Glenmalure Park
53°18′52.22″N 6°14′50.76″W / 53.3145056°N 6.2474333°W
Milltown | |
 | |
| Location | Milltown Road, Milltown, Dublin 6, Ireland |
|---|---|
| Owner | Jesuit Order, Kilcoyne family |
| Operator | Shamrock Rovers F.C. |
| Capacity | c.20,000 |
| Surface | Grass |
| Construction | |
| Built | 1926 |
| Opened | 1926 |
| Closed | 12 April 1987 |
| Demolished | 1990 |
| Tenants | |
| Shamrock Rovers F.C. (1926–1987) | |
Glenmalure Park, often simply known as Milltown, was a
Ringsend to Milltown
Shamrock Rovers moved from the inner city area of
Development
When the Cunningham family took over the club in the 1930s, the stadium was named Glenmalure Park in honour of the Cunningham's ancestral home in the
In 1978, Glenmalure Park hosted its first European game when Apoel Nicosia were defeated 2–0. In all seven European games were played there as well as 1988 Summer Olympics qualifiers.
Sale and demolition
In 1987, the Kilcoyne family, who owned Shamrock Rovers since 1972 and had recently bought Glenmalure Park from the Jesuits, decided to sell the stadium to property developers. They stated that their aim was to move Rovers to
The following season Shamrock Rovers fans formed an organisation called 'Keep Rovers at Milltown' (KRAM) and placed a
On Thursday 12 April 2007 a ceremony was held at the monument to commemorate 20 years since the last competitive game was played at the famous old ground.[2]
The sale of Glenmalure Park featured in the RTÉ programme "Twenty Moments That Shook Irish Sport" which was broadcast in August 2007.[3][4] The feature came in for some criticism on the basis of its factual correctness and bias in favour of the Kilcoynes. The last game at Milltown was featured on RTÉ's Monday Night Soccer show on 14 April 2008.[5]
Shamrock Rovers were without a home ground for over 20 years after the sale of Glenmalure Park, until the opening of Tallaght Stadium in March 2009.
Shamrock Rovers F.C. and the Shamrock Rovers Heritage Trust marked the 25th anniversary of the last game at Glenmalure Park in Milltown with a Stadium to Stadium Walk in April 2012 [1].
Other uses
Four other League of Ireland clubs played home matches at Glenmalure Park – Shelbourne United in the 1923–24 season, Reds United in the 1935–36 season, Shelbourne from 1949 to 1951, and St Patrick's Athletic from 1951 to 1954.
Milltown also regularly hosted the Republic of Ireland women's national football team and the last match at the venue was a 4-1 win over Wales on the 24th of May 1987.
Billy Morton of Clonliffe Harriers staged his first athletics meeting on Saturday 14 August 1943 at Glenmalure Park.
The ground also hosted a boxing event in August 1966[6]
Sources
- The Hoops by Paul Doolan and Robert Goggins (ISBN 0-7171-2121-6)
- Irish Football Handbook by Dave Galvin & Gerry Desmond (ISBN 0-9517987-3-1)
- Clonliffe Harriers Athletic Club, 1886-2013 by Dominic Branigan (ISBN 9781782373698)
- Soccer and Society in Dublin: A History of Association Football in Ireland’s Capital by Conor Curran (ISBN 9781801510394)
References
- ^ "Old Domain for the Sunday Tribune Ireland". Archived from the original on 8 March 2016. Retrieved 4 February 2009.
- ^ "Milltown20 Events Launched". Shamrock Rovers Football Club. Archived from the original on 25 December 2007. Retrieved 10 March 2009.
- ^ "20 Moments That Shook Irish Sport". RTÉ News.
- ^ "- YouTube". YouTube.
- ^ "Monday Night Soccer - Shamrock Rovers - Audio and Video". RTÉ News. Archived from the original on 18 December 2008.
MNS 14 April [..] Glenmalure Park: 21 years on from the last Shamrock Rovers game against Sligo Rovers in Milltown
- ^ "Boxing - McCormack Fight At Milltown". The Irish Times. 14 July 1966.
External links
- Photos of Glenmalure Park (1987) Archived 14 March 2005 at the Wayback Machine