The Rags with rackets

Another successful Kilcullen clubWhen people hear the phrase 'The Rags' it’s often associated with our brilliant local football, soccer and boxing clubs, writes Enda O’Neill, PRO of Kilcullen Badminton Club. But I’d say very few people would associate it with our local Badminton Club. Yes, Kilcullen has a Badminton Club and quite a successful one at that.

Mixed 1 team

The game of Badminton goes back as far as the 10th century BC and was played in Asia where it was known as Battledore and Shuttlecock. The game back then was played with a paddle and shuttle which was hit back and forth between players. In the 1800s it was played in Europe and was called 'Jue de Volant' (Game with Shuttlecock). In 1860 the Indians introduced the Badminton net, and then in England in 1877, Bath Badminton Club formed and developed the first official set of rules.

In 1934 the International Badminton Federation was formed with Ireland one of the nine founding members, and the IBF now has 150 countries in its membership. Badminton was introduced to the Barcelona Olympics 1992.

Badminton Fact: At the London Olympics the Mens Singles Final had the biggest global viewing figures of any of the Olympic sports, proving that Badminton is now truly a global sport with global appeal.

Kilcullen Badminton Club was founded in 1981 by Marie Kelly, a local business woman. Those of you who knew Marie would know that she was a fiercely competitive player and was dedicated to her Club. Marie basically ran and was the main driving force (along with other like-minded locals) in attracting new members to the Senior Club as well as running the Junior Club (from which have come some of our Senior members of today!). Marie guided KBC to its first victory in 1984 in the Kildare League beating Ballymore in the final — the team for that final were Marie Kelly, Shelia Keogh, Christine Peacocke, Rose Doyle, Liam Sherry, Steve Dempsey, Clive Donaghue, Jack McDonald and Ronan Murphy (our current Club Captain).

Marie was a well-known and respected player in Badminton circles. She taxied players/team-mates to many League and Cup matches and always promoted fair play and honesty in the game. Sadly, 31 years later, Marie is no longer with us, but every year her memory is honoured with the Marie Kelly Perpetual Trophy for Under 16 Girls.

U17 Mixed team

After 10 years the Club wound down, but was reformed in 2002 by Claire and Shelia Flood. Since then our Club has grown from strength to strength. The Senior Club has made steady progress over the years, winning at the lower grades and building up to the higher grades. This season our Ladies 1 team, our Men’s 1 team and our Mixed 1 team won the Dublin and District Cup in their respective grades. Our Ladies 1 also made the South West League final.

Our Junior Club, boasting 40 members, has also had some great success this year. The Under 11s, the Under 15 Girls, and Under 17 Boys were League winners, and the Under 17 Mixed won the Southwest League.

Badminton Fact: Badminton is officially the fastest racket sport in the world with a shuttle travelling at up to 415km/h and athletes travelling up to 10kms in any one half-hour singles match.

Kilcullen Badminton Club is still looking for new members and players at all levels from Beginner to Grade 1. So why join Kilcullen Badminton Club, I hear you ask? Well for a number of reasons. Firstly it’s local, and on both a social and physical level, it is great to feel at home in a club while keeping a good level of fitness. You will get to meet some great people in your area and it's good craic.

We are very lucky in Kilcullen to have the Community Complex which has some of the best facilities (four courts, showers etc) in Kildare. Kilcullen Badminton Club caters for both social and competitive players and we play on a Tuesday and Thursday nights at 9pm in the Community Complex in Kilcullen. Competitive membership rates coupled with a great atmosphere means joining Kilcullen Badminton Club offers excellent bang for your buck in a friendly environment.

Want to try it out? Why not pop in any Tuesday or Thursday evening at 9pm and give it a go? Rackets can be supplied until you’re hooked, and with top level coaching on offer if needed you may even surprise yourself and be competing as a Badminton Rag or Raggete come the new competitive season!

Kilcullen Badminton Club's FUN Summer Club starts Tuesday June 4 at just €5 per night. For any questions feel free to contact Mark Phelan on 087 7881635 or Enda O’Neill on 087 9155835.