Aghabullogue have long cemented their place in GAA history by becoming the first Cork team to win an All-Ireland senior hurling title. Now, 116 years on from that famous success, the Mid-Cork outfit are regarded as one of the leading rural-based dual clubs in the county, fielding teams at all levels. Aghabullogue GAA club has a long and distinguished history. In 1890, the Mid-Cork club represented Cork to win the All-Ireland hurling title, and in doing so became the first team from the Rebel County to achieve such a feat. That was back in the days when teams consisted of 21 players and one goal exceeded any number of points. The final against Wexford club Castlebridge was abandoned for excessive rough play by the men from the South-East, and the Cork representatives were duly awarded the title. Since then, Aghabullogue have experienced both the highs and lows, and despite their limited playing resources, have established themselves as a vibrant dual club which fields teams at all levels. They've made significant breakthroughs at adult level in recent years and have also been making quite an impression in the juvenile ranks. "For a small club, we're doing well to have teams in both the intermediate football and hurling championships," says Aghabullogue vice-chairman and PRO Peter Dineen. "While the club has a strong hurling tradition, we've been successful in football over the past few years and we try to treat both sports equally. We're placing a big emphasis on improving our underage structures and this is already starting to pay off for us." 2005 was a hugely successful year for Aghabullogue juvenile teams. For the second year in-a-row, the under 12 hurlers and footballers won the Mid-Cork league and championship. The under 13 footballers won a Mid-Cork/Carbery league title, while the minor hurlers were 'A' championship divisional winners. "We are fortunate to have so many good people working with the kids, in particular Jimmy Thompson, Tomas Healy and Pat O'Leary, who have been the real driving forces behind our underage revival." "While the success of our underage teams has been great, our main aim has been to get as many youngsters as possible playing GAA," Juvenile secretary, Jimmy Thompson explains. "We're trying to promote the fun element because it shouldn't be all about winning in the younger grades. This policy has worked well for us in that it has got more children and parents involved, and it could be argued that it has contributed to our recent success. "Because we're a small parish, we need to hold onto every player and keep the parents interested as well. We used to have a big fall-off after under 14 and under 16, but we are working towards addressing this in the future." Thompson believes the revival of the parish leagues has also played a part in Aghabullogue's improved underage fortunes. "We recently revived the parish leagues after a 15-year lapse and they have proven to be a great success. They've got everyone involved, including the new families who have recently come to live in the area. We are also working closely with the three primary schools in the parish" Club Chairman, Willie Barrett says "our parish is small and our population is not growing at the same rate as our neighbours. We do not have big housing developments as of yet and we will face huge challenges in the coming years when it comes to fielding teams. We will need all our players who are now playing at juvenile and minor level to continue to play football & hurling. There is no doubt that in time our parish will see a housing boom and Aghabullogue GAA must be prepared for it. We have to continue to develop and grow our club and grounds accordingly. We have recently received planning permission for dressing rooms and a stand at our new pitch and we are also looking at installing dugouts in both of our fields. A hurling alley and an improved lighting system is also being looked at. All these developments will require a huge amount of work and commitment from our members. We are very lucky to have some wonderful hard working people involved in this club. Some work with preparing teams from underage up to adult level. Some supervise at Discos and Cards, while others are involved with the running of the club and the hall, fundraising and the upkeep of our pitches and they deserve a huge level of thanks. To run a club with two intermediate teams, two junior teams and 12 other teams takes its toll on finances and we are very grateful of the contribution of our sponsors , Hogans, The Village Inn and Breathnach's Bar/Gala Supremarket. After their All-Ireland victory of 1890, Aghabullogue experienced many lean years on the hurling front before coming to the fore again in the 1940s and 1950s. But decline soon set in again and the club spent nearly four decades playing at junior level before beating Aghada to win the county junior hurling championship in 1991. They have competed at intermediate level ever since, and came close to achieving senior status in 2003 when they lost to neighbours Inniscarra by a 3-8 to 3-9 in the semi-final. Aghabullogue's interests in last year's intermediate championship were ended following replay defeats to Mallow and Bishopstown in the first round and losers' group respectively. Football wasn't played at adult level in Aghabullogue until 1979 when a team was set up to stop the drain of players to neighbouring clubs. "Our hurling team was suffering because lads were playing football for other clubs. This prompted us to set up our own junior football team and cater for everyone," Peter explains. In 2004, Aghabullogue announced their arrival as a force to be reckoned with in the big ball game when they defeated Adrigole by 1-9 to 1-7 to take the county junior championship for the first time. As a contest, the game only came to life in the closing stages when the men from the Beara peninsula instigated a late but ultimately fruitless rally. County player Brendan Jer O'Sullivan registered six of the losers eight scores, while a 56th minute goal from Fergus Casey set up a grandstand finish. But Aghabullogue - who had led by 1-9 to 0-5 with 10 minutes remaining - held on for an historic win. Bizarrely, Aghabullogue won the county championship before they won the Mid-Cork (Muskerry) championship that year. Peter recalls how this came about. "Because of Tom Kenny's involvement with the Cork hurlers, the Mid-Cork championship was held up and we were nominated to represent the division in the county championship. After winning the county, we had to come back to play Grenagh, which is Tom Kenny's club, in the divisional final and thankfully we managed to come out on top." In what was a hectic end to 2004, Aghabullogue also reached the Munster club junior football decider which they lost to a Finuge team that was backboned by Kerry stars Eamon Fitzmaurice, Paul Galvin and ex-Kingdom defender Eamon Breen. Aghabullogue endured a disappointing intermediate football championship campaign last year, but their junior side won a Muskerry league title. In this year's Muskerry intermediate hurling and football championships, Aghabullogue have drawn St. Finbarr's and Ballingeary respectively. "We're happy enough with the draws. I can see no reason why we can't win either game. Our hurlers will fancy their chances against what is St. Finbarr's second team, while John Hogan's footballers face a big local derby clash with Ballingeary, who won the Mid-Cork junior championship last year. "The only thing that might count against us is the fact that all bar two or three of our players are involved with both teams. Combining the two codes can take a lot out of players, especially when the two teams are going well." Off the field of play, Aghabullogue are also making great strides. The club has big plans for its new pitch in Coachford, and has raised a lot of money through the county board draw, which is coordinated by Peter's wife Karolyne. "We have over 500 draw members and all the money we've raised is going towards the development of our new grounds. Our aim is to provide top-class facilities for the people of Coachford, Aghabullogue and Rylane," he says. Arguably the biggest name to emerge from Aghabullogue is current Cork hurling manager John Allen, who played with the club before transferring to St. Finbarr's. Aghabullogue also boasts a thriving camogie section and won the county senior 'B' championship in 2004. The Aghabullogue club executive is - president: Padraig O'Donoghue; chairman: Willie Barrett; vice-chairman and PRO: Peter Dineen; secretary: Padraig O'Riordan; treasurer: Donal Lane; juvenile secretary: Jimmy Thompson; registrar: Bertie Herlihy; draw coordinator: Karolyne Dineen; county board delegates: Jerry Hubbard and Marc Sheehan; junior board delegates: Peter Dineen and John Crean; juvenile board delegates: Jimmy Thompson and Bertie Herlihy. Tweet

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