In one of the most memorable moments in the club's history, Glasgow City Council honoured the 1998 Provincial football championship of Britain winning  team with a civic reception in Glasgow city chambers.  Among the guests was the then GAA President, Joe McDonagh.  Joe is pictured with three of the winning team's players; Anton Gallagher, Seamus McGeady and Ross Docherty.

The Tir Conaill Harps club was formed in 1994 following an amicable break away from the Pearse Harps club by the underage football section, who left to form the club, at a meeting in the Govanhill Neighbourhood Centre, in Glasgow's south side.  The name Tir Conaill reflected the large Donegal community in the area and the number of members and players with family links to the county.

    In our opening year we fielded teams in six underage levels.  Our biggest success in the opening period was winning the GAA for Africa cup in Birmingham.  Despite playing the tournament with one less player throughout we deservedly won the day, beating the best in England in the process.

    Following on from that success the following year we won the inaugural All Britain under 12s sevens shield in Manchester, a title we went on to retain for three consecutive years.  It was during this period that the club reached it's greatest level of achievement, by being the first club in Britain to contest three Provincial football finals in the same year.  Although we were beaten in two, the 16s and 14s, the club's growing reputation as a force in gaelic games in Britain was cemented by the award by the Irish Post newspaper  in recognition of being the club of the year in Britain for 1994.

   1995 witnessed the club forming a camogie team, which won the camogie junior championship in it's first year.  Despite many difficulties, mainly due to lack of fixtures, the team is still going strong.  On the football front, a memorable trip to the feile in Mayo, resulted in our under 14s team reaching the final, which was played at the county pitch, in Castlebar.  Although defeat to Dicksboro, from Kilkenny was followed two weeks later by a similar fate in the Provincial club championships final, this time to London side Kerry Gaels, in Birmingham, it was obvious that the club was destined to achieve the ultimate goal of all GAA clubs in Scotland- a Provincial title.

   The following year the club made the first serious attempt at starting an adult mens football team.  We entered all the senior competitions with a team made up almost entirely of sixteen  year olds.  Despite losing most of our games, some in convincing fashion, the team stuck together and were rewarded at the tail of the season with  the B championship title, following a win over Paisley Gaels in the final.  There was a dip in underage activity during that year, but at the same time thoughts were on the following years' Provincial championships.

    A rigorous training regime resulted in early success for the under 16s, when they completely outplayed St. Patrick's in the final of the Scottish championships.  In the first round of the Provincial club championships the team beat Eire Og from Oxford followed by old adversaries, Erin Go Bragh, from Warwickshire, in the semi-final.  The stage was set for a rematch of the '94 final against London champions, Kerry Gaels, who went into the game favourites with an unbeaten run stretching back five years.  The rest of course is history with our team running out extra time winners.  The winning team were accorded a civic reception by Glasgow city council.  At the event in the City Chambers, GAA President, Joe McDonagh,  spoke in glowing terms of the achievement of the club in becoming the only Scottish team to win a Provincial title at any level.  That same year the under 14s were narrowly beaten in their final by London champions, Tir Conaill Gaels.

    During the short history of the club our work in local schools  and within the wider community has been well documented. We were at the forefront of the campaign to keep the community centre in Govanhill open in the late nineties, when the city council cutbacks were threatening local services and facilities.  In recent years we have played an active role in the Govanhill Drug Forum, by providing drug awareness training and diversionary activities for the young people of Govanhill.  This work included organising a  sporting and cultural exchange between  schools in Govanhill, Co. Limerick and Co.Dublin

    Lack of competition has had a detrimental effect on the club to such an extent that we are for the first time unable to field at all levels.  Several coaching initiatives are now in place and a fund-raising drive is underway to buy a new mini-bus, which we hope will assist with our efforts to continue the line of fine young footballers who have come through the ranks to wear the famous green and gold jersey at adult level.

   The year 2001 witnessed the culmination of the years of effort by our underage football coaches, when the senior team took the league and championship double.

Tommy Main

Club Honours List

2003
Glasgow schools championship- St.Mungo's Primary
Under 14s championship
Drug Free sevens winners-Holy Cross
2002
Tir Conaill Harps shinty tournament winners
Senior football league winners
Drug Free sevens winners-St.Conval's Primary
Glasgow schools championship- Victoria Primary

2001

Glasgow City Council Community Club Of  The Year
Senior football champions
Winners of shield final at Birmingham International Women's day camogie tournament.
Senior football  Pearse cup winners
Shield winners Provincial sevens under 12s
Runners up Scottish (south) ladies shinty league
Senior football Rory Campbell memorial sevens winners
Senior football league winners
Minor football champions
Minor football league winners

2000

Senior Sevens Winners, senior B champions, under 16s champions, runners up under 16s Provincial championships
Runners up shield final, Croydon camogie tournament.

1999

Senior Sevens Winners, runners up in Senior Pearse Cup, minor champions, 14s champions

1998

16s championship,  Provincial Championship of Britain, runners up14s Provincial club championship of Britain.

1997

Senior B Championship Winners

1996

16s league and championship winners, runners up in provincial championships. u14s championship winner, runners up in provincial championship and runners up in Feile in co. Mayo. u12s Provincial sevens championship, league and championship winners, Irish Festival sevens winners. camogie Junior Championship Winners.
 

1995

15s league and championship winners. 13s league winners. 12s league championship and provincial sevens champions. 11s league and championship.
 

1994

10s winners All Britain GAA for Africa Cup, league and championship runners up, winners of Millar Cup Sevens. 11s league championship and Celtic Cup sevens winners. 12s league and championship winners, runners up Irish festival. 13s championship runners up. 14s league and Pearse cup winners, championship runners up. 15s, league and championship winners.