‘We want to create a legacy’: CK United, a new era of Kilkenny football and the return of Buckley Park

Eighteen years on from the dissolving of Kilkenny City AFC, an entire generation of local football fans have grown up without ever having the opportunity to support a League of Ireland side in their county.

That long wait is finally coming to an end however, with the announcement of CK United as one of 15 clubs currently registered for the FAI National League, the new third tier of the Irish football pyramid, last month.

The Carlow and Kilkenny based club has been fielding underage teams in local and national competitions since its founding in 2017, and after unsuccessfully applying for a First Division licence on two occasions, Directors Peter Harvey, Fran Egan and Shane Dunphy are keen to gain a foothold and climb the ladder through the divisions.

“The National League was obviously going to be the next step for us,” says Peter who also serves as club Chairman. “Our main ambition now is to get into the League of Ireland proper. With there being promotion and relegation for 2027, that’s everything that we’re trying to do to get to the next level”.

The new league will commence with a shortened season in August to allow clubs to adapt to the change before a full season aligned with the higher tiers kicks off early next year.

In addition to bringing the League of Ireland back to Kilkenny, CK United is breathing new life into the sport’s spiritual home in the county as Buckley Park has been bought by the club with work underway to get the long-vacant stadium ready for use by August’s kickoff.

The purchase negotiations with Jimmy Rhatigan, one of the founding fathers of Emfa AFC and a giant of Kilkenny football, couldn’t have gone more smoothly according to the CK United side with all parties eager to usher in a new era for ground.

“I suppose we need to put it on the record, he’s been absolutely amazing to deal with”, says Shane, Sporting Director. 

“They’re so excited to get football at this level back out there too. It’s really important to us that we don’t forget that and for the whole city to remember that that stadium’s not there without Jimmy Rhatigan and all the people who helped him”, he asserts.

After years of disuse, the ground needs plenty of TLC to get back to its best, but despite its run-down appearance, most of the damage is aesthetic in nature with no major works required.

“There’s no structural work,” outlines Fran, who’s leading the stadium repairs. “The old club shop and things like that are just rotten; they’re taken out of the way, but apart from that, everything is there”.

“It looks really bad,” adds Shane. “But by the first week of February there’ll be diggers in there and once that happens, it’ll be cleared. It’ll be tight for August, there’s no point in saying the grass pitch won’t be hard to get ready for then, but that’s the job”.

Though Buckley Park will host the senior men’s team along with the senior women’s team, who play their first ever game next month, the club’s academy training centre is being developed in Tullow, with Carlow set to enjoy League of Ireland representation for the first time.

With players from 11 different counties involved in underage teams, CK United is aiming to serve the wider region both for fans of the game and ambitious players looking for a pathway to the top.

“I’m speaking to people in Carlow where my base is and every one of them is saying they’re coming to Buckley Park to support”, says Peter. “They’re going to be supporters of the club because of what it’s bringing to the area; giving people the opportunity to play at the highest level which they’ve been deprived of for 18 years without travelling long distances”.

“It’s the south-east region”, Fran inputs. “If there was a stadium in Carlow we’d be going to Carlow; it’s the fact that Buckley Park is here which is the big thing”.

Image: The 15 sides confirmed to be taking part in the National League, which will be split into north and south competitions.

Alongside getting the facilities in order, the coaching staff is coming together as well. Academy Head Coach at Shamrock Rovers, Tom O’Connor will be taking the reins as manager with Kilkenny’s Graham Doyle on board as goalkeeping coach while some other spots have yet to be filled. 

O’Connor brings plenty of experience leading elite academies and has also headed up underage programmes at Bray Wanderers and Wexford FC, but this will be his first foray into senior management.

The club plans to promote members of its U20 squad to the first team and although this will be supplemented by veteran players coming on board over the summer, CK United will be a youthful outfit at the outset of their National League campaign.

The Directors are well-aware of their current position in Ireland’s footballing hierarchy, but will take inspiration from the growth of the likes of Kerry FC, who are turning fully professional this season; just four years after being chosen for a First License instead of CK United.

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“We’re going to be in the National League; we’ll be bringing players up from the grassroots and the better ones will go on to the League of Ireland”, Peter describes.

“But then hopefully within a few years, we’ll be that club in the league that’s taking them. We’ve got ambitions to keep not just the players progressing, the club has to progress to make us bigger and better”.

“We need more people to help and that’s the hard part”, Shane highlights. “No one wants to be a club secretary, no one wants to be sitting doing the books, the PRO stuff or making the tea and the other things that come with having a stadium so that’s the next step”.

Fixtures like a local derby against Waterford’s Villa FC and a trip to Lucan United in Dublin have already been circled on the calendar, but it’s the potential of a draw against one of the country’s heavyweights in the 2027 FAI Cup that’s really generating excitement inside the club.

“Give us Rovers in the first round and let’s make a few pounds!” Shane laughs. 

The benefits that marquee fixtures like this could bring not only to the club, but Kilkenny City itself are clear to see as a popular away trip comes back on the schedule for fans nationwide.

“What we’re bringing to Buckley Park, we’re also bringing to Kilkenny”, Peter says. “If we got a team like Rovers or Derry down here for a cup game, Kilkenny would be packed with those supporters”.

“We’ll be bringing business into the city. They’ll be coming down for every game and even if there’s only four or five hundred, that would be outstanding for us”.

“A lot of them will be staying overnight in the city and lots of people online are saying this was always one of their favourite away trips”, he adds.

After almost a decade of developing underage sides and building the club from the ground up, CK United is finally about to make the jump to senior football and knock on the door of the First Division and its established clubs.

While they are forging their own path and future, the leadership understands the importance of paying homage to work that came before them as they prepare for the exciting years to come.

“We want to create a legacy and for this club to survive and bring football to the area for all the kids coming through”, Peter concludes.

“They created a legacy with Kilkenny City; unfortunately it didn’t last, but now we’re back and hopefully we can recreate what they tried to do”.

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