Founded: 1956 Colours: Blue and White | County: Gloucestershire Grounds: Sanatorium Rd, Cardiff | |
St. Colmcilles Cardiff is a Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA) club that plays Gaelic Football and is based in Cardiff, Wales. The club is affiliated with Gloucestershire GAA and British GAA.
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The club provides enjoyment and exercise for the Irish and wider communities in Cardiff and the South Wales area. The club is always looking for new players of all levels and abilities. Please follow the links below for more information.
History
The Emmets were the original GAA club that operated in the Cardiff in the early 1900s, but they folded in 1915 due mainly to the outbreak of the first world war. Following the demise of The Emmets, Cardiff went without a GAA club until 1956 when the current club St. Colmcilles was founded. During this time the South Wales County Board collapsed and on the foundation of St. Colmcilles in 1956 the club was aligned with the Gloucester County Board. It was initially set up as a hurling club and wore purple and gold, reflecting the large number of Wexford men in the side.
At this time, so that both codes could flourish, there was an arrangement with near neighbours Newport's Pride of Erin that their footballers could hurl for Cardiff and the Cardiff footballers line out for Newport. St Colmcilles soon became a force to be reckoned with, winning the hurling league in 1961 and their first County Hurling Championship in 1967. This proved to be the first of 5 championships in 6 years, a remarkable achievement. However, the club fell on hard times following that glorious period and folded in 1976 mainly due to the lack of players. After nearly a decade of inactivity the club again sprang to life again in 1983, initially with underage football teams and a camogie side. A senior football was added as the club grew. It was at this reincarnation the club adopted their current colours of blue and white, following the trend set by the other major sporting clubs in the city.
Success soon followed with a first senior football county title coming in 1989, a year after the Under 14’s won the All Britain title in 1988 which remains the club's only top grade provincial title. Following this success the 90’s proved to a barren decade with years and inactivity and un-competitiveness. The late 90’s and early 2000s saw an influx of students that went on to become Cardiff stalwarts during the next decade.
As a result, the club is at present enjoying a golden period. The current senior side have won 7 of the last 11 Gloucestershire Senior Football Championships including an historic 4 in a row (2000, 2002, 2004, 2006–2009), as well as 3 of the last 5 Gloucestershire Senior Football League titles (2006, 2007, 2010).
There has been a renaissance in underage development with the U14 footballers capturing the British Provincial U14 Plate Championship in 2010. The underage membership of the club is increasing annually thanks a number of Club–School links that have been established in the Cardiff area.
This all bodes well for the club as they look to build on their current success and add more titles at underage and senior levels. This along with the formation of a ladies football team illustrates that the club continues to grow and more success is surely on the way.
Honours
Adult
Underage