At a Mass today in Blanchardstown to mark the death of the late Kevin Russell ,about whom more anon.as well as meeting Chew,Binks,Bawler and Leosho ,but not Foxy (guess who the family is ) and a host of other friends I had a good chinwag with Herbie Hughes,Mattie Keane and George Brennan,gentlemen all.Was well looked after by Ben Dempsey's son, in Blanch House,where soup and sandwiches were served after Mass.He is the spit of his father and nearly as witty.Nearly I said.
I have many GAA regrets but none more so than being on the wrong side of a one point defeat to Maurs in the 1973 (I am not sure about the year but think I am right.) Inter football Final replay. As far as I am concerned we were rode out of it.Myself and the boys talked about it at length today.As they are drawing the lambs from our pen now,I think it time to write about it.Here goes.
We had a fair team those years.A clatter of Goldens from Ballycastle ,Mayo.whose brother in law Kevin Leonard was a selector, had signed with us that time and given fresh impetus to us in pursuit of the Holy Grail of the Inter Championship.We had recently been demoted from Senior in the boardroom not the pitch and had a grievance as a result .
The drawn final that year had been played in Parnell Park.where what appeared a perfectly good goal by Gerry Nolan had been disallowed on the word of an unmpire,Even at that we were a point up on the cusp of full time but conceded a line ball when it was not necessary and compounded it by following the ball, and handing it to them,forgetting to mark up for the quick line ball..Dennis Guerin of Na Fianna refereed I think.
Despite assurances from the County Board to our delegate Sean Spratt that Fingallians grounds in Swords would be invasion proof for the replay,our objections to playing it there were over ruled.
A huge crowd gathered and the referee was a Banba man,whose name escapes me .My memory of the team is :-
Martin Butterly
Jem Powell Padraigh Golden Jim Murphy
Daithi Stephens Mattie Keane Willie Gallagher
Eddie Melvin Rory Brennan
Mick Greally Johnny Keane Robert Stephens
Noel Golden Gerry Nolan Teddy Golden.
Johnny Keane had scored 1-13 in the drawn game and was our form player.We played fierce well the first half and were coasting at half time,a trend that continued into the second half.Then,and modern day players would get hard to get this,as the said Johnnie Keane was bearing down on goals with a goal at his mercy ,a spectator ran through a hole in the wire and gave Johnny a kick in the front of the body on the pitch.He was followed onto the pitch by more spectators who threw further shapes as the original assailant ran back through the hole with Johnny in indignant pursuit.Despite the invasion the referee waved play on and allowed a goal scored by Maurs from the ball dropped by Johnny to stand.
My mother Peggy,my newish wife Agnes and Mary Brennan (Mother of Rory and grandmother of Trevor of rugby fame) took up position at the break in the wire with their umbrellas to stop a full pitch invasion by the so called Maurs supporters.They stopped a lot,got called many uncomplimentary names and only for them I am sure a full scale riot would have evolved.In the midst of all this mayhem ,play,if you could call it this ,continued.I was in total disbelief that this could happen,as were all our players.Maurs adapted better to the situation than we did and won by a point ,I think.
Even by the tougher standards that prevailed then what happened that day was totally unacceptable and was the worst instance of unfair play I have ever encountered.
More luck to Maurs.We didn't object ,as far as I know.It wasn't the done thing.In any event there were plenty of County Board officials present 'had thee been a desire to right this blatant wrong.
We heard that there were wilde celebrations in Rush that night and more luck to them.
However a certain sour taste remains to this day.
Putting it in perspective the death of Kevin Russell and the former Dublin great Yank Murray of Skerries,whose funeral some of the attendees at today's Mass rushed to attend, registers far higher on the Richter scale.
I am uneasy about the players I have named on the team and would stand corrected if contacted.Did Aidan O Regan play that day.I'm not sure.
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