A brief history of Skellig Rangers GAA Club. Skellig Rangers G.A.A Club was founded in 1895 by Michael Devane and H.P. Lannen. These two men would also go on to be officers in the first divisional board to be set up in the G.A.A when they were founder members of the South Kerry G.A.A divisional board in 1903.
Michael Devane was born in 1877 in Portmagee.
To be more specific he was born in the townland of Portmagee to a rural family in a place called Doora.
The Devane’s of Doora are believed to have migrated to Portmagee around the time of the great hunger or the famine (1845–1847).
They were farmers and fishermen who were strong, broad backed and athletic. From its modest beginning the Devanes espoused Gaelic football and for generations they featured as stallwarts in the colours of their beloved Skellig Rangers.
Apart from Michael some notable Devanes were, James Cameo Devane, Dan “Rita” Devane, John Caol Devane, Michael Barry (Devane) and Alan Devane.
Michael is fondly remembered as a founding member of Skellig Rangers with H P Lannon. They have left a lasting legacy. In the past 125 years the Rangers have had some tremendous success. It reached it’s apotheosis in 2009 when they won the all Ireland Junior Football Championship in Croke Park on a never to be forgotten night. It’s no exaggeration to say that the silken glue that knits the community is the Skellig Rangers.
It’s very difficult to put a face on a man (we have no picture of Michael). However, from the little information we have gleaned of him it would indicate a strong, tall, tough but scrupulously fair competitor. He was admired for his contribution to the development of communities in Portmagee, Caherciveen and the surrounding countryside.
In Pat O Shea’s book “Face The Ball“ he tells us about the history of the Kerry County Championship. Michael was involved in county finals (1895). . The “Kerry News” has him scoring in the 1895 lost final to Ballymacelligot. Michael played a lot of his football with the O’Connells football club (prior to the development of Skellig Rangers). Near half-time the Kerry News said “the Caherciveen team, pulling all their strength they rushed the leather into their opponents ground and a goal was taken by Caherciveen, kicked by Devane”. Michael played at full back.
The “Kerry News” of the 31st of July 1903 tells us of a match between O’Connells and Skellig Rangers. The teams were composed from the several teams affiliated with the South Kerry Board. “A large concourse of people from Portmagee, Ballinskelligs, Waterville, Valencia, Foilmore and Caherdaniel were present”. Michael was a proud man of Portmagee and he played at fullback for the Skelligs.
Apart from his love of all things Portmagee, Michael was a principal teacher of Ballinskelligs National School. He was a sound mathematical teacher and “knew the Irish language to a great extent”, to quote the Killarney Echo. In the south Kerry Chronicle of the 5th of December 1903 there was a special meeting of the South Kerry Board, of which Michael was a member, to pass a resolution of sympathy to his aggrieved family.
Michael was a great organizer of Gaelic football and a player of renown throughout Kerry. He is interred in Saint Finan’s Churchyard, Keel, the Glen.
I quote again from the Kerry Chronicle , “before the funeral started for its destination, the town was literally alive with people from all parts of the Iveragh”, which testified the deceased young man was a great favorite among all classes”. Michael died on the 27th of November 1903 at the young age of 33 years.
It was then known as Portmagee G.A.A club and adopted the present Skellig Rangers name in the 1930s. Portmagee played in three County Senior Championships 1896,1897 and 1917.From 1918 to the early thirties many town lands in the Portmagee area had their own teams .
The late 20s and early 30s saw four teams in Portmagee with the political climate at the the time causing this fragmentation of the G.A.A. in the area.These teams amalgamated to be known as Skellig Rangers and won their first divisional championship on the field of play in 1936.
Skellig Rangers did not have their own permanent home for many years and since the mid 1970s the club has seen massive efforts in the financing and development of playing facilities with the first game being played on their new pitch in 1981.The club did not stop there and developed new dressing rooms in the late 1980s.The next stage of development came in the mid 1990s when the Rangers totally redeveloped their playing pitch and also the erection of a new stand with dressing rooms underneath.This stage of development culminated in the official opening of Pairc Chill Imeallach in May 1999 with the Kerry Senior team playing Laois in a challenge.
The Senior team also won the County Novice B Final in the year 1997 The club were also South Kerry League Champions in 1980,2004 and 2005.The Rangers won the South Kerry Senior Championship in 2006 and in 2009 they added the County, Munster and All-Ireland Junior club Championship.
Skellig Rangers GAA 