In 1987 Thomas McCurtains joined the short listof London GAA clubs to have won both the London Senior Football and Hurling Championships when they lifted their solitary London Senior Hurling Championship. Of the other teams to have completed this feat only Brother Pearses, Cuchullainns and Robert Emmets are still in operation and still fielding teams in both Hurling and Football.

Despite being one of London's oldest clubs McCurtains have not dined at London's top table on many occasions have just two senior football tiltles in 1934 and 1935 and the one hurling title above to their name. But despite the lack of glory it always seems no matter where you go in Ireland you always seem to meet someone who knows of the McCurtains. Whenever you tell someone you are in London and you kick ball or hurl, so one will inevitably ask who you play for and when you say McCurtains you will usually get the following response "How is auld Watson keeping?" or "is Johnny Dwyer still hurling?". Whilst other bigger and more successful clubs have fallen by the wayside McCurtains have carried on throughout the years in East London and Essex thanks to men like Tom Watson, Johnny Dwyer, Alan Power, Jim McDermott, Mick Heron, Vinny Fahey, and others due to their love of gaelic games and the McCurtains club.

Despite all the barren years there now and again comes a special team that stands out and strikes out for glory and so it was in 1987. Round the time McCurtains had a talented bunch of hurlers who were always there or thereabouts but had never managed to get it all together in the one year and obtain championship glory. One change that year that proved to be the catalyst to Championship winning success was the appointment of the reknowned Ambrose Gordon as manager. Gordon managed to get all the many talented hurlers into a much more efficient team unit than they had been in previous years and they managed to become a match for the much more illustrious opponents that year . The final saw they come up against the legendary Brian Boru's club, whilst in the past they may have gone into the game with a slight inferior complex this was not present under Gordon's leadership and the team managed to out hurl their opponents and run out deserving winners with the decisive score being a goal from John Hogan. Celebrations in East London went on to last for well over a week, with The Shannon and The Joker doing possibly their best ever week of trading.

Sadly the team would never reach the same heights again and over the years the team gradually disbanded with players moving abroad and many players moving back to Ireland. Some of the players such as Colm Spain, Ted Roche, Johnny Dwyer and Paddy Longergan stayed around and continued to hurl for McCurtains for years to come and to helped the team to Intermediate titles but the always spoke fondly of the great team of 87. Despite the distance apart and the length of time since that great day all the players have still kept in touch with the McCurtains club, in fact in recent years the sons of John Hogan and John Carey have lined out alongside one another in the famous maroon jerseys of McCurtains.

So in recognition of the famous day in Ruislip the McCurtains are holding a reunion in O'Gradys Seven Kings on Friday Nov 30th the celebrate this great year in the clubs history. Most of the team have confirmed they shall be returning to Seven Kings to meet up with all their old friends and to tell stories of the great days they had in travelling all over London with hurls in hand, of the many battles in New Eltham and Ruislip and of great friendships made.

The following are the players who made up that great team which McCurtains hope will not remain as our solitary Senior Hurling Champions for too long.

Paddy Lonergan (Limerick) Colm Spain (Offaly) Dave Buckley (Cork) Sean Doorley (Offaly) Martin Forrester (Kilkenny) Ger O'Neill (Kilkenny) Mick Kelly (Offaly) John Hogan (Limerick) Brian Drohan (Waterford) Eamon Daley (Tipperary) Brain Smith (Westmeath), Ted Roche (Cork) Aidan Mahoney (Dublin) Johnny Roche (Cork) Johnny Dwyer (Tipperary) John Carey (Tipperary) Mickey Jordan (Wexford) Tom Fahey (Galway) Oliver Lawlor (Wexford) Declan Kiely (Waterford) David Crotty (Cork) Martin Joyce (Kilkenny)

Manager Ambrose Gordon (Galway) selectors Frank Galwey (Wexford) Sean Drennan (Laois) Tweet

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