Salthill Knocknacarra GAA

Football and Hurling

The most prominent local sports club is probably Salthill-Knocknacarra GAA. SKGAA as they are sometimes called are highly successful at the Senior Football level, with several County titles under their belt. The club's greatest success was surely back in 2006 when Eoin O'Donnellan led them to becoming All-Ireland champions.

While a prestigious club, they remain community-based and welcoming to all levels of players. The club offers the full range of Gaelic games from U-6s and U-8s through to Senior and even "Mothers and Others"!

They are located immediately beside Pearse Stadium (the headquarters of Galway GAA) on the Dr Mannix Road, roughly 500 metres north of the Salthill Promenade. The club website is skgaa.ie.

St Michael's GAA

Gaelic Football

You will almost certainly have seen the St Michael's GAA club grounds on your way into the city.

Founded in 1956 and whose website can be found at stmichaelsgalway.ie, they are based in the Westside Playing Fields on the Seamus Quirke Road.

They provide teams at all levels for kids, and play Intermediate and Junior/Junior B for adults. The club has a strong community ethos in its stomping grounds around the Westside/Shantalla, and a very successful Ladies Club too.

Football / Soccer

The Beautiful Game

The Knocknacarra area is extremely well-served with three soccer clubs on our doorstep.

With a slogan of "Building Community Through Football" and hosting dozens of teams, Knocknacarra FC is a great place to get involved in the beautiful game. Their website is knocknacarrafc.com.

Knocknacarra FC proudly claims members as young as 3 years old! Their "Little Eagles" programme is aimed at younger kids, with the "Football Academy" aimed at those up to the age of 11. They of course have teams for older kids and adults too.

On Saturday mornings they start early at Cappagh Park, with its excellent facilities including a full-size all-weather Astro pitch.

Although the word "Knocknacarra" does not appear in Galway Bohemians' name, their location is close enough for all intents and purposes. The oldest soccer club in the area (founded all the way back in 1932), the team is located on Millars Lane across the road from Dunnes and B&Q. Their Nursery programme accepts players as young as four or five, and their Over-35s team competes at the other end of the spectrum in Division 2 of the Galways Masters league. See galwaybohsafc.com for more.

Similarly, Salthill Devon FC (salthilldevon.com) have football for all ages. Despite the name suggesting they are based near the beach, their very impressive facilities are actually located a couple of miles north of Knocknacarra -- away from the traffic. Salthill Devon are likely better-known nationally than Knocknacarra FC, having been founded nearly 80 years ago. Today, they boast more than 1,000 members at their excellent grounds at Drom Soccer Park.

For more casual football, meetup.com provides multiple options. Events are subject to change by the organisers, but options include Galway 5-a-side Football on Tuesdays in Astrobay in Renmore; Galway Social Football's offering of 5-a-side indoor football in the Westside Community Centre; and Monday & Thursday Football Galway at Galway Hibernians Soccer Club in Terryland. For a sense of cost, Meetup groups usually charge about €6 per person for a game.

Of course, Galway United are the local League of Ireland team. Their home ground is the 5,000-capacity Eamon Deacy Park in Terryland. They mostly play on Friday nights, with Adult tickets around €18.

Rugby

Galway Bay Rugby Club

While the Galway Sportsgrounds are of course home to pride-of-the-province Connacht Rugby, Knocknacarra is home to the Galway Bay Rugby Club.

Established in 2007 and with strong ties to both Galwegians Rugby Club and Connacht, GBRC offer training for boys and girls starting at Under-6's all the way up to older teens. Membership for the young ones costs €120 a year. New players are welcome to come along and try for a few weeks with no financial commitment.

Officially headquartered at McGrath's Field in Knocknacarra, GBRC also train at several nearby locations such as Cappagh Park/Knocknacarra Community Centre and the Dangan Sports Facilities on the University of Galway grounds.

Check out the Club website at gbrc.ie.

Basketball / Netball

Galway Titans and Bearna Basketball

There are two teams serving the Knocknacarra area for basketball.

Bearna Basketball offers teams for boys and girls from U-10s up. They of course have teams for both Men and Women too. Founded in 1995, many of their members are fluent in Irish and the national language is a significant part of the club's ethos. Both their home courts, Cappagh Community Centre and Colaiste na Coiribe, are actually in Knocknacarra. You can find more about the club at their website, bearnabasketball.club.

Galway Titans are the other choice for basketball in the area. Styling themselves as the city's premier basketball club, they rent venues spanning from Knocknacarra over to Ballinfoyle/Castlegar. They have teams for all ages, including a very successful youth Academy programme for six to nine year olds. Founded relatively recently (in 2004), they have quickly become a major force in Irish basketball, winning the Senior Mens National Cup in 2003. Their website is titans.ie.

The Galway Netball team also practice on Monday evenings in the Knocknacarra Community Centre at Cappagh. Click here to see their Facebook page.