In this, our Silver Jubilee year as one contribution to mark 
the event it was thought that a brief history of our club   
would be appropriate. Being the only history student on     
committee and having been in the club for longer than any   
other, the task fell to me. It is with the greatest pleasure 
that I attempt this task. What I have produced is merely    
an outline - in it I hope I have been able in some small     
way to hint at why it is such a special club, why so many   
give all of their time to it - to the extent of failing      
their exams; why it has meant so much to so many and why    
in it so many life friendships have been made. It is most   
appropriate that it should be compiled in what has been our 
most successful year ever. I thought it best to present it  
chronologically - to see events in the order in which they   
happened and hopefully also to show how far the club has    
come in its 25 years. I wish to dedicate it to those who    
have made it what it is. For any errors or ommissions I     
alone am responsible.
A.J.J.                                

The club in its present session - for there was a Rifle      
Club in College in pre-war days - was founded in Janurary    
1962 by P.G.L. Coulson (who went on to become its first   
Captain), M.C.C. Heaton (first Secretary) and C.R. Oakley   
(first Treasurer). In its first year the club had over      
50 members - which is no mean achievement given that it      
had as yet no range and virtually no equipment. The first   
record of anyone shooting was the team sent to Bisley in    
July 1962 - of course it was fullbore they went to shoot.    
Indeed it was fullbore the club concentrated on for its    
infant years. As there was no fullbore shooting in Eire     
- and there still isn't - Bisley was the best opportunity     
not to mention the most prestigeous. Attempts were made     
to try and establish fullbore shooting in the Republic,    
but these failed, due to lack of support from the military  
authorities. The first Treasurers report in Janurary 1963   
showed a net balance of £2-9-0. In the summer of '63 a      
team was selected (by the then selection committee of       
Captain and Secretary) to compete in the Bisley 
inter-University competition. From its outset the club awarded    
colours 3 in its first year and 6 in its second. Initially  
they were awarded for selection for the first IV in the    
inter-University matches. Getting the club started as      
I'm sure most of the present committee and Range Officers   
will appreciate took a lot of time and dedication. So much  
so in fact that P.G.L.Coulson (a founder member) "failed   
to satisfy the examiners and consequently had to leave      
College." Amongst the first matches shot in Ireland were    
shoulder to shoulder against Queens University Belfast.     
These took place annually for many years. The first Chief   
Range Officer was appointed in 1964, the post was held      
by M.C.C.Heaton. Our first Range was approved by the       
College Board for the Lincoln gate end of College in May    
1964 and by October of that year the C.R.O. reported it     
operational. The first club licence was in the name of      
the Chief Steward. Ammunition in 1964 cost 11\6 per        
1000, this was regarded as very expensive. By this time    
the club began affiliating to organisations such as the     
N.S.R.A. the U.S.R.A. and the N.I.R.A. Initially the new    
three firing point range was used on weekdays from 7 until  
10 p.m. and a new Constitution was drawn up for the .22     
shooting which went on there. The cost of this range was    
£200. The first Vice President was Colonel Walsh - the       
College Agent - he assumed office in November 1964. The      
club was not to appoint a President for many years. The     
initial annual membership fee was £5 p.a. and affiliation   
to D.U.C.A.C. was completed by November '64, the club       
still awaited the sanctioning by the Gardai of the range    
for use. This was to be granted in Janurary 1965 and so     
two years after the foundation the first shot was fired     
on Trinity soil. The first club tie was designed in 1964,   
consisting of light blue harps and crossed rifles on a dark 
blue background; only those who shot for a club team were   
entitled to wear one. Soon after the opening of the range   
one of the first amendments to the club rules was one to   
prohibit smoking. Apparently all was not smooth sailing     
at that time as is evidenced by a motion of Februrary       
'65 calling on the Captain at that time to "display more    
interest and leadership in the activities of the club than  
he had to date." The Captain offered his resignation which  
was withdrawn once the committee did likewise with the      
motion. By this time the club through the Chief Steward     
had become registered firearms dealers. In the early days   
the Captain was not eligible for re-election but if he     
was to remain in College would be an ex-officio member      
of the following year's committee. At the 1965 A.G.M.       
M.C.C.Heaton a founder member of the club and its first     
Pink - (see appended list of D.U.R.C. Pinks) -was made a     
Vice President of the club in honour of hls services and  
achievements. Over the years the club has had its quota of  
accidents and mis-haps. one of the earliest is hinted at in 
a comment from 1966 when "it was decided to glue together   
the broken Remmington." Other such incidents which should   
not go un-recorded include Ian Elliott's writing off of a   
Fiat Ritmo in 1985 and Albert Jordan's demonstration of     
how not to un-block an air rifle using knitting needles     
in 1987. At the 1966 A.G.M. it was reported that the club   
had four rifles. That year the club competed against        
D.R.C. R.R.P.C., and Q.U.B. - winning the colours match     
and also beatIng Trinity College Hartford (U.S.A.) in a     
postal match. In that year Alexander McCartney - Chief       
Steward - was made a Vice President. By the end of 1966      
the club had a membership of over 100 and a ladder system   
of the challenge type was introduced. By May '67 a system   
akin to our present ladder was introduced with constantly  
revised averages being posted. On the competitions front    
annual matches against Q.U.B. were the norm and the club    
entered the U.S.R.A. and N.I.R.A. leagues and in 1967 the   
British Universities Top XX for the first time. With the   
increase in the number of competitions a match secretary    
was thought desirable and David Agnew was appointed to      
this post. One of the most "romantic" comments I found      
concerned the early termination of a committee meeting in   
'69; "Commons bell rang and the meeting adjourned.". In May 
'69 it was discovered that the club had for some time been  
authorlsed by the Gardal to use pistols and revolvers up    
to .45 calibre even though our range was suitable only for  
calibres up to .22. This new discipline had'nt much time    
to gather momentum as by October of that year the Northern  
political situation resulted in a tightening of security and 
the present system of access to rifles was introduced. The 
first recorded Lady on committee was a Miss J Johnston    
who was elected at the 1969 A.G.M.. In early 1970 the club  
bought its first Anschutz rifle and by that time plans for  
the range at 186 Park lane had been drawn up. Not long      
afterwards the committee was increased to eight members     
as at present. In October 1970 Captain John Martin became    
a Vice President and the move to the new Park Lane range    
was completed later that year. It was agreed at that time   
that honorary membership was allowable. In Janurary 1972    
D.U.R.C. lost its main colours opponents as Q.U.B. were no   
longer permitted to shoot during the "unrest" - henceforth   
the club would have to look further afield for intervarsity 
matches. The ups and downs of enthusiasm in the club were  
highlighted with the falling off of interest in early '72   
when it was decided to reduce the hours of range opening to 
7 until 8:30 nIghtly, because of "lack of interest" 1972   
sadly saw the death of David Gault -committee member. In   
that year too one of the rifles was malfunctioning, the     
problem was with the ejector clips (It was rifle No. 6 the
B.S.A.) Ironically the present day No.6 is similarly inclined.
The Vlckers rifle (No.5) was acquired in 1973. The    
1974-5 season began badly. At the '74 A.G.M. only a Captain 
and Treasurer were elected; there were no other officers or 
committee. As a result an E.G.M. was called in Februrary    
'75 by which time the Captain had left College. It was also 
noted that there had been no shooting between the two     
meetings as the "authorities had misplaced the ammunition".
As a result of the E.G.M. the officers posts were filled   
but there was still no committee. It would appear that      
the club functioned without a full committee for the      
entire year - not very effectively it would appear as at    
the end of that year it was decided that no colours were   
to be awarded for .22 shooting as "the standard had been    
too low." Four were awarded for fullbore. The following      
season saw a crackdown on enforcing safety rules, it being  
prohibited for anyone to fire unless the Range Officer was  
present in the seat on the firing point; If for any reason  
(s)he had to leave shooting must immediately cease. At      
about that time the first Disciplinary Committee Meeting    
was called under article 19A of the constitution to deal    
with a breach of the Regulations and general misconduct  
by a member. He subsequently failed to turn up to face      
the charges against him - which included assault on an       
R.O. and so became the first member to be expelled from     
the club. Other happenings of note in '75 included the     
designing of our first badge, the purchase of rifle No.8    
and the changing of the selection committee to two of four  
named officers. From Janurary 1976 coffee was available     
on the range. In the spring of that year a Range Officers   
meeting was called in response to the news that all private 
firearms were to be handed in for "ballistics tests". Our   
rifles were actually taken in and tested in Janurary 1977.  
In 1977 colours chevrons were recieved from the N.R.A. and  
at that point the present "rifle green" colours scarf was   
designed. Even as far back as '77 we were corresponding     
with I.M.I. over unsatisfactory ammunition. Trevor Hastings 
was elected to represent D.U.R.C. on the N.R.P.A.I.,       
several rifles were bought that year including a new        
Anschutz and two second hand fullbores - kept at Bisley.     
For the first time then it was possible for the club to    
field a fully equipped team, each member of which had his   
own full set of equipment. Part of the money to fund this   
came from the sale of No. 4 rifle for £75. In Janurary      
1978 the present constitution was drafted and was passed    
at the A.G.M.. J.W.B. Murphy and Trevor Hastings were soon  
to set up the Trinity Veterans Rifle Association, later     
to become the College Green Rifle Club. February of that    
year saw the announcement by College that they would be     
building a new eight firing point range - but probably not   
for eight years - well maybe in another eight ? In April '78 
the R.O.'s were awaiting their phone link to front gate - it 
finally arrived in February 1987. At the 1978 A.G.M. Peter  
Gillespie was congratulated on his election to Pinks and    
being chosen as a Knight of the Campanile. May 1979 saw     
a proposal to change the club colours defeated. By 1980     
the club had its present compliment of rifles with the      
acquisition of No.'s 10 and 11. Colonel Walsh resigned the  
Presidency in 1981 as he was retiring College. He was to be 
succeeded as President by Captain John Martin who remained  
in office until 1985 when Mr. Timothy Cooper (director of   
buildings) took over for a year before handing over to our  
present President Commandant Edward Horgan. In October     
1980 Brian Nelson was elected Match Secretary. He also      
held the post of Chief Range Officer. One month later his   
enthusiasm for sporting rifle saw it beginning to gather    
momentum in the club. He had four-bull targets designed     
to accomodate our unique four positional shooting. In       
June '81 Miss Iona Reid submitted a letter of resignation   
- because of "difficulties with the Captain", and at        
the same time David Bolger resigned. Brian Nelson - who      
apparently was somewhat of a father figure - persuaded Iona  
to re-consider. Brian's input into the club was recognised  
with his election as Captain for the '81-'82 season. He     
also represented D.U.R.C. on the N.R.P.A.I. where he ably  
served as Vice Chairman. In April '82 he suffered a heart   
attack: his death in June 1982 as the result of a further   
heart attack came as a great blow to his many friends. To   
quote from a letter of the time he "is a great loss to      
all who knew him." He is fondly remembered by his many      
friends both within and without the world of shooting. His  
contribution to D.U.R.C. alone will long be remembered.     
Susan FitzSimon was first mentioned at the '81 A.G.M.       
where she was commended for her magnificent performance in  
the Top XX - dropping only 11 points to finish fifth. By     
December 1981 in order to qualify to wear the club tie one  
had to shoot over 90. 1982 saw the award of colours - or     
"the Blue Stripe" as they were then known - by a selection   
committee consisting of Captain, Secretary, Treasurer and   
C.R.O.. The following season's colours were awarded by the  
Captain in consultation with the selection committee. The   
1982-'83 season went smoothly under the Captaincy of David  
FitzPatrick and Air Rifle was introduced - the club was now  
three discipline. The following year under the Captaincy    
of Nigel Swanwick the club continued in its progressive     
course and was represented on the D.U.C.A.C. committee      
directly by Dave FitzPatrick and indirectly by Joe Grant.   
This season saw the beginning of our now annual matches     
against the Fencing Club. In November 1984 there began the  
long and still unresolved saga of exploding ammunition      
with a particularly notorious batch of ammunition managing  
to blow the extraction clips from two of our rifles and a   
further three in other clubs. By Janurary 1985 the club     
decided to get some professional coaching and on the        
Air Rifle field Debbie Wilson provided the expertise.       
At various other times our gunsmith Dave Cooney and our     
ex-member Philip Duggan have been amongst those who kindly  
made their knowledge and experience available to us. By     
this time the club had two qualified coaches of its own     
- namely Ian Elliott and Joe Corbett. Janurary 1985 saw      
another of the D.U.R.C. mysteries with the first tea chest  
of shells going missing the second one disappeared the      
following year. In October of that year it was noted that   
"due to the dubious acquisition of shooting equipment at    
recent shoots there may be no need to apply to D.U.C.A.C.   
for equipment grants." In 1985 D.U.R.C. hosted two separate 
National championships, playing host to the Target Rifle    
Indoor Nationals in March, and those for Air Rifle in       
May. Work began in Janurary '86 to construct our 6 yard     
Air Rifle range. The 1986 season under the Captaincy of     
Miss Jane Keane saw a very large membership - in excess of   
250 - and a remarkable standard of shooting, so much so in   
fact that the Competition Secretary Joe Corbett remarked    
in his annual report that it would be "a hard year to       
follow". In this context the standard this year must be    
seen as a tremendous achievement, given that the standard   
of marksmanship, interest and enthusiasm has reached an all 
time high. At last year's A.G.M. constitutional provision   
was made to increase the number of Range Officers from 12   
to 15 in anticipation of a busy season ahead. In this past 
year D.U.R.C. has sent a team to the Scottish Nationals     
and more recently to Oxford, where the team which put       
in a very creditable score were narrowly defeated by a
D.U.R.C. team in superb form. In this our Twenty Fifth year 
the club has really come into its own; and things which     
for the past few years have been merely talked about have   
finally been achieved. We have managed lately to obtain     
our sweatshirts and a special commemorative badge to mark  
our Silver Jubilee year has been produced. This year's      
Range Officers have proven themselves game for anything. We 
have shot more disciplines than ever before - apart from    
our normal Target Rifle, Sporting Rifle and Air Rifle, the   
"Oxford Team" shot Fullbore at Bisley and during the year   
one or two have tried their hand at Shotgun (for "Sport     
Aid") and Pistol in England. Enthusiasm has never been
as high and D.U.R.C. have been represented at virtually     
every competition in whatever discipline over the last      
year. This year's motto would appear to be "let's do it !"  
Sadly this year we shall loose our hard working Treasurer   
Gerry (B) Haskins - who concieved of and organised our       
very successful Twenty Fifth Anniversary Open - which      
has attracted the largest entry of any Target Rifle shoot   
anywhere in the country in many years. We shall also be     
very sorry to see Miss Barbara Prole leave us - She apart   
from serving as an extremely competent and attractive       
Secretary, has been a driving force behind many of our      
achievements to date and has served as an incomparable      
ambassador for the club. This year saw D.U.R.C. represented 
on all the National Shooting bodies. William J. Walsh       
being elected Vice Chairman of the National Association     
of Sporting Rifle Clubs (N.A.S.R.C.) and as a member of     
the Executive Committee of the N.R.P.A.I., while Albert J.  
Jordan was elected Vice Chairman of the National Target     
Shooting Association (N.T.S.A.I.) and Chairman of the       
National Rifle and Pistol Association of Ireland (N.R.P.A.I.)
This is indicative of the interest D.U.R.C. now take 
in the sport itself, in that we now hope to further the     
interests of shooting in Ireland in general and see to it   
that D.U.R.C.'s voice is heard. The membership this year    
is so far a record 270+ and overall the general members     
have been willing to participate more than normal. Several  
of this year's members have taken an extra interest and     
so hopefully will help next year to keep the club going.    
This year's team of Range Officers have on the whole        
proven themselves a very hard working lot as is evidenced  
by the current state of the club. Between them they have    
made possible the present enviable state of the club in    
its Silver Jubilee year. Everyone has contributed: our      
Captain Ian has presided ably over us all and has spent     
much time in drawing up the plans for what we hope will     
be our range of the future. Gerry has provided the money    
- God alone knows how - Barbara keeping us alltogether and   
being a volunteer par excellence. Brendan has ensured       
that we got all our competition cards shot - and on time     
too! - probably for the first time in club history; not to   
mention introducing us to the "Apple Mac"; Trevor for his   
work in several areas and always being willing to help      
out when needed; Heather for her recruitment drive and      
promotion of Sporting Rifle; Joe for sound advice; Carlos   
for his silent achievements in Air Rifle and Keith for      
his computer wizardry and the occasional bit of D.I.Y.
Alan has provided the humour; Sarah for her commitment to  
the sport in general and Air Rifle in particular. William   
introduced us to punctuality, efficiency and helped push    
up our averages both as a competitor and as an excellent    
coach and made us believe anything is possible. I hope our  
current rate of progress will continue, that we may work in 
the interests of D.U.R.C. and that In turn we shall derive 
from it and from each other more of the satisfaction and    
happiness that we have to date. 
Albert J. Jordan 
Chief Range Officer 1985-'87. 

APPENDICES 
1. List of members elected to Pinks. 
2. List of the Officers of the club to date.
3. List of Club Records current to April 1987.