CLG Réalt na Mara, or, in the

English language English is a West Germanic language of the Indo-European language family, with its earliest forms spoken by the inhabitants of early medieval England. It is named after the Angles, one of the ancient Germanic peoples that migrated to t ...

, Star of the Sea GAA, is a

Gaelic football Gaelic football ( ga, Peil Ghaelach; short name '), commonly known as simply Gaelic, GAA or Football is an Irish team sport. It is played between two teams of 15 players on a rectangular grass pitch. The objective of the sport is to score by ki ...

-only GAA club based in

Bundoran Bundoran () is a town in County Donegal, Ireland. The town is located near the N15 road near Ballyshannon, and is the most southerly town in Donegal. The town is a tourist seaside resort, and tourism has been at the heart of the local economy s ...

, County Donegal, Ireland. The club fields both men's and ladies' teams at underage to

senior Senior (shortened as Sr.) means "the elder" in Latin and is often used as a suffix for the elder of two or more people in the same family with the same given name, usually a parent or grandparent. It may also refer to: * Senior (name), a surname ...

level. As of 2022,

Brian McEniff Brian McEniff (born 1 December 1942) is a former Gaelic football manager, administrator and player. McEniff played as a wing-back for the St Joseph's combination of clubs from Bundoran and Ballyshannon. He won seven Donegal Senior Football ...

remains chairman of the club.

History

In the 1920s, the location of Bundoran on the railway line made the Bundoran local ground a convenient venue for many big games. The GAA club grounds were purchased in 1938. The club was reorganised and renamed 'The Star of the Sea'. The football park has undergone many developments throughout the years. The ground was levelled in 1947 and enclosed in 1951. The club changing rooms were constructed in 1972.Geagan, M. (2011). ''Dancing by the sea: A journey through time in the Bundoran area''. Bundoran: Stracomer Press. The juniors were successful in both the 1956 and 1960 Championships. In 1963, "Star of the Sea" joined with

Ballyshannon Ballyshannon () is a town in County Donegal, Ireland. It is located at the southern end of the county where the N3 from Dublin ends and the N15 crosses the River Erne. Incorporated in 1613, it is one of the oldest towns in Ireland. Location ...

team, Aodh Ruadh to become St Joseph's. That team included many players that contributed to the Donegal county team, including

and the former Donegal County Council Manager Michael McLoone. In 1977, the club was again divided into two clubs, one each for the towns of Bundoran and Ballyshannon. Bundoran won the first even Donegal senior championship title when they defeated Red Hughs of Killygordon in a replayed final in the Brandywell in Derry. It was in fact the 2019 championship but a series of delays ensured the replay was in March 1920. The club were again senior champions in 1934 and along with Ballyshannon were part of the phenomenally successful St Josephs side that dominated Donegal club football in the late 1960s and early to mid-1970s winning eight titles as well as the first, though unofficial, All-Ireland club championship in 1968 defeating Dunmore McHales in the final. St Josephs broke up in the 1976 and in 1977 Réalt na Mara went on to win the first ever Intermediate title following this up with Senior Championship success in 1979, overcoming Seán MacCumhaill's in a nail-biting one-point victory to win the Senior Championship. Local man Brian McEniff led Donegal to their first ever Ulster title in 1972 and won managed the County to four more Ulster successes before managing Donegal to their first ever All-Ireland Senior Football Championship in 1992, in which they defeated Dublin in the final 0–18 to 0–14. Bundoran was the scene of enormous celebrations for almost a month afterwards. In 2010, Réalt na Mara won the Donegal Intermediate Football Championship. They again won the Donegal Intermediate Football Championship in 2015 and advanced the same year to the

Ulster Intermediate Club Football Championship The Ulster Intermediate Club Football Championship is an annual Gaelic football tournament played between the hundreds of intermediate football clubs in Ulster. There are nine county championships between the nine counties of Ulster. The nine winn ...

final, where they lost to Loughinisland.

Notable players

* Jamie Brennan — 2018 and 2019 Ulster SFC winner * Paul Brennan — 2018 and 2019 Ulster SFC winner *

— 1992 All-Ireland SFC winning manager

Managers

Honours

Donegal Senior Football Championship The Donegal Senior Football Championship (abbreviated as Donegal SFC) is an annual football competition organised by Donegal GAA and contested by the highest-level clubs, to determine the best team in County Donegal. Since 2016, it has been know ...

: 1934, 1979 *

Donegal Intermediate Football Championship The Donegal Intermediate Football Championship (abbreviated as Donegal IFC) is an annual football competition organised by Donegal GAA. An Clochán Liath are the title holders (2022) defeating Naomh Columba in the Final. History The competit ...

: 1977, 2010, 2015 *

runner-up: 2015

References

GAA Gaelic football clubs in County Donegal Gaelic games clubs in County Donegal {{Ulster-GAA-club-stub