Athlone GAA


Athlone GAA is the Gaelic football club in the town of Athlone in County Westmeath, Ireland. Athlone is Westmeath GAA's most successful football club, having won the Westmeath [Senior Football Championship] on 19 occasions. The local hurling club is called Southern Gaels.

Club history

Foundation and development

The club was founded in 1885 by Irish National League members, bringing GAA to Athlone.
Athlone GAA club, which is Westmeath's most successful club with 19 senior football titles, achieved an unprecedented six-in-a-row between 1955 and 1960. The club won its last senior football title in 1998.
The club is home to Westmeath's first footballing All-Star, Rory O'Connell. Irish rugby international Robbie Henshaw also previously played senior and underage football for Athlone.
In 2017, the club bridged a 24-year gap by winning the County Minor Championship.
2018 represented their seventh time to qualify for Feile Peil na nOg, winning Div 2. Athlone also won the inaugural U20 Football championship in 2018, beating Castleday/Rosemount in the final.
John Deacy, a defender on the 1965 Westmeath Senior Championship winning team, received his medal after a 55-year delay in October 2020.

Legal dispute

Following Athlone GAA's winning of the Westmeath County Championship in 1984, it was decided to send the team to the United States in 1985. More than £11,000 was collected and put in a bank account set up for the purpose. A dispute over control of the trip's finances between executive committee members and the tour committee led to a lengthy legal dispute. In 1994, the case went to the Supreme Court of Ireland and was still ongoing in 2001.

Club infrastructure

The club caters for both football and hurling with the hurlers playing under the Southern Gaels banner. The club has three full size floodlit pitches, the third pitch is dedicated to the memory of former player and coach, David Allen. The Athlone GAA also has its own bar and ballroom and is used by various local groups.

Notable players

Notable managers

Honours

Westmeath Senior Football Championships
  • * 1892,1947, 1949, 1955, 1956, 1957, 1958, 1959, 1960, 1965, 1971, 1973, 1977, 1979, 1982, 1984, 1988, 1991, 1998.Westmeath Intermediate Football Championships
  • * 2015Leinster Intermediate Club Football Championship
  • * Runners-Up 2015Westmeath Junior Football Championships
  • * 1916, 1921, 1945, 1954, 1969, 1975, 1976, 1977.Westmeath Under 21 Football Championships
  • * 1963, 1971, 1980, 1981, 1982, 1983, 1986, 1988, 1996, 2005, 2013Westmeath Under 20 Football Championships
  • * 2018Westmeath Minor Football Championships
  • * 1949, 1950, 1952, 1954, 1969, 1978, 1979, 1981, 1984, 1986, 1993, 2017.Feis Cup Senior Football
  • * 1956, 1957, 1960, 1967, 1970, 1971, 1972, 1974, 1977, 1993.Westmeath Senior 'B' Football Championships
  • * 1985Féile na nÓg
  • * 1985 1997, 1998, 2010, 2011, 2014, 2018