Ards Lacrosse Club: Appeal for memorabilia, photos and information as new exhibition on lacrosse - thought to have been played by SAS and WW2 hero Blair Mayne - to be staged in North Down Museum

By Roderick McMurray
Published 13th Feb 2023, 15:51 BST
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The organisers of a new museum exhibition have issued a public appeal for memorabilia, photos and information relating to the Ards Lacrosse Club, which was the first lacrosse club to be formed in Ireland in 1872.

The North American sport of lacrosse involves two teams, with players using the head of the lacrosse stick to carry, pass, catch, and shoot the ball into the goal.

North Down Museum is seeking to add to the collection of items already in the possession of Ards Historical Society, including All Ireland Championship trophies, pennants and photographs, which will be going on display as part of the Lacrosse Exhibition in Coffee Cure (at North Down Museum) on Tuesday 28 March.

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Any information will also form part of the museum’s archive on the history of the club.

Moira O’Rourke (Cultural Heritage Officer at Ards and North Down Borough Council) and Robin Masefield (local historian) with lacrosse sticks dating from 1938. Mr Masefield is working with Ards Historical Society to collate an exhibition which will highlight the rise of lacrosse in the late 19th century in Ards. Picture: Graham Baalham-Curry.Moira O’Rourke (Cultural Heritage Officer at Ards and North Down Borough Council) and Robin Masefield (local historian) with lacrosse sticks dating from 1938. Mr Masefield is working with Ards Historical Society to collate an exhibition which will highlight the rise of lacrosse in the late 19th century in Ards. Picture: Graham Baalham-Curry.
Moira O’Rourke (Cultural Heritage Officer at Ards and North Down Borough Council) and Robin Masefield (local historian) with lacrosse sticks dating from 1938. Mr Masefield is working with Ards Historical Society to collate an exhibition which will highlight the rise of lacrosse in the late 19th century in Ards. Picture: Graham Baalham-Curry.

Collated by members of Ards Historical Society and local historian Robin Masefield, the exhibition will highlight the rise of lacrosse in the late 19th century; local players and visiting teams; and Ards being unbeatable over the three seasons, winning both major trophies - the Irish Championship Flag and the Irish Challenge Shield.

Many influential Newtownards families played lacrosse in the 1920s and ‘30s, including the Russell family, and it is believed that WW2 hero and founding member of the SAS, Blair Mayne, also enjoyed the sport.

Speaking about the appeal, Robin Masefield said: “I am delighted to be working with Ards Historical Society and North Down Museum to publicise the extraordinary history of lacrosse in Newtownards.

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"Founded in the 1870s, the Ards Lacrosse Club won the all-Ireland trophy many times and was still thriving up to the 1930s. We would be delighted to hear from those with stories and memorabilia to further enrich our exhibition.”

The original 1893 Newtownards Lacrosse Team. By 1879 a number of lacrosse clubs had emerged to join the Ards Lacrosse Club and in that year an Irish Lacrosse Union was founded, a development driven by Captain Hugh C. Kelly of Ballymacarrett, Co. Down. By 1886, there were at least 13 active lacrosse clubs in Ireland these included Chichester Park, Clarence, Cliftonville, Dublin University, Methodist College, North of Ireland, Down Athletic Club, Rugby, Ards, Royal Academical Institution, Ulster, Windsor and YMCA.The original 1893 Newtownards Lacrosse Team. By 1879 a number of lacrosse clubs had emerged to join the Ards Lacrosse Club and in that year an Irish Lacrosse Union was founded, a development driven by Captain Hugh C. Kelly of Ballymacarrett, Co. Down. By 1886, there were at least 13 active lacrosse clubs in Ireland these included Chichester Park, Clarence, Cliftonville, Dublin University, Methodist College, North of Ireland, Down Athletic Club, Rugby, Ards, Royal Academical Institution, Ulster, Windsor and YMCA.
The original 1893 Newtownards Lacrosse Team. By 1879 a number of lacrosse clubs had emerged to join the Ards Lacrosse Club and in that year an Irish Lacrosse Union was founded, a development driven by Captain Hugh C. Kelly of Ballymacarrett, Co. Down. By 1886, there were at least 13 active lacrosse clubs in Ireland these included Chichester Park, Clarence, Cliftonville, Dublin University, Methodist College, North of Ireland, Down Athletic Club, Rugby, Ards, Royal Academical Institution, Ulster, Windsor and YMCA.

If anyone would like to loan or donate items to the exhibition or has any information for the archive, North Down Museum can be emailed at [email protected].

The Ards Lacrosse Exhibition will run in North Down Museum from Tuesday 28 March until Sunday 30 April. Admission is free.

For more information, visit andculture.org.uk/whats-on/ards-lacrosse-club

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