1985
1985 was the year when Naomh Eoin hurling club was founded. After years of Craobh Rua being the only Sligo town hurling club, some members of Craobh Rua, including Pat Maguire and Joe Scanlon, decided to breakaway and form another Sligo town club - Naomh Eoin. In our first year, we made it to the Championship final, where we faced Tourlestrane. Tourlestrane won the tie, two goals separating the teams at the final whistle (Tourlestrane 2-5, Naomh Eoin 0-5).
1986
A repeat of the previous year's final was on the cards, when we faced Tourlestrane once again in the decider. In a higher scoring contest this time around, Tourlestrane came out victorious with a scoreline of 5-3 to 1-9.
1987
Our first ever silverware was claimed in 1987 when our seniors won the Dermot Molloy Senior Hurling League. This title somewhat compensated for the disappointment of losing the previous two years championship finals.
1988
In our third county SHC final appearance we once more faced Tourlestrane. This was the closest final to date, but unfortunately we fell short by three points in the end. The final scoreline was Tourlestrane 5-8, Naomh Eoin 3-11.
1989
For the fourth time in five years, we reached the championship final. This final was all the more exciting as it featured the two Sligo town clubs, namely Naomh Eoin and Craobh Rua. Unfortunately, we found ourselves on the losing side once again, with a final scoreline of Craobh Rua 2-11, Noamh Eoin 3-2.
1990s
In 1990, we won our second Dermot Molloy Senior Hurling League title. Unfortunately this would mark the beginning of a 31 year wait before we would win our next league title. We reached three championship finals in-a-row (1995, 1996, 1997), with all three contested by Tubbercurry. We lost out on all three occasions, with the '97 final being the closest tie, when we lost by a mere two points. Naomh Eoin struggled to compete at the adult scene for the rest of the '90s and 2000s.
2004
2004 marked the revival of the underage setup in Naomh Eoin. After not partaking in any under-age matches in 2003, it took huge effort to build new teams. Our U12 team were unfortunate not to win the C Championship, losing to Shamrock Gaels after a replay by two points.
2005
Under-age hurling continues to grow in the club. Our U-12s lost the B Championship final at the hands of Shamrock Gaels. Our U-9 indoor hurling team overcame Tourlestarne in the county final by 4 goals to 3 to claim our first ever under-age title.
2006
In 2006, our adult hurling team won their first silverware in 18 years in the form of a county junior title.This year was also a milestone in the development of our under-age hurling, as we won our first outdoor underage title when our U-12s brought home the A Championship trophy after a memorable final against Coolera/Strandhill.
2007
Our U-12s retained the county A championship title by defeating Tourlestrane in the final. We also won the U-11 indoor hurling county final for the first time.
2008
The U-12 team completed the League and Championship double. Our U-14s reached the finals in both the League and A Championship, but didn't claim the silverware. Our dominance in U-9 indoor hurling continued, winning our fourth county title on the trot.
2009
2009 marked the first year that the Naomh Eoin U-14 team qualified to represent Sligo for the national Féile na nGael competition. The competition was held in Laois/Offaly, with St. Oliver Plunkett's of Mullingar being our host club. We recorded a win over Brosna Gaels (Offaly), drew with Clontibret O'Neills (Monaghan), and lost to St. Oliver Plunkett's, who would ultimately go on to win the competition.The U-14 team won the A Championship for the first time. Our U-12 side won the A Championship for the fourth year in-a-row, while also retaining the A League title. Our U-11 indoor hurling team claimed a hat-trick of county titles.
2010
The club's most prestigious under-age title was won in this year, with our U-14 team capturing the All-Ireland Division 5 Féile na nGael final, which was hosted in County Clare. We lost our opening game of the competition to our host club Ogonnelloe. Both teams won their remaining games in the group, meaning we both qualified for the semi-finals. Our semi-final opposition was Bodyke of Clare, and we had a comfortable victory with a scoreline of 3-8 to 1-0. Ogonnelloe also had a convincing win over Lisbellaw from Fermanagh in their semi-final, which meant that the final would be a repeat of the opening game. With an All-Ireland title on the line, the final under the blistering sun in Clarecastle was always going to be a tight affair. With a minute left on the clock, Ogonnelloe had a two point advantage. However a long ball in from the hurley of Gerard O'Kelly-Lynch found its way into the back of the net, which left us a point ahead. Paul Kilcoyne won the resulting puck-out to put two points between the sides, ensuring this young side would go down into the history books of Naomh Eoin hurling club.The U-14s also completed the League and Championship double, while the U-16 side won the B Championship.
2011
For the third year in-a-row, Naomh Eoin would represent Sligo in the national Féile na nGael competition. This years competition was hosted in Galway, with Rahoon Newcastle being our host club. The team were determined to emulate the victory of the previous years success, enjoying comfortable wins over Rahoon Newcastle, Mícheál Breathnach (Galway), and St. Fechins (Louth) in the group phase. An impressive semi-final win over Lisbellaw saw us qualify for the Division 5 final. Unfortunately we lost out in the final on a scoreline of 3-5 to 1-5 to Mountbellew/Moylough.This team also won the A League title. Our U-16 hurlers won the A Championship title for the first time this year, defeating Tourlestrane in the county final. We also competed at the U-18 level for the first time, which completed a full representation across all under-age levels within the county.
2012
Our senior hurling team continued to struggle with numbers in this year, and once again we were forced to pull out of the Championship.Our U-16s came out victorious after a mammoth battle against Easkey in the championship final (a final that featured two replays), which meant we retained the title for the second year in-a-row. We overcame Manorhamilton in the U-16 Connacht Championship, but a depleted side lost out to Mayo champions Caiseal Gaels in the quarter final.
2013
We saw a big improvement in the number of players at our disposal, which allowed us to re-enter the senior championship after an absence of a number of years. We reached the championship semi-final, losing out to reigning champions Calry/St. Joseph's who went on to win the competition once again.Our U-9 indoor hurlers completed a second three in-a-row county titles after a narrow win over Easkey in the final.
2014
We reached our first MHC final in 2014, where we faced Coolera/Strandhill. After losing the group stage game to them, we were determined to reverse the result this time around. We went on to win by 3-12 to 2-5.Our U-16s also faced Coolera/Strandhill in the A league final. In a more keenly-contested decider, we came out on top 5-7 to 5-5. The U-14 team also achieved success in the form of an A league title against Drumcliffe/Rosses Point, with a scoreline of 2-6 to 2-3.
2015
Our U-14 hurlers were the only team to claim silverware this year. They completed a double, winning the B league and championship shield. Our opponents were Castleconnor and Tubbercurry respectively. Our U-12s, U-16s, and U-18s were unfortunate to lose the finals they participated in, namely the U-12 A1 league, the U-16 B league, and the U-18 championship shield.
2016
The senior team qualified for their first championship semi-final since 2013. We faced Coolera/Strandhill and came from behind to snatch a late but deserving draw, forcing a replay. The replay went to extra-time, but unfortunately Coolera/Strandhill clinched the victory, on a 2-21 to 3-19 scoreline.Our U-16 team recorded a league shield final win over Benbulben Gaels on a scoreline of 2-8 to 1-8.
2017
Having fallen short in the three previous A1 finals, the Naomh Eoin U-12s finally won the club's first A1 final since 2009 by beating Castleconnor.Gaelscoil Chnoc na Ré, for the second year in-a-row and backboned by Naomh Eoin players, won the Cumann na mBunscoil hurling title.
2018
Our senior hurling team claimed their first trophy since the 2006 Junior Championship by winning the Martin Brennan Cup. In our first appearance in the final, we overcame Calry/St. Joseph's under flood-lights in Tourlestrane (home club of Martin Brennan). This victory marked the emergence of Naomh Eoin as a more competitive side in Sligo adult hurling.The senior hurlers made it to their first championship final in 20 years, defeating reigning champions Calry/St. Joseph's, who were bidding for their eight SHC title on the trot, in the semi-final. In the final we faced neighbouring club Coolera/Strandhill in the Sligo Centre of Excellence. This final was historic as it would mark the first senior championship win for either side. Unfortunately for our young team, it was Coolera/Strandhill who claimed the spoils on a 2-25 to 3-10 scoreline.
2019
2019 proved to be a very memorable year with club captain Tommy O'Callaghan lifting the SHC trophy for the first time in the club's history. The county final versus Easkey was played in Markievicz Park on the 13th of October. With very little between the teams, a decisive goal from Arthur Wall in the 56th minute edged us in front. A late penalty for Naomh Eoin was struck over the bar by Gerard O'Kelly-Lynch, and when the ref blew the final whistle from the resulting puck-out, 35 years of awaiting for a SHC title was over. An emotional speech from captain O'Callaghan will be fondly remembered by the Naomh Eoin supporters at the game. This final marked the beginning of the subsequent years final rivalries between the two sides.The senior team then played Carrick-on-Shannon of Leitrim in the Connacht Junior semi-final, coming out victorious with a scoreline of 0-17 to 1-11. This paved the way for the Connacht Junior final against Galway side Mícheál Breathnach in the Connacht Centre of Excellence. We put up a good performance but ultimately lost out in the end with a scoreline of 1-12 to 0-8, which marked an end to our most succesful year at senior hurling to date.
At under-age level, our U-14s came out on top in the Féile blitz to qualify as Sligo Féile na nGael champions. We were hosted by St Colums GAA (Kealkill, Bantry) for the finals. Unfortunately our opponents in all games proved to be too strong. There was consolation for the team when winning the U-14 league at the expense of Benbulben Gaels.
2020
With COVID-19 causing huge disruptions to everyday lives in 2020, the playing times for the various hurling competitions were severely impacted. Our senior hurlers qualified for the SHC final for the third year in-a-row. However in a pulsating final, our ambitions to retain the championship title ended in a heart-breaking one point loss to familiar rivals Easkey (1-17 to 2-13).Our U-16 hurlers won the Championship Final for the first time in eight years when they defeated Benbulben Gaels 2-15 to 1-8 under lights in the Sligo Centre of Excellence. Our minor team were unfortunate to lose to Easkey/St. Farnans in the county final (1-14 to 1-12).
2021
2021 was another significant year for our senior hurling team who captured the Dermot Molloy Senior League title for the first time in 31 years after a magnificent league campaign. The final was against Carrick-on-Shannon in Markievicz Park. We never looked in doubt, having a comfortable 1-15 to 1-4 lead at the break. Naomh Eoin rallied on in the second half, asserting their dominance in the game. The final scoreline of 2-26 to 1-6 showed the level of intensity and accuracy our hurlers brought on the day.
2022
2022 marked the beginning of the Cú Chulainn League, an inter-county club competition where teams faced unfamiliar opponents from around the country. Our seniors played well throughout the tournament, but an understrength team fell to Westport GAA resulting in us finishing second in the table. This meant we would compete in the Shield, duly defeating Roscommon side Tremane 3-19 to 3-9 in the semi-final. We had a convincing win against Aodh Ruadh (Ballyshannon) in the final on a scoreline of 5-24 to 0-11 to claim the silverware.The Naomh Eoin minor team won the league final for the first time (played at U-17 due to the change of age-grades).
2023
Our senior hurlers claimed their second league title in three years. In very wet conditions in Tourlestrane, our players fought a spirited Western Gaels side to come out on top in the final with a scoreline of 0-14 to 1-4.
Building on what had been achieved in the previous year, our senior team made it all the way to the cup final of the same Cú Chulainn competition. After progressing comfortably through the group stage as table toppers, we faced Iniskeen (Monaghan) in the semi-final. This game was more challenging for our hurlers, but we came out with an eight point win. This paved the way for a final showdown against St. Fechins of Louth in Kingspan Breffni Park. In a thrilling encounter where both sides were winning at multiple stages of the game, St. Fechins came out on top, ending our hopes of winning the shield and cup in two consecutive years.
In the final game of the year for the seniors, they were leading the Championship final against Easkey for much of the game, but late points from our opposition resulted in a four point loss.
Our U-15 side won the shield final, and our U-17s also won silverware in the form of a B League title.
2024
The senior hurling team achieved back-to-back league titles by once again beating Western Gaels in the final. We ran out comfortable winners with a scoreline of 2-37 to 1-6.We competed in Division 1 of the Cú Chulainn for the first time, and finished the group stages at the top of the table without any defeats. Unfortunately, after beating Ballyhaunis GAA in the semi-final, the final never took place.
Our minor hurlers won the B Championship final by beating Coolera/Strandhill with a scoreline of 2-11 to 2-6.
