The suspension spelled the death-knell for this team and Ballinkillen hurling for more than a decade. There were still some fine hurlers in the area who mainly played with adjoining teams in Bagenalstown, Borris and Myshall. The excellent Kilcloney/Borris minor hurling teams ofthe l960s were well represented with players from the Ballinkillen area.

During the winter of 1970, some local hurling people got together and committed to re-establishing the club. Under a new committee based around Tommy Murphy, Kilgreaney, John O'Neill, Ballycormack, Louis Kearney, Lorum, Paddy Cummins, Skahanrane, Patsy Keegan, Corries, Dermot Hughes, Ballinkillen, Jim O'Neill, Lower Ballinkillen, Jim Power, Kilgreaney, Paddy Farrell, Heath, and others, Ballinkillen Hurling Club re-emerged.

There was a great enthusiasm and love of hurling among these people and a burning desire to put Ballinkillen hurling on the map. The street field at Hughes’ became the playing pitch. Once the evenings lengthened, players assembled almost every evening of the week to practice. 

Backboned at the outset with players of the calibre of the Byrne brothers, Tim and Terry, Tom Collier, Paddy Cummins, Cyril Hughes, Tommy Murphy, the Farrell brothers, Paddy and Jimmy, Brendan and Jimmy Canavan, Jim Clerkin and Joe Kelly, success was immediate. Ballinkillen romped to the Carlow Junior Hurling double in its first year, 1971. This was a prelude to a long sojourn in the senior ranks.

In 1972, Ballinkillen ¾ playing an exciting brand of hurling ¾ made a tremendous impact on the Carlow Hurling Championship. The players’ skills were honed by the club entering tournaments in neighbouring Kilkenny. The Bennettsbridge Tournament was the most popular, with the players invariably acquitting themselves extremely well. The excellent performances in these games gave Ballinkillen the self-belief to really challenge for honours. After convincingly defeating neighbours Erin's Own in their opening Senior Championship game, people began to take notice of this new team.

County Champions, Ballinabranna, awaited Ballinkillen in the Semi-Final. Ballinabranna were still fancied by most to be too strong for the new boys. They were to be proved wrong and after two thrilling games, Ballinkillen prevailed and were now, unbelievably, in the County Final. Their opponents, Palatine, were also competing for their first title. The cruel hand of fate meant Ballinkillen had to field without three key players and ultimately this was to prove too great a challenge to overcome.

Ballinkillen lost out on scoreline Palatine 4-9 Ballinkillen 0-18. Terry Byrne had the unenviable distinction of scoring fourteen points and still finishing on the losing side. To this day, Terry's performance is recounted. Later that year, he won the Carlow Hurler of the Year award. Winning the Bolger Cup for the Senior Hurling League brought some compensation.

Ultimate glory came the following year when Paddy Cummins captained Ballinkillen to win their first ever Senior Hurling Championship. They defeated neighbours Myshall on a score line of 5-5 to 2-9. In the Leinster Club Championship, Ballinkillen put up a very commendable performance against the mighty Fenians/Johnstown team from Kilkenny. The Bolger Cup was also retained.

Remarkably, within three short years, those far sighted people who had resurrected the Hurling Club in Ballinkillen saw their dreams fulilled with Ballinkillen winning Carlow’s premier hurling competition.

Now 39 years on, Ballinkillen Hurling Club is alive and well. Not always among the honours but still to the forefront in Carlow hurling, providing among other things many fine intercounty hurlers down through the years.

Ballinkillen's second senior hurling title didn’t arrive until 2001, that year completing a great double with the minors having completed three-in-a-row success in 1999, 2000 and 2001.

ln 1985, a defining event in the Club’s history was the formation of a juvenile section. The two people mainly responsible for this development were Pat Dowling and Eamon O'Neill. Unfortunately Pat, who gave a lifetime of service to the Club, is no longer with us.

Since the reformation of BalIinkillen Hurling Club in 1971, the playing facilities were in the main generouslv provided by the Hughes and Brennan families of Ballinkillen. 

In 1980 the club applied for and was granted 6.6 acres by the Land Commission at a cost of £14,000. The field, although ideally situated, was in need of major development and it wasn’t until 1992 that a field committee was set up and fundraising commenced.

Jim Collier, a local contractor, was hired to develop the field. After months of hard work overseen by Denis Wall, the pitch was ready for seeding in September 1992.  Subsequently, two dressing rooms, showers, toilets and a meeting room were completed in time for the official opening on the 3 July I994 on a spilling wet day.  Albert Fallon, Leinster Council Chairman, performed the official opening. The highlight of the day was an intercounty challenge match between Wexford and Tipperary.

The Lotto Committee was formed in 2000 organising a weekly lotto draw. The Lotto provides funds for the continued running and development of Ballinkillen Hurling Club.

No major addition to the facilities was undertaken until 2005 when a perimeter wall was constructed. 2006/’07 saw floodlighting installed in the first half of the pitch. An additional two dressing rooms were completed in 2008 and a hurling wall in 2009.  These additions have created an excellent facility which caters for juvenile and adult hurling and camogie teams and activities of the local National School. Ballinkillen Hurling Club is very much a hub of the local community. 

-  Mick Kinsella