“The name Clar Atha An Da Choradh” has its origins in the local medieval castle first built around 1250 and reconsrtucted and fortified in the late fifteenth century. The castle is built on a site, which was an island formed by a divide in the river Fergus. In the Irish Annals the place is called “Clar Atha An Da Choradh” – the board of the ford of the two weirs. The shortened form of this place name “An Clar” in the anglicised form eventually gave its name to the modern county of Clare.

Hurling and football have been played in the parish since earliest times. It’s present existence dates probably from the spring of 1887.  A football tournament is recorded as having taken place in October of that year. It is also on record that the Killone hurling club and the Clarecastle football club took part in a funeral procession of a Clarecastle Fenian in March 1888.

There have been many changes since those times. The name of the club in Clarecastle has been changed many times from “Robert Emmets”, “Parnells” to “An Clar”, “An Clar Mor”, “Droichead an Chlair” etc., until 1971when the historic name of “Clar Atha An Da Coradh” was restored to the club and has remained ever since.

The club remained without a home ground continued well until the early 1980s when a first permanent site was purchased from St Flannans College at Clareabbey. That well-appointed grounds and clubhouse has since passed from the club in a roundabout way to the Clare County Board. It was purchased from the club by the Ennis Urban Council in 1998 and subsequently bought back from the Urban Council by the county board and is now a welcome addition to the boards training facilities. 

The clubs present location, back in the heart of the village, is the fruit of necessity, foresight, effort, persuasion and a bit of luck on the part of club members and the generosity and community spirit of local landowners. We are justifiably proud of this achievement. It consists of a clubhouse opened in 2002 and three pitches first used in 2001. In 2004 we entered a partnersip deal with the County Board on two pitches in “Ryans Field” which will benefit both club and county. These developments will serve the club and community well into the twenty-first century.

On the playing field Clarecastle won their first senior hurling championship as part of an Ennis/Clarecastle team in 1928. Having contested 3 finals as an independent club in the thirties, the break-through in the county was finally made in 1943 with a win over Scariff.  Successes followed in ’45, ‘49, ’70, ’86, ’87, ’91, ’94, ’97, 2003 and 2005.  In between, twelve finals were contested and lost. In 1997 we made the break through in Munster and were unfortunate to lose in a replay to a great Birr team at the All Ireland semi-final stage. 

Success at senior level has deserted us since the 2005 win. In 2006 and 2007 we reached the semi-final stage and in 2008 we were beaten at the quarter final stage. 

Unfortunately in 2009 we lost all four of our senior championship games but reached the quarter final stages of the Junior B and Intermediate championships. 

We have a thriving underage division viz. CADCOg,  a committee dedicated to the wellfare and progress of all players from U8s to Minor.

 2009 saw the introduction of  “Fun-Do Go-Games” at U8s and U10s which has brought a new demension to coaching at that age group. 

In 2009 the U12 hurlers won the “B” and “Special” championships. U14s won the Clare Feile for the first time since 1973 but were unluckey to lose out at the closing stages of the U14 championship. U16 “B” hurlers reached the semi-final of the championship with a youngish team and the U15s lost to Sixmilebridge in a closely contested final. The minor hurlers also did well given the age profile of the team,  to reach the semi-final stage of the championship. Underage football continues to do well in their grades. The U12s reached the “B” quarterfinal losing to eventual finalists St Breckans/Ballyvaughan. The U14 footballers were understrength when they met and lost to Cooraclare in the Div 2 semi-final. At U16 level good performances brought the team to “B” semi-final where they lost to Clondegad. The minor footballer were required to compete against traditional “A” teams in what was called Division 1-2. Nevertheless they gave a good account of themselves before withdrawing from what was a championship fiasco, designed to suit the tradional “A” teams. 

Clarecastle is nominally a dual club catering for both hurling and football at underage and adult levels. The camogie club run their own affairs with the blessing and co-operation of the GAA Club. 

While success at underage levels comes intermittently it must be said that at adult level shortage of “football only” players has been a factor in our lack of success. In the years when senior hurling championship was played on a “knock-out” basis football made progress at adult level. In those years it was a well known fact that should Clarecastle be knocked out of the senior hurling race an early stage, they would do well in adult football in that year. 

The intermediate football championship was won in 1984, 1993 and last won in 1998. 

At senior level the only championship won was in the early days of the club in 1908.