Celebrations as Cloneen GAA mark 40 year anniversary

It was a fab 40th for Cloneen GAA club as they celebrated a special anniversary recently.

In 1984 a group of local men came together to start a hurling club. With a lot of interest locally the club was formed, with a team entered in the Junior B grade in Kilkenny championship. In 1987 the club won their first ever Junior B hurling championship. They followed that up by winning the Junior A championship a year later, bringing them into the junior grade.

Twelve years ago the club entered a second team at Junior D where the team won the championship in 2020. This year the junior hurlers won the Division Three title in the Leinster League.

As time moved on the desire and ambition of the club was to have their own grounds. Land was purchased, with a lot of effort put into the development of the field and building of a clubhouse, which also has a 40x20 handball alley.

In recent times the club has continued to make great progress. The latest addition was the construction of a hurling wall, which was officially opened by Kilkenny County Board Chairman PJ Kenny. A memorial was also unveiled in memory of club hurler Cian Mooney who tragically died two years ago.

Over the years the club has catered for juvenile teams from under-six upwards. Cloneen has competed well in competitions, with some league success. The club also continues to work at promoting juvenile hurling.

The committee thanked all who have contributed to the club over the past 40 years and to all who continue to support Cloneen.