Palatine GAA is a Gaelic Athletic Association club based in Bennekerry, County Carlow in Ireland. It draws players mainly from the parish of Bennekerry, including the townlands of Brownshill, Ducketsgrove, Kernanstown, Russellstown and Palatine, County Carlow. The club was founded in 1909 and has won seven Carlow Senior Football Championships and one Carlow Senior Hurling Championship in its history. Football Formation and early history Football was being played in the Palatine area almost 20 years before the present Palatine GAA club was founded. The original team was Ballyhade Slashers, and though Ballyhade is in neighbouring County Kildare, they were allowed to compete in Carlow. Another club named Ardnehue folded in 1905. The current Palatine club was founded in 1909, and their first match on record is a 0–17 to 0–3 defeat to Carlow Graigue. They won their first championship in 1913; the Carlow Junior Championship. They won their first Carlow Senior championship in 1919 and retained it a year later. Their 1919 victory was over Graiguecullen in a replay, after a scoreless draw. The replay was won 1–1 to 0–2. In the 1920 Leinster Championship, the Carlow team that defeated Wicklow 3–2 to 1–7 contained 10 Palatine players, including captain John Sweeney. Later that year Palatine defeated neighbours Tinryland 1–1 to 0–0 in Graiguecullen to retain the championship. They thus experienced the rare feat of winning two Senior Championships in the same calendar year, as the 1919 final had been played on 25 January 1920. Third Senior Championship, 1920 to 1952 When Carlow won the Leinster Junior Championship in 1923, Palatine players Ed "Sonny" Wall, Matt Hanely and Tom Dillon were in the team, with Jack Scully, Lar Sweeney and Mike Delaney among the subs. After relegation to Junior level following a dispute with the County Board (following a game with Milford in the early 1930s), Palatine won the Carlow Junior championship in 1936 and the Intermediate championship in 1938. They were re-graded back down to Intermediate again for the 1940 season, and won that title once more in 1948, returning to Senior. Much of the team that won promotion from Intermediate would go on to win the Senior championship in 1952. They beat Ballymurphy in the final. This team also lost to Tinryland in the 1950 final and to Ballymurphy in 1953. They did, however, also win Senior Football Leagues in 1950, 1952, 1953 and 1954. Billy "Skinner" McGuill