Buttevant GAA


Buttevant GAA club is a Gaelic Athletic Association club located in the town of Buttevant, County Cork, Ireland. The club was founded in 1884 and fields teams in both Gaelic football and hurling. The club is a member of the Avondhu divisional board. The club plays under the name Awbeg Rangers for football competitions.

History

Founded in 1884 by Fr. Con Buckley, Buttevant GAA has fielded teams in Hurling and Football since that time. The club has played in the former British army barracks since 1922, and officially took over the grounds from the state in the 1950s. Success on the field of play came in 1926 when the Intermediate Footballers won the Cork County Championship. The club also contested and lost the Intermediate Hurling Final in the same year. After numerous attempts, the club finally won the Cork Intermediate Hurling Final in 1940, the team was backboned by Cork's 'four in a row' All-Ireland winning fullback Batt Thornhill. Other players from the club to wear the Red and White of Cork included dual star Billy Mackessey, Peter 'Hawker' O'Grady, and Tommy O'Sullivan. Other success at adult level came in 1996 when the Hurlers won the Cork County Junior B title.
In the 1960s, the juvenile section of the club was formed and several North Cork titles were won in both codes. This included Football County Titles in U14 and U16 in the 1970s, with U16 and Minor Titles coming the club's way in the 1980s. The work done at this level continued when a separate Juvenile Club Micheal MacCarthaigh's was formed in 1994 - named after former player and soldier Michael McCarthy who lost his life on UN duty in the Lebanon in 1991. A strong Junior Team in both codes emerged in recent years, with the Hurlers winning the Club's first North Cork Junior Hurling A title in 2010 and the Junior Footballers contesting, and losing to Mitchelstown, the Club's first North Cork Junior final in 2013. The Minor A footballers got to the county final in 2013, losing to Castlehaven and then gaining this honor two years later when the side beat Macroom in October 2015.

Honours