Laois trailblazing woman wins big GAA award

A groundbreaking Laois woman has one a major award from the GAA for her contribution to Gaelic games.

Croke Park has announced that the Mac Namee Hall of Fame Award will be presented to the sports journalist Cliona Foley in recognition of a lifetime of excellence in Gaelic games coverage.

The Mac Namee Awards are presented annually in recognition of outstanding contributions made by individuals and GAA units in the area of media and communications.

"Clíona Foley is a trailblazer. She was the first woman to cover Gaelic games in a national newspaper and continues to be an inspirational presence in Irish media," said the citation from GAA HQ. 

Born and raised in Abbeyleix and educated in Kilkenny and Mountrath, Clíona initially qualified as a PE and English teacher from Thomond College before pursuing her dream of becoming a sports journalist with a post-grad in NIHE Dublin, now DCU School of Journalism.

During an eight-week placement with Independent newspapers Clíona’s journalistic talents were championed by Group Sports Editor Pat Courtney and Evening Herald Sports Editor PJ Cunningham, and she became a full-time member of the sports desk in 1990. 

The citation said she was inspired by the style of American sports writers and enjoyed on working holidays in the US while a teacher.

"Clíona’s expert eye for describing the colour of epic match days in Clones, Castlebar, Cork and Croke Park made her an invaluable part of the Independent and Herald’s Championship coverage. 

"Clíona’s passion for all sports made her a versatile asset for many years and, since leaving the Independent Group in 2015, she has continued to cover a variety of sports across all manner of platforms. She has worked at eight Olympiads across summer, winter and Paralympic Games, and been a strong advocate for increasing the coverage and awareness of female sport. 

"She was the first woman to cover the GAA in the national print media and her commitment to excellence in that coverage has ensured she was not the last, inspiring more women to follow in her footsteps," concluded the citation.

Uachtarán CLG Jarlath Burns commented on the 2025 award winners. MORE BELOW PHOTO.

Cliona Foley and Ladies Footballers Sinead Goldrick of Dublin and Sarah Rowe of Mayo, during an Off The Bench podcast, at Lidl Head Office in 2018. Photo: Seb Daly/Sportsfile

“It is very fitting that the MacNamee Awards will be presented on November 1 – the calendar anniversary of the formation of the GAA 141 years ago, and the birth of a movement that was inspired in part by writers and journalists. From those earliest days the GAA was acutely aware of the importance of communication and of the need to be able to tell our story and have our voice heard.

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"The passing decades have served to only make this ever more crucial. These are turbulent times in the media industry and an initiative like the MacNamee Awards allows us to recognise professionals who excel in the coverage of our games, coverage that we greatly value as we promote the GAA,” she said.

The Awards are named after the late Pádraig MacNamee, former President of the GAA, Chairman of the GAA Commission (1969-1971) and member of the RTÉ authority.