AIG visit Round Towers Clondalkin in the next installment of the Dub Club Chronicles Series
Founded in 1884 Round Tower Clondalkin GAA is a pillar of its community. Its long history is now woven in with its pride in promoting the Irish language. Also its youthful growth, strong development of ladies football and Camogie and a very important community foundation. The club of current Dublin football manager Jim Gavin, this club boasts many great people past and present.
The club boasts 50 Teams, 1200 members. And Juvenile Chairman Alan Milton explains the clubs roots in the Irish Language. A lot of the children who attend Round Towers go to local Irish speaking schools. So it only natural that the club portrays a positive attitude towards the language. As a result Clondalkin is seeking the status of an area within a new Irish Language network.
Dublin Senior Football Manager Jim Gavin tells AIG that Round Towers is very much in his blood and the club has been so good to him. Jim has so many great memories of his time with the club and he is delighted to see how much Towers is growing. He recalls his memories of his Dad on the sideline encouraging him as a young boy. The Dublin boss name checks some great managers who looked after him over the years like Seamus Egan, Ted Keane and Pat Mangan.
The 1965 Senior Football Championship Final
Former Club President Tommy Keogh explains the history behind the clubs inclusion in the Towers reaching the senior championship final in 1965. The played UCD in the final but were beaten by 0-07. They earned their right to be there by winning the Intermediate League and Championship the previous year. And despite losing the senior final, Tommy recalls the whole of Clondalkin attending Croke Park for that final.
Alan Minton pays tribute to former club Member Ciaran Carr, who sadly passed away at the age of 20 while training with the Towers Senior Football team. In his memory a foundation in his name was set up to raise awareness of Sudden Adult Death Syndrome (S.A.D.S.). And thanks to the foundation there are defibrillators in the club and all other sports clubs and schools in the Clondalkin area.
Growth and Interest
Dean Alford, Juvenile Secretary, tells AIG how their new facilities at Monastery Road have helped increase the number of kids attending Round Towers every weekend. And dual player Emma O’Malley explains how important it is to keep girls involved in both Camogie and Ladies Football. Ian Ward tells us of the club’s ultimate goal of getting players onto the Senior Football & Hurling Inter County Teams.
Fifteen years ago Round Towers only had one ladies football team. Now Marie Crotty proclaims that the ladies part of the club is one of the biggest sections for growth. And her ambition is to one day hit Leinster and All Ireland with the Round Towers ladies of all ages.
Watch Volume #17 of our Dub Club Chronicles series to find out what it means to be a part of this special Dublin GAA club.
video credit: AIG via YouTube