New Haven GAA pitch named after Eslin man

“Connecticut club moves Mountains” is the heading on an article about the New Haven GAA club which succeeded in moving thousands of tons rock to develop a full-length pitch.

Just two weeks ago the pitch was officially opened to the great delight of the club’s supporters.

What caught the eye was the fact that the pitch is called the Patrick Bohan Gaelic Grounds with the inscription “Up Leitrim” underneath it.

Why was the pitch given this name and who was Patrick Bohan?  We discovered that the club has had very strong Leitrim connection from it was established in 1949.

Patrick Bohan was born in Mcloughra, Eslin in the Parish of Mohill and went to New Haven, Connecticut in the late 1940s. There he met Seán Scollan, a native of Cornagun, Fenagh who grew up in Ballinamore and, together with other Irish emigrants, they established a GAA club.

In the early 1950s, several other Leitrim men played with the club including Aloysius Blessing from Aughavas as well as Mike Joe McKeon and John Reynolds.

The club developed a small pitch many years ago but a mountain of rock sat at one end of it. It was a daunting task to literally “move mountains” but that has finally been achieved. Patrick Bohan died about 2005 and Sean Scollan died in 2014.

Both of them were very proud of the New Haven GAA club they helped to found. Patrick Bohan’s brother still lives in the home place and Seán Scollan's family are regular visitors to Ballinamore.

To read more about the New Haven GAA club see here.