In the fourth edition of The Lost Clubs, we look back on the history of Kilkenny City. By Marie Crowe Like many football clubs, Kilkenny City started as a dream. In 1966, a group of teenagers in the local CBS were sitting around a desk and
In the fourth edition of The Lost Clubs, we look back on the history of Kilkenny City.
By Marie Crowe
Like many football clubs, Kilkenny City started as a dream.
In 1966, a group of teenagers in the local CBS were sitting around a desk and they decided to form a soccer club. They made a plan and pretty soon EMFA was born – standing for Emmet Street and Fatima Place the areas in the City where the boys were from. And that group eventually went on to be Kilkenny City in 1989.
Jim Rhatigan was one of those there that day and he recalls how passionate they were about the game.
“We loved football and we used to play morning, noon and night," explained Rhatigan.
"We wanted a team of our own, there was none in our area.It was easy enough to do, you tell one lad he is the manager, another lad he has to organise fundraisers, I became the secretary, we just made it happen.
“We used to train out the front of our houses, a big estate. One of our friends was the manager so we always made the team.”
EMFA started out as an Under 18 team, backboned by local lads and then in the early 1970s they progressed to playing junior football. Rhatigan became their manager and they proved to be quite successful.
“It very quickly blossomed into an amazing thing. We ended up with 30 school-boy teams. We won the Junior League, Cup and Shield without losing a match. It was wonderful to watch it grow and then when the success came it really added to it.”
Off the field, things were going well for the burgeoning club too. They had been playing their games in St James Park but managed to buy their own pitch. It was originally called Tenny Park and then later named Buckley Park.
The operational side of the club was progressing well too. They had a group of determined individuals at the helm and in 1984 they decided that League of Ireland football was next on the agenda and they went about making it happen.
In 1985 EMFA competed in the First Division of the League.
They welcomed Derry City to Buckley Park for their first game and finished 10th that season. Rhatigan was still manager and he was enjoying every minute of it.
“We went on an amazing journey, it was a rollercoaster. It was fantastic, we were never at home, I was lucky my family were nuts on soccer. We had great times, we won matches, we lost matches, it was an experience like no other.”
In 1987, they had their first taste of success when they won the First Division Shield. Finn Harps were the opposition for the game held in Oriel Park and EMFA won 4-2. The win was a milestone in the club’s development and on reflection in their history too. For Rhatigan, it was a special moment.
“It was my final year as manager, they decided to get rid of me then because I was beginning to think I was a manager,” Rhatigan joked.
“It was good for the team to win something because people started to stand up and take note and the City began to get very interested and from the surrounding areas too like Carlow.”
Two years later EMFA changed its name to Kilkenny City. They continued to make steady progress on the pitch and off it those in charge were becoming more knowledgeable about the running of a League of Ireland club.
In 1991, they went on a fantastic FAI Cup run, reaching the semi-final but were eventually beaten by Shamrock Rovers. It was a great boost for the club to show what they were capable of and also to give them a realistic goal of competing with the biggest clubs in the country.
Over the years that followed they held their own and the 1996/97 season was a real breakthrough. Alfie Hale – a League legend – was the manager and he his star status ensured there was a real buzz around the club.
They won the First Division title with 11 points to spare over their nearest rivals Drogheda United and earned promotion to the Premier Division.Kilkenny City had arrived.
“At this stage we had a real belief in the club; we felt it was really coming. Alfie really lit the fuse. We would have crowds of over 3500 at our Sunday matches. It was really great to see it.”
However their stint in the top flight was a short one and they were relegated that same season back to where they began.
A couple of years later they gained promotion again but it was a similar story for the young club and they couldn’t stay up, their progress was halted once more.
The next few years the club had it’s ups and down on the results front.
In 2005, Pat Scully took over and he gave the club a much-needed boost. They went from bottom of the table halfway through the season to fourth by the end of it.
Scully's success attracted the attention of Shamrock Rovers and he departed by the beginning of the next season.
In the period that followed several managers came and went. Finances were an issue for the club like they were for many around the country. Rhatigan had health issues and had to take a step back from the running of the club and without its leader it started to flounder.
By the end of 2007, it was clear that things were coming to an end for the club. Kilkenny City played their last League of Ireland game losing 3–1 at home to Finn Harps. In January 2008, Kilkenny City resigned from the League.
“It was an awful hard decision to make, Kilkenny is a very generous City but it’s very small. The business people very excellent particularly Tom Cantwell but we couldn’t keep it going. It was a hard time for everyone,” said Rhatigan.
“It took its toll on my health eventually but I enjoyed every minute of it. You meet great people and I’ve met great people along the way”
Will League of Ireland football ever come back to Kilkenny City?
“Never say never, anything is possible. The pitch is still there, if someone was to come along, the right person, they would get all the help in the world.”
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