Kilmacud Crokes () is a large Gaelic Athletic Association club located in Stillorgan, Dublin, Republic of Ireland.
Background
Kilmacud GAA club was formed in 1959 following a historic public meeting in Saint Laurence's Hall, where Stillorgan shopping centre now stands. The first meeting of the club took place on 12 March 1959. Sixty people attended the meeting and donated a shilling each, meaning the club made IR£3.30 on the night. The club decided to use green-and-white jerseys, but they later decided to use the gold-and-purple colours, some say because of the local school Scoil Lorcain Naofa who also use gold and purple, others say it was because blue are the colours of the crocus.
In 1963 the club purchased a -acre site behind the Ormonde Cinema as a permanent home pitch for themselves, Páirc de Burca, and in 1965 the adjoining Glenalbyn House was bought. In April 1966, Crokes hurling club joined up with Kilmacud football club. The name of the joint football/hurling teams was changed from Kilmacud G.A.A. club to Kilmacud Crokes G.A.A. club in 1971. In 1972, St. Benburbs Football Club of Clonskeagh joined with Kilmacud Crokes. St. Benburbs FC was famous because the first-ever All-Ireland Final was played on their ground in Clonskeagh in 1887. In 1973, a camogie section of the club was set up and in February 1996 a Ladies' Gaelic football Section was set up.
The club has installed an astro-turf GAA pitch at the paddock, an area formerly used as a carpark/training ground, a venture which was finished in September 2006, and constructed indoor and outdoor hurling walls during 2007.
The current football Senior team is managed by Robbie Brennan and Johnny Magee. Anthony Daly is the current hurling coach.
The Sevens
Kilmacud Crokes are also famous as the hosts of the Sevens football and hurling competitions each year. Separate competitions are held on the weekends of the various All-Ireland Finals in September. For example, the Football competition is held on the Saturday before the All-Ireland Football final and the Hurling competition is held on the Saturday before the All-Ireland Hurling final. The Sevens were first played in 1973 and have since become an integral part of the All-Ireland weekends and feature on sports news programmes. Famous players and officials from the GAA are normally present on the day. Discussions and previews of the All-Ireland final on the following day are the subject of a lot of the media broadcasts.
The competitions run from the morning through to the evening. The games are played at various locations in and around Stillorgan including Glenalbyn, Deer Park, St Benildus College, St Olaf's and Silverpark. The finals are always played in Glenalbyn. The games are played with teams of seven players with two-halves of ten minutes each. Erin's Own of Cork and Castlewellan of Down were crowned Hurling and Football Sevens Champions for 2006 respectively. Longstone of Down won the 2007 football competition.
Record
1990s
Kilmacud Crokes won the All-Ireland Senior Club Football Championship final on St. Patrick's Day, 1995 under the management of Tommy Lyons. Kilmacud Crokes, captained by Mick Dillon, beat Bellaghy of Derry with a scoreline of 0–8 to 0–5 in front of 18,544 fans at Croke Park. Mick Pender famously saved Damian Cassidy's (Bellaghy) penalty and won the title for Kilmacud. The game will be remembered as one of the coldest days club football final history.
Another county title followed in 1998. Crokes beat Na Fianna in the final. Wins over James Stephens, Kilkenny and Stradbally, Laois set up one of the most memorable Leinster club finals in recent years. Crokes played three games against Éire Óg, Carlow; they eventually lost however.