Letterkenny RFC held a day of celebrations to mark their 50th anniversary. On the day, matches were played from underage right up to the first team.
Alex McDonald got reaction on the day for Highland Radio Sport…
President of the club, Shaun McGuinness:
Coach Alister Ferguson:
Club man and great servant to Letterkenny RFC, Boyd Robinson:
The club was founded when the town’s rugby players, who were travelling to Derry and Limavady for games each week, decided to form their own club. A team was entered into the Ulster League, and the initial games were played at Robinson’s Field on Letterkenny’s Port Road. The following year, the club purchased 4 acres (16,000 m2) of land at Drumnahoagh near the Dry Arch Roundabout, not far from the town centre. The club then opted for a move to the Silver Tassie between Letterkenny and Ramelton and prepared new pitches to take the club to the next level and provide more space. In 1985, the club continued to flourish when the team won the Forester Cup in Ravenhill.
Unfortunately, the ownership of the Tassie passed out of club hands, and the club underwent a period of decline. The third team failed to field in 1992, and for a while, local interest in rugby waned. It was now very clear that the playing surfaces at the fields of Halfway Line were inadequate for rugby, especially during the winter months.
The club returned to Letterkenny in 1999 to buy land at the Glebe and use Moore’s field next to it. This move improved playing surfaces and made the club more accessible to the large population of Letterkenny. The club was promoted during the seasons of 2004, 2005, and 2006. Many members of the first team are now home-grown players from Donegal. Letterkenny won the Gordon West Cup in 2011 for the first time in their history after their fifth appearance in the final.
In the 2010s, late 2012 saw the opening of the new clubhouse, and 2013 brought the 40th anniversary of the club. Letterkenny.
