Balla GAA club are this weekend hosting a number of events to mark the 140th anniversary of its founding and to celebrate the people who have shaped the club over almost a century and a half.
Founded in 1886, Balla GAA is one of the oldest GAA clubs in in the county and it has a particularly significant place in the GAA history. The club’s home ground, Nally Park, shares its name with Nally terrace in Croke Park. Like the Nally stand that preceded it before the stadium was redeveloped, the terrace is named after Balla native PW Nally, who was one of the founding figures of the GAA and played a key role in the establishment of the Association in 1884.
To mark the 140th anniversary, Balla GAA has organised a full programme of events this week, bringing together current members, former players, volunteers, families and the wider community.
The main anniversary celebrations take place tomorrow (Saturday), beginning with an underage blitz involving neighbouring clubs at 11.30am in Nally Park. This will be followed by a Balla GAA Masters game at 4pm tomorrow.
The celebrations then continue that evening in the Community Centre, with a screening of the club’s 2022 Lip Sync fundraiser at 7pm, followed by live music from Concord and a DJ from 9.30pm, with a full bar available.
The club is encouraging former players, members, volunteers and anyone with a connection to Balla GAA who now live elsewhere to return to Balla for the celebrations.
Rock says:
August 14, 2026 at 4:27 pm
Assume there’ll be some lad called Sam floating about for the celebrations.
Paddyjoejohntom says:
August 14, 2026 at 6:46 pm
Anyone know the date for this year's county senior final ?
yew_tree says:
August 15, 2026 at 8:36 am
The old Nally stand was dismantled and re constructed at a club up in Tyrone. Why was it not brought to Balla GAA at the time…?
Ultair says:
August 15, 2026 at 2:49 pm
yew_tree, it had been offered to the Balla club and was seriously considered at the time. It was decided not to proceed with the project as the existing stand had already been built and the construction of another stand would have had a negative impact on the neighbouring golf-course. Sentimentality aside, the transfer and construction of an old stand in a venue which was not really suited to it was deemed to be more trouble than it was worth.
As an aside, the eventual home of the old Nally Stand, the Carrickmore club in Tyrone, acknowledged the link between PW Nally and his home of Balla and a challenge game between the two clubs was played at the official opening of the stand in 2007.