County Champions
1975-Present Day
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1975 PAT BONNER 1984 PAUL GALLAGHER 1985 ANTHONY BONNAR 1986 ANTHONY BONNAR 1987 ANTHONY BONNAR 1988 PAUL GALLAGHER 1989 ANTHONY BONNAR 1990 JAMES GALLAGHER |
1991 PAUL GALLAGHER 1992 ANTHONY BONNAR 1993 DONAL BONNAR 1994 ANTHONY BONNAR 1995 PAUL GALLAGHER 1996 JACK McGRANAGHAN 1997 PAUL GALLAGHER 1998 PAUL GALLAGHER (6) |
1999 PHELIM McCLAFFERTY 2000 ANTHONY BONNAR (7) 2001 AIDAN DEVANNEY
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Club players have seldom featured in the latter stages of the County Championships that resumed in 1984 after a lapse of nine years since the only previous tournament. John Hanna was the man responsible for creating the competition and it is, and always was a keenly contested event. The winner's trophy was put up by Hanna Hats and titled the David Hanna Memorial Cup. Only James Gallagher has completed the job and won for the town. Several older members maintain that James could and should have gone on to bigger and better things…he certainly had the talent, the imagination and the competitive edge. Anthony Bonnar beat John Hanna in the County Final in 1984 while Tom Plunkett lost the 2000 final to the same player. Vincent Granaghan lost the semi-final in 1985 to Eugene Gallagher and Sean Boyle, Gerry McCloskey (a man with a foot in two camps!); Charlie Murphy and Sean McCauley were beaten semi-finalists in the nineties.
Many top amateur players have graced the club with their presence and our lads usually gave as good as they got. In the mid-eighties a county team sponsored by Tommy McGroarty played in the Rosemount Gardens in Derry and the team included the two Downeys from Ballyshannon, Packie Hanna, Vincent Granaghan, Michael Neary, Anthony Bonnar and Pat Bonner, Paul Gallagher, Don Ponsonby and John Hanna. Donegal won 8-2 in Donegal Town and lost 8-2 in Derry. Anthony Bonnar lost a play-off with Jason Prince, the future professional.
Pat Bonner of Letterkenny won the first County Championship in 1975 while Paul Gallagher won six titles in the eighties and nineties. The Big Daddy of them all was, and still is Anthony Bonnar. His brother Pat (no relation to the above) may be the highest ranked Donegal player in Ireland, reaching number 18 in 2000 but Anthony's seven county titles from 1984 to 2000 is a record which only Paul Gallagher has threatened. Other top players left their mark in Donegal Town: Neil Gallagher, Paddy McGroarty, Phelim McClafferty, Aidan Devanney, Dan McLaughlin and Don Ponsonby of CYMS; Frank Kelly, Mel Thompson, Jim Thomas, the Downeys and Harry Kelly from Ballyshannon; Jack McGranaghan and Donal "Tex" Bonner (who briefly turned professional) from Twin Towns; Liam McNamee from Letterkenny; Johnny Whyte who compiled the first ever century (110) in the Donegal League in 2000 and young Johnny Connors who has impressed many in recent years with his mature break-building and accumulation of county, provincial and national titles.
