Portaferry GAC

Portaferry GAC (Irish: Port An Pheire) is a GAA club in the east of County Down in the Ards Peninsula. It is one of three Senior Hurling Clubs in Down, the other two being Ballygalget GAA and Ballycran GAA.

Portaferry
Port An Pheire
Founded:1912
County:Down
Colours:Blue and Yellow
Grounds:St. Patrick's Park
Coordinates:54°22′28″N 5°31′48″W
Playing kits
Standard colours
Senior Club Championships
All Ireland Ulster
champions		 Down
champions
Hurling: 0 1 21
The club grounds, St. Patricks Park on the Ballyfounder Road.

History

The depth of the hurling tradition in the Ards can be gauged from the fact that the game was first played on the Peninsula as early as 1900 by Portaferry Carraig Uladh.

But it was Ned Purcell, an agricultural inspector from Tipperary, who laid the real foundations between 1912 and 1917. His influence not only left Portaferry with the Tipp colours, but also Tipperary skills and love of the game.

Locals such as John Emerson, John McCullough, John and Eddie Dumigan and Fr Toal carried on where Ned left off and such was the interest that 4 teams from Portaferry competed in the Ards Gaelic Association during the early Twenties. Thiswas rewarded with Carraig Uladh's first S.H.C. title in 1926 and their winning of the Antrim League title in 1929.

The tradition was sustained, in both Antrim and Down leagues in theThirties, but the war years, with travel curtailed, saw the Ards thrown once more back on its own resources, and the formation of clubs in Ballycran and Ballygalget with wholehearted assistance from Portaferry.

The club's modern period date from 1948 when it was reformed as St. Patrick's under the guidance of the Very Rev. George Watson and by 1950 had moved into its new pitch at St. Patrick's Park.

Progress was slow but steady through the Fifties. In 1960 Portaferry gained entry into the Antrim League Division II, won promotion and won its first Down S.H.C. title as St. Patrick's. Many more County titles have been added since and the club have produced many players of inter-county and inter-provincial calibre.

In 2002 Portaferry won their third Down County Hurling Senior Championship in a row as well as lifting the Antrim Division one league title.

Honours

Recent Times

Portaferry Hurling club have still competed at the highest level of Ulster Hurling in both Senior, Intermediate and Junior. They are still in the Division 1 Antrim League and last won the county Championship in 2014 and won their first ever Ulster Senior Club Championship on 2 November 2014.

Ciara Mageean's cousin Conor plays hurling for Portaferry and she watched him win the 2020 Down Senior Hurling Championship.[5]

Notable players

Current Hurling Squad (2014 Year Ulster Championship Final)
No. Player Position Club
1 Karol Keating Goalkeeper {{{club}}}
2 Connor O'Prey Right corner back {{{club}}}
3 Conor O'Neill Full back {{{club}}}
4 Caolen Taggart Left corner back {{{club}}}
5 Matthew Conlan (Hurler) Right half back {{{club}}}
6 John Convery Centre back {{{club}}}
7 Ciaran Coulter Left half back {{{club}}}
8 Andy Savage Midfield {{{club}}}
9 Paul Braniff Midfield {{{club}}}
10 Aaron O'Prey Right half forward {{{club}}}
11 Kevin McGarry Centre forward {{{club}}}
12 Eoghan Sands Left half forward {{{club}}}
13 Robert Magee Right corner forward {{{club}}}
14 Conor Mageean Full forward {{{club}}}
15 Sean Mageean Left corner forward {{{club}}}

References
  1. "Sands the man as Portaferry sink Cushendall". www.rte.ie. 2 November 2014. Retrieved 2 November 2014.
  2. "Ulster club SHC final: Portaferry shock 'Dall". Hogan Stand. 2 November 2014. Retrieved 2 November 2014.
  3. "Down SHC: 'Ferry goals see them to title success". Hogan Stand. Lynn Group Media. 1 October 2012. Retrieved 1 October 2012.
  4. "Down SHC final: 14-man Portaferry hold on". Hogan Stand. 29 September 2014. Retrieved 29 September 2014.
  5. "Ciara Mageean celebrates as cousin Conor helps Portaferry win Down hurling title". BBC. 26 September 2020. Retrieved 26 September 2020.
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