"I get as excited now playing a junior league match as I did before a senior county final in front of 6,000 or 7,000 people"
The emerging growth of Irish language GAA clubs in recent years has seen an increasing number of elite GAA players deviating from the traditional race for senior championships to focus their talents and attention on building new Irish language communities, off the pitch and on it. With Irish language GAA clubs sprouting up in Dublin, Galway and Belfast since the turn of the decade, Dublin club, Na Gaeil Óga have released a new video investigating the motivations of one such player, former senior inter-county player Padráig Ó Fearghail.
Originally from Roundwood in Wicklow, Padráig spent 15 years playing with St Aidan’s, Ferns in Wexford. Padráig developed a strong reputation during this period playing underage for Wexford and senior for Wicklow. He was a key part of the Ferns team who won the Wexford Intermediate Championship in 2007 and who went on to run all-conquering Oulart the Ballagh to two points in the 2013 Wexford Senior County Final.
Speaking about the reasons he decided to move to Na Gaeil Óga, Ó Fearghail said:
"Every GAA club has a unique identity but the majority of these identities are focused on geography, with Na Gaeil Óga the identity if focused on the Irish language and that is more important for me".
Ó Fearghail decided to join Na Gaeil Óga in 2017 at the age of 29 and he played a key role as the hurling team went on to become the first Irish speaking team in Dublin in over 100 years to win any silverware when they won Division 8 of the Dublin Hurling League. Na Gaeil Óga’s hurlers also lost in the championship final, still managing to secure championship promotion for the second year in a row in the process.
Ó Fearghail is part of an emerging generation of elite players who are turning their attention to building Irish speaking clubs around the country. He is joined at Na Gaeil Óga by former Donegal county man Rónán Mac Niallais and a host of ex-senior club players, county underage stars and players with Fitzgibbon and Sigerson Cup experience.
The clubs are seeing massive results on the pitch Na Gaeil Óga adult footballers have secured promotion five times in the last six years, while as mentioned the hurlers are flying through the leagues. Additionally, the club has vibrant ladies football, camogie and juvenile sections. Gaeil na Gaillimhe in Galway are only in their second year and already have two adult teams. While the recently established Laochra Loch Lao of Belfast have already two adult football teams and a vibrant underage structure up and running.
Speaking about the impact of such elite players Cathaoirleach of Na Gaeil Óga CLG Eoin P. Ó Murchú remarked:
"It’s a big statement for all the players involved but it’s a massive vote of confidence from players like Padráig and Rónán in the ongoing work to build vibrant sporting communities through the medium of the Irish language. In the future when there are 50 speaking clubs across the country, I’m sure people will look back at the likes of Padráig & Rónán as real leaders. People who gave the Irish language speakers the courage and confidence to create communities of Irish speakers striving to play sport at the highest level"
Any players interested in joining Na Gaeil Óga and pioneering one of the country’s most vibrant sporting and linguist movements can get more information by emailing cumannclg@gmail.com
