All-Ireland Fleadh Preview: St Catherine’s Chase Historic Three-in-a-Row
St Catherine’s Band, Killybegs will have the opportunity to write another chapter in the band’s history when they compete in the Senior Accordion section at the All-Ireland Fleadh in Belfast next Sunday.
The Donegal band returns as defending champions after retaining the title in Wexford last year and will be aiming to complete a remarkable three consecutive All-Ireland victories during the band’s 25th anniversary year.
Although St Catherine’s will once again be the only band competing in the Senior Accordion section, the performance remains just as significant, with bands judged against the All-Ireland standard and striving to produce a championship-winning display before the adjudicators.
Explore the Fleadh Results Archive
70 Years of Results • 1957–Present • Updated Every Year
Discover historical All-Ireland and Ulster Fleadh marching band results, previous winners, competition records and statistics from over 70 years of competition.
Victory in Belfast would see St Catherine’s become just the fifth band in the history of the Senior Accordion competition to win three consecutive All-Ireland titles.
Since the section was introduced in 1984, only four bands have previously achieved the feat. St Mary’s Accordion Band won three successive titles between 1986 and 1988, Mayobridge Accordion Band followed with a hat-trick from 1999 to 2001, St Brigid’s Accordion Band, Jonesborough claimed three in a row between 2007 and 2009, before Holy Cross Accordion Band, Atticall completed the most recent sequence from 2016 to 2018.
St Catherine’s lifted the title in both 2024 and 2025 and now have the chance to join that distinguished list of bands with a third successive victory.
The opportunity comes during a landmark month for the Killybegs band, which is celebrating its 25th anniversary. Founded in 2001, the silver jubilee has already been marked with a series of celebrations, and another All-Ireland success would provide a fitting way to commemorate the occasion.
The Senior Accordion competition will take place at Titanic Slipways on Sunday as part of the All-Ireland Fleadh marching band programme, with St Catherine’s looking to continue their recent success and add another chapter to the band’s history.