Founded: 1888 Colours: Black and Amber | County: Kildare Football: 0 | |
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Grounds: St Brigid's Park, Kildare
Friary Field, Kildare | ||
Round Towers is a Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA) club based in Kildare in County Kildare, Ireland winner of 10 Kildare county senior football championships in all, six as Round Towers, three as Kildare and one as St Patrick's. Glenn Ryan featured on the Kildare football team of the millennium and was an All Stars Award winner in 1997 and 1998. Karl O'Dwyer (son of the Kerry Great Micko Dwyer) and Brian Lacey were All Stars Award winners in 1998, and former Wexford hurler and 1989 All Star Eamon Cleary played for the team in the 1990s. A separate club, Naomh Bríd or St Brigid's organises hurling in the town. Three Naomh Bríd players, Tommy Burke, Jack O'Connell, and Pat White were chosen on the Kildare hurling team of the millennium. The Fitzpatrick family founded another club, Mooretown, in the district – its only honour was the Junior C Championship of 1982.
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History
S. J. Brown established the first Kildare town club in 1888, called St. John's; they became Sons of St. Brigid the next year, and contested the 1891 county final against Mountrice. They merged with Tully Shamrocks in the 1900s and became Kildare Shamrocks. In 1906–07 they took the name Round Towers.
James Cummins was the star of the first great Round Towers team in the 1920s. Kildare town and Maddenstown clubs amalgamated in the 1920s, bringing Paul Doyle to the Kildare team/ Bill "Squires" Gannon was on the winning team in 1927, enabling him to captain Kildare and become the first to receive the Sam Maguire Cup the following year. Kildare won titles in 1929 and 1930, the only Kildare championship to be played on a league system. After being routed by Naas in the final of 1931, a Kildare Sarsfields club contested the intermediate championship. Kildare combined with Rathangan for the senior championship, now run on a parish basis, going to the final in 1935 when they were trounced by Raheens, but meeting little other success. They changed the name to St Patrick's in 1938 and won the championship on a walkover from Ellistown, and lost to Ellistown in the 1939 final. After Round Towers were founded Ned Treacy, Paddy Loughlin, Ned Loughlin and Seamus Aldridge were on the 1950s teams that won the 1954 county final by a point, beat Kilcock in 1959, Carbury in 1961 and lost county finals to Kilcock in 1958 and 1959 and Clane in 1963, Glenn Ryan's team bridged a gap stretching back to 1961 when they beat Johnstownbridge 1–13 to 0–10 in the 1996 final. A Shane "Deelers" Daly goal within a minute put them on course to a 2–8 to 0–4 victory over Clane in the 1998 final. Another early goal from Padraig Golden put them on course for the tenth title when they beat Kilcock 2–14 to 1–9 in 2003.
Round Towers were relegated to intermediate football in 2012 after a defeat by 1 point to St Kevin's in the relegation play-off.
Hurling
Naomh Bríd or St Brigid's, the Kildare town hurling club joined with Rathangan CLG, had become known as Ger Tiernan's club. Two Tipperary men, Edward Madden and Bill Cullagh had founded the club in 1949. During the 1950s Ger Tiernan, Tom Mangan, Joe Finlay and Dick McCarthy played for the county but the club never made it into senior ranks, despite a series of under-age successes from 1957 on. The advent of Jack O'Connell, John O'Leary, John Corcoran, Joe Corry and Pa White saw Brigid's win the Junior League in 1969, the junior championship in 1970, lose one fine clash with Éire Óg by 4–10 to 3–10 in 1973 and lose the 1975 semi-final.
They lost their debut county final in against Ardclough in 1976 by two points after a thrilling final. Brigid's led 2–5 to 1–6 at half-time, the sides were level for the second time going into the last quarter, and Ardclough took the lead for the first time in the 48th minute. In 1978 Naomh Bríd won championship,beating Ardclough by 3–10 to 2–9, John O'Leary, Fintan Healy and Seanie Barry getting the goals.