Stories, memories, and photographs from across the club community, brought together in one local archive.
Read Foreword10/08/2021
“I ended up getting involved in Lámh Dhearg because I was very friendly with Ciaran O’Neill and I was in his class in school. When I went to St. Mary’s CBGS I started playing Gaelic football and hurling but I wasn’t…
Read Story10/08/2021
Bukey has asked me to make a contribution on my Lámh Dhearg Journey which I will attempt as briefly as I can. It’s a great idea during these trying times. Constantly we have heard that we are all in the same boat, but…
Read Story04/01/2021
Early memories, Greenways and Bukey’s intervention: “There was no previous family involvement before myself, the first time I would have been involved in GAA would have been with Sarsfields. My Dad would have brought…
Read Story04/01/2021
How I joined the club I’ve always said my blood was red for a reason haha. My mums side of the family (Doherty’s) are Sarsfields through and through, my Grandpa Desi was a life servant of the club and similarly my late…
Read Story04/01/2021
Jim Brady is Chairman of the SW Antrim Cumann Na mBunscol Primary Schools’ Gaelic games organisation, coaches football at minor level in All Saints Ballymena and is the current Chairperson of All Saints club, but his…
Read Story04/01/2021
Early life and joining the club: “I first started playing Gaelic when I was in Mayo, we moved down to Mayo in 2000 when I was 7 or 8 years of age. I played for Breaffy for a couple of sessions [Aidan O’Shea’s club]. I…
Read Story04/01/2021
Meeting Pat and early memories: “We went to the local school together and met- it’s where the church is now [St Joseph’s Hannahstown] it was like a primary school. You went there until you were about 14 or 15 and then…
Read Story04/01/2021
“Hello, my name is Raymond Megahey- one half of the Ray and Marty duo- who worked in the Lámh Dhearg from 1981 to 1997 and this is my story of how it all happened…. Friendship with ‘The Beast’ and coming up to Lámh…
Read Story04/01/2021
Early memories with Rossa and move to Lámh Dhearg: “A guy that lived in a house backing onto ours in Corrib Ave- the late Danny Murray RIP– came over, I must have been about 12 at the time and he asked me if I wanted…
Read Story04/01/2021
Rather than conduct this interview over the phone, on Tuesday evening myself [Kevin], Bukey, and the ‘cousins’ Paddy and Beansy got together on a Zoom call which lasted 1hr and 45 mins and below are some of the…
Read Story04/01/2021
Paddy Early memories, St Teresa’s and family duals: “Both my families are from the Hannahstown- the Mervyn’s and the McGarry’s. From no age I was involved in the club, my uncles on both sides all played for the club,…
Read Story31/12/2020
Early Gaelic memories and joining Lámh Dhearg: “My Dad [Frankie snr] in 1948 returned from San Francisco- he went in early 1948 and spent 6 months over there and came back because my Granny didn’t like it. He lived in…
Read Story31/12/2020
“My home club is Moy, Tir na NÓg and I arrived at Glenside in Hannahstown in 1967 to work as a concrete technician with Ready-Mix concrete. At that stage they had got one plant and I had set-up home in a caravan in…
Read Story31/12/2020
Early career at Belcoo and St Michael’s Enniskillen: “Belcoo O’Rahilly’s was the club in Fermanagh that I played for- right on the border with Cavan. I went to the local primary school- St Colmbans and moved onto St.…
Read Story31/12/2020
Involvement through younger brother: “I would have first got involved in the club through Sean-Paul [my brother] playing and going up and watching his matches. Siobhan [my sister] and myself were up one night and there…
Read Story31/12/2020
Early memories: “Primarily I played a lot of hurling before I started getting into football, from primary school at Holy Child right through. Once upon a time there used to be street leagues between the likes of…
Read Story31/12/2020
Introduction to the club: “It’s quite an interesting story because it has a lot to do with the social politics of Belfast, in the early 1970s my family- my brothers, sister, my mother and dad, there were eight of us-…
Read Story31/12/2020
Joining Club/Family “I started playing for Lámh Dhearg when I was about 10 or 11 with my older brothers Jim and Kevin already playing for the club having been nabbed by Buke. My first memories are of Shanty & Buke…
Read Story31/12/2020
Peter Kane This island has a rich folklore for storytelling and it is very much part of our DNA. It is one of the reasons our Celtic culture has been maintained for hundreds of years. In the new Heritage Square located…
Read Story31/12/2020
Family connection: “My sisters [Caitriona, Fiona and Grainne] all got started through the influence of my father Michael [RIP] and mother Cecilia [RIP]. My Granda Herron [RIP] played for Coalisland na Fianna and…
Read Story31/12/2020
Early memories at Rossa and joining Lámh Dhearg: “I played for Rossa up until 1986, I played in a Minor Football and Hurling Final in 1979. We won Hurling against Loughgeil and were beaten by St Galls in the Football.…
Read Story31/12/2020
Underage career and struggles at minor: “I lived in Hannahstown from my birth and I played minor for Lámh Dhearg- there was no other underage football at the time. In fact, our Minor team- we had problems trying to…
Read Story31/12/2020
Kieran Megraw Early coming together, family links and education: “When we all moved up to Stewartstown at the start there was only the eight houses at the front. As things moved on Stewartstown and Hillhead became very…
Read Story31/12/2020
Geordie Fegan Pool and getting set-up by ‘The Beast’ “It was the bad old days and we used to have difficulty going here, there and everywhere. Everybody was on their nerves about it and playing pool was often a great…
Read Story31/12/2020
McQuillan’s and family connections: “My mum lived across the field from the McQuillan’s so when we were younger we would have been in Hannahstown. Apart from the fact that my Granda [John ‘Ginger’ McQullian] and uncles…
Read Story31/12/2020
Brendan McCloskey “I joined the club in 1986 – I previously played for Commedagh for a while, but when I went to La Salle were Bukey was my history teacher in 3rd year. There was a fella called Danny McCabe as well- he…
Read Story31/12/2020
Tony Stanley Becoming involved in Lamh Dhearg: “To be honest I was basically reared down in Milltown at St Galls and St Galls were the first side I trained with, but I never played a match for them- I just trained down…
Read Story31/12/2020
Barney Herron Early memories: “My Da was a Tyrone man and played for Na Fianna (Coalisland). There was a big interest in our house in football, GAA and the Irish language generally. My involvement and my families…
Read Story31/12/2020
Family ties: “I grew up immersed in the club – both my mummy and my daddy’s side of the families are members. My mummy’s mummy and daddy moved- originally to Finaghy Rd and then Hannahstown from Derry. I’m obviously…
Read Story31/12/2020
American journey and joining the club: “I went to America in 1987 and was in Philadelphia- I was playing football for a team called Philadelphia Shamrocks. They got you a job and got you a place to stay, I was playing…
Read Story31/12/2020
How did you become involved at Lámh Dhearg: “I’ve two boys – David is 16 and Joseph is 13, we live out in a farm so really we are very isolated. There isn’t a lot up around us in terms of where the kids can go out and…
Read Story31/12/2020
How did you first become involved in the club? “I think our Ciaran was three-years old and Kieran Megraw was a neighbour of mine. He asked me did I want to come up to join the club. I think training had just started at…
Read Story31/12/2020
First experience of the club: “I was lucky enough that I was forced into the club as young as I was. I remember I used to always go up to the club on a Saturday with Patrick and Daire – I would never join-in, I would…
Read Story31/12/2020
Early memories: “My early memories would have been going up to the old La Salle school- we used to train in the old gym on a Saturday morning and I was about four years of age. There are some class photos with all the…
Read Story31/12/2020
How you got started: “I actually didn’t start playing football until I was 27, I’m from North Belfast- Greencastle. There used to be a club called Wolfetones – before my time when my mum was wee. When the Motorway (M2)…
Read Story31/12/2020
Brendan McComb How do you become involved with the club? “I first got involved when I was 8-years of age- I had no family connections with the club or anything like that. I’d never even played Gaelic football before…
Read Story