Innishannon, County Cork
Innishvilla AFC at Knocknacurra
Innishvilla AFC gives Innishannon and the wider Bandon to Kinsale area a clear football home, with academy, schoolboy, schoolgirl, adult and community teams centred on Knocknacurra.
At a glance
Club snapshot
Innishvilla is a place club rather than a single team name. It serves Innishannon and nearby communities including Bandon, Ballinadee, Kinsale, Ballinspittle, Belgooly, Ballinhassig, Dunderrow, Garranes and Ballymountain.
Club story
From Innishannon soccer to Innishvilla AFC
The story starts with a 1967 challenge game against Bandon in a school field, then grows into Innishannon Soccer Club entering the Kyre Factory League in Kinsale in 1969. The club joined the Cork AUL in 1971 and earned promotion from Division 3 after the 1973/74 season.
League football paused for part of the 1970s, but the game returned strongly in the 1990s. The move to Skevanish in 1992 gave local volunteers a base to improve, and a first schoolboys team followed in 1999 through the West Cork School Boys League.
Innishannon and Knockavilla had a close underage link by 2003. After the 2004/05 season they came together as Innishvilla AFC, giving the area a wider club identity. The next major step came in 2007, when the club secured about seven acres at Knocknacurra and turned it into the football home used today.
Ground
Knocknacurra is the club’s football centre
Knocknacurra sits outside Innishannon and gives the club a proper campus feel without losing its rural Cork character. The main site has one astro pitch, two grass pitches, four dressing rooms, showers, toilets, a function room, a coffee dock and parking for about 60 cars.
For visiting teams, the key habit is simple: check the assigned pitch before travel. The grass and astro areas can serve different age groups and match types, and the junior astro is also used for academy football.
Knocknacurra, Innishannon
Use Knocknacurra, Innishannon, Co. Cork for the club’s main home unless your coach gives a different meet point.
Pathway
A wide Cork pathway from academy to adult football
The club pathway is broad. Boys football runs from the early schoolboy years into the Cork Schoolboys League, girls football runs through Cork Women’s and Schoolgirls Soccer League age groups, and the youth route connects older players toward Cork Youth League and adult football.
Young players
The academy route starts at under 6 to under 9 on the junior astro pitch, giving new players a first weekly football habit before team football takes over.
Girls and women
The girls section includes CWSSL age groups and a senior women’s route, so players can see a local pathway beyond their first teams.
Boys and youths
Schoolboy groups connect into CSL divisions, with youth teams giving older teenagers a route toward adult football.
Community football
Football for All and social soccer give the club a role beyond competitive teams, which is valuable for families and volunteers around Innishannon.
Academy
The junior astro is the starting point for many families
The Soccer Academy is the easiest entry point for many new families. The club places it on the junior astro at Knocknacurra for ages 6 to 9, with Saturday football used as the regular rhythm for young players learning the game.
Parents should contact the club before arriving, because academy times, places and registration details can change by season. The useful thing to know before that first message is the child’s age, school year and previous football experience.
Facilities plan
Innishvilla is aiming for stronger all season access
The club’s 2026 facilities plan centres on better all season access at Knocknacurra. The main idea is a full size astro surface supported by improved clubhouse amenities, lighting, access routes and walking space, subject to design, funding and planning.
That plan fits the scale of the club. A pathway with academy, CSL, CWSSL, youth, adult, Football for All and social soccer needs reliable pitch time. Better all season access would help families, coaches and visiting teams plan with less weather pressure.
For families, players and visiting teams
What to know before you head to Knocknacurra
Club links
Useful Innishvilla AFC links
These links are practical starting points for families, players and visiting teams.