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The 1980’s Dermot Looney @dlooney
Success Returns The first half of the 1980’s saw various experiments with League format and rules, amongst them trials with three points for a win (not introduced permanently until the mid 90’s) and four points for away wins. The League of Ireland was split into a Premier Division and First Division for 1985-86. The previous season almost saw Pat’s relegated at the first opportunity; only a late rally with three wins in their final three games saw relegation averted by a single point. The Saints never looked back – in the 35 seasons since, Patrick’s are the only Premier Division team to have avoided relegation and the relegation/promotion playoff. The eighties began with midtable League finishes similar to the decade before. 1981-82 gave Richmond regulars something to shout about. Manager Charlie Walker signed 21-year Paul McGrath from junior club Dalkey United. “The Black Pearl of Inchicore” went on to excel for the Saints in various positions as the season continued, netting four times in 31 overall appearances. His talents didn’t go unnoticed. He won the second-ever PFAI Player of the Year Award and earned a transfer to Manchester United which put him on the path to legendary status. The move to Old Trafford reportedly saved St Pat’s three separate times; firstly due to the transfer fee, then the receipts from the friendly game at Dalymount against Man United agreed as part of the deal, and finally the bonus received on McGrath’s first Irish cap against Italy in 1985. Walker’s time in charge finished in 1984 with only the 1982-83 Leinster Senior Cup to his name. His two replacements, Eoin Hand and Jimmy Jackson, barely lasted a season each with little to celebrate. Enter Brian Kerr. The Drimnagh man had followed the Saints since childhood and had significant experience as an assistant manager and coach at
Shelbourne, Home Farm and Drogheda, as well as Liam Touhy’s Irish youth setup. But he hadn’t managed a team by himself. If it was a gamble by the Pat’s board, they surely hit the jackpot. Indeed, Kerr’s ten-year reign began with a trophy – the 1986-87 Leinster Senior Cup. A fifth place League finish that season was the highest in almost twenty years. Better was to come. 1987-88, Kerr’s first full season in charge, saw an almost entirely new team featuring the likes of Pat Kelch, Maurice O’Driscoll, Dave Henderson, Paddy Dillon, Mark Ennis, Mick Moody, Damien Byrne, Curtis Fleming, John Treacy, John McDonnell and Pat Fenlon. Kerr combined experienced League of Ireland pros with hungry and talented youngsters in a well-organised side. It all came down to the final game of the season in Oriel Park with Dundalk just one point ahead. Paddy Dillon was sent off in a “Hand of God” incident and the game finished 1-1, with Dundalk sealing the Championship by a point. Pat’s returned to Europe with a first round UEFA Cup exit to Hearts in 1988-89, a season which saw a fourth place finish in the League. Boosted by more astute Kerr signings like Joe Lawless and a young Paul Osam, 1989-90 saw a Leinster Senior Cup win, but that season is most fondly remembered for Pat’s first title in 34 years. Mark Ennis finished League top scorer – the first Pat’s player since Shay Gibbons – as Pat’s won two games within 24 hours, the first v UCD, and the second in United Park, Drogheda, to seal the title. Sweet as it was, victory was tinged with a little homesickness. Pat’s had left Richmond Park at the end of the previous season with plans to spend one season Harold’s Cross Greyhound Stadium while the old ground was renovated. But they barely made it back.
Honours League of Ireland Premier Division Champions: 1989-90 Leinster Senior Cup: 3 (1982-83, 1986-87, 1989-90)
2020 Season • Vol. 32 • No. 7 • St Patrick’s Athletic v Dundalk
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