Club Gaa: | Youghal GAA |
Irish: | Eochaill |
Founded: | 1891 |
Province: | Munster |
County: | Cork |
Nickname: | The Seasiders |
Colours: | Maroon, White and Yellow |
Grounds: | Copperally & Magners Hill |
Website: | YoughalGAA.ie |
Coordinates: | 51.9522°N -7.8594°W |
Pattern B: | _yellowhorizontal |
Leftarm: | 800000 |
Body: | 800000 |
Rightarm: | 800000 |
Shorts: | FFFFFF |
Socks: | 800000 |
Youghal GAA is a Gaelic Athletic Association club based in the town of Youghal, in County Cork, Ireland. The club fields both Hurling and Gaelic football teams and also has junior camogie and ladies football teams. The club is a member of Cork GAA and Imokilly divisional board.
In 1891, the men of Youghal formed the Youghal GAA Football club (Cumann Luthcleas Gael Eochaill). Organised Gaelic football was played in Bill Farrell's field at Frogmore. The club then transferred to another field up towards the Asylum Cross in 1894, and to Copperalley in 1899. Gaelic handball was also played, but declined in the early 1900s, and was revived in the early 1920s, for a long period of time, when the Garda Barracks, at Catherine Street, had a ball alley.
Hurling began its growth in Youghal in the 1940s. The grounds at Copperalley were not owned by the club. Negotiations began in 1966 for the outright purchase of the grounds and negotiations were completed in the early 1970s. The club carried out substantial work and officially re-opened the field on 16 June 1974. The opening ceremony was performed by the then President of Ireland, Erskine Childers. On 11 December 1985, a contract was signed for the purchase of ground, from the Southern Health Board, at Magniers Hill, adjacent to St. Raphaels Hospital. This ground is used by the club's schools and under-age players. A further phase of development saw an investment of almost 1 million pounds in developing a third playing field, the fencing in of the property and the building of a community hall.
The original club jerseys were a maroon jumper, knitted, with a yellow stripe. The club could not initially afford to purchase jerseys, and so a fundraising "terrier coursing" event was held in Copperalley in 1924. The money raised enabled the club to purchase the first set of jerseys, which were green and gold. They remained the club colours until the 1960s, when the club reverted to the maroon and gold.