Abbey Judo Club has existed in two forms since it's creation and been through 4 sets of Head Coach.

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The Valley Judo Club was the first iteration of the club.  Created in the early 1970's by Victor Catling who was the first manager of the brand new state of the art leisure centre.  Victor himself was a very accomplished Judo player and at the time he was a prolific heavyweight in the Irish Judo circuit.  The time frames and details surrounding this stage of the clubs history are vague and not a lot of details are left due to the time that has went by.

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In the 1980's the club was taken over by new Head Coach Herman Harpur.  Herman was a well known Judo personality within Irish Judo having been a very active member within the NIJF and having coached other clubs at the time.  The Valley club at this time saw it's first real surge in popularity and success.  Herman had the club involved in both recreational Judo and local competitive Judo.  There are many memories shared by many of the current members of their fondness of this time in the clubs history.

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In the !990's Abbey Judo Club was formed by Walter McFarland and Jonathan Cooke and through this period the club again saw an increase in success and attendance.  Walter mainly leading the children's Judo classes and Jonathan leading the seniors.  The senior club at this time produced many influential Judoka within NI Judo.  Friday nights in the Valley was infamous as one of the toughest sessions in the country, which was well supported by visitors.  In the late 90's/early 00's Walter assumed complete ownership of the club.  Walter had the innate ability to inspire and entertain generations of children who each one having their own special Walter memory which resonates to this day.  Walter's senior Judo classes were bolstered on his banter and competitive spirit, all members competing as hard as they could and enjoying the night.  100's of kids and seniors passed through the club during a very successful, warm, wonderful era under Walter McFarland.

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"your shoes aren't tied..." 

Walter McFarland

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In the late 00's began the transition of Abbey Judo to it's current Head Coach William Cully alongside Walter.  During this time the club has undergone it's biggest period of transformation.  the club transitioned from a primarily recreational Judo club to a club which offers the full Judo experience.  End to end the development and growth of the club has enabled 100's of players to reach their potential within NI Judo.  A cornerstone of the club has been the creation of the Abbey Warrior's brand.  The Warriors brand has given the kids section of the club another identity to stand separate in the club, although with the aim to drive the club in the same direction together.  The initial batch of Abbey Warriors inspired the club with a level of dedication that helped the club reach new heights of success via medals, participation numbers, projects and many more.  Many of that original batch are still with the club today  In 2014 under William's leadership the club won Newtownabbey Sports Club of the Year beating many of the borough's biggest sports organisations in the process.  In 2015, the first Abbey Open was held, hailing as a massive success being one of the biggest events in Ireland.  The tournament would run 3 more times until being paused the year before the Covid-19 pandemic  William has produced Northern Ireland Champions, Irish Champions and UK medalists, whilst maintaining the club's fun and inviting family environment.