A very different

was allowed a certain number of hours to ‘disappear’ from Limerick. Brosnan had guaranteed Sheehy’s safe passage, a remarkable achievement when one considers that this temporary personal truce succeeded.

| By Eamonn Fitzgerald

Kerry had gone through a very lean spell and hadn’t won the All-Ireland since 1914. That was unthinkable in Kerry. The volatile political situation through the War of Independence meant that the 1920 All-Ireland final was not played until June 11, 1922, a time lag of almost two years. With so many players ‘unavailable’ - and not through injuries - Kerry withdrew from the 1921 Munster Championship, handing a walkover to Limerick.

In 1922 there was no Munster final with the country involved in the worst of all wars, a Civil War, and there was nothing civil about that scenario of 100 years ago. There was no Munster Championship held in 1922. Tipperary were nominated to represent Munster in the All-Ireland semi-final, but they also pulled out of the commitment and gave a walkover to Mayo. You can guess the rest. Mayo lost the All-Ireland final to Dublin, who had the easiest of all tasks. Was it the easiest All-Ireland ever?

What would happen for 1923 was well down the list of priorities for Kerry supporters through that long winter of discontent in 1922. Spring 1923 was horrific in Kerry and all the recent centenary commemorations, particularly of March 1923 served as a reminder of events far removed from sport. The Civil War ended officially on May 24 but the bitterness lasted.

It was remarkable that Kerry even participated in the 1923 championship. Fortunately, football became the saviour for Kerry folk, but it got off to an unlikely start on July 29 in the first round of the Munster Championship.

Kerry played Limerick in Limerick and star player Con Brosnan knew that it would take something special to field a decent team. The powerful Moyvane midfielder and John Joe Sheehy were proven Kerry stars, but they were diametrically opposite in their perceptions of what an Irish Republic meant. What’s more, Brosnan was the leader of the Free Staters and John Joe Sheehy led the republicans. Lives were at risk, brother against brother, Kerry footballer against his teammate. It took a leap of faith for Brosnan to convince his men to suspend hostilities for a few hours. For Sheehy it was an act of faith and gave him trust in the integrity of the Moyvane man. The team lined out that afternoon of July 29 in Limerick and just before the game got underway Sheehy came out of the crowd, discarded the long overcoat which had hidden the playing attire and proceeded to star in a 4-5 to 2-3 victory. Brosnan was correct in his judgement of football class. He knew the value of the dynamic Tralee Mitchels man in the forward division. Game over and Sheehy

SAM: The Kerry team who won the 1930 All-Ireland. This side featured important figures from 1923, including Con Brosnan (middle row, third from right) and John Joe Sheehy (front, fourth from right).

It was all done in the name of the game and the pride in the Kerry geansaí. The green and gold sufficed; the white would be added later. Where a flag failed to unite them, a football did.

Postponements

Political tensions had not disappeared by September 2 but they had eased considerably and Kerry easily beat Cork 3-4 to 0-3 in Cork. The Munster final was not played until October 14 when Kerry beat Tipperary in Tralee and the score was Kerry 0-5 Tipperary 0-3.

No more games for the rest of 1923 so the All-Ireland semi-final of that year was not played until April 27, 1924 when Kerry beat Cavan 1-3 to 1-2.

And so to the 1923 All-Ireland final, played in Croke Park on September 28. Kerry lost narrowly to Dublin, 1-5 to 1-3. That 1923 defeat was disappointing but there was one beacon of hope. Right half