Stewartstown Harps
Encyclopedia
Stewartstown Harps is a Gaelic Athletic Association
club based in the village
of Stewartstown
in County Tyrone
, Northern Ireland
.
Unfortunately the Harps went out of existence at the end of the decade and it wasn't until 1957 that the club was reformed again. This reformation was down to the hard working Samuel Park and the club based its facilities in the townland of Mullaghmoyle. Since this reformation the Harps have been playing continuously ever since in the Tyrone leagues with a reasonable amount of success, most notably winning the O'Neill Cup in 1962. In the 1962 Tyrone Senior championship the Harps defeated teams such as Coalisland, Pomeroy and Urney on the path to the final. In the final the Harps met local rivals Derrylaughan Kevin Barry's and emerged victors on a 3-3 to 0-3 scoreline. There were jubilant scenes when team captain Paddy McNally received the O'Neill Cup from Paddy Cullen of the Tyrone County Board.
The Sixties and Seventies was undoubtedly the most celebrated era in the history of the club. Along with the Senior Championship in 1962, an Intermediate League was won in 1964 as well as Senior league titles in 1971, 1973 and 1975. The Harps also reached the Senior championship final in 1972 but a Frank McGuigan inspired Ardboe proved too strong. Apart from an Intermediate Championship triumph against Augher in 1980 the Eighties and Nineties were not as successful. Relegation to Junior football for the first time since the club was reformed occurred in 1988. However the Harps fought back and won promotion immediately the following year in 1989 by winning Division 3.
In 1990 the Harps reached the Tyrone Intermediate Football Championship
final but a severely weakened team proved no match for an Ardboe side who were Senior champions 3 years previously. Despite a good league showing that year as well, the Harps spent the next six years languishing in the lower regions of Intermediate football before being relegated to Junior football again in 1997. The Harps second spell in Junior Football only lasted two seasons as Intermediate status was regained for the year 2000 as a result of league restructuring. Three seasons of Intermediate football followed for the Harps before relegation back to Junior football again in 2002. Even though the Senior team was struggling there was still hope for the Harps as a strong youth policy was beginning to come to fruition. The U-16's won the league and championship double in 2001 while Minor leagues were won in 2002 and 2003. The majority of these players are now part of the Harps senior squad and they have now transferred this youth success onto the senior stage by winning Tyrone and Ulster Junior Club Football Championship
s in 2004 and in 2005 reaching an All-Ireland Junior Club Football Championship
Final. 2005 was also a big year off the field for the Harps as a new pavilion was built at Mullaghmoyle to replace the existing pavilion which had been built in 1974. 2006 was the year when the Harps finally gained promotion back to Senior Championship Football after a period of 26 years, and it was fitting that the Harps were back in senior ranks in 2007, 50 years after the present Harps club was reformed.
Gaelic Athletic Association
The Gaelic Athletic Association is an amateur Irish and international cultural and sporting organisation focused primarily on promoting Gaelic games, which include the traditional Irish sports of hurling, camogie, Gaelic football, handball and rounders...
club based in the village
Village
A village is a clustered human settlement or community, larger than a hamlet with the population ranging from a few hundred to a few thousand , Though often located in rural areas, the term urban village is also applied to certain urban neighbourhoods, such as the West Village in Manhattan, New...
of Stewartstown
Stewartstown, County Tyrone
Stewartstown is a small village in County Tyrone, Northern Ireland, close to Lough Neagh and about from Cookstown, from Coalisland and from Dungannon. In the 2001 Census it had a population of 608 people.-History:...
in County Tyrone
County Tyrone
Historically Tyrone stretched as far north as Lough Foyle, and comprised part of modern day County Londonderry east of the River Foyle. The majority of County Londonderry was carved out of Tyrone between 1610-1620 when that land went to the Guilds of London to set up profit making schemes based on...
, Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland is one of the four countries of the United Kingdom. Situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, it shares a border with the Republic of Ireland to the south and west...
.
History
Harps Gaelic Football Club was founded in 1912 and played in the East Tyrone league until 1918. The Harps reformed in 1923 to play in the Stewartstown District (East Tyrone) league and we then won the first of our two Tyrone Senior championships a year later. On our way to championship victory in 1924 the club defeated Beragh Red Knights by 3-5 to 2-3 in the semi-finals and then Omagh Coleman's in the final by 0-18 to 0-4. The Harps were also East Tyrone Senior League Winners as well that year.Unfortunately the Harps went out of existence at the end of the decade and it wasn't until 1957 that the club was reformed again. This reformation was down to the hard working Samuel Park and the club based its facilities in the townland of Mullaghmoyle. Since this reformation the Harps have been playing continuously ever since in the Tyrone leagues with a reasonable amount of success, most notably winning the O'Neill Cup in 1962. In the 1962 Tyrone Senior championship the Harps defeated teams such as Coalisland, Pomeroy and Urney on the path to the final. In the final the Harps met local rivals Derrylaughan Kevin Barry's and emerged victors on a 3-3 to 0-3 scoreline. There were jubilant scenes when team captain Paddy McNally received the O'Neill Cup from Paddy Cullen of the Tyrone County Board.
The Sixties and Seventies was undoubtedly the most celebrated era in the history of the club. Along with the Senior Championship in 1962, an Intermediate League was won in 1964 as well as Senior league titles in 1971, 1973 and 1975. The Harps also reached the Senior championship final in 1972 but a Frank McGuigan inspired Ardboe proved too strong. Apart from an Intermediate Championship triumph against Augher in 1980 the Eighties and Nineties were not as successful. Relegation to Junior football for the first time since the club was reformed occurred in 1988. However the Harps fought back and won promotion immediately the following year in 1989 by winning Division 3.
In 1990 the Harps reached the Tyrone Intermediate Football Championship
Tyrone Intermediate Football Championship
The Tyrone Intermediate Football Club Championship is an annual Gaelic Athletic Association club competition between the 16 Tyrone clubs competing in Division 2 of the Tyrone All-County Football league.The winners of the Tyrone Championship qualify to represent their county in the Ulster...
final but a severely weakened team proved no match for an Ardboe side who were Senior champions 3 years previously. Despite a good league showing that year as well, the Harps spent the next six years languishing in the lower regions of Intermediate football before being relegated to Junior football again in 1997. The Harps second spell in Junior Football only lasted two seasons as Intermediate status was regained for the year 2000 as a result of league restructuring. Three seasons of Intermediate football followed for the Harps before relegation back to Junior football again in 2002. Even though the Senior team was struggling there was still hope for the Harps as a strong youth policy was beginning to come to fruition. The U-16's won the league and championship double in 2001 while Minor leagues were won in 2002 and 2003. The majority of these players are now part of the Harps senior squad and they have now transferred this youth success onto the senior stage by winning Tyrone and Ulster Junior Club Football Championship
Ulster Junior Club Football Championship
The Ulster Junior Club Football Championship is an annual Gaelic football tournament played between the hundreds of junior football clubs in Ulster. There are nine county championships between the nine counties of Ulster. The nine winners go on to play each other in the Ulster Club Championship in...
s in 2004 and in 2005 reaching an All-Ireland Junior Club Football Championship
All-Ireland Junior Club Football Championship
The All-Ireland Junior Club Football Championship is a Gaelic football competition started up in 2004 to be played by the winners of the Junior Club Championship from each County. Prior to that a number of unofficial competitions were held...
Final. 2005 was also a big year off the field for the Harps as a new pavilion was built at Mullaghmoyle to replace the existing pavilion which had been built in 1974. 2006 was the year when the Harps finally gained promotion back to Senior Championship Football after a period of 26 years, and it was fitting that the Harps were back in senior ranks in 2007, 50 years after the present Harps club was reformed.