Around the World in 80 Clubs: Costa Gaels, Marbella, Spain (#23)

An idea that started where most great ideas are generated: the pub.

The way PRO Justin Parks tells it, the formation of Costa Gaels GAA is like something out of a storybook. He writes: 'Born on the back of what seemed like a mad idea in 2002, four ex-pats – Seamus Whooley, Pat and Philip Conlon and Jed O’Connor – stood around a table in Biddy Mulligan’s Irish Bar in La Cala De Mijas on the Costa Del Sol. 'Brought together by a mutual love of the game, they decided that the major thing missing from this new and beautiful way of life in the south of Spain was a GAA club. 'And so the club began.

Costa Gaels, circa 2004

'Having participated in games against Madrid and Barcelona in the early years – due to there not being any other clubs in the rest of Spain – things tapered off for a while in the bad days around 2005, when the difficulty of getting games and getting the money to play them coincided with the crash of the local economy before the worldwide crash around 2008. 'Things took a turn for the better in 2009, when Kevin Lenane from Sevilla formed a club in the city and Peter Goulding moved from Marbella to Gibraltar and ended up forming Gibraltar Gaels a few months later. 'With that, a league was born. 'Clubs in the region were struggling to survive at first but when there’s a will, there’s a way and the years have seen the clubs grow and grow steadily. 'The main focus for Costa Gaels now is to reach out to local communities and initiate a major programme of inclusion in the worst economic areas of Andalucia, where the unemployment rate is still a crazy 30%. 'On the bright side, they will have plenty of time and less excuses to make it to training!' After an introduction like that, surely you’ll want to hear more about the club and about the characters that currently inhabit the dressing room in one of Europe’s most popular destinations?

Focus on Costa Gaels GAA (in their own words)

Club: Costa Gaels Year established: 2002 Number of members: 45 Biggest rivals: Gibraltar Gaels & Eire Óg Sevilla Most famous ever member: Akilles Haider - the founding, and only, member of Baghdad GAA. A bible (or is that ‘a Quran’?) of information about the GAA from its conception to the present day, he's met everyone - the Bomber Liston to Brendan Maher to Benny Tierney and many more - and literally takes the shirt off their backs. So long as they’re signed, of course. Aiden Rooney, meanwhile, once scored a European goal for the mighty Sligo Rovers. He's not a bad Gaelic Football player either, he just tends to keep the ball to himself. Most memorable moment in the club’s history: Establishing a kids’ club and opening the community up to the youth programme was a major turning point. It solidified the club, provided a more stable and consistent base for all of us and, with the support of Trocadero Marbella Rugby Club and the great lads there, we have grown steadily. Most eye-catching scoreline in the club’s history: After a slow start to the season for us, with a series of losses, investment in all the new players paid off in our home tournament when we won with a healthy 4-4 - 1-3 win over Gibraltar. Player who makes the longest commute to training: Matt Dent. The poor fella has 45 minutes of a horrific drive along the Costa del Sol coastline with the sun at his back and the Mediterranean Sea lapping on the beaches beside decadent Chiringuitos and Spanish Ventas. He tries to ignore all of that, concentrate on the road ahead and avoid pulling in for a quick tapas and a beer. Most dedicated club person: Justin Parks, the glue that keeps us all together. He’s gone to great lengths to get the club where it is today. Week in, week out, he’s helping with training or organisation behind the scenes and he must have recruited half of the current squad. Player who could have made it big if love/career/drink didn’t get in the way: Philip Conlon. He's like a new-born foal when he's had two pints and he can’t help himself; otherwise he could have been a contender for the Armagh panel. All those long, hard days training and playing in Tullysaran GAA paid off, however, when Philip became a founder of the Costa Gaels, having missed the craic so much back in Armagh. Biggest character: Jason McMahon, the Tallaght bandit and dedicated Rangers supporter. His attendance at training and games is shocking but you certainly know about it when he’s actually turned up. The biggest wind-up merchant in the dressing room; he loves a few beers with the lads. Loudest in the dressing room: Frankly, the lot of ‘em are a loud bunch of baying mules. Normal stuff. Number of romances that started in the GAA club (feel free to name names): Just the one. Mark Farragher met his missus on an away trip to Seville - the gorgeous Rebecca Dalby - who we are forever grateful for helping to keep him on his strict diet. You should see him; it’s like his family photo is a barcode. Duck to water award – Best new player who had never played GAA before: Too many to name but with so many new players this season it has to be done. Eddie Kavanagh: A proper horse when it comes to the game. Lives for it, runs like one and there’s no putting him down, even if he was lame! Keith, Frank and Rob Horgan from Estepona have proven themselves in the forward and midfield lines time and time again. Luke Hill, a very new player, has slotted right into both the sport and the team. Eric Morris and Lauri Lehto have both been great additions to the back line, alongside Mark Weston. Our Spanish keeper Dani Cereto Ruiz is pure class, a great kicker and shot stopper. Most annoying person in the club WhatsApp group: Liam Riordan… without a doubt. Sly digs are his speciality and undeniably entertaining, so long as they are not aimed at yourself. He was a dentist in a past life and if it wasn't for the distance and safety of WhatsApp we reckon he would be busy fixing his own teeth on a weekly basis. Now he works for Ryanair, so enough said. Best story involving a club member that’s fit for print: The usual shenanigans ensue on our away trips and since we tend to stay over in Seville two or three times a season and do away trips to Galicia and beyond every year, there’s a tall tale to be told for every occasion. Let’s settle on the one about two lads wandering the streets of Seville until 5am, counting red and yellow doors in their hunt for the hostel we stayed at… and let’s not mention the one about spooning. If you're a member of a GAA club abroad and would like to be featured on the site, feel free to send a mail to editorial@JOE.ie or find us on Facebook or Twitter.