“The Autumn winds blow chilly and cold’ is a line from a Simon and Garfunkel song ‘April it will come’. There is the touch of the Autumn snap as of now and we face into a problematic time. It has a mixture of hope weariness and reticence. ‘Hope’, the final quality captured in Pandora’s box, is that by April a more positive picture will have emerged. That would be over two years since the pandemic struck. It is two years of different living. Very occasionally I meet a person I have not seen since before it all struck and I can see those two years of age on their faces as I am sure they can in me. For everyone, it has been a tough time but for senior people those two years of restricted living are long lost years (up to a point) which we can ill afford.
Some
of that loss can be seen in the Bard’s great poetic view of Autumn
Sonnet 73 (‘That time of year thou
mayst in me behold’)
William
Shakespeare
That
time of year thou mayst in me behold
When
yellow leaves, or none, or few, do hang
Upon
those boughs which shake against the cold,
Bare
ruin’d choirs where late the sweet birds sang.
In
me thou seest the twilight of such day
As
after sunset fadeth in the west,
Which
by and by black night doth take away,
Death’s
second self, that seals up all in rest.
In
me thou seest the glowing of such fire
That
on the ashes of his youth doth lie,
As
the death-bed whereon it must expire,
Consum’d
by that which it was nourished by.
This thou perceiv’st which makes thy love
more strong,
To love that well which thou must leave ere
long.
Michael D. and another Zappone-gate
Like
an eternal circle there comes around these division 3 or 4 news stories that in
the status of things are of little or no consequence. Zappone-gate has been on
the agenda for … a month perhaps… and as it begins to submerge for the
insignificance that it was it is now being replaced by a supposed snub from the
President, Michael D. Higgins, for not partaking in an event marking the
establishment of the Northern Ireland state. Perhaps the Catholic Church
representative was unwittingly bounced into attending but Michael D. took time
to analyse it more deeply.
He
decided that it would be hypocritical of him to attend an event celebrating the
historical division of this island, an event he fundamentally disagreed with.
I
agree with him.
People
may think that Michael D. is some kind of adult teddy bear but as a former
student of this, he has form in standing by his strongly held views which are
cogently thought through and not Twitter fed.
I
remember, from a good few years ago, hearing Michael D. on a radio debate with
a Chicago-American politician on some sensitive issue and ‘wiping the floor
with him and his argument’.
Now
if Mister Bruton wants to attend I presume that can be facilitated and I
imagine it would not be a burden on him.
The death of ‘Greavesie’.
On
opening up the online line news on Sunday morning I was saddened when I saw
that one of my sporting icons, Jimmy Greaves, had died. With Gerry O’Malley he
was my sixties sporting, I suppose, heroes.
The
first I saw of soccer football was on the Pathe News and such which were part
of attending the ‘pictures’ (later films) in ‘The Blue Moon’ and ‘Royal’
cinemas in Roscommon town. The first game I saw on television was the 1960
European Cup final between Real Madrid V Eintracht Frankfurt. It took place at
Hampden Park, Glasgow before an attendance of over 126, 000 people. Real
Madrid’s Di Stefano scored three and the great Hungarian Puskás scored four in
a 7 to 3 result.
I
then became aware of English soccer and the dominant club team of the early
sixties was Tottenham Hotspurs with a great team. In my few years in London in
the mid-sixties, I started going to odd games in Fulham, Stamford Bridge, Loftus
Road and such.
Once
when working on a McInerney building site in East London I had a slight
accident. I was up on scaffolding, maybe 10 stories high, and jumped in a
window from the scaffolding which was no big deal only for…. a board with a
nail standing out was attached to the top of the window sill and my head sailed
by this but it left its mark and the blood flowed. I went to a nearby hospital
and got patched up with a wrap-around bandage. I took the following day off. I
was living in Ealing, West London then and decided to use the day to go and see
the great Spurs team quite a distance away in North London. A memory from it
was being the butt of jokes about my Sikh head-dress from adjacent Spurs
supporters.
However,
the one vivid memory from that game was a magical goal by Jimmy Greaves. I
followed his career nearly always after that. He was a prolific and record goalscorer. He was a shoo-in on England teams up to and during the early games of
the 1966 World Cup but perhaps it was because of a slight injury or whatever he
was dropped by team manager Alf Ramsey from the World Cup Final England team
and replaced by a great West Ham player Geoff Hurst.
There
were no substitutions allowed in that era so there was no chance of a cameo
appearance. It broke his heart. I was still in London that World Cup sunny
summer.
Jimmy
continued for a time with Spurs but then incredibly he was moved on to West
Ham. He also played for some other clubs as alcohol took its toll. He addressed
his alcohol addiction and returned to the limelight as an early television
soccer pundit and teamed up with Scot Ian St. John former Liverpool great
player. They were not just a soccer pundit team but a very entertaining comic
double act.
Jimmy
remarried his wife and had a good life but never lost his personality of
lovable decency. He got a stroke in 2015. About a month ago I watched a
detailed documentary on his life in football on BT Sport and the challenges he
overcame.
It
is some coincidence that today, Sunday Sept. 19, that Spurs V Chelsea is one of
the games being televised on Sky. Jimmy started with Chelsea then went to Italy
for a short spell and came back to Spurs with whom he will ever be associated.
My old pal John McPherson, a great Spurs and ‘Saint and Greavsie’ supporter,
might encounter him in the Utopia of above.
Jimmy
Greaves was a special player and I will remember that goal of his always.
P.S.
I just remember a little story from that Documentary on BT Sport.
Sky
was taking over the ITN channel transmitting ‘The Saint and Greavsie’ and the
two men met up to discuss its implications. Jimmy said to Saint John that he
was offered a job with Sky and turned it down.
Saint
John said to him; ‘Jimmy how could you do that, turn Sky down?’
Jimmy
answered; ‘Saint I feel like I’m getting too old to be climbing ladders putting
up those bloody dishes’!
Film ‘The Keeper’
Last
week I tripped across a film on BBC with the title ‘The Keeper’. I read the
little paragraph relaying the content and tuned in. It involved the capture of
a German soldier in France by British forces and his transfer to a ‘Prisoner of
War’ camp in Lancashire near the war's end and for some time afterwards. The film showed a traumatic event in the
German soldier’s early military life. A grocery supplier to the camp, who was
also a team manager for the nearby St. Helen’s Town soccer team, saw this
soldier playing football in the camp as a goalkeeper and was impressed. The
manager eventually got sanction to bring the soldier out of the camp to play
with his team. That had its difficulties in trying to overcome the prejudice of
having a German, a recent enemy, playing for them. However, he was so good that
the small club overcame that and soon his reputation spread and the Manchester
City manager arrived to look him over. He too was impressed and brought him to
Manchester City. Again prejudice and resentment followed at an even higher
degree. Again his ability subdued the resistance. He played in the Cup final
for Manchester City in 1955 v Newcastle then a powerhouse who won by 3 goals to
nil. Man City were again in the final of 1956 this time v Birmingham City. Near
the end of the game with Man. City leading 3 goals to 1 the Man. City goalkeeper
sustained a serious neck injury. Though obviously in great pain he played on as
substitutes were not allowed then. Pictures show him holding his neck as he
received his medal and it turned out that he had a broken neck.
He
had married the St. Helen’s manager’s daughter and tragedy struck when their
first son was killed in an accident at an early age.
He
played for Manchester City from 1949 until 1964. During the war he had received
an Iron Cross but in his football career he not only got the Cup Final medal
but also was awarded an OBE from the Queen of England in recognition of his
assistance in post-war reconciliation between England and Germany. He also
received a German equivalent of same. His wife, who was his rock, died a young
woman in 1980 but the German Iron Cross recipient and footballer who became a
hero and legend with Manchester City died in Spain in 2013 aged 89. His name
was Bert Trautmann.
The Very Different Stories of Four
Women;
Both
local papers cover the story of a Tipperary born woman who made a big
impression in Athleague circa 1920. The Roscommon Herald on page 16 and in The
People on page 36 have short articles on the lady named Aleen Cust MRCVS. The
letters after her name tell us she was a veterinary surgeon. Apparently
RTE/Nationwide were investigating this lady who is well remembered and regarded
in Athleague. A timber sculpture representation of Ms. Cust can be seen near
the bridge at Athleague. (Nearby is another timber sculpture to another legend
–living- Johnny Haughey forever associated with hurling in Athleague and the
county).
Dublin-born
Irish woman, Violet Gibson, came to fame in the late 1920s’ after she attempted
to kill the Italian Fascist leader Benito Mussolini. What motivated her is a
mystery. Had she succeeded it might have had an influence on subsequent
history. She too is getting the T.V. Documentary treatment on Wednesday Sept.
22 at 9.30 on TG4.
Typhoid Mary Mallon
I
do not listen enough to the radio as there are so many programmes of interest
there. Amongst my favourites are ‘Sunday Miscellany’, ‘Playback’ a summary of
good pieces from the weeks programmes and the ‘RTÉ Radio: Documentary on One’
in the early afternoon each Saturday. This award-winning documentary series has
had outstanding programmes down the years and a Pod Cast of them is a real gold
mine. Last Saturday I happened on one called; ‘The Curious Case of Typhoid Mary
(Mallon). This told the story of a Mary Mallon from Ireland. She was a New York
cook, who, while not getting ill herself, became a ‘super spreader’ of the
typhoid disease in the early part of the 1900’s in New York. She was isolated
for decades on an Island in view of New York and died there. This suggests
likeness to the two great French books on Island incarceration ‘The Count of
Monte Christo’ and ‘Papillion’.
Nicki Minaj
With
my fourth lady who hit the headlines this week, I must be amongst the few who
have not heard of her worldwide. That recognition got a real boost this week with
a slight tweet about resistance to Covid vaccination. Her name is Nicki Minaj! All I can say is that she can really dress
up. Why is she famous…I think it is in that peculiar way that is, ‘because she
is famous’!
I’ll
rest my case there.
Mayo Defeat by Tyrone.
It
was another of those huge disappointments for Mayo and its multitude of
supporters. In a way, Mayo seems to lose the same way regularly. A goalkeeping
mistake, a full back being over-reached by an opponent, and a lack of leadership
on the field. It is something that the current team captain has not scored in
any of his 5 or maybe 6 finals.
There
has been plenty of ire to go around in Mayo following the result but I have no
wish to add to that. They keep falling but keep getting up. There is a kind of
heroic resilience there. Like all Mayo people I too, a Roscommon person, wish
them to win. I imagine that the last living members of the 1950 and ’51 Mayo
teams, Paddy Prendergast and panellist Dr. Mick Loftus, must feel these defeats
greatly. Anyway, Mayo can look forward to next year and at least a Connacht
Final win as the odds lie. I would like it if Roscommon could be so optimistic.
One
should not forget Tyrone coming from a drubbing in Kerry two months or so ago,
to win an All-Ireland final by beating Kerry in the Semi-Final and Mayo,
convincingly, in the final. That was something special and they should be
acknowledged for it.
The Missing C.S.P.C.A. Water Troughs
For
a Boyle Arts Festival talk I walked through Boyle to rehearse my topics. I
missed one I had been aware of and that was the C.S.P.C.A. (Canadian Society
for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals) trough. This ‘Philanthropic Society’
say fit to install these troughs so that animals on fair or market days had
water It had been outside Dodd’s Bar for a long time.
Then it was transferred to the Courthouse steps and later to the front of St.
Joseph’s Hall. In those locations, it served as a fine flower receptacle.
After
a cursory search I could not locate same. Last week I started to make some
enquiries and then in a pure coincidence Sean, on the Home Page of Realboyle,
gave the same subject full prominence.
He
numbered those as 3 which I was not aware of and came up sometime later with
the one at the end of St. Patrick’s Street. So there should be two more
somewhere. All I was aware of was the one from the Crescent area so if anyone
knows anything of its whereabouts please let us know. These are all part of
interesting street furniture, which have a history and storied background from
the town's past.
Solheim Cup Golf and now The Ryder
Cup
I
found the Solheim Cup for golf, where Europe defeated the United States, hugely
entertaining thanks in large part to the outstanding performance of Cavan’s
Leona McGuire.
Starting
Friday is The Ryder Cup the male equivalent of above. It takes place in the
U.S. this time and the European team is captained by Padraig Harrington. There
are two Irish golfers included in the 12 team players, Rory McIlroy and Shane
Lowry. While McIlroy is an acknowledged star of the game it is another great
achievement for Lowry. So this weekend is booked solid by thousands of golf
enthused people who will be glued to their television sets to watch the
thrills, spills and drama and maybe some controversy in The Ryder Cup. Even if
you are not a golf fan you should dip in and maybe see why this is such a
magnetic event.
I
remember here two Boyle men that I knew back the years who passed on recently.
One is Michael McPadden of Hanley Ave. who was in his middle fifties. He was a
student in St. Mary’s College but I also knew him as a footballer as the
McPadden lads all were. I have not met Michael for a long time. His picture on
the Home Page here showed a fine strong man.
The
other is Willie Suffin who I always with Bert Mahoney with whom he worked in
his earlier times. May they both rest in peace.
Slán.
