wexford Harbour, the estuary of the River Slaney near the southeastern corner of the island of Ireland. The town is linked to Dublin by the M11/N11 N ...

in the final. Later that year he helped Armagh win another Ulster Championship. Clarke helped Armagh win the 2006 Ulster Championship and was named Irish News Ulster All-Stars Player of the Year. It was the second time he had been selected on the Ulster All-Stars team. He was awarded an All Star award for his 2006 performances with Armagh. He was also named in the 2006 GPA Team of the Year and nominated for

GPA Footballer of the Year The GPA Footballer of the Year was awarded annually by the Gaelic Players Association, as part of the Opel Gaelic Players awards scheme, established in 2006. History The title was first awarded in 2001, at the foundation of the association, and w ...

. Clarke missed the 2007 season due to a cruciate ligament injury suffered in the 2006 season. He won another Ulster Championship medal with Armagh in 2008 and was awarded another All Star for his performances throughout that year's Championship.

Club

Clarke helped Pearse Óg win the 2000

Ulster Minor Club Football Championship The Ulster Minor Club Football Championship ( ga, Comórtas Pheil Mhionúr Chumann Uladh), often referred to as the St. Paul's Tournament, an annual Gaelic football tournament organised and hosted by the St Paul's club in Belfast. It is played bet ...

, which he described as his greatest moment in sport. Clarke has reached the

Armagh Senior Football Championship The Armagh Senior Football Championship is an annual Gaelic football competition contested by top-tier Armagh GAA clubs. The Armagh County Board of the Gaelic Athletic Association has organised it since 1889. Clann Éireann are the title hold ...

final with Pearse Óg on a number of occasions, but they have been defeated by

Crossmaglen Crossmaglen (, ) is a village and townland in County Armagh, Northern Ireland. It had a population of 1,610 in the 2011 Census and is the largest village in South Armagh. The village centre is the site of a large Police Service of Northern Ire ...

each time until 2009, when Clarke helped Pearse Óg defeat Crossmaglen in the quarter final of the Armagh Senior Football Championship ending Crossmaglens 13-year win streak in the competition. Pearse Óg went on to win the Championship defeating city rivals Armagh Harps on a scoreline of 0–8 to 0–4 earning Clarke his first Senior County medal.

International rules

Clarke has in the past represented

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 ...

in the

International Rules Series The International Rules Series is a senior men's international rules football competition between the Australia international rules football team (selected by the Australian Football League) and the Ireland international rules football team (s ...

School

Clarke attended St Brigid's High School, moving to

Saint Patrick's Grammar School, Armagh St Patrick's Grammar School ( ga, Scoil Ghramadaí Naomh Pádraig), Armagh, is a Roman Catholic boys' non-selective voluntary grammar school in the city of Armagh, Northern Ireland. The present-day school was officially opened on Thursday, 27 ...

where he was on the team that won the Ulster Colleges Championship, the

MacRory Cup The MacRory Cup is an inter-college (school) Gaelic football tournament in Ulster at senior "A" grade. The MacLarnon Cup is the competition for schools at senior 'B' grade. Players must be under nineteen at the start of the tournament. The win ...

in 2000. His teammates included Sean Cavanagh, Peter Quigley and Brian Mullen.

Managerial career

In January 2021, having previously managed the Cavan Gaels and Silverbridge clubs in Cavan and Armagh, the Antrim senior football club St James' Aldergrove announced Clarke as their new manager.

Honours

;Armagh * 5

2002 2004 2005 2006 2008 * 1

2002 * 1 National Football League Division 1 2005 ;Pearse ÓG * 3 Armagh Minor Football Championship 1998 1999 2000 * 1

2000 * 1

2009 * 1 Armagh Under-21 Football Championship 2001 ;Awards * 3 Irish News Ulster All-Star 2005 2006 2008 * 2

GAA GPA All Stars Awards The Gaelic Athletic Association-Gaelic Players' Association All Stars Awards (often known simply as the All Stars) are awarded annually to the best player in each of the 15 playing positions in Gaelic football and hurling. Additionally, one pla ...

2006 2008 * 1 All Star Young Footballer of the Year 2002 * 1 Irish News Footballer of the Year 2006 ;Ireland * 1

International Rules International rules football ( ga, Peil na rialacha idirnáisiunta; also known as international rules in Australia and compromise rules or Aussie rules in Ireland) is a team sport consisting of a hybrid of football codes, which was developed ...

2008 ;School * 1

2000

References

External links

cul4kidz profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Clarke, Ronan 1982 births Living people All Stars Young Footballers of the Year Armagh inter-county Gaelic footballers Gaelic football forwards Gaelic football managers Irish international rules football players Pearse Og Gaelic footballers People educated at St Patrick's Grammar School, Armagh Winners of one All-Ireland medal (Gaelic football)