THEIR CHAIRPERSON HAS heard it several times before: you must have it all in Cuala?
It’s the presumption that naturally follows when examining any GAA club in south Dublin. All the associated affluence of the area brings forth images of giant complexes with facilities for their facilities, and cabinets overflowing with trophies.
Consider Cuala’s neighbours Kilmacud Crokes in Stillorgan: 11-time Dublin senior football champions, they have won the last three Leinster titles and have three All-Ireland titles to their credit. Life is good over in Ballyboden too where they have won two All-Irelands in the past 10 years. Suddenly, the stereotype starts to take shape.
It’s a little different in Cuala, though. The Dalkey outfit has 3,500 members across all four codes. Rugby poses a stiff competition, but the club gets a great return from feeder schools like Coláiste Eoin Íosagáin and CBC Monkstown. And in 2017 and 2018, the Cuala hurlers brought national recognition to the club with back-to-back All-Ireland titles.
What they have is the envy of many GAA clubs around the country. But, like every other club, they’re not immune to struggle.
“We don’t own a blade of grass,” Fay explains over the phone on the week of Cuala’s first-ever Leinster senior football final.
It’s been a year of firsts for the club. They won their maiden county senior championship last month after dethroning a Kilmacud Crokes side who were chasing four-in-a-row glory. And wins over Naas and Tullamore has brought them to the brink of a first provincial title.
But back to their problem with pitches. Cuala don’t own any. Not even one. They are of no fixed abode in that regard. RTÉ Sports Des Cahill, a lifelong Cuala member, told The 42 previously that the senior team often use the facilities at the Bray Emmets club in order to train.
The land they need is hard to find in their home borough of Dun Laoghaire and Rathdown.
“We have to rent an awful lot,” Fay continues. “We pay for all our winter training and it’s very expensive. We’re not like clubs down the country that can have a fantastic stand and a big pitch. We just can’t get land. It’s not cheap to buy land, nor is the land there to buy.
“I won’t give you the figure but it’s astronomical what we paid for winter training last year. It’s well into the six figures.
“There’s a perception there that obviously you’re in Dalkey, you must be loaded and have all these facilities .We don’t, and any money we do bring in from volunteering, is all used to pay for pitches. It is difficult and there are a lot of fantastic volunteers who do so much fundraising to pay for those pitches.”
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Na Fianna players celebrate defending their county championship. Ryan Byrne / INPHO
Ryan Byrne / INPHO / INPHO
Another Dublin club, on the other side of the Liffey, is on the hunt for a first Leinster crown this weekend. The Na Fianna hurlers fell just short of that feat last year when Kilkenny’s O’Loughlin Gaels denied them in Croke Park. Now, just four years after reaching their first senior county final — and 25 years after their footballers achieved provincial success — they will have another shot at the belt. This time, they will step into the ring with Offaly champions Kilcormac-Killoughey.
Like Cuala, Na Fianna have also experienced issues relating to land. Their home in Mobhi Road was under threat at one point due to plans for a €3 billion Metrolink project. A construction site was earmarked for Na Fianna’s property in 2018, meaning GAA activity would cease for a significant period of time.
“They proposed closing the pitch for up to 10 years,” club stalwart Declan Feeney says, recalling the worry and uncertainty they suffered at the time.
“They told us they’d give us a brand new pitch after, but in 10 years, Na Fianna would have been dead. It’s not just the pitch, it’s our home.”
The Na Fianna folks vowed to make a stand. They protested and mobilised politicians in order to save their home including Paschal Donohue, who was the Finance Minister at the time, and a member of the club. People power, mixed with political persuasion, rescued from Na Fianna.
“There was a meeting in DCU,” Feeney adds. “The whole club – kids and all – marched in and all signed a petition to stop it from going ahead.”
****
The years between 2015 and 2020 were a golden period for the Cuala hurlers. Five county titles, along with back-to-back successes in the Leinster and All-Ireland competitions, was the final tally at the end of that period. And now that you know that this was all achieved in the absence of a home pitch, it puts a different complexion on their accomplishments.
But it wasn’t down to any disproportionate use of resources. All four codes get an equal amount of love, and being a dual player is always encouraged.
“It’s just the hurlers got their perfect storm at that time,” says Fay. Cuala were by far the superior side in their first All-Ireland final in 2017, crushing Clare’s Ballyea by 12 points. Na Piarsaigh of Limerick provided stiffer opposition the following year, bringing the champions to a replay where dual player Con O’Callaghan, David Treacy and Mark Schutte all notched vital points to keep the trophy in Dalkey for another year.
The Cuala hurlers after their 2017 All-Ireland victory. Tommy Dickson / INPHO
Tommy Dickson / INPHO / INPHO
The footballers were working away during that time. Coaches like Johnny Sheanon have been grinding for the last 30 years. And then they won the Dublin intermediate championship in 2012. Dublin’s nine-time All-Ireland winner Michael Fitzsimons is a familiar face from that group. Luke Treacy likewise. Small steps to the summit.
Allied with the impact of former Mayo footballer Austin O’Malley in the bainisteoir bib, the Cuala footballers have now made their breakthrough.
“There’s been no change, to be honest,” says Fay when asked if any extra effort was put towards bringing their footballers up to the standard of their hurlers. “We very much have a clear identity for each of the four codes.
“Austin’s brought a lovely style of play. I personally love it. He’s really level head and he’s been with those lads for a number of years.
“It’s not just somebody coming in overnight. They’ve seen the progress that Austin has made, and the building blocks that he has laid for them in the last few years.”
It’s been a long time since the success of the Na Fianna footballers. Three Leinster finals in-a-row in 1999, 2000, and 2001 with a victory in the second outing, was a highpoint in the club’s history. People of a certain vintage will recall how a young Dessie Farrell, Jason Sherlock and Kieran McGeeney were the heroes of that time. What they did left a lasting impact on everyone in the club.
“No one ever thought Na Fianna could get to a Leinster final,” says Feeney, “Never mind win one. It sparked a huge reaction among the kids. If you’re a child being brought to those games, you don’t forget.
“But in 1999, we were actually going down the divisions in hurling. We’d no players coming through. Our first minor team only came through the following year and that was our first minor team in 15 years and it has taken off from there.”
It’s worth noting that current Na Fianna manager — and the new Dublin boss — Niall Ó Cellacháin was on that minor team. And he was in charge when the club contested their first Dublin senior final in 2021, which ended in an extra-time defeat to Kilmacud Crokes. The same two teams were in the 2022 decider, where Na Fianna lost out again.
Na Fianna manager Niall Ó Ceallacháin. Tom Maher / INPHO
Tom Maher / INPHO / INPHO
They got it right at the third time of asking with a comprehensive win over Ballyboden in the 2023 final, and completed a two-in-a-row this year.
“They’ve lost before they’ve won,” Feeney explains of Na Fianna’s rise. He has two sons on the current panel. Peter is a regular starter while Oisín is the sub goalkeeper.
“Losing the first county final was very deflating. The second one, I thought they played well personally. I know they got beaten but you just felt if they could get over Crokes, which they did in the quarter-final, I don’t think anyone was going to beat them last year in Dublin.
“The team has always had belief. Everyone forgets [that] we lost three Féile finals in-a-row. And that’s the bulk of that team. And we won four minors in-a-row which is just about the whole team.”
On the day they won their first county title, Cuala had chartered their own DART service to bring their fans to the Killester station which is close to Parnell Park. Pictures of the platforms draped in red and white appeared online, capturing the hope and excitement. Paddy Murdoch, a member of the club, organised it through a contact in Irish Rail, and will do so again for the Leinster final.
Ardee St Mary’s of Louth stand in their way, as they too hope to reach the summit of Leinster for the first time. Someone will make history in Croke Park on Saturday.
Later that evening, Na Fianna will get their second go in a provincial final. Naturally, the scoring threat of Adam Screeney and Charlie Mitchell will be something they must negate in order to ensure Kilcormac-Killoughey don’t spoil their mission. In the meantime, Declan Feeney is on cooking duty this week, providing meals for his two sons to help them ease through their preparation.
Aisling Fay pictured with Margaret Fitzsimons, mother of Michael Fitzsimons. Aisling Fay
Aisling Fay
25 years after their footballers earned Leinster supremacy, Na Fianna are hopeful that their hurlers can repeat the trick.
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'We don't own a blade of grass' - The two Dublin clubs aiming to complete Leinster double
THEIR CHAIRPERSON HAS heard it several times before: you must have it all in Cuala?
It’s the presumption that naturally follows when examining any GAA club in south Dublin. All the associated affluence of the area brings forth images of giant complexes with facilities for their facilities, and cabinets overflowing with trophies.
Consider Cuala’s neighbours Kilmacud Crokes in Stillorgan: 11-time Dublin senior football champions, they have won the last three Leinster titles and have three All-Ireland titles to their credit. Life is good over in Ballyboden too where they have won two All-Irelands in the past 10 years. Suddenly, the stereotype starts to take shape.
It’s a little different in Cuala, though. The Dalkey outfit has 3,500 members across all four codes. Rugby poses a stiff competition, but the club gets a great return from feeder schools like Coláiste Eoin Íosagáin and CBC Monkstown. And in 2017 and 2018, the Cuala hurlers brought national recognition to the club with back-to-back All-Ireland titles.
What they have is the envy of many GAA clubs around the country. But, like every other club, they’re not immune to struggle.
“We don’t own a blade of grass,” Fay explains over the phone on the week of Cuala’s first-ever Leinster senior football final.
It’s been a year of firsts for the club. They won their maiden county senior championship last month after dethroning a Kilmacud Crokes side who were chasing four-in-a-row glory. And wins over Naas and Tullamore has brought them to the brink of a first provincial title.
But back to their problem with pitches. Cuala don’t own any. Not even one. They are of no fixed abode in that regard. RTÉ Sports Des Cahill, a lifelong Cuala member, told The 42 previously that the senior team often use the facilities at the Bray Emmets club in order to train.
The land they need is hard to find in their home borough of Dun Laoghaire and Rathdown.
“We have to rent an awful lot,” Fay continues. “We pay for all our winter training and it’s very expensive. We’re not like clubs down the country that can have a fantastic stand and a big pitch. We just can’t get land. It’s not cheap to buy land, nor is the land there to buy.
“I won’t give you the figure but it’s astronomical what we paid for winter training last year. It’s well into the six figures.
“There’s a perception there that obviously you’re in Dalkey, you must be loaded and have all these facilities .We don’t, and any money we do bring in from volunteering, is all used to pay for pitches. It is difficult and there are a lot of fantastic volunteers who do so much fundraising to pay for those pitches.”
****
Another Dublin club, on the other side of the Liffey, is on the hunt for a first Leinster crown this weekend. The Na Fianna hurlers fell just short of that feat last year when Kilkenny’s O’Loughlin Gaels denied them in Croke Park. Now, just four years after reaching their first senior county final — and 25 years after their footballers achieved provincial success — they will have another shot at the belt. This time, they will step into the ring with Offaly champions Kilcormac-Killoughey.
Like Cuala, Na Fianna have also experienced issues relating to land. Their home in Mobhi Road was under threat at one point due to plans for a €3 billion Metrolink project. A construction site was earmarked for Na Fianna’s property in 2018, meaning GAA activity would cease for a significant period of time.
“They proposed closing the pitch for up to 10 years,” club stalwart Declan Feeney says, recalling the worry and uncertainty they suffered at the time.
“They told us they’d give us a brand new pitch after, but in 10 years, Na Fianna would have been dead. It’s not just the pitch, it’s our home.”
The Na Fianna folks vowed to make a stand. They protested and mobilised politicians in order to save their home including Paschal Donohue, who was the Finance Minister at the time, and a member of the club. People power, mixed with political persuasion, rescued from Na Fianna.
“There was a meeting in DCU,” Feeney adds. “The whole club – kids and all – marched in and all signed a petition to stop it from going ahead.”
****
The years between 2015 and 2020 were a golden period for the Cuala hurlers. Five county titles, along with back-to-back successes in the Leinster and All-Ireland competitions, was the final tally at the end of that period. And now that you know that this was all achieved in the absence of a home pitch, it puts a different complexion on their accomplishments.
But it wasn’t down to any disproportionate use of resources. All four codes get an equal amount of love, and being a dual player is always encouraged.
“It’s just the hurlers got their perfect storm at that time,” says Fay. Cuala were by far the superior side in their first All-Ireland final in 2017, crushing Clare’s Ballyea by 12 points. Na Piarsaigh of Limerick provided stiffer opposition the following year, bringing the champions to a replay where dual player Con O’Callaghan, David Treacy and Mark Schutte all notched vital points to keep the trophy in Dalkey for another year.
The footballers were working away during that time. Coaches like Johnny Sheanon have been grinding for the last 30 years. And then they won the Dublin intermediate championship in 2012. Dublin’s nine-time All-Ireland winner Michael Fitzsimons is a familiar face from that group. Luke Treacy likewise. Small steps to the summit.
Allied with the impact of former Mayo footballer Austin O’Malley in the bainisteoir bib, the Cuala footballers have now made their breakthrough.
“There’s been no change, to be honest,” says Fay when asked if any extra effort was put towards bringing their footballers up to the standard of their hurlers. “We very much have a clear identity for each of the four codes.
“Austin’s brought a lovely style of play. I personally love it. He’s really level head and he’s been with those lads for a number of years.
“It’s not just somebody coming in overnight. They’ve seen the progress that Austin has made, and the building blocks that he has laid for them in the last few years.”
It’s been a long time since the success of the Na Fianna footballers. Three Leinster finals in-a-row in 1999, 2000, and 2001 with a victory in the second outing, was a highpoint in the club’s history. People of a certain vintage will recall how a young Dessie Farrell, Jason Sherlock and Kieran McGeeney were the heroes of that time. What they did left a lasting impact on everyone in the club.
“No one ever thought Na Fianna could get to a Leinster final,” says Feeney, “Never mind win one. It sparked a huge reaction among the kids. If you’re a child being brought to those games, you don’t forget.
“But in 1999, we were actually going down the divisions in hurling. We’d no players coming through. Our first minor team only came through the following year and that was our first minor team in 15 years and it has taken off from there.”
It’s worth noting that current Na Fianna manager — and the new Dublin boss — Niall Ó Cellacháin was on that minor team. And he was in charge when the club contested their first Dublin senior final in 2021, which ended in an extra-time defeat to Kilmacud Crokes. The same two teams were in the 2022 decider, where Na Fianna lost out again.
They got it right at the third time of asking with a comprehensive win over Ballyboden in the 2023 final, and completed a two-in-a-row this year.
“They’ve lost before they’ve won,” Feeney explains of Na Fianna’s rise. He has two sons on the current panel. Peter is a regular starter while Oisín is the sub goalkeeper.
“Losing the first county final was very deflating. The second one, I thought they played well personally. I know they got beaten but you just felt if they could get over Crokes, which they did in the quarter-final, I don’t think anyone was going to beat them last year in Dublin.
“The team has always had belief. Everyone forgets [that] we lost three Féile finals in-a-row. And that’s the bulk of that team. And we won four minors in-a-row which is just about the whole team.”
On the day they won their first county title, Cuala had chartered their own DART service to bring their fans to the Killester station which is close to Parnell Park. Pictures of the platforms draped in red and white appeared online, capturing the hope and excitement. Paddy Murdoch, a member of the club, organised it through a contact in Irish Rail, and will do so again for the Leinster final.
Ardee St Mary’s of Louth stand in their way, as they too hope to reach the summit of Leinster for the first time. Someone will make history in Croke Park on Saturday.
Later that evening, Na Fianna will get their second go in a provincial final. Naturally, the scoring threat of Adam Screeney and Charlie Mitchell will be something they must negate in order to ensure Kilcormac-Killoughey don’t spoil their mission. In the meantime, Declan Feeney is on cooking duty this week, providing meals for his two sons to help them ease through their preparation.
25 years after their footballers earned Leinster supremacy, Na Fianna are hopeful that their hurlers can repeat the trick.
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