Ratoath GAA

Ratoath GAA
C.L.G. Rath Tó
Founded: 1903
County: Meath
Colours: Blue & Yellow
Grounds: Seán Eiffe Park, Ratoath
Playing kits
Standard colours
Senior Club Championships
All Ireland Leinster
champions		 Meath
champions
Football: 0 0 0
Hurling: 0 0 1

Ratoath GAA is a Gaelic Athletic Association football and hurling club based in & around the town of Ratoath, in County Meath, Ireland. The club plays Gaelic Football competing in Meath GAA & Leinster competitions. The club has never won the Meath Senior Football Championship, however they do currently ply their trade in the Meath Senior Football Championship since 2016. The club has tasted Senior success in hurling, winning the Meath Senior Hurling Championship in 1963.

History

Ratoath was founded in 1903, however in this period it was solely a hurling. Ratoath won a Senior Hurling League title in 1912 (the first recorded honour for the club) and Junior Hurling Championships in 1929, '31, '40 and '57. For much of the 1950s, Ratoath amalgamated with surrounding clubs (Kiltale, Batterstown, Drumree, Skryne and some Priests from Warrenstown College) and won two Meath Senior Hurling Championships known as St. Patrick's in 1953 and '54. The 1960s were a golden period for Ratoath hurling. In 1960, Ratoath contested their first S.H.C. final, beaten by Trim on the day, however in 1963 they defeated St. Peter's Dunboyne to claim their first and only S.H.C. title. Down by 11 points during the second half, Ratoath battled battled to emerge victorious by a scoreline of 9-3 to 6-11 (30 points to 29). Ratoath went on to contest three more S.H.C. finals but lost out to Athboy (1967 & '68) and Kilmessan ('69). In 1981 and '83, Ratoath contested I.H.C. finals but were defeated by Kilskyre and Dunshaughlin respectively. Ratoath went on to annex another J.H.C. title in 1989, beating Kilmessan in the final.

The football section of Ratoath was founded in 1956 and they took part in the Meath Junior Football Championship. A J.F.C. wasn't attained until 1970 however, when they beat Navan O'Mahonys second string in the final. J.F.C. finals were reached 1992 and 2003, losing to Gaeil Colmcille's second string and Wolfe Tones respectively (Wolfe Tones went on to win the All-Ireland Junior Title. 2004 was a monumental year for the club. A J.F.C. title was claimed when beating Dunsany in the final, and Ratoath also went on to claim provincial honours. The Leinster Junior Club Football Championship was won with a final victory over Kilclonfert of Offaly, however in the All-Ireland semi-final, they bowed out to Stewartstown Harps of Tyrone. Their time in the Intermediate ranks were short lived though and the club soon dropped down to Junior once more. Moynalvey defeated them in the J.F.C. final of 2008 but Ratoath made amends for this in 2012, when a youthful squad defeated local rivals Donaghmore/Ashbourne's second string 1-11 to 1-10. Following this after just three years in the Intermediate ranks, Ratoath claimed their first Meath Intermediate Football Championship title when beating Nobber 1-15 to 0-5 with no fewer than five clubmen representing the Meath county seniors, and hence moving up to the Meath Senior Football Championship for the first time in the club's history.

Joined with Donaghmore, Meath Minor Football Championship honours were claimed in 1977 and '79 and in 1987 another title at the same level was gained, this time with St. Martin's. In 2011 Ratoath won their first ever M.F.C. beating Moynalvey in the final, and they successfully defended their title a year later this time against Donaghmore/Ashbourne. U-21 Football Championship titles were garnered in 2013 and '14 with wins over Donaghmore/Ashbourne (0-12 to 1-8) and Navan O'Mahonys (1-13 to 1-8) respectively.

Honours

Notable players

References

  1. ↑ "Ratoath take title after late scare". Irish Independent. 30 November 2015. Retrieved 2 December 2015.
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