Eire Og GFC London
There has always been a strong Irish presence in north London, particularly in Camden and Islington, and there has been a GAA presence here over many years. After Holloway Gaels GFC ceased to exist some years ago, there was a large football-shaped void left amongst the Irish community in this part of London.
A group of former Gaels players, who had been only played football at underage level, got together under the direction of Luke Callinan, a London-born Irishman with strong Clare roots, and began to have a weekly kick-about in Finsbury Park. They soon realised the appetite for something more structured, and the potential any new club would have, and they approached Gary Dunne, a Laois man based at the London Irish Centre, for help and advice. Over some months, the club gradually began to take shape, with the addition of Islington-based Armagh man, Conor McGinn, and experienced GAA administrator, Paddy Corbett from Mayo, to the steering group. All the time the core group of players whos ambition and determination drove the project diligently trained every week in Finsbury Park, in anticipation of being part of something new and special, and that finally came to fruition when Éire Óg CLG registered with the London GAA County Board in February 2011. The club motto Is fiú agus is féidir, translates as It is worth doing and it can be done.
The club met with Haringey Council and outlined their vision for promoting and developing Gaelic Football in the borough. They soon established that Downhills Park was unused and had changing rooms that were boarded up. Eire Og received permission from Haringey Council and the Friends of Downhills Park to install a Gaelic football and Rugby pitch in the park. They installed the football posts in July 2014. The club vision is to promote Gaelic Football in the local community, schools and borough.
