GAA clubs are the heartbeat of the local community and this is very evident in Kinnegad where the Coralstown/Kinnegad GAA Club have been carrying the torch, so to speak, for over a century.
They have a proud tradition and a fascinating history, from the dizzy heights of senior finals to facing relegation and having to battle back from the intermediate grade, which they successfully did. Furthermore, in terms of their club grounds, Coralstown/Kinnegad made the big move to their new home in the early noughties and can now boast state-of-the-art facilities which will serve for generations to come.
Coralstown/Kinnegad have been in 17 senior finals and won seven of those, the first in 1916 – the year of The Rising – and the most recent in 1996. The latter was the first of three senior finals in what were heady times for the club and it was a proud day when Joe Giles lifted the Flanagan Cup following their victory over Moate All Whites on a 2-10 to 0-10 scoreline.
Moate All Whites avenged that defeat a year later, while Athlone proved too strong in the ’98 decider, but they were three unforgettable years for the players and supporters of Coralstown/Kinnegad. After that came a slump and they found themselves being relegated to the Intermediate grade in 2010, but they made an immediate fight back as they captured the Intermediate title and brought home the Peter Geraghty Cup in 2011.
Their most recent success at adult level coincided with development at their new grounds and in 2008, Coralstown/Kinnegad were given permission to construct a new stand that caters for around 1,400 spectators. It is a superb venue, not just for Westmeath championship games, but for Leinster and All-Ireland competitions. Colleges competitions are also catered for at what has become one of the finest facilities in Westmeath.
The club officially opened its new facilities in 2013 when then GAA President Liam O’Neill was guest of honour and in 2018 they opened their new running track, which is very popular. They boast three pitches, an astro turf (all weather) training facility, four dressing rooms and a fully equipped gym.
Since their 2011 success at Intermediate level, Coralstown/Kinnegad have been competing well at senior level once again and the influx of some talented minor players has helped form a strong team, one that the club will hope can revive the glory days. Coralstown/Kinnegad have been a major force at under 16 and minor level for some years now and great work has been ongoing in relation to developing players for the future. It’s a policy that seems destined to pay off.
MEMORABLE VICTORY
Some legendary players have emerged since GAA took off in Kinnegad in 1889 (Kinnegad St Patrick’s), with likes of Andy Dunne, Gerry and Jimmy Kilmartin, Jack Giles, John and Peter Cooney all part of the 1929 side that tasted Junior glory. Senior titles were annexed in 1937, ’44, ’45 and ’46 and John Joe Flynn, Harry and Maurice Dunne were prominent names during that era.
Paddy Dunne would win a Leinster medal with Westmeath in 1956 even though that was a difficult decade for the club. For a time Coralstown and Kinnegad joined forces as St Finian’s and another senior title was captured in ’67, but incredibly there would be a 29 year wait until that memorable 1996 victory.
The emergence of players like Jack Cooney, Larry Giles, Joe Giles, John Fleming and Anthony Coyne contributed to a quality team, one that was more than capable of mixing it with the very best in Westmeath. A number of these players had come through a progressive underage system and great under 21 campaigns in 1987 and ’88 laid solid foundations.
They wouldn’t have anticipated that they are still awaiting another senior title some 24 years after the Flanagan Cup was last in Kinnegad, but such are the vagaries of sport and having got their hands on the Intermediate title in the intervening years, the focus will very definitely remain on returning to the top in the premier division.
The 2011 Intermediate success was a crucial one for such a strong club and there was as much relief as unbridled joy when Mark Gorman raised the Peter Geraghty Cup aloft. That 2-10 to 1-12 victory in a thrilling final came a year after they lost a relegation play-off to St Malachy’s and they have worked hard to consolidate senior status since.
The team was managed by Jack Cooney, who has since progressed to the inter county scene and was involved with Donegal before taking the Westmeath reigns.
Coralstown/Kinnegad also contested an under 21 final in 2011 and there has been great progress at the various underage groups. St Etchen’s National School, Kinnegad is a great nursery and some very talented teams have come through the Cumann na mBunscol competitions in the last decade, further underlining the great talent streaming through in Kinnegad.
DIFFERENT
GENERATIONS
Giles is a name synonymous with the club. Larry’s late father Pa lined out for the cub during less glamorous years in the 1950s. Fleming is another prominent Kinnegad name and John’s father Eddie was a club player during the 1960s. The tradition continues to this day as John’s son, Shane is one of the most talented players to have emerged from a superb underage structure and he is already making his name in the Westmeath jersey.
Jack Cooney, the current Westmeath senior football manager, joined Larry Giles, John Fleming and Anthony Coyne on the Westmeath side that made such great progress under Mattie Kerrigan in the early 1990s and they went all the way to the National Football League semi-final in Croke Park after defeating the reigning All-Ireland champions Derry on a memorable day in Enniskillen in 1994.
Cooney was one of the greats and his father, Dermot and uncle, Paddy were both Westmeath players in their time, so the baton was well and truly passed on.
John Joe Flynn and Tommy Monaghan were other noted Coralstown/ Kinnegad players.
Coralstown/Kinnegad, as a club on the border of Westmeath and Meath, have had to battle to hold their identity over the decades and have always been proud and passionate about Gaelic football.
Denis Coyne, who served as Chairman of Westmeath County Board from 1974 – ’80 was the club’s best known administrator. He served as Secretary of his club from 1962 to ’73 before becoming County Board Chairman and later he returned as Chairman of Coralstown/Kinnegad GAA Club. He was instrumental in the purchasing of a new club grounds in 1969, the club’s former facility which enabled Coralstown/Kinnegad to become the club it is today.
Growing population meant that demands for housing grew and Coralstown/Kinnegad took the opportunity to move across the road to a new and bigger venue in what was a very ambitious development, one which has really paid off as they now boast facilities that are the envy of most other clubs.
The committee for 2020 includes the following. Chairman: Joe O’Keeffe. Vice-Chairman: Bob McCauley. Secretary: Jim Rock. Assistant Secretary: Alan Plunkett. Treasurer: Kevin McGrath. Assistant Treasurer: Denis Leonard. Registrar: Áine Cleary. PRO: Áine Cleary. Irish Language Officer: Maureen Murray. Children’s Officer: Pat Geraghty. Club Designate: Jim Rock. Insurance Officer: Darren Holmes. County Board Delegates: Joe O’Keeffe, Cormac Darragh and Ciaran Goggins. Minor Board Delegate: Ken McNevin and Damien Kiernan. Underage Secretary: Niall Leydon.
Gaelic games brings the whole community together and it’s not just confined to the men in Kinnegad. The ladies have also been making their mark over the years and in recent times celebrated Intermediate glory. They compete at all levels in Westmeath.
The future looks bright for Coralstown/Kinnegad GAA who have over 40 coaches at underage level ensuring all young players are catered for. The club is also planning to develop a meeting room at their present location once the current Covid-19 emergency is over. It’s a case of building for the future in every sense.
