History

Tyrone’s great achievements in winning the All-Ireland senior football championship in 2003, 2005, 2008 and 2021, along with a host of other successes on and off the field of play, were the culmination of years of dedication, perseverance and courage. They were the realisation of a dream cherished by generations of Tyrone followers since the establishment of the GAA in the county in 1904.

The journey, however, from the small beginnings of the early 1900s to the glorious successes of the present century was a long and arduous one. It was marked by many difficulties and challenges, near collapse, revival, consolidation, breakthroughs, setbacks, fresh hopes and false dawns. It was not until 1956 that Tyrone succeeded in winning an Ulster senior football title for the first time. It was to be another thirty years before the county contested its first All-Ireland senior final.

This brief summary is the story of the efforts of successive generation of players, administrators and supporters to keep the Association alive and vibrant in Tyrone and of the triumphs and disappointments of the past one hundred years.

The first history of the GAA in Tyrone is to be found in single volumes, written by Joseph Martin and published by the Tyrone County Board:

• The GAA in Tyrone: 1884-1984

The full history of the GAA in Tyrone is to be found in two volumes, written by Joseph Martin and published by the Tyrone County Board:

• The GAA in Tyrone: The Long Road to Glory, 1884 – 2003
• The GAA in Tyrone: The Road to Greatness, 2004 – 2005

Contents are copyrighted by the Tyrone County Board and the author. Extracts may be reproduced, subject to acknowledgement of the source.

1910 – 1920 Struggle for Survival

1920–1930 A Second Spring

1930–1940 The West’s Awake

1940 – 1950 All-Ireland Minor Football Glory

1950–1960 Supreme in Ulster

1960–1970 A Dismal Decade

1970–1980 Early Promise

1980–1990 The Long Watched Day

First Club – Cookstown Owen Roe O’Neills, 1889

First County Board, 1904

GAA Oral History Project