Croker and Aviva are great, but there are more than a few more hallowed grounds dotted around the capital city.
While the homes of Irish soccer, rugby and the GAA are obviously the big names when it comes to Dublin’s sporting Meccas, there are lots of other places a little off the beaten track well worth a visit.
Don’t get us wrong, Croke Park and Aviva Stadium are both top class international stadiums, the sites of many great occasions over the years, but they don’t have the monopoly on magic moments in Irish sport in the city. Here’s a few more places well worth a visit for the more committed sporting fan in the city.
Morton Stadium
All the way out in Santry is the home of Irish athletics, Morton Stadium, Still the place where the Irish championships are held every year, it has been in existence since 1958, and its inaugural meeting, the very first Morton Games, means it is worth a visit. The year was 1958 and on a cinder track long since gone Australian Herb Elliot destroyed the world mile record, running it in 3 minutes 54.5 seconds. Not many world records in athletics get broken on Irish so head out there to pay homage to the feat.
Dalymount Park
On the way back into town, make sure you head to Phibsborough to take in the original home of irish soccer, Dalymount Park. Still the home of Bohemians, Dalyer last held an Irish soccer international in 1990 but almost all of Ireland’s greatest players graced the pitch at one point.
It was at Dalymount that Liam Brady and John Giles had their best days in an Irish shirt, including that now infamous debut in a 3-0 victory over the USSR in 1974, while it was the home of the FAI Cup final, drawing massive crowds, during the 1950s and ‘60s and 48,000 crammed in to see Ireland play England in 1957.
These days Bohs don’t draw crowds like that but the old place still has a touch of magic about it on match days. There’s few better places to be on a sunny Friday night when Bohs are at home.
The Iveagh Grounds
All the way out in Crumlin, this sportsground was created to give the workers of Guinness a place to exercise and for their team, St James Gate, to play in the 1920s
Other sports were held there too, including athletics and this video explains just what was going on there during its heyday.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OMZsVvPpi9k
The club still exist in the Leinster Senior League after falling out of the League of Ireland in the 1990s and the grounds, much modernised now, are still there.
