Croke Park

Croke Park (in Gaelic Páirc year Chrócaigh ) is the main thing Stade and the residence of GAA ( Gaelic Athletic Association ), the largest sporting organization of the Ireland.

The stage was used only for the sports gaelic (football, Hurling and Camogie). It is also used for the first time for Rugby, during renovation works of the stage of Lansdowne Road. With a capacity of 82.500 seats, it is currently the greatest stage of the island of Ireland.

History

The site of Croke Park was originally a sports ground known under the name of Jones Road Sportground and belonged to Maurice Butterfly. After the foundation of the GAA in 1884, this ground was used regularly for the sports gaelic. As of 1895 the gaelic finales of the championships (All Irelands) took place on this ground. Starting from 1913, the GAA became the owner of the ground and baptized it Croke Park in the honor of the archbishop Thomas Croke, one of the first owners of the GAA. The debris of the Insurrection of Easter 1916 was used to build a monticule and to install platforms above there allowing a better vision of the matches. This platform always exists.

The November 20th 1920, Croke Park was the theater of a massacre carried out by the Auxillaries an auxiliary paramilitary division of the British police force. Soldiers entered the stage during a match of football between Dublin and Tipperary and drew in crowd, killing 14 people (13 spectators and a player). In 1924 a platform was baptized to remember it Michael Hogan captain of Tipperary, died this day there. These events, known under the name of Bloody Sunday (not to be confused with that of Northern Ireland in 1972) were in fact of the reprisals to the assassination of 12 agents of the English secret services perpetrated by the men of Michael Collins.

Specificities

With the beginning of the year 1980, the GAA decided to renovate the stage. A project of enlarging in 4 phases was undertaken. After several years of work (the last phase ended in the construction of the Nally End/Dineen Hill 16 terrace in 2005), the stage reaches today 82 5000 places all while having built only three platforms out of four (the Nally End/Dineen Hill 16 terrace is only one simple terrace where the spectators remain upright). It becomes thus the fourth greater stage of Europe, after the Camp Nou with Barcelona, Wembley in England and San Siro in Milan.

There exists in Ireland a great debate around the use of Croke Park. As it belongs to the GAA, it is used only for the sports gaelic. The other sports are strictly excluded from it. An internal rule with the organization excluded until in the years 1970 the Football, the Rugby and the Cricket. The GAA then softened this rule but guard the exclusiveness in the management of the stage and thus of the sports that one practices there. The April 16th 2005, the GAA authorized exceptionally the practice (for the international matches only) of football and Rugby, these two sports being without stage because of the restoration of Lansdowne Road. The first match of Rugby to be itself unrolled in this stage is a match of the Tournoi of the six nations opposing the Ireland to the France, victory of the France the 20-17 February 11th 2007.

The February 24th 2007 was held the Ireland-England meeting always within the framework of the tournament of the six nations and which was concluded by a clear victory from the team from Ireland 43-13.

Access Croke Park

Plane of access Croke Park

External bonds

Croke Park G.A.A. Headquarters, North-side, Dublin
the history supplements on stadesmythiques.com
Vue satellite of Google de Croke Park
Photos of Croke Park
Photo of Croke Park on flickr.com

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