Who Do You Think You Are?

1962 was a pivotal year in Ireland and in the World generally.  50 years ago, we were beginning to see immense changes in social and cultural lives.  We saw the very first Late Late Show and witnessed the birth of the Dubliners and the Chieftans.  It was the year of the Second Vatican Council and the communications revolution had begun with the launch of modern communications satellites – a fact celebrated that year with a chart topping “Telstar” by the Tornados.  Some things remained the same though.  Kerry won the Football and Tipp’ won the Hurling in what was first All-Ireland final to be broadcast live by Teilifis Eireann

Back on earth in Dalkey, 1962 was a pivotal year in the history of Cuala.  There were 2 strategic developments in the local GAA world – developments that were the critical foundations of our modern day club.

St Begnetts GAA Club was re-named Dalkey Mitchells and began plans to develop facilities in Hyde Road. (It’s very likely that the “Mitchells” title was chosen because there had been a team of that name (honoring the patriot John Mitchell) operating in the Glasthule/Glenageary area in the late 18and early 1900s but had become defunct). Dalkey Mitchells were to later release their Minors to another new club Roger Casements

Also in 1962, in Dun Laoghaire, a new boys club was founded drawing on pupils from CBS Dun Laoghaire and a recently disbanded club, St Michael’s of Sallynoggin. The new Club adopted the name Cuala Boys.  It was named after the Cuala Marian League (1953 – 1967, and whos officers included Seosamh Ó Drisceoil and Prionsias Ó Maolain). And it also resurrecting the name previously used by Cuala Hurling Club based in Dalkey since about 1918.

Having collaborated in setting up Roger Casements (1966), Cuala Boys & ‘Casements later fully-amalgamated as  Cuala Casements in 1967. By 1971, discussions were well advanced on an amalgamation between Dalkey Mitchels and Cuala Casements. In the meantime, Cuala Casements became informally associated with  Naomh Mhuire Camogie from 1972.  In 1974, Dalkey Mitchels and Cuala Casements merged to form Cuala Hurling & Football Club and retained their informal “association” with Naomh Mhuire.  Then, in 1979, Naobh Mhuire was formally accepted into Cuala as a new Section – thus bringing together Camogie, Hurling & Football under a single Cuala ‘roof’ and giving us the great club we know today.

Here’s our family tree –

 

Dalkey 1950s – As Most Of You Have Never Seen It

Cartlann Digiteach Cuala has become aware of this historic film footage of Dalkey, taken in the late 50’s courtesy of Dalkeyphotos.  Nearly 30 minutes or pure nostalgia.
It’s amazing how little has changed – except for the cows and the hens.  And there’s a brief glimpse of football action in Hyde Park . Was that Johnny Sheanon?

First Ever Football & Hurling Titles In Dalkey – 1961

Most onlookers will appreciate that Cuala is a very successful mix of teams catering for all ages and playing codes over a wide area of south County Dublin.  But how many realise that the very “DNA” of our great club is the product of a rich history of mergers and amalgamations of earlier teams and clubs in the Dalkey and Dun Laoghaire areas? This week marks the 49th anniversary of a significant milestone in the development of Adult Hurling in Dalkey.  St Begnets GAA, later renamed Dalkey Mitchels before amalgamating with Cuala Casements to form the club we all know today, won the Junior Hurling “C” League – Dalkey’s first Adult Hurling title.

Only 2 year previously, in 1959, our Footballing forebears in St Begnets had made their mark at Minor level by winning a League Title.

These achievements  earned their place in the O’Maoilean Album where you can now see pictures and how the media of the day reported the event.

Young & Old Rub Shoulders At Friends Of Dublin Hurling Awards

It’s considered polite when having friends ’round to dinner that you bring out the best silverware. The annual Friends of Dublin Hurling Awards night, held on Friday 18th Nov., was no exception.  It was a great opportunity for young Cuala stars to meets their more experienced counterparts.  Here we see (L to R) Oisin Gough, David Treacy  Paul Schütte & Mark Schütte with Scoil Uí Chonaill’s Larry Shannon – pictured below with Dublin in the All Ireland Final from 1961.   No doubt Larry will have given the Cuala boys a lot of helpful advice and encouragement being, as he was, the manager of the last Cuala team to win  the Dublin Senior Hurling Championship back in 1994.

Cuala History

Dalkey Mitchell’s Win Junior Hurling Championship – 1967

1967 was an extraordinary year for Dalkey Mitchell’s.  The Club (that had been born in 1959 as “St. Begnett’s”, and which had adopted its new name just 5 years earlier in ’62) won its first ever Junior Hurling Championship.  It was to be the start of a terrific run of form. The following year saw them secure the Intermediate Hurling Championship and the year after that, ’69, they had achieved Senior status.  Add another 5 years to the timeline and Dalkey Mitchell’s would be taking another bold step forward – an amalgamation with Cuala Casements/Naomh Mhuire to form the great club we know today as Cuala.

The range of material surrounding the historic win – newspaper cuttings, the Ó Maoláin Album and even a specially composed song – give us a sense of the excitement and achievement involved. A truly wonderful inheritance to inspire today’s players.

 

 

Harold Dalkey Win Johnston Mooney & O’Brien Cup – June 1955

The Ó Maoláin Album records that Harold Boys Dalkey first entered a Senior team in the Schools League in the 1954/55 season.  And what a debut it turned out to be for the young Dalkey hurlers. They made it all the way to the Division 3  Final in Croke Park and overcame Killester to lift the Johnston Mooney & O’Brien Cup. (See album Page below)

This team photo with names  was made available to Cartlann Digiteach Cuala by Harry Roberts.

Dublin Match Programme Celebrates Cuala Success – November 1991

When Dublin Hurlers took to the field against Galway in the NHL in 1991 it was only fitting that the Match Programme paid homage to some of Cuala’s stars who had achieved their second Senior County Championship the previous weekend.

And so it was Damien Byrne’s picture that adorned the cover and we were also presented with a Match Report and portrait of victorious Cuala Captain John Treacy.  On the field that day, Cuala was represented by Damien, John and Vinnie Holden.

You can now view the complete Match Programme

Dun Laoghaire Players Rub Shoulders With G.A.A. Aristocracy – 1886

” the teams presented themselves in gay and gorgeous costumes.”

Cartlann Digiteach Cuala is grateful to Michael Kennedy for drawing our attention to what is one of the earliest references to local players participating in an organised tournament.

Martin Bourke’s “G.A.A. History of Clonmore, Killea and Templemore” (Middleton, 1988) is a comprehensive account of the Association’s formative years in Templemore and surroundings. In Burke’s account of the period 1884 -1888, we find that footballers and hurlers from “Dunleary” were among 15,000 players who participated in a monster tournament in Thurles alongside other Dublin clubs including Bray Emmetts, Davitts and Faughs.

Remarkably, at least one of the matches was officiated by what can only be described as G.A.A. Aristocracy.  One of the umpires was J.K. Bracken * – a G.A.A. founder and the Referee was Maurice Davin – also a founder and first President of the Association. The timekeeper (modern officialdom please note !) was a certain Michael Cusack, another founding father and one of the first Runaís.  We note too that the teams marched to the Archbisop’s Palace to be greeted by Archbishop Croke, one of the first patrons of what was, initially, “The Gaelic Association for the Preservation and Cultivation of National Pastimes”.  And another historic point of interest on the day was that it was the first time “points” were introduced into the game.

One can only wonder whether the Dun Laoghaire men would have have had any inkling of the exhalted company they were keeping on that historic day or how their South Dublin decendants would, in more than 100 years into the future, be scrambling for tickets for “Davin” – Hill 16 and “Cusack” Stands to watch Cuala players in action in “Croke” Park.

* J.K. Bracken was the father of Brendan Bracken who was to become, during the Second World War, Churchill’s Minister for Information – and information is  a subject close to the heart of Cartlann Digiteach Cuala. We are always on the lookout for stories and records like this one.

Extract  –

“Easter Sunday 1886 brought special honour to the G.A.A. as a monster tournament with 15,000 present took place in Thurles. Point posts were erected for the first time, and the teams presented themselves in gay and gorgeous costumes. In hurling Nenagh played Moycarkey, Dublin Metropolitans played Holycross while Dublin’s outstanding football combinations – The Davitts, Bray Emmetts, Faughs and Dunleary were kept at bay by Rosanna, Thurles, Twomileborris and Templemore. In the football match Templemore V Dunleary the result ended in a draw but was drawn in favour of Templemore. I. K. Bracken and F. R. Moloney acted as umpires, Maurice Davin as referee and Michael Cusack as time keeper. Spontaneously, the crowds forgetting home, headed by Maurice Davin, John O’Leary and the Dublin bands, marched through the streets and to the Palace, to get the blessing and encouragement of the Archbishop. Visibly affected as he surveyed the sea of faces before him, Dr. Croke said amongst other things “You have today safely planted the G.A.A. and your magnificent tournament will ever constitute the premier page of Irish Gaelic history“.

Source: “G.A.A. History of Clonmore, Killea and Templemore”, Martin Bourke Pg 38.

Cuala Take Second Title In Three Years – SHC 1991

Hot on the heels of winning their first ever Senior Championship in 1989, Cuala were back in Parnell Park battling for Dublin honours against Craobh Chiaráin.  It was to be a hard battle – one that took two visits to Craobh’s back yard to decide.

We reproduce here the official Match Programme together with a Team Portrait and a match report which appeared in a subsequent National League Programme. (Thanks to Canice Dowling).

Most people leaving Parnell Park last Sunday after the Dublin County Hurling Final were wondering how on earth Cuala and Craobh Chiarain had drawn the previous weekend. For Cuala looked a different class and were worth every one of their eight points victory as they took their second title in three years. It took a last gasp point by Paul Nolan to keep Cuala’s championship hopes alive in the drawn match and they came out for the replay determined not to have it so close again. Early goals by Murty Dempsey and Dennis Byrne had Craobh Chiarain struggling and even though the Donnycarney men responded with a John Williams goal they still trailed by double figures at half-time — 2-2 to 1-1.It was all Cuala in the second half. They went straight into the attack and Maurice O’Callaghan was denied a score by a brilliant stop by Paul Gilton in the Craobh Chiarain goal. But with the pressure that Cuala were exerting a goal had to come and it duly arrived moments later when Murty Dempsey found the net for the second time in the match.The game as a contest was now over but Ciarans to their credit never stopped trying. However the major difference between this game and the drawn match was that Craobh Chiarain and Murty Ryan in particular were never able to gain the midfield dominance that they enjoyed the first day and it was a surprise to nobody when Maurice O’Callaghan added yet another goal to the Cuala tally.

Final Score: Cuala 4-6 Craobh Chiarain 1-7

Cuala had fifteen outstanding performers, but special praise must go to Vincent Holden, Carl Schutte, Mick Kirwan and their outstanding full-forward line.Paul Gilton, Eamon Rheinisch, Derek Finn and Anto McCord tried hard for Craobh Chiarain.

Cuala: Damien Byrne, C. O’Leary, J. Treacy, M. Holden, J. O’Sullivan, V.Holden, C. Schutte, C. O’Driscoll, M. Kirwan, M. Morrissey, M. O’Shea, P.Nolan, Dennis Byrne, M. O’Callaghan, M. Dempsey. Scorers: M. Dempsey (2-0), Dennis Byrne (1-1), M. O’Callaghan (1-0), V.Holden, C. O’Driscoll, M. Morrissey, M. O’Shea, P. Nolan (0-1 each).

Craobh Chiarain: P. Gilton, A. O’Toole, D. Kelly, M. McGuckian, P. Laird, E.Rheinisch, T. Ryan, M. Ryan, D. Finn, K. Hetherton, R. Burke, A. McCord, C.Ring, D. McCormack, J. Williams.Subs: G. Duggan for Ring, H. Hayes for McCormack, D. Ryan for Williams. Scorers: J. Williams (1-0), D. Finn (0-3), K. Hetherton (0-2), A. McCord, H. Hayes (0-1 each).

Referee: J. Horgan.

We are grateful to  Colm O’Leary for supplying the following media cuttings –

Cuala Hurling & Football – Minutes 11 March 1965

” members were asked to leave the meeting quietly”

In the aftermath of the British monarch’s historic visit to Croke Park, many commentators have welcomed the improved relationship between the GAA and the former colonial powers.   Of course, Cuala was way ahead of its time in fostering cordial relationships in the “Borough” – as evidenced by these club minutes from March 1965.