Éire Óg GAA (Cork)

Éire Óg is a Gaelic football and hurling club based in Ovens, County Cork, a small village adjacent to the town of Ballincollig, County Cork, Ireland. The club is affiliated with Cork GAA county board and the Muskerry divisional board. History Gaelic games were played in the Ovens and Farran areas from at least the 1890s, and a parish team known as 'Bridevalley' played Inniscarra in the mid-Cork championship at Coachford in April 1891. Among the first parishioners to play for Cork was Willie Fitzgerald. He won a Dr. Croke Cup medal with Cork in 1902 and was the first chairman of the divisional board when it was formed in 1925. Reformed in 1923, Bridevalley remained active until 1927. In 1928, Bridevalley and Cloughduv amalgamated to form a senior club called Éire Óg and in that same year they won the Cork Senior Hurling Championship, defeating Mallow in the final at Cork Athletic Grounds before an attendance of 10,000. Mallow had beaten Blackrock and Éire Óg beat St. Finbarr's enroute to the final. In 1936, Cloughduv and Bridevalley disbanded with the latter retaining the name Éire Óg. Their club colours were red and blue. While Éire Óg achieved little success during the 1940s, the club saw a revival during the 1950s. Éire Óg juveniles won in 1952 and the minors in 1953. Around this time, the club changed to the current club colours – red and yellow. This change in club colours came about largely by accident. The old jerseys had begun to disintegrate and funds were low. A drapery shop in Mallow, which had a surplus of red and yellow jerseys, sold them to Éire Óg at half price. In 1960, Éire Óg won the Mid Cork junior hurling final. The club went on to retain this title for the next two years. In 1962, the club won the Cork Junior Hurling Championship by defeating Carrigtwohill at the Athletic grounds by 3–4 to 2–4. The club was promoted the intermediate grade after that and won the intermediate league in 1963. While Éire Óg reached the 1965 Cork Intermediate Hurling Championship final, they were beaten by Glen Rovers. They did, however, win the Liam Breathnach cup in 1964. In 1969, the club moved back to junior ranks and won the Mid Cork title in 1971 and 1972 as well as several other minor and underage successes. Another Mid Cork title came to the Ovens area in 1977, and the same year they won the Cork Junior Hurling Championship when they defeated Erin's Own by 2–8 to 1–9 at Páirc Uí Chaoimh. In 1978, Éire Óg won the Muskerry cup in its first year. Success in the Cork Intermediate Hurling Championship followed in 1979 when Éire Óg defeated Mallow 7–11 to 5–8 in the final in Páirc Uí Chaoimh. After a lapse of 51 years, this win meant that Éire Óg were back in senior ranks. In 1980, the senior championship was run on a league basis. Éire Óg played Na Piarsaigh, Nemo Rangers, UCC and Bandon to win this section. Éire Óg faced St. Finbarr's in the quarter-final and were beaten on a score of 2–10 to 1–11 and according to a report in the Cork Examiner, "Éire Og responded with admiration to the marvellous attempt to sweep St. Finbarr's out of the reckoning and had the city side back-pedalling for lengthy periods, and a semi-final place eluded them only because of a failure to offer an adequate deterrent to the presence of Jimmy Barry-Murphy at full forward. Jimmy scored two vital goals". In 1981 Éire Og, the only club representing Mid-Cork in senior hurling, won a first round match against Avondhu, but were later narrowly beaten by Youghal. However, their second string won the B hurling championship. Éire Óg were due to play Ballincollig in the final of the Muskerry Cup, but due to pressure of matches, this game was not played. 1982 saw Éire Óg being beaten by the narrowest of margins by Carrigdhoun in the first round of the championship. In 1983, Éire Óg decided to seek regrading to Intermediate ranks, but here again were defeated by Ballinhassig by a single point in the semi-final of the championship. In 1984, Éire Óg lost to Bandon in the first round of the Cork Intermediate Hurling Championship and also lost to Blarney in the junior championship. However, in 1985, the club came "back on form" and won both the Cork Intermediate Hurling Championship (by beating Blackrock at Riverstown) and also the Intermediate League (by beating Inniscarra after a replay). Éire Óg hurlers who have won an All Ireland medal with their county include Jimmy Barry Murphy, Colm Sheehan (Senior 1966), Mick Malone (Senior 1976, 1977 and the only player to hold four All Ireland U21 hurling medals), Mattie Murphy, Finbarr Sheehan, and Derry O' Brien (Intermediate 1966). Éire Óg has traditionally been mainly associated with hurling, but Gaelic football is also played at the club. In 1961, Éire Óg made their first breakthrough in football, winning the Mid-Cork Junior B title. They regained this title again in 1968 when they Blarney in the final in Coachford. In 1972, they beat Ballyvourney in the Junior A semi-final, but lost to Ballincollig in the final on a scoreline of 1–7 to 2–3. In 1973, Éire Óg were defeated by Ballyvourney, who won the junior county title that year. In the same year, Éire Óg won their first junior football league. In 1976, Éire Óg football had one of its greatest moments when they won their first ever Mid-Cork Junior A title, on a scoreline of 1–13 to Donoughmore's 2–1. However, Cloyne put a stop the Éire Óg's county title aspirations defeating them by 1–9 to 2–4. Éire Óg reached the Junior A football final in 1983 where Donoughmore gained revenge for their defeat in 1976. An interest in football at underage level developed in Éire Óg in the early 1980s. In 1982, 1983 and 1984, the club reached the U21 mid-Cork finals. In 2008, the club won the Cork Junior Football Championship title. Several members of the team from this period, including Daniel Goulding and Ciarán Sheehan, became members of the Cork Senior football squad. Honours Munster Senior Club Camogie Championship (1): 1985 Cork Senior Hurling Championship (1): 1928 Cork Senior Camogie Championship (4): 1977, 1978, 1979, 1985 Cork Ladies' Senior Football Championship (1): 2025 Cork Intermediate Hurling Championship (3): 1979, 1985, 2020 (runners up in 1937, 1965, 2013, 2017) Cork Senior A Football Championship (1): 2020 Cork Premier Intermediate Football Championship (1): 2019 Cork Intermediate Football Championship (1): 2014 (runners-up in 2012) Cork Junior Hurling Championship (2): 1962, 1977 Cork Junior Football Championship (1): 2008 Cork Minor A Hurling Championship (2): 1993, 2008, 2014 Cork Minor A Football Championship (2): 2002, 2006 Cork Under-21 Hurling Championship (0): (runners-up in 1973) Mid Cork Junior A Hurling Championship (7): 1930, 1960, 1961, 1962, 1971, 1972, 1977 Mid Cork Junior A Football Championship (2): 1976, 2008 Cork Minor Premier 1 Football Championship (1): 2017 Notable players Denis Desmond John Dineen Mary Geaney Daniel Goulding Mick Malone Ciarán Sheehan Colm O'Callaghan Colm Sheehan (Cork Senior All Ireland 1966) Liam Miller (Irish soccer international) References External links Official website