Dewsbury Celtic are known as one of the most famous names in
amateur rugby league and have a long and proud history. Dewsbury Celtic are one of the oldest Irish sports clubs in Yorkshire and possibly Britain, and the teams origins can be linked to Irelands Great Famine of 1845. Official records demonstrate that that in 1845 200 Irish immigrants were living in Daw Green Westtown. By 1851 the number had grown to as many as 1,000 people working mainly as labourers and mill workers. The teams initial name was the Dewsbury Shamrocks but in 1879 they switched to Association Football and returned to
rugby league in 1910, joining the Northern Union and changing names to adopt the Celtic suffix. Dewsbury Celtic quickly gained a serious reputation as one of the best local teams, winning the Yorkshire County Amateur Cup in 1912-1913. This award winning team was split up by the First World War and lost 15 players. Dewsbury Celtic reformed in 1919 and disbanded once again in 1939 at the outbreak of the Second World War.
Dewsbury Celtic reformed post-war and once again worked their way up to gain a reputation as one of the most famous names in
amateur rugby league. The name Dewsbury Celtic was in fact feared by even professional clubs drawn against them in the Challenge Cup. Unfortunately recent times have seen the teams reputation fall somewhat however in 2005 Dewsbury Celtic switched to summer rugby taking over the fixtures of the defunt Manchester Knights in an effort to revitalise the club. In 2006 they applied for admission into National League Three, and they finished in 5th place and qualified for the play-offs where they were knocked out by St Albans Centurions. When the National League Three was rebranded as the
Rugby League Conference in 2007 Dewsbury Celtic were one of the six Yorkshire teams in the ten team league. They also played in the Northern Rail Cup, finishing behind
Bramley Buffaloes.
