Unique event to celebrate one of Antrim football’s greatest eras
The remarkable story of one of the greatest periods in Antrim football history will be brought to life at a special event in Belfast early next month.
Register now- History of Antrim football - link
GAA historian and author Dónal McAnallen will deliver a lecture exploring the Antrim football teams of the 1920s through to the 1940s, with a particular focus on the celebrated 1946 team whose All-Ireland Championship campaign ended in controversial circumstances against Kerry.
The event, “The Story of One of Antrim’s Greatest Football Teams – A History of Antrim Football 1926–1946,” will take place at St Mary’s University College, Belfast, on Friday 6 November at 7pm.
As well as McAnallen's lecture, the evening will hear from family members of some of the players who represented Antrim during this extraordinary period, bringing a personal dimension to the story of a generation which came tantalisingly close to making Gaelic football history.
In retrospect the 1940s in particular represented a golden period for Antrim football. For three consecutive years, Antrim were knocked out of the Championship by the team that would go on to become All-Ireland champions, demonstrating just how competitive the Saffrons from that era were in the chase for All Ireland championship glory.
The evening examine the players, clubs and personalities who helped establish the county as a serious force in Gaelic football.
Dónal McAnallen said:
“This was a truly special era in the history of Antrim football and one which deserves to be much better known. Antrim were competing with – and coming very close to defeating – the very best teams in Ireland.
“The 1946 team is particularly fascinating, not least because of the controversial circumstances surrounding the defeat to Kerry, but this event is about much more than one match. It is about remembering an exceptional generation of Antrim footballers and putting their achievements in their proper historical context.
“We are especially pleased that family members of some of those players will join us. Their memories and family stories will help us understand the people behind the names and the significance of what they achieved.”
Event organiser Hugh McGettigan has compiled a detailed and informative booklet which will be available to buy at the event and explains what drove him to help put the spotlight on this era.
“We haven’t really made a mark in the senior championship since that era and have not appeared in an All-Ireland Senior Football Championship semi-final since 1951. To me that underlines the exceptional standing of the teams which competed more in the 1920s and the 1940s. The names of the players and the clubs they came from resonate down the generations and this is a chance to give them a bit of the spotlight they deserve.”
The evening is expected to appeal not only to Antrim GAA supporters but to anyone interested in the history of Gaelic games and the social and sporting history of Belfast and County Antrim.
The Story of One of Antrim’s Greatest Football Teams – A History of Antrim Football 1926–1946 takes place at St Mary’s University College, Belfast, at 7pm on Friday 6 November 2026.
The booklet will be available to purchase on the night for £10.
You can register, at no cost, for the event here History of Antrim football - link
