The Saint (Vol 33 #3)

2021 Season • Premier Division • Vol. 33 • No. 03 Tues 20 April • Richmond Park, Inchicore, D8 • KO:7.45PM

Darragh Burns

Editorial

Ronan O’Flaherty

Ruairi Kavanagh

@stpatsprogramme

Welcome back to a screen near you for our first midweek game of the 2021 season. The flying start to the season has been exactly what everyone needed, and the attitude, commitment and desire of the team is great to see.

We've put together another action-packed issue of the Saint, with loads of reading on the Saints, Irish football and indeed football in general. Should be something for everyone to delve into during the course of the week.

Thanks to Joe on design and all our contributors for continuing to deliver.

We want to get the Saint out to as wide a network of people as possible so please share it on social media where and when you can and get the word out. We are starting some new features in the course of coming issues, and if you would like to be involved in any way with our existing material, or have some ideas yourself, then we would love to hear from you.

We can't promise we will use every idea, but

we do our best to accommodate as much as possible once we feel it is suitable.

Anyone who saw the recent drone and behindthe scenes style footage from recent games will be aware that the club has improved greatly in terms of social media presence and communications in general. It's great to see and there are some great people working hard to make it happen. Long may it continue!

We have a busy few weeks coming up with some back to back home games, but we'll continue to work hard to deliver a fresh issue for each game. Let us know what you think of the Saint and get in touch via email stpatsprogramme@gmail.com or you can get me on Twitter @stpatsprogramme . Roll on the game!

Enjoy the match and stay safe, Ruairi Kavanagh Editor The Saint

Contents 10

Dodges Data

32

Red & White Wonderland

18

On This Day

46

Wembley 66

22

Supersaints

48

Club History

28

Opposition Watch

52

Local Heroes

Programme Production Editor Ruairi Kavanagh

Design Joe O’Rourke

2021 Season • Vol. 33 • No.3 • St Patrick’s Athletic V Waterford

Photo Sportsfile & Inpho 3

Fáilte Tá áthas orainn fáilte a chur roimh mbainistíocht, imreoirí agus lucht tacaíochta Chlub Pheile Pórt Lairge go Phairc Richmond anocht.

Welcome We are pleased to welcome the management, players and supporters of Waterford Football Club to Richmond Park tonight.

Tonight’s Squads

President’s Welcome

St Patrick’s Athletic

Waterford FC

Tom O’Mahony

Manager:

Head Coach: Kevin Sheedy

Alan Mathews

Head Coach: Stephen O’Donnell 1 Vítězslav Jaroš

GK o

2 John Mountney

D

3 Ian Bermingham

D

4 Sam Bone

D

o

5 Lee Desmond

D

o

6 Jamie Lennon

M

7 Robbie Benson 8 Chris Forrester

Coaches:

Good Evening

Mike Newell

1 Brian Murphy

GK o

o

2 Darragh Power

D

o

o

3 Cameron Evans

D

o

4 Oscar Brennan

D

o

5 Josh Collins

D

o

o

6 Kyle Ferguson

D

o

M

o

7 Shane Griffin

M

o

M

o

8 Adam O’ Reilly

M

o

o

9 Daryl Murphy

F

o

9 Nahum Marvin-Lambert F 10 Ronan Coughlan

F

o

10 Cian Kavanagh

F

o

11 Jay McClellend

F

o

11 James Waite

F

o

12 Matty Smith

F

o

12 John Martin

M

o

15 Billy King

F

o

13 Matthew Connor

GK o

16 Alfie Lewis

M

o

14 Niall O’Keeffe

M

o

17 Darragh Burns

F

o

15 Jamie Mascoll

D

o

18 Ben McCormack

M

o

16 Katlego Mashigo

M

o

20 Shane Griffin

D

o

17 Alex Phelan

F

o

21 Barry Murphy

GK o

18 Solowale Oluwatunmise M

o

25 Josh Keeley

GK o

19 Jack Stafford

D

o

28 Cian Kelly

D

o

22 Paul Martin

GK o

29 Paddy Barrett

D

o

23 Prince Mutswunguma

F

31 Kian Corbally

M

o

Daniel Norris

M

o

Jamie Whelan

M

o

o

/stpatsfc stpatsfc /stpatsfc

Match Officials

/stpatsfctv

Referee Graham Kelly

info@stpatsfc.com stpatsfc.com

4

Half-Time

Assistant 1 Daragh Keegan

Full-Time

Assistant 2 Chris Campbell

@jimmyedwards41

4th Official Paul McLaughlin

MOTM

2021 Season • Vol. 33 • No.32 • St Patrick’s Athletic v Waterford

You're very welcome to Richmond Park, albeit virtually, for this evening's game and I want to extend a warm welcome to the players, staff and officials of Waterford FC. In particular, it's great to have Kevin Sheedy here in his new role. Like all Irish football fans of my vintage, Kevin will always be celebrated for his outstanding service in the green jersey and, most especially, for a never to be forgotten moment in Cagliari in June 1990. In dispossessing Steve McMahon and firing past Peter Shilton to earn a deserved draw against England, Kevin not only became the first Republic of Ireland player to score in the World Cup Finals but also showed the world that Ireland's exploits in the 1988 Euros (including beating the same England) had not been a freak event - we were now a footballing nation capable of holding our own against the heavyweights on a consistent basis.

Of course, one of the reasons we treasure memories such as those is that, for small nations, those eras don't come around too often. We are undeniably in the doldrums at the moment as an international force, but that's the inevitable cycle for countries such as us. The generation of players who took us to the Euro finals in 2012 and 2016 are now, for the most part, at or close to the end of their careers. We know that there are young players with great ability who offer the prospect of more success in the future, but the transition which is now underway will inevitably bring disappointing results along the way.

The first year of Stephen Kenny's stewardship was always going to be difficult, for that reason, even before the

well-documented attrition which the squad suffered due to the effect of the pandemic.

ST PATRICK’S ATHLETIC FOOTBALL CLUB Richmond Park 125 Emmet Road, Inchicore, Dublin 8, Ireland Tel: +353 1 454 6332

In that situation, the manager, irrespective of who it is, has to be cut a fair bit of slack, and given time and space to restructure the squad and develop a style that suits the players at his disposal. In a similar situation, Michael O'Neill went 18 months before securing his first win as Northern Ireland manager but, given space and time, took them to the 2016 Euro Finals.

So it's quite disappointing to hear some of the commentary directed against Stephen in recent months, which takes no account of the difficulties he's had to cope with or the scale of the task he's undertaking. To me, it's a bit reminiscent of the snobbery which dogged Brian Kerr's time as Ireland manager when, despite very creditable results, he was never good enough for those who believed that a successful international manager could not emerge from our League.

Stephen has more than proven his management abilities and I believe that, given time, his Irish team will give us new memories to go alongside the one which Kevin Sheedy created almost 31 years ago.

Enjoy tonight's game

Fax: +353 1 454 6211 For media enquiries, please email press@stpatsfc.com Opening Hours: 9.30am-5pm (Mon-Fri).

See our facebook page for additional opening hours on match days.

HONOURS LEAGUE CHAMPIONS 1951/52, 1954/55, 1955/56, 1989/90, 1995/96, 1997/98, 1998/99, 2001/02, 2013 FAI CUP 1958/59, 1960/61, 2014 LEAGUE CUP 2000/01, 2003, 2015, 2016 PRESIDENT'S CUP 2014 LEINSTER SENIOR CUP 1947/48, 1982/83, 1986/87, 1989/90, 1990/91, 1999/2000, 2011, 2014, 2019 LOISHIELD 1959/60 FAI SUPER CUP 1999 DUBLIN CITY CUP 1953/54, 1955/56, 1975/76 LFA PRESIDENT'S CUP 1952/53, 1953/54, 1955/56, 1971/72, 1990/91, 1996/97 FAI INTERMEDIATE CUP 1947/48, 1948/49, 1952/53 (Reserves)

Tom O'Mahony President St Patrick's Athletic FC

2021 Season • Vol. 33 • No.32 • St Patrick’s Athletic v Waterford

FAI JUNIOR CUP 1940/41 FAI YOUTH CUP 1944/45

5

The Dugout

Ronan O’Flaherty

Alan Mathews & Stephen O’Donnell

Five games into the season and 11 points have been accumulated. It's a decent start and one that we are quietly satisfied with.

However, there remains much to improve on. The

The current schedule is hectic. Kick-off tonight,

games are coming thick and fast and everybody –

against Waterford, comes less than 72 hours after

from the backroom staff to the players – is working

the final whistle at Oriel Park. On Friday, we will

hard to ensure we keep moving in the right

make the long trek to Donegal. When the gap

direction.

between games is so tight, recovery becomes just as important as training. The morning after the

It's always disappointing to concede late, which is

Dundalk game, the players took a dip in the sea in

what happened at Oriel Park last Saturday evening.

Portmarnock. Yesterday, they had a good recovery

For the most part, we bossed the game against

session. They are all working hard, in games and at

Dundalk. They have some very talented players but

training. Competition for places is intense, which is

we imposed our game to good effect and it forced

exactly what you want.

them to go more direct than they are accustomed to. By the time Sam Bone put us in front, 11 minutes

We would like to welcome the management,

into the second half, we felt the goal had been

players and everyone connected with Waterford FC

coming.

to Richmond Park. Waterford manager, Kevin Sheedy, is a legend of Irish football and it's great to

Conceding an equaliser with five minutes of normal

get the opportunity to pit our wits against such an

time to go was hard to take, although Dundalk

accomplished football man.

deserve credit for upping the ante late into proceedings. They really came to life in those

We watched Waterford in action against Bohemians

closing stages and, after equalising, had chances to

last Friday and it confirmed what we already know:

win it. From our perspective, it would have been

they are a good, well-drilled team who have the

very harsh to leave Dundalk without at least a point.

players to cause problems if they are afforded time and space on the ball. They had a good win at the

OUR GAME IS ON THE BALL

Eight days earlier, the team earned a 2-0 win over

Brandywell, which is never an easy place to get a

Derry City. It was a professional performance and,

result, and could consider themselves unfortunate

even though Derry were reduced to ten men after

to concede a last-minute winner against Finn Harps.

32 minutes, we already had a strong foothold in the game. Both goals were well taken and it was nice to

Enjoy the game, wherever you are watching.

see young Darragh Burns get off the mark at senior

UMBRO TEAMWEAR

level. A proud moment for Darragh and his family,

Stephen O'Donnell and Alan Mathews

no doubt.

TO FIND OUT MORE VISIT UMBRO.IE OR CONTACT ALAN (086 7880808)/ RICHY (086 0317672) 2021 Season • Vol. 33 • No.32 • St Patrick’s Athletic v Waterford

7

Oh My Word!

Ronan O’Flaherty

Ronan O’Flaherty

@ronanoflaherty

Oriel Park has been at the centre of some big days in the history of St Patrick’s Athletic.

In 1988, Dessie Gorman's goal on the last day of the season not only denied St Pat's victory, but also deprived the club of a first league title since 1956.

Thankfully, that itch was finally scratched two years later at United Park.

April is a time of football anniversaries. It's little wonder as, before the League of Ireland reverted to a summer season 18 years ago, April was generally the time when the important stuff happened. Champions were crowned, medals handed out and tears shed over relegation.

Just as we entered the final furlong in an August-to-April "winter" season, rays of sunshine began to pierce through the clouds. Those days of spring were often drenched in sunshine. Now, we inhabit a reality where the defining stages of a "summer" season are often played out in miserable weather.

Those April anniversaries have been coming with great regularity for Pat's. The one worthy of loudest mention involves a trip to Oriel Park 25 years ago yesterday.

Away games against Dundalk sometimes came with a nice bonus – a half-day from school. We made an adventure of it, journeying beyond the Wee County and into Armagh and Down. Newry, to be precise.

The confectionery section at Woolworths was quite something. Nothing to rival it in Dublin. In the possession of an enthusiastic 12-year-old, a chunky pound sterling went a long way on sweets in 1996. Most of the items bought were of the eye-wateringly fizzy variety that left you with little feeling in your tongue other than a stinging sensation.

Woolworths was followed by a stroll through the one and only Buttercrane Shopping Centre. After stopping for a bite to eat in KFC – a big treat – it was time to rev up the old Ford Fiesta and head back down to Louth for a date with destiny. Nerves kicked into gear with a fleeting

8

glimpse of the floodlights illuminating the evening sky.

A huge crowd made the journey from Dublin for the game. The road leading up to Oriel Park was lined by parked coaches. The away supporters packed into the old terrace that ran the length of the pitch. First-half conditions went from glorious sunshine to torrential rain and back again. The St Pat's players, soaked to the bone, changed into fresh kits at half-time.

The first half was eventful, and not just because of the weather. Despite being reduced to 10 men, Dundalk took the lead through Stephen Napier. It sparked painful memories of events at the same venue eight years earlier. The lead lasted barely a minute. As was so often the case, Ricky O'Flaherty rode to the rescue with a stunning headed equaliser.

St Pat's dominated the second half and had several clear-cut chances. However, Dundalk, with nothing to play for, performed as though their existence depended on it. They were a whisker from going back in front through Brian Byrne, with goalkeeper Gareth Byrne just about clawing the ball off the line.

As the clock ticked down, the draw became more likely.

That wouldn't have been the end of the world. Another point at home to Shelbourne the following weekend would have been enough to secure the title.

Four minutes remained when St Pat's were awarded a free kick on the edge of the box for a foul on Noel Mernagh. This was prime territory for Eddie Gormley, but Eddie was looking on from the sideline, injured. In his absence, Paul "Soupy" Campbell stepped up. The free kick that followed has aged well. It is now a greater work of art 25 years later. What Soupy's shot lacked in power, it more than made up for in accuracy and finesse.

The run-up and execution were the brushstrokes of a player enjoying his finest hour.

The scenes that followed were frenzied. Pat's fans punched the air with delight and hugged their neighbours. Foghorns sounded. Red flares ignited.

2021 Season • Vol. 33 • No.32 • St Patrick’s Athletic v Waterford

The bench goes wild in Oriel Park as Soupy’s free kick hits the back of the net.

George Hamilton perhaps put it best on Sports Stadium the following day when he said: "If Del Piero had done that for Juventus, it would have been the talk of Europe. Isn't it wonderful to think that the goal that finally won the National League was one of such quality."

In some ways, this title meant more than the one six years earlier. While the 1990 success was as brilliant as it was unlikely, the subsequent cherry-picking of that team ripped the heart out of the club.

Following a brush with extinction in 1992, St Pat's slowly but surely built its way back towards a position of strength. This could not have been achieved without the dedication of a group of people. Two from the group stood out – manager Brian

Kerr and chairman Tim O'Flaherty.

Brian's immense contribution to St Patrick’s Athletic is rightly lauded.

But what about Tim's?

Tim took over the club in 1995 and immediately worked towards making it the best in Ireland. This objective was achieved, and the impact of the chairman – through his generosity and strength-of-will – cannot be overstated.

Success at an Irish football club can be measured in various ways, such as ground improvements or even just a noticeable upgrade in the overall wellbeing of the club. The most obvious mark of success is silverware. In the 43 years between 1952 and 1995, St Pat's won four league titles. In the six years between 1996 and 2002, they added another four.

2021 Season • Vol. 33 • No.32 • St Patrick’s Athletic v Waterford

It was the golden age.

Oriel Park didn't stop making an impact for Pat's after '96. It played a supporting role when the Saints were crowned champions in '98, and was again the venue when the league title was secured in 2002.

Links to the Lilywhites' home ground stretch through to the present. Just three days ago, the 2021 version of St Patrick’s Athletic came within minutes of a statement victory at Oriel Park. It wasn't to be, but there is no shame in a 1-1 draw at Oriel Park. Now, it's about following up. It's always about the next game.

Any views expressed in this article are the contributor's own.

9

Dodge’s Data!

Ronan O’Flaherty

John Owens

@seidodge

League Record v Waterford HOME GAMES

35

59

AWAY GAMES

TOTAL GAMES

29

16

118

GOALS

72

45

21

13

GOALS

112

187

184

12/04/61

24/01/65

14/03/93

07/11/65

09/09/90

11/01/59

27/01/63

14/04/68

4-0

5-1

5-1

2-6

5-0

1-6

1-6

1-6

20

0-0

Last Draw!

Our last drawn league game with Waterford was a 0-0 at Richmond Park on 10th March 2006.

Waterford RSC

League

0-3

14/02/20

Richmond Park

League

0-1

04/10/19

Richmond Park

League

0-2

05/07/19

Waterford RSC

League

2-1

03/05/19

Richmond Park

League

0-3

15/03/19

Waterford RSC

League

0-2

31/08/18

Richmond Park

League

League

Paul Byrne, Gareth Coughlan, Conor Kenna, Shane Guthrie

16/04/18

Richmond Park

League

1-2

Paul Osam

R Brennan

1-1

Paddy Dillon

26/02/18

Waterford RSC

League

LOI

Drogheda Utd

2-2

Conan Byrne, Ciaran Kilduff

2012

Richmond Park

LOI

UCD

2-0

Christy Fagan, Greg Bolger

2010

Carlisle Grounds

LOI

Bray Wanderers

4-0

2001

Dalymount Park

OI

Bohemians

1986

Richmond Park

LOI

Shelbourne

1980

Dalymount Park

FAI CUP FINAL Waterford

3-0

A Campion, M Leahy 2

Waterford RSC

Richmond Park

*Dundalk won 8-7 on pens.

04/09/20

08/06/18

2015

10

LOSE

Competition

C Clifford, D Clarke

Club Records in League Games with Waterford

ON THIS DAY

DRAW

Venue

GOALS

77

APRIL

WIN

Date

52

59

17

8

110

Last 10 games v Waterford

0-2 1-0 0-2

0-1

2021 Season • Vol. 33 • No.32 • St Patrick’s Athletic v Waterford

2021 Season • Vol. 33 • No.32 • St Patrick’s Athletic v Waterford

11

Pats 2 Derry 0 Benson 60mins, Burns 71mins

Richmond Park • 09 April 2021 • Premier Division Ronan O’Flaherty

Starting XI 1 Jaroš 2 Mountney 3 Bermingham 4 Bone 5 Desmond 6 Lennon 7 Benson 8 Forrester 10 Coughlan 11 King 12 Smith Subs 17 Burns 16 Lewis 11 McClelland 9 Melvin-Lambert

12

2021 Season • Vol. 33 • No.32 • St Patrick’s Athletic v Waterford

2021 Season • Vol. 33 • No.32 • St Patrick’s Athletic v Waterford

80 86 80 66

66 80 80 86

13

Squad Sponsorship

Ronan O’Flaherty

Vítězslav Jaroš

John Mountney

Ian Bermingham

Robbie Benson

Chris Forrester

Nahum Marvin-Lambert

Goalkeeper

Defender

Defender

Midfield

Midfield

Forward

1

2

3

7

8

9

HOME SPONSOR

HOME SPONSOR

HOME SPONSOR

HOME SPONSOR

HOME SPONSOR

HOME SPONSOR

KAVANAGHS PUB

BISTO FLOOD APPRECIATION SOCIETY

BILL DUGGAN

LUKE MULLINS

DECED

KEVIN ROCHE

AWAY SPONSOR

AWAY SPONSOR

AWAY SPONSOR

AWAY SPONSOR

AWAY SPONSOR

AWAY SPONSOR

SWEENEYS

JOHN PAUL MOORE

CLÍODHNA BRAY

WILLIAM MORGAN

DC FITNESS PHYSIO

O'CALLAGHAN FAMILY

Sam Bone

Lee Desmond

Jamie Lennon

Ronan Coughlan

Jay McClellend

Matty Smith

Defender

Defender

Midfield

Forward

Forward

Forward

4

5

6

10

11

12

HOME SPONSOR

HOME SPONSOR

HOME SPONSOR

HOME SPONSOR

HOME SPONSOR

HOME SPONSOR

ST PATRICK'S ATHLETIC SUPPORTERS GROUP

WILL MORGAN

TOMMY KEYES

THE CLOCK

JOHN HUDSON

FYNCH

AWAY SPONSOR

AWAY SPONSOR

AWAY SPONSOR

AWAY SPONSOR

AWAY SPONSOR

THE LADS OFF THE CAMAC

CIAN MENTON

KILLIAN DONNELLY

MUSCAT SAINTS

14

2021 Season • Vol. 33 • No.32 • St Patrick’s Athletic v Waterford

2021 Season • Vol. 33 • No.32 • St Patrick’s Athletic v Waterford

AWAY SPONSOR

PATRICK COSTELLO TD

15

Squad Sponsorship Billy King

Alfie Lewis

Darragh Burns

Josh Keeley

Cian Kelly

Paddy Barrett

Forward

Midfield

Forward

Goalkeeper

Defender

Defender

15

16

17

25

28

29

HOME SPONSOR

HOME SPONSOR

HOME SPONSOR

HOME SPONSOR

HOME SPONSOR

HOME SPONSOR

SMcN CONSULTING

PATRON SAINTS

THOMPSON SOLICITORS

GRACE O'REILLY

LAUREN O'REILLY

PROLINK STAFFING

AWAY SPONSOR

AWAY SPONSOR

AWAY SPONSOR

QUALITY MOTORS

AWAY SPONSOR

AWAY SPONSOR

MARK B SHOPFITTING LTD.

PRECISION IRELAND

AWAY SPONSOR

PROLINK STAFFING

Ben McCormack

Shane Griffin

Barry Murphy

Kian Corbally

Daniel Norris

Jamie Whelan

Midfield

Defender

Goalkeeper

Midfield

Midfield

Midfield

18

16

Ronan O’Flaherty

20

21

31

HOME SPONSOR

HOME SPONSOR

HOME SPONSOR

HOME SPONSOR

HOME SPONSOR

HOME SPONSOR

SEI

DARAGH O'HALLORAN

DALTON FAMILY

McCRUDDEN FITNESS

CONOR O'TOOLE

BRIAN BRAMHALL

AWAY SPONSOR

AWAY SPONSOR

AWAY SPONSOR

AWAY SPONSOR

JOAN STAPLETON

CAMAC SAINTS 2.0

SCOTT KELLY

2021 Season • Vol. 33 • No.32 • St Patrick’s Athletic v Waterford

AWAY SPONSOR

AWAY SPONSOR

DARRAGH O'TOOLE

ZOE O'REILLY

2021 Season • Vol. 33 • No.32 • St Patrick’s Athletic v Waterford

17

1980 FAI Cup Final Dalymount Park.

APRIL

20 1980

WATERFORD 1 ST PATRICK'S ATH 0

FOR WATERFORD, after long last, the wait is finally over.

Forty and some years after their one and only other triumph in an F.A.I. Gup final, they brought the trophy back Suirside when, at Dalymount Park yesterday, they edged a game, gallant and graphic St Patrick's Athletic by a solitary 22nd minute goal from left full back Brian Gardner. It was one of the best Blue Riband deciders for a long time, and I for one would not have quibbled at the.prospect of a replay, which I thought the Dubliners deserved.

I do not begrudge the Blues their historic achievement.

Yet it was quite understandable that, when Cork referee Kevin 0? SuIlivan, who had such a very good game-sounded the final whistle the, deafening acclaim from their supporters embodied a very discernable note of relief. The official returns, incidentally, were that 18,000 people present paid £26,000, To my not inexperienced eye it looked more like that there were 25,000 fans in the ground. And, while the Waterford supporters applauded by the winners after the game and then in an admirably sporting gesture also praised by the losers far outnumbered the home following, they must have been biting their nails particularly during the second half.

Indeed, it seemed inevitable that the visiting hordes would have to accept the philosophy of "What's Another Year" as Pat's pounded for the equaliser. And the man who saved Waterford in their darkest hours was that remarkable veteran Peter Thomas. In contrast his opposite number, Jimmy Grace, had a comparatively trouble-free afternoon.

DESERVED A MEDAL For the Blue strikers did not at all have a happy day against a Pat's rearguard in which the even more

18

Irish Independent - Noel Dunne reporting Sunday 21 April 1980

seasoned Willie Roche deserved to have a medal struck for himself, and in which Barry Murphy also had a big share in curbing Sid Wallace and Paul Kirk. I also thought that Pats, as a team, showed remarkable character in refusing to be ruffled by that comparatively early goal. It evolved in a rather peculiar way. For, when Larry Murray escaped from a foul by George Munnelly just outside the penalty area on the right hand side, Mr. Sullivan could have played the advantage rule. But, instead, he stopped the play and it all worked out so well for the Blues, for Murray himself swung the free kick towards the far side of the area and Gardner, on the run, hammered a superb header home off the upright. At that stage it was no more than Waterford merited, for they were showing more control and understanding in the middle of the field, where Mick Madigan and Vinny McCarthy were looking good, with Mark Meagan linking well with Murray in a partnership which was later, however, to dissolve completely. But before it did so Murray forced a corner from Roche, it was taken by McCarthy and headed over off the top of the crossbar by Al Finucane. Then Madigan blocked a Tony Higgins clearance to McCarthy, who took the return pass from Madigan before scampering away on his best run of the match to send over a cross, which was knocked away for a corner by who else but Roche. From the Murray free kick Gardner, rising with. Finucane, nodded a foot over the bar — but that was to be the last symbol of Waterford aggression for a very long time.

MAN OF THE MATCH 'Man of the Match' Thomas had already made a vital save in the 9th minute when Higgins, fed by Jackie Jameson, who was only just shaded in this particular honours list, saw his drive pushed around the post. And in the 38th minute a 25-yarder from Jameson, which may have caught a deflection, was going away from the

2021 Season • Vol. 33 • No.32 • St Patrick’s Athletic v Waterford

BLUES WAIT IS OVER BUT PATS WORTH A REPLAY goalkeeper into the net when Thomas slapped it down and away for another corner. Right on the break, again through Jameson's instigation, Paul Kirwan had a shot luckily blocked. But Kirwan, Derek Carthy and Joey Malone unfortunately, did not come up to expectations on this occasion, which makes it all the more remarkable that Pat's were able to lord it to such an extent. Carthy later to be replaced, did lay on a _duaice when he nodded an adroit ball from Jameson to Niall O’Donnell, who was foiled by Thomas's quick reading of the situation. That was just a minute after, the restart, but within the space of a couple of minutes, Pats missed two chances which could have changed everything, including the result.

SLEIGHT OF BODY Jameson, employing that God-given sleight-of-body to the extreme, wafted past both Tony Dunphy and Gardner before sliding the ball across to Kirwan, who not surprisingly in the state of confusion was unmarked but who volleyed his shot past the far post.

Then Malone, from a few yards, screwed his shot wide after a long Higgins throw-in. Yet again Thomas averted a replay with a brave dive at the feet of Kirwan, who had been given the opening by McCarthy but

St Pat’s ‘keeper Jim Grace at the feet of attacking Waterford forwards in the F.A.I. Cup final at Dalymount park yesterday. the latter was then subbed by Michael Wright, who also, in the comparatively brief time at his disposal did his best to influence matters. Blues boss Tommy Jackson appeared in place of McCarthy, who was visibly disturbed at being handed his walking papers once more. And, with seven minutes to go, Wallace was felled by the other Pats replacement, Aidan Daly, and carried off on a stretcher, but happily his damaged ligaments did not prevent him from joining in the post-match jollifications.

2021 Season • Vol. 33 • No.32 • St Patrick’s Athletic v Waterford

WATERFORD Thomas; O'Mahony, Dunjphy, Finucane, Gardner; Meagan, Madigan, McCarthy; Murray, Wallace, Kirk.

Subs: Jackson for McCarthy, 73 mins.; Coady for Wallace, (inj.), 83 mins.

ST. PATRICK'S ATHLETIC Grace; Higgins, Roche, Murphy, Munnelly, O'Donnell, Malone, Hynes; Carthy, Jameson, Kirwan Subs: Wright for Carthy, 70 mins.; Daly for Munnelly, 77 Referee: Mr. Kevin O'Sullivan (Cork).

19

Can you find the St Pats players in the Wordsearch grid below?

Players to look for: KING BENSON MCCORMACK MURPHY GRIFFIN KEELEY BARRETT LEWIS MARVINLAMBERT BURNS

Can you help John Mountney get his football?

OUR GAME KNOWS YOUR NAME THE OFFICIAL MATCH BALL FOR THE 2021 SSE AIRTRICITY LEAGUE, FEATURING BESPOKE BALLS MADE FOR EACH CLUB

WWW.UMBRO.IE

Answer on page 45 2021 Season • Vol. 33 • No.32 • St Patrick’s Athletic v Waterford

21

Super Saints Catherine O’Mahony

Ronan O’Flaherty

Johnny Keegan

@johnnykeegan

Not many can claim to have been a stand-in for Boyzone’s Shane Lynch. But that’s how Pat’s fan and TV producer, Catherine O’Mahony, got the start.

From the early days of college and making tea as a runner, to bumping into Alf Stewart from Home & Away in Australia, to her recent work on hit shows Gogglebox Ireland and The Rotunda, Catherine gives us an insight into building a career in the television and entertainment industry.

In an ultra-competitive sector, getting a foot in the door can be crucial.

“It’s really hard, especially in Ireland, where opportunities are limited and it can feel a bit closed off. When I was doing my Masters, there was this programme called the All Ireland Talent Show. When they were sorting out the camera angles before the show, they needed people to sit in the judge’s seats. I didn’t get paid or anything like that, but I got a free lunch for being Shane Lynch’s stand-in.

Then when it came to the next season, they were looking for runners, so I got a paid job doing that.”

What does a runner do?

“Anything and everything. For the All Ireland Talent Show I was making tea and coffee for the judges and crew, looking after contestants, tidying rooms, driving props around, and lots of other odd jobs. But while doing that, you’re watching others and learning loads.

“Around that time, Scratch Films were making a documentary in my old school, so I asked them if I could have work experience on it.

22

They allowed me to come in for three weeks. Now, years later, I do a lot of work with Scratch Films, and it all came from that.”

search history after working on that programme had to be deleted before I ended up on some FBI list.”

A desire to travel took Catherine to Australia. Knocking on doors and asking “Are you looking for anybody?” resulted in a job as a co-ordinator in kids TV at Fox Studios at first.

Catherine’s next job was in casting for Gogglebox Ireland.

What does it take to get onto the show?

“After that, I started working as a production coordinator for Channel 7 on a show called My Kitchen Rules. Our office was upstairs from the set of Home & Away, which was exciting. One day, Alf Stewart said hello to me, and I was like ‘Oh my God’. All the Australians were laughing at me, because to them it’s cringe, but I thought it was great.”

Having returned from Australia via South America, Catherine began working as a researcher for an episode of Kevin McGahern’s America, and crossed paths with anti-fascist biker gangs, Bitcoin tech entrepreneurs and the infamous Juggalos.

“America is such an interesting, diverse, bizarre, weird and wonderful place that you could go down serious rabbit holes while researching. My Google

“The whole point of Gogglebox is that you’re just watching normal people at home watching tele, so anyone who’s putting on an act or being fake, you can tell, and that just wouldn’t work with the viewers. We’re looking for people who can be themselves and not be too phased by the camera.”

What makes Gogglebox Ireland so special?

“Irish people are inherently witty, and we all sit at home commenting on what we’re watching on tele anyway, so when we see people like us doing the exact same thing it’s so relatable.

Irish people also have a great way with words, and the way the editing team edits together all the different reactions is brilliant.

You can sit down, switch your brain off, and enjoy an episode; it’s great food for the soul.”

2021 Season • Vol. 33 • No.32 • St Patrick’s Athletic v Waterford

We’ve yet to get a celebrity version of Gogglebox Ireland, who would Catherine like to cast if it were to happen?

“I think the O’Donovan brothers (the rowers) would be really good on it. Maybe Amy Huberman and Brian O’Driscoll, because she’s very funny.

Maybe even Stephen O’Donnell and his missus…”

Catherine would then link-up again with Liam McGrath from Scratch Films working as a producer on The Rotunda.

“It was an amazing programme to work on because we are literally seeing babies being born.

My job (pre-Covid) involved walking the halls and clinics chatting to expectant mothers and seeing if they’d be interested. On a show like the Rotunda, it’s not just the happy birth stories, there are also really difficult and sad ones, so we really have to build a relationship, the women have to trust us because they are putting their most vulnerable time into our hands. We have to handle their stories sensitively; we’re not exploiting them for entertainment, rather we’re reflecting the reality of what happens in the hospital.”

Certain life skills are required to make a career in this industry. What advice does Catherine have for anyone starting out?

“The uncertainty is kind of scary, especially as you get older and you have a mortgage to pay and a family to look after. You need to be able to put yourself out there. And then when you get jobs, you need to be able to talk to people. Keep developing your skills and your own ideas; you have to be able to plan for your own future and not be relying on someone ringing you to see if you’re free.”

Any views expressed in this article are the contributor's own.

2021 Season • Vol. 33 • No.32 • St Patrick’s Athletic v Waterford

23

Notice This!

Ronan O’Flaherty

Karl Stafford

@karl_pats

Saints Weekly Newsletter We are delighted to announce the launch of our new weekly club newsletter.

The weekly newsletter will keep supporters up to date with all the latest news, fixtures, community activity, club merchandise and lots more throughout the season.

Newsletter subscribers will also have access to exclusive shop discounts and special offers from the Super Saints Store.

Sign up for the newsletter at www.stpatsfc.com/news

WhatsApp It's now easier than ever to contact us. We are on WhatsApp Business to

Golden Goal Competitions

Happy Birthday

The Golden Goal Game will run exclusively on the Super Saints Store. Tickets cost €5 each.

Best wishes to the following Supersaints who celebrate lockdown Birthdays throughout the month of April.

You can choose your lucky number in the dropdown section and every number is available to purchase twice meaning two prizes are up for grabs.

the club a message on WhatsApp, our number is 085 126 4615. This will

Prize for picking the correct time of the first goal scored in the game is €100 in cash or a €125 Voucher for the Super Saints Store.

be operational during office hours Monday to Friday. Please note we are

More info on SuperSaintsStore.com

help with shop, ticket, and general queries from supporters. You can drop

not set up to receive calls, but you can still call the office on 01 454 6332.

Match Sponsorship

(From €1,000)

This package will include the following: • Title of Match Sponsor for your Chosen Match.

• Logo on the cover of The Saint Matchday Magazine.

• Full Page Advert in The Saint Matchday Magazine (Artwork Provided from Business one week in advance).

• First line of Match Preview on stpatsfc.com will mention your Business.

• Social Media post Two days before our game containing link to your Business Website and/or Social Accounts tagged.

• Signed St Pats Home Jersey (Optional giveaway on social media).

Match Ball Sponsorship

(From €250)

This package will include the following: • Title of Match Ball Sponsor for your Chosen Match.

• Line in Match Preview on stpatsfc.com will mention your Business.

• Logo on the cover of The Saint Matchday Magazine.

• Signed St Pats Football (Optional giveaway on social media).

Please contact karl.stafford@stpatsfc.com for more information.

24

2021 Season • Vol. 33 • No.32 • St Patrick’s Athletic v Waterford

Golden Goal Winners!

Drogheda Match Golden Goal was scored on the 59th minute by Ronan Coughlan and the winner is Deborah Boyd.

Boh’s Match Golden Goal was scored on the 62nd minute by Ronan Coughlan and the winner is Joe Walsh.

Brendan Clarke Snr Phil Clarke Paul Oman Avril O'Connell Max Foy Brendan Ryan Joseph Kavanagh Shane McCabe Graham Jay Paul Byrne Sarah Tynan Laura Carney Sean McDonald Ruadhán Thompson James Keating Tony Flannery Paul Tyrrell Padraig Carney Dave Carter Paul Maguire Joe O’Rourke Gary Waters

Reeling in the St Patrick’s Athletic Years

We are seeking expressions of interest from individuals willing to take part in a virtual programme (via Zoom) which will revisit some key events of our illustrious history.

The programme will take place on Friday afternoons at 4pm and run for a duration of six weeks. While a start date is yet to be confirmed, a provisional date of late April has been earmarked if enough interest in secured.

Please email david.morrissey@stpatsfc.com to express interest or for more information.

2021 Season • Vol. 33 • No.32 • St Patrick’s Athletic v Waterford

25

Community

All of this material was written by David Sneyd and printed in The Star newspaper. Reprinted with permission.

Ronan O’Flaherty

Dave Morrissey

@dave_pats

2021 has been challenging from a community perspective and as we edge towards the easing of Level Five Restrictions, we look forward to recommencing face-to-face community engagement activities in the coming weeks.

As these are my first notes of the year, I hope all our supporters are keeping safe and well and fingers crossed we will all be back at Richmond Park together in the near future.

In the first edition of The Saint, an article detailing the PreSeason with Pat’s Health and Well-Being programme was published. It was an absolute pleasure to coordinate this programme alongside academy staff Niall Cully, Sean Fogarty and club volunteer Rob Cullen. Leaving the visible health and well-being improvements aside, engaging

with a segment of the Pat’s community every Monday, at a time when many people are feeling isolated, represented a real high point of my week. It was wonderful to be able to facilitate engagement and create bonds between the first team and our supporters in the lead up to the League of Ireland season. The player’s spoke about how dedicated the group were during preseason while offering valuable insights and nutritional advice to the supporters – ultimately taking an interest in the off the field activities of St Pat’s in a manner which simply cannot

be fabricated. The sheer dedication of this team has been evident throughout the early weeks of the season and they ultimately deserve to be supported by a fervent audience at Richmond Park – a revitalised team challenging at the right end of the table has the ability to transcend football and have a real positive impact in the local community and let us all hope those days are not too far away.

In the meantime, the following community programmes will be commencing in the coming weeks.

One Club, One Community Family Challenge Creating local pride in Inchicore – St Patrick’s Athletic in conjunction with Frontline MC – encouraging families to create time for physical activity and healthy family meals. This programme channels the power of football and teamwork to reinforce the importance of family resilience and togetherness.

One Club, One Community entails •

•

•

26

Education Programme (May – June) Reconnecting the community through the power of football In May, we intend to build on the success of the Saints and Scholars Football and Numeracy Programme and adapt it in a way that safely meets the needs of local primary schools during the last two months of the academic year.

We intend for Richmond Park to become a socially distanced outdoor classroom several days per week with numeracy and physical exercise activities provided for students alongside a healthy lunch for each student.

This programme will address the following issues currently being experienced by the local school community: •

Weekly interact fitness challenges encouraging family exercise in the local community

Attendance Issues – Students with poor attendance records have fallen behind on course work throughout the pandemic.

•

St Pat’s first team players set weekly nutritional challenges highlighting quick and easy meal with ingredients provided to families

Behavioural Issues – Unfortunately there has been increased reports of anti-social behaviour with local youth lacking focus in their daily lives.

•

Covid has caused a disconnect between schools and the wider school community – due to the lack of outreach opportunities – St Patrick’s Athletic is best placed to facilitate community re-engagement as we strive to overcome the societal effects of Covid-19.

Parents to receive a nutritious breakfast at Richmond Park on Friday mornings

2021 Season • Vol. 33 • No. 1 • St Patrick’s Athletic v Drogheda United

2021 Season • Vol. 33 • No. 1 • St Patrick’s Athletic v Drogheda United

27

Opposition Watch

Ronan O’Flaherty

Paul Maguire

@PaulGoS

Ah Waterford, there’s been some needle between the fans of both clubs over the past few seasons...

This has recently led to some

first foray into first team

19 international has played in the

cracking games both here and at

management. Perhaps he saw

FA Cup this season and will be

the RSC but unfortunately there

one of his predecessors, John

expected to fill the void left by

won’t be any fans to fuel the

Sheridan, getting the gig at

Tyreke Wilson who moved to

competitive fire in Richmond Park

Wigan Athletic after a stint at the

Bohs in the off-season. Much

tonight so what will the Blues

RSC? Previously Sheedy was

needed experience comes from

bring to the table to try to derail

assistant manager at Hartlepool

ex-international striker Darryl

the Pats express?

United and Tranmere Rovers,

Murphy while at the other end of

coached at Everton academy and

the pitch the form of Brian

Manager Kevin Sheedy needs no

spent three years in the sun of

Murphy in goal will be key. Last

introduction, part of that great

Saudi Arabia with Al-Shabab. It’s

season the netminder started 16

Everton team of the 1980’s (did

a city with a rich football heritage

league games and kept clean

you know he signed for them

and it’s fitting that someone with

sheets in 8 of them, he is

from Liverpool?), 46 caps for

Sheedys substance is in charge.

expected to be kept busy this

Ireland and scored our first ever

luck late on after Brennan was

the 2020 season when they

sent off for two bookings in

were denied a place in Europe

quick succession having earlier

by the width of the post in

scored what turned out to be the

injury time and their hosts

winner off a rebound from his

confirmed their premier

own penalty kick which was

division status for this season.

initially saved. Brian Murphy was

While the stakes weren’t quite

called upon to save from long

as high this time round the end

range in the first half before

was just as dramatic with ex Waterford (and Pats) defender Dave Webster scoring at the death after a scramosh in the crowded Blues penalty area following a corner, bit of a defending set-pieces and conceding late goals?? The opening half hour was dull fare in many weathers until John

season.

goal in a World Cup in 1990

So who does the Ireland legend

merely scratches the surface of

have at his disposal this season?

FORM

As usual in our league there were

Waterford have been tipped as

personnel changes aplenty in

relegation fodder in some circles

Waterford with seven of the first

to possible european contenders

team squad moving on (of course

in others and this disparity has

two of them, Sam Bone & Matty

been reflected in their results so

Smith, made their way to the

far this season. Starting off

Saints). Sheedy will be glad

against promoted Drogheda they

Tumnise Sobowale and Niall

were unlucky to lose to an 89th

O’Keefe have re-signed for 2021

minute own goal when they had

as much is expected of them

looked to have had secured a

having impressed last season

draw despite their opponents

while notable signings include

creating the better chances.

former Bohs and Shels midfielder

Waterford really only threatened

Oscar Brennan, ex UCD defender

from long range or set pieces.

Martins header from a free flew past the Harps keeper to give Waterford the lead but as per

his playing career but this is his

Josh Collins and, perhaps most Kevin Sheedy

28

interestingly, Cameron Evans

Next up was a trip to the

from Swansea City. The Welsh u-

Brandywell where they rode their

2021 Season • Vol. 33 • No.32 • St Patrick’s Athletic v Waterford

Cameron Evans

pattern emerging here re

the previous week they were Oscar Brennan

pegged back level, this time within only six minutes, Adam Foley shooting past Brian Murphy to make it 1-1 after a

Shane Griffin gave the Blues the

slick move. In fact, Foley should

lead from a free just outside the

have made it 2 shortly after but

area. That Derry created several

this time Murphy smothered the

chances from set-pieces and

chance and he would be called

should have scored more than

upon again several times in the

the one they managed just

second half which also saw

before half-time will be of

Waterford miss chances to score,

concern to Sheedy.

notably Daryl Murphy with a header which was saved before

Waterford’s third game of the

another late goal was conceded.

submitted (editors and their deadlines eh??!!) before the Blues took on Bohemians last Friday but from the brief look at their opening games, it’s hard to determine how Waterford will fare this year. An injury to either of the Murphys could spell trouble yet they have young players eager to prove themselves but this too brings pitfalls. On the night if Pats defend set-pieces well it probably nullifies Waterford’s main threat and if Tuesdays match is close going into the last quarter then Pats fans should definitely stay tuned in to the death, no sneaking out to McDowells early (if only..).

season saw them again head north-west to Finn Park, the

Unfortunately time constraints

scene of a dramatic last game of

mean that this article had to be

2021 Season • Vol. 33 • No.32 • St Patrick’s Athletic v Waterford

Any views expressed in this article are the contributor's own.

29

Pitchside Sponsors

Who’s Who at Ronan The O’Flaherty Saint?

We would like to thank the following who have

Like so many other things on match night, it takes considerable effort

sponsored the club for the 2021 season...

to compile the issue of The Saint you’re viewing. So who’s who?

RUAIRI KAVANAGH: EDITOR

KIERAN COUGHLAN

Works with the club, contributors and designers ato deliver each issue. Apart from that he specialises in getting randomers to come along to their first Pats game. This tactic has yielded a 100% win ratio to date.

When not found on the Camac, Kieran is to be found finding inventive ways to torture Saints fans with his fiendishly tricky questions.

JOE O’ROURKE: DESIGNER Part of the All Saints Show, having previously designed the club murals among other things Joe has spearheaded the redesign of The Saint and was a major reason for us being named Programme of the Year. Thanks Joe! PAT O’CALLAGHAN Long club serving historian and programme curator.

Pat has been involved with the club and the programme for decades. He’s also one of the friendly faces you encounter when entering the ground to buy your programme.

JIMMY EDWARDS Following on from his father's (of the same name) 30 years of writing for the programme, Jimmy Edwards (Junior) continues the Pensive Points tradition.

JOHN OWENS Statto supreme, we reckon he has shares in Microsoft Excel. An incredible range of knowledge, John was way too modest when he once described himself as just a ‘guy with a few spread sheets!’.

IAN TEMPLEMAN Our foreign correspondent. Writes, with considerable eloquence, from the UK with his observations on our league and particularly the Saints. Ever reliable, always has his copy in first.

RONAN O’FLAHERTY Journalist with a passion for Pats, Ronan comes from good Saints stock, as his surname might suggest. Ever the optimist Ronan can put a positive slant on the most dismal run of form. We know, we gave him plenty of opportunities last season!

30

2021 Season • Vol. 33 • No.32 • St Patrick’s Athletic v Waterford

2021 Season • Vol. 33 • No.32 • St Patrick’s Athletic v Waterford

STEPHEN BENNETT Journalist with the Herald and a lifelong Saints fan.

Inchicore born and bred, a lover of soccer history both home and abroad. He's not great at getting trains back from away matches, however.

DERMOT LOONEY Dermot is from Greenhills and has followed Pat's since he was a teenager in the 1990's. He works as a primary teacher in Tallaght and served as a County Councillor for ten years until 2019. Dermot is working on the @HistoryStPats project, researching and collecting information on the history of St Patrick’s Athletic in this, our 90th year.

SEÁN BRENNAN Seán is a full time languages teacher in Dublin a part time writer on football culture and cooking. He has been following St Pats since the early noughties and Serie A since the late nineties. A former resident of France, UK and Germany, he enjoys train journeys, radio, pasta and everything with the prefix ‘Euro-‘.

PAUL MAGUIRE Inchicore born & bred, Paul has been following the Saints since the late 80s. Favourite ever Pats player is Eddie Gormley. Used to host The All Saints Show and Pats match commentary until the FAI closed it down so now writes about the opposition rather than talking about them. Has around 50 Pats jerseys but can only fit into 10 of them. Plays guitar and sings, likes trains.

SEAN CREEDON A Kerryman living in Dublin... a long time. He has been attending League of Ireland and Republic of Ireland home games for over 50 years. Interested in all sports, but mainly GAA, Soccer and Rugby. A member of the Soccer Writers’Association. Writes on LOI and international matters.

31

Red & White Wonderland TONY GEOGHEGAN

First Game Pats v Transport

Favourite Kit

Favourite Goal Paul “Soupy” Campbell v Dundalk

It is my first memory of watching Pats with my father and it stands out because it was my first time to see a bald player who I believe was named Johnny Bennett. It must have been circa 1958/59.

The game was played in Chapelizod.

Favourite Player

HOME How about this from the Barry Bridges era?

AWAY Patselona is the standout away kit for me.

Dinny Lowry

Former Pats Keeper who won one international cap for Ireland. A wonderful goalkeeper who was not spectacular but make goalkeeping look easy.

Without doubt the best goalkeeper we have ever had. I had the pleasure of meeting him over the years and he is an absolute gentleman.

Favourite Game v Drogheda 1990

Difficult to choose as I have seen so many memorable games but the afternoon we won the league in Drogheda stands out as it was my first time to see the Saints win the league

Soupy Campbell’s free kick to win the league in Dundalk is one that stands out

after we had spent many barren years.

for me. Awful conditions on a quagmire of a pitch but Soupy came up trumps.

32

2021 Season • Vol. 33 • No.32 • St Patrick’s Athletic v Waterford

2021 Season • Vol. 33 • No.32 • St Patrick’s Athletic v Waterford

33

Dream Team

Formation: 4-5-1

TONY GEOGHEGAN DINNY LOWRY Saw him win a game 1-0 v Cork Celtic in which they battered us but could not get past Lowry.

Wonderful goalkeeper, easily the best we have seen in Richmond Park.

CURTIS FLEMING Cultured full back, one of the 3 black pearls of Inchicore, made defending look easy, quality personified.

PAUL McGRATH Many might not include him as he only had one season with us but what a season: Great player, Charlie Walker discovered a gem.

DAMIEN BYRNE A leader of men and an unsung hero of our league winning team: Strong as an ox and led by example. He would also be my captain.

IAN BERMINGHAM Mr. Consistency, and current captain, who wears his heart on his sleeve and is always looking to attack the opposition.

CHARLES LIVINGSTONE MBABAZI Could play on either wing or through the middle but out wide on the right he destroyed many full backs.

MARTIN RUSSELL Cultured left foot and great free kick taker and made the team tick as a playmaker, also a very nice guy.

DINNY LOWRY

EDDIE GORMLEY

Goalkeeper

Hagi... no need to elaborate to Pats fans who have seen Eddie play. Wonderful player.

KILLIAN BRENNAN May surprise many but for me he is one of the best midfield players to have graced the LOI game and was outstanding in our league winning team. Always hated to see him playing against us as he was so influential for the opposition.

CURTIS FLEMING DAMIEN BYRNE

Right Full Back

Centre Half

PAUL MCGRATH

Ian Bermingham

Centre Half

Left Full Back

PAUL OSAM I was "doubtful" about Ozo! Always dangerous and his languid running style was deceptive.

Great in the air and his headed goal in the Brandywell v Derry many years ago set us on the way to a league title.

RICKY O’FLAHERTY Powerful centre forward and a defenders nightmare. Great in the air and gave everything in every game.

Honourable mentions: Tommy Dunne, Mark Ennis, Ronnie Whelan Snr, Paschal Curtin, Keith Fahey, Greg Bolger, Conan Byrne.

eddie gorm

“charlie”

ley

Midfield

right wing

MARTIN RUSSEL

L

left wing

paul osam midfield

KILLIAN BRENNAN

Favourite Manager Brian Kerr

midfield

The Greener.

Built a league winning team with few resources and always got the best from his players.

An easy choice - a Pats fan and

RICky O’FLA

HERTY

Centre Forw

ard

a League of Ireland legend.

34

2021 Season • Vol. 33 • No.32 • St Patrick’s Athletic v Waterford

2021 Season • Vol. 33 • No.32 • St Patrick’s Athletic v Waterford

35

Dundalk 1 Pats 1

Bone 56mins

Oriel Park • 17 April 2021 •Ronan Premier Division O’Flaherty

Starting XI 1

Jaroš

2

Mountney

3

Bermingham

4

Bone

5

Desmond

6

Lennon

7

Benson

8

Forrester

10

Coughlan

69

11

McClelland

49

12

Smith

87

Subs 29

Barrett

49

15

King

69

16

Lewis

87

36

2021 Season • Vol. 33 • No.32 • St Patrick’s Athletic v Waterford

2021 Season • Vol. 33 • No.32 • St Patrick’s Athletic v Waterford

37

Pitchside Sponsors

Pensive PointsRonan O’Flaherty Jimmy Edwards

We would like to thank the following who have sponsored the club for the 2021 season...

@jimmyedwards41

Good Evening All, As I write this we are joint top of the league, not a bad

Premier League games on Sky/BT with polished pundits,

place to be at all! Last Saturday we were unfortunate not

slow-motion gadgets and glitzy background sets and

to take all three points up in Oriel Park against Dundalk,

then I have watched games on WatchLOI without VAR,

but it was another good team performance and you can

without the polished pundits, the slow-motion gadgets,

see that the team has a strong shape and structure, with

the glitzy background sets, and without wanting to

a lot of consistency in terms of performances from our

come across as sounding biased, I know which I prefer

players. Credit must go to them for the work that they

watching.

are obviously putting in during training, and it's great to see such a strong team spirit, particularly as these days they can't enjoy social gatherings together or the sort of team building activities that would normally be taken for granted. Credit needs to go to the management team of Stephen O'Donnell and Alan Mathews too, they've obviously got a plan and it's looking very good so far.

Tonight we welcome Waterford FC who having been managed by an ex Ireland international last season in John Sheridan are now being managed by another ex Ireland international in Kevin Sheedy. This man is a legend to those of us old enough to remember Euro 88 and Italia 90, and Kevin holds the historic record of scoring Ireland's first-ever goal at a World Cup finals. A

Although no medals are usually given out until after a

goal that those of us old enough to remember will never

full season of 36 games are played, it’s nice as a fan to

forget because it was an equaliser against England in a

be looking at the table and seeing our name in the no 1

1-1 draw and a lovely goal it was too. Talking about

position. I thought the performance against Derry in our

England, Kevin’s assistant is the vastly experienced

last home game was very good yet again and that we

English man Mike Newell who was a member of the

thoroughly deserved the 3 points. Robbie Benson was

Blackburn Rovers team that won the Premier League in

quick and instinctive with his first-time finish after a

1995 and both Kevin and Mike were teammates at my

good lay-off by Ronan Coughlan and Darragh Burns

Dad’s favourite English team, Everton. Welcome to the

right foot finish was superb after a brilliant long pass

League of Ireland lads and it’s great to see a great club

from Sam Bone. I must say Sam reminds me a lot of

from a great city in good hands. I’d also like to welcome

Kenny Browne in his ability to hit a long pass. I

Waterford first-team coach John Frost who is of course

mentioned in the programme for the Drogheda game

an ex Saint who had a fine left foot and could hit a mean

just how great it is to be watching our football without

free-kick, a bit like Mr Sheedy. Best of luck for the rest of

VAR, unlike the stop-start nature of what we are seeing

the season Kevin, Mike and John (after tonight of

in England. It seems to be a weekly debate now about

course!)

how something is given by VAR one week and not the next. In my opinion, it’s ruining the game because the instant celebration of a goal is gone now and you now have to wait until it’s checked by VAR to see if a hand

Enjoy the game.

Up the Saints!

Jimmy

was offside or something silly like that. I have watched

Any views expressed in this article are the contributor's own.

38

2021 Season • Vol. 33 • No.32 • St Patrick’s Athletic v Waterford

2021 Season • Vol. 33 • No.32 • St Patrick’s Athletic v Waterford

39

Patron Saints This scheme is a special and unique initiative aimed at ALL St Patrick’s Athletic fans...

The main aim is to aid the long-term development of this great football club.

We firmly believe for any LOI Club to be successful, it needs the fans to play a huge part. As it’s your club, we are urging all fans, where possible, to join the scheme today.

For the past few years the Patron Saints have run: • The St Patrick’s Athletic Awards Night • Santa Claus visit to Richmond • The Hano Cup These were all fundraised through Golden Goals, raffles and innovative events such as snail racing.

Projects the Patron Saints have contribute to: • Emmet Road Mural • U19s Team Kit • Heart Monitoring Equipment • Media Room Renovation • West Stand Repairs • Club Shop • Grounds Keeping Equipment • Strength and Conditioning Equipment.

Benefits of joining the Patron Saints: • Badge & Membership Card • Priority access to Match tickets • Voting rights on what projects Patron Saints funds will go on • Twice yearly meeting with club officials

• Discounts on most Patron run events • Free annual raffle for player signed jersey sponsored by the Patron Saints • Free annual raffle for a set of signed programmes of the season

TYPES OF MEMBERSHIP GOLD MEMBERSHIP

€10 per week | €40 per month | €480 per year

SILVER MEMBERSHIP

€5 per week | €20 per month | €240 per year

BRONZE MEMBERSHIP

€5 per month | €60 per year

For more information or to sign up: email stpatssc@gmail.com, go to facebook.com/spafcpatronsaints or pop by the Patron Saints desk in the club shop on match nights.

2021 Season • Vol. 33 • No.32 • St Patrick’s Athletic v Waterford

41 41

Eurozone: Chelsea & The Cup Winners Cup Seán Brennan

@SBahnManc

London, 1998. A time when the British public were more concerned with importing anchovies than engaging in trade wars over cod and haddock.

London, 1998. A time when the

Mediterranean inspired debut

champions include Slovan

off the block, having already taken over as

from Asia began to dominate the culinary scene,

British public were more

cookbook the following year.

Bratislava, 1FC Magdeburg and

player-manager following the departure of Ruud

local rap replaced European dance music on

KV Mechelen.

Gullit earlier in the season. Robert Di Matteo led

radio playlists, and a string of TV shows with

concerned with importing anchovies than engaging in

Meanwhile in the West End, at

Chelsea to an unlikely Champions League title in

‘British’ or ‘Britain’ in the title, coupled with

trade wars over cod and

a time of an English player

Chelsea’s route to the final took

2012, before coaching Aston Villa and Schalke.

continuous Tory administrations post 2010, led

haddock. The channel tunnel

dominated Premier League,

them all over the continent.

Dennis Wise came extremely close to joining Di

to the belief that the country would be, in the words of Dutch Eurodance artist Alice Deejay,

had opened 4 years previously,

Chelsea FC were assembling

From Slovan Bratislava, to

Matteo with unlikely silverware; his Millwall side

making a weekend in Paris just

their own team of European

Tromsø (the sight of their Italian

losing in the FA Cup final in 2004. Mark Hughes

‘Better Off Alone’. Chelsea and the rest of the

a short train away for Londoner

greats. Dan Petrescu, Roberto

superstars wrapped up in hats

also fell just short of glory with his Wales team

Premier League wouldn’t be massively affected

and a Europhile Labour Party

Di Matteo, Gianluca Vialli, Frank

and gloves playing with an

losing to Russia in the Euro 2004 play-offs. Steve

however, as Pound Sterling would continue to be the most powerful currency in world football.

had triumphed in the previous

Le Boeuf, Tore André Flo and

orange football in the Arctic

Clarke however managed to pull off a surprise,

year’s general election. Channel

Ed de Goey were amongst the

Circle is one of my favourite

leading Scotland to their first tournament since

4 was beaming Football Italia

names in a squad containing 13

childhood footballing

98, beating Serbia on penalties in the play-offs.

and Eurotrash into British living

different nationalities, 10 of

memories), to Real Betis and

rooms, millions of British

which were European. The

then Vicenza, before defeating

Furthermore, Dan Petrescu, Gustavo Poyet, Andy

tourists were heading to Ibiza

team finished 4th and won the

Joachim Löw’s Stuttgart 1-0 in

Myers, Eddie Newton and Gianfranco Zola have

on holidays, and Italian

League Cup, however they are

the final thanks to a Gianfranco

all had managerial careers with mixed degrees

restaurants were popping up all

best remembered for their

Zola header. League of Ireland

of success. Some of their clubs managed include

over London, with local boy

victory in the UEFA Cup

representatives Shelbourne

Dinamo Moscow, Bordeaux, Trabzonspor and

Jamie Oliver releasing his

Winners’ Cup.

couldn’t make the final as they

Cagliari.

had lost to Kilmarnock in the The Cup Winners’ Cup itself is a

first round.

relic of a somewhat less

42 42

The unique likeability of this Chelsea team wasn’t to last forever. In 2003 they were bought

monetised time in European

Even more remarkable about

by oligarch Roman Abramovich and became the

football. With only one team

this Chelsea side was the future

quintessential ‘moneybags’ of English football.

from each country allowed,

lying ahead of their stars. Of

There continue to be plenty of successors. The

knockout rounds, and no

the squad of 16 for the final, 10

Cup Winners’ Cup too saw its heyday end, its

seeding, it gave itself an

of them have gone on to have

final tournament being won by Lazio in 1999.

unpredictability the FA Cup

fairly established managerial

Britain’s love affair with all things European was

would be proud of. Less likely

careers. Gianluca Vialli was first

also not to be everlasting; new food cultures

2021 Season • Vol. 33 • No.32 • St Patrick’s Athletic v Waterford

2021 Season • Vol. 33 • No.32 • St Patrick’s Athletic v Waterford

Gianfranco Zola

43 43

Quiz Time Kieran Coughlan

1 Who were the last defending champions to lose their opening game of the season?

6

Who were the first team to beat Stephen Kenny's senior Ireland team?

2 Who was the last English Manager to win a European trophy?

7

Who were the three Managers that Waterford had in charge of their team in 2020?

8

When did Brazil last fail to make it past the first round of the World Cup

4 Name the five penalty takers for Ireland against Romania in Italia 90?

9

Outside of the UK, which UEFA country has the oldest professional league?

5 Which Frenchman won the Champions League and the World Cup in 1998?

10 Who was the first African to win the PFA player of the season?

3 Which two clubs with a total of 10 goals were the lowest scoring teams in the Airtricity League last year?

Answers Q.9 Belgium. Q.10 Riyad Mahrez.

Karembeu. Q.6 Finland Q.7 Alan Reynolds, John Sheridan, Fran Rockett. Q.8 1966.

O'Leary, Andy Townsend, Kevin Sheedy, Ray Houghton, Tony Cascarino. Q.5 Christian Q.1 Drogheda 2. Q.2 Bobby Robson 1997. Q.3 Wexford- Cork City. Q.4 David

McCarthy Insurance Group

Wordsearch Solution

Find the Ball Solution

PROUDLY SUPPORTING

THE SAINTS

MARCHING ON

44 44

WWW.MIG.IE

2021 Season • Vol. 33 • No.32 • St Patrick’s Athletic v Waterford

45 45

Waterford Boys at Wembley in ‘66

Ronan O’Flaherty

Sean Creedon

England winning the World Cup for the first time at Wembley in 1966 is regarded as a seminal moment in history of Irish sport.

It was the first time that many

had done a year in Art College

back I suppose we should

Irish people got an

in Waterford.

have got danger money, it was

opportunity to see their first ‘live’ soccer games on

Eddie said: ‘‘My uncle who

television.

lived near Wembley got us a

time afterwards,’’ he said.

successful career as an Illustrator/Designer. Michael

such a precarious gantry, just

‘‘The following day we were

went on to qualify as a

two planks to walk along.’’

allowed to play on the famous

Medical Scientist and worked

turf for about twenty minutes.

in the Regional Hospital in his

flat in Alperton. On our second

A man who agrees with Eddie

The English were in good form

native city. He retired ten years

Of course there was plenty of

day in London we went into

about the ‘danger money’ is

after the win and we had a

ago.

soccer played in Ireland prior

the Labour Exchange to try

Brian Kerr. Back in ‘66 Brian

game between the part-time

to the 1966 finals in England.

and get work. The young girl

was only 13, but he was

and full time staff at Wembley,

Eddie returned to London and

The League of Ireland was

behind the desk offered us a

invited to London by his older

so in addition to working at

worked at the London

founded in 1921, but most of

choice of jobs, working in the

brother Frankie, who managed

the World Cup final in 1966,

Transport Executive Architects

Tofiq Bahramov

the soccer was played in cities

gardening section for the local

to get tickets for all of the

we can also say that we played

Department and later spent

The infamous Russian linesman

like Dublin, Cork, Limerick and

Alperton council or working as

games at Wembley.

at Wembley.’’

three years at Chelsea School

Waterford plus large towns

a general operative at

like Athlone, Dundalk and

Wembley Stadium during the

Brian said: ‘‘I remember it was

Sligo.

World Cup.’’

of Art; naturally he went back

up on the Wembley gantry

The linesman Tofiq Bahramov

to Wembley to see a few

that day in 1966 and didn’t

the old style scoreboard and

who awarded Geoff Hurst’s

England games. ‘‘The second

hear BBC commentator

when a team scored the lads,

first goal was often described

time round I had to pay to get

Kenneth Wolstenholme utter

in,’’ said Eddie.

that famous phrase after

For thousands of Irish people

‘‘Alperton is very close to

who if I remember correctly

as Russian, but he was a

in villages and rural areas, who

Wembley and we got a bus to

were wearing white coats like

referee from Azerbaijan, which

only a few years earlier had

work every morning, starting

a GAA umpire at Croke Park,

was part of Russia at that time.

Five years ago the ‘Waterford

time, ‘‘Some people are on the

got their first television sets

at 8am. One day we saw a

had to carefully pick their

After his death in 1993 the

Boys’ were contacted by the

pitch, they think it’s all over, it

when Telefís Eireann was

notice in canteen looking for

steps along the gantry to

national stadium in Baku was

‘One Show’ in the BCC who

is now, it’s four.’’

launched, it was a significant

volunteers to work the

record the score.’’

named the Tofiq Bahramov

were doing a segment in the

time.

scoreboard.’’

Stadium in his honour.

show remembering England’s

But every time they see

Hurst’s second goal in extra

World Cup win. Eddie said:

archive footage of that

Fifty five years ago two young

‘‘We made good money as we

of the final? ‘‘The scoreboard

The dream job in London

‘‘The BBC paid for us to travel

Saturday in July ‘66 they think

Waterford lads Eddie O’Keeffe

did a lot of overtime. I cannot

was located behind the goal

lasted seven weeks and by

to London for two days to film

back to those innocent days

and Michael O’Sullivan,

remember exactly how much

where Geoff Hurst scored that

August Eddie had returned

a segment for the show with

when you could walk into a

headed for the bright lights of

we earned per day, but it was

controversial goal. Back then

home as he got a job in an

presenter Phil Tufnell.’’

Labour Exchange in London

London. Michael has just sat

good money for two young

there was no VAR and the

Architect’s office in Waterford,

his Leaving Cert, while Eddie

lads from Waterford. Looking

poor old linesman got a hard

which was to lead him on to a

What are Michael’s memories

46

2021 Season • Vol. 33 • No.32 • St Patrick’s Athletic v Waterford

and get a job at the World Michael and Eddie were high

2021 Season • Vol. 33 • No.32 • St Patrick’s Athletic v Waterford

Cup Finals.

47

Club History @dlooney

Dermot Looney

1941/42: More Silverware for the Saints World War II saw extraordinary impacts in unexpected places.

One of the many shortages faced in an Ireland gripped by “The Emergency” was that of newsprint.

Newspapers such as the Evening Herald reduced in size from 12 pages pre-war to 4 or even 2 pages during it. 80 years later, it makes research on such trifling matters as results and League tables in junior football very difficult indeed.

What’s clear is that St Pat’s had another respectable season in Division II of the Leinster League, again finishing in the top 3. They faced familiar foes such as Queen’s Park, Hammond Lane, GSR, Ierne and St Paul’s alongside newer teams such as Bendigo, Irishtown, Harmerne and Glasnevin.

Another new entrant to the League would prove a worthy rival in the eighty years since – Drogheda United, who went on to merge in 1975 with Drogheda FC to form the club we now know.

We have most of the League results between September and April, showing a strong League campaign from the Athletic with a host of wins and a couple of draws. Maher and Brogan were the chief goalscorers for the Saints with others chipping in including Lanigan, Murray, Keogh, McGlynn, O’Rourke, Cotter, Gilligan, O’Brien, Delaney and Markey. No League matches are recorded in the available newspaper archives after April.

The closest we have to a wrap-up is in the Drogheda Independent on June 6th, which notes that Bendigo had a clear lead in the League and the likely runnersup would be the winners of the upcoming Drogheda United v Pat’s game.

Unfortunately, there is no record of this game in any of the archives, local or national.

Cup football again dominated much of the season. Pat’s reached the third round of the Leinster Junior Cup, beating the

48

interestingly-named Corinthians and perhaps even more interestingly-named Telephones en route to defeat by Abbey Celtic.

Their defence of the FAI Junior Cup saw a first round walkover against Irishtown and a second round win against Richmond rivals St Paul’s after a replay. Pat’s beat old rivals Mountpleasant 3-0 in Round Three.

The Fourth Round saw a thrilling tie against Hammond Lane which went to a replay after a 3-3 draw in Richmond produced what the Herald described as “one of the best games of the season.” The replay in Beaver Row also ended in a draw after two periods of extra time, with Pat’s again going ahead on two occasions but Hammond Lane paring them back both times. The saga eventually ended in the second replay on January 24th, with Athletic securing a 4-1. “St Patrick’s now look like retaining the trophy,” wrote the Herald correspondent.

Round Five saw yet another replay required after Spa Rovers held Pat’s to a rare scoreless draw in Richmond. The replay was played in Ballydowd in Lucan, then well into the County Dublin countryside, in front of an extraordinary crowd for a junior match –

2021 Season • Vol. 33 • No.32 • St Patrick’s Athletic v Waterford

2,660. “Greater thrust near the goal and a brilliant defence turned the game in favour of St Patrick’s,” according to the Herald. The result was a 2-0 Pat’s win with goals from Brogan and Maher.

Pat’s were eventually knocked out in Round Six (the quarter-finals) by Drogheda United at Inchicore. The Saints had led 2-0 at half-time with both goals from Brogan, but the Louthmen managed to bring it back to 2-2 before scoring the winner in the 84th minute.

But they were to lift some silverware this season in the Edmond Johnson Cup. This was the League Cup for the Leinster League Division II, named after the gold and silversmiths who were associated with sports trophies such as the Liam McCarthy Cup. It was played in the latter part of the season. A bye in the first round saw the Saints face up against Bohs C in Round Two, which they won after yet another replay. Pat’s then defeated Bendigo in the quarter finals and Hammond Lane in the semis.

The season had also seen representative honours for Pat’s defender J Mullally, who appeared for an “FAI Junior International XI” who took on a Dublin selection. He also joined G Brogan and P Maher on a Leinster League representative team who took on the Northern Amateur League in Belfast.

St Pat’s entered a B team this season in the AUL Division III A. Remarkably, there are two detailed match reports of this game for the B team in the Meath Chronicle and Drogheda Independent, both more detailed than anything published for the A team all season! The B team XI is given in one of the papers as J Wall (goal), P Delamere, J Martin, M Maguire, W Mullen, W Wall, T Mullen, N McCormack, T Coffey, T Scully and T McGee. Over the summer, Pat’s inside-left Joseph O’Rourke joined former Pat’s team-mate Des Dempsey at League of Ireland basement club Bray Unknowns

The Athletic faced their Richmond groundshare rivals St Paul’s in the final, albeit at the neutral venue of Dalymount Park, on May 30th. The Herald preview noted that “the teams are keen rivals and that means hard going.” Whether or not the teams matched up to their billing, the weather certainly did. The following day’s Sunday Independent noted that “owing to the conditions” the match was abandoned with 20 minutes to go. Pat’s had been 3-2 up with goals from Brogan, Delaney and Lanigan.

The match was replayed on June 6th at Richmond Park.

Saturday’s Evening Herald gives a half-time report as it went to press. Noting that both teams were at full strength, and giving details of chances for both teams, the half-time score is given as 2-2. The following day’s Sunday Independent gives the final score as 3-2 but no scorers are available. At the fourth time of asking, Pat’s finally lifted the Johnson Cup.

2021 Season • Vol. 33 • No.32 • St Patrick’s Athletic v Waterford

49

first shot on target when Paul Campbell turned on the edge of the box and shot into Devine's mid-rift before shooting straight at the keeper three minutes later. The best chance of the half came in injury time when Stephen McGuinness blasted high over the bar. Liam Buckley's halftime team-talk appeared to rejuvenate Pat's who throughout the first half seemed to devoid of imagination going forward. Devine had to fly through the air to prevent Molloy's free kick from sneaking in at his near post and then got down well to smother a low drive. But he had no chance in the 57th minute when Martin Russell whipped in a cross from the left and Gilzean powered a downward header past the helpless Devine.

Stephen Bennett@stebenn15

Premier Division Irish Independent - Saturday, 5 December, 1998

ST PATRICK'S ATH 2 WATERFORD 0 Hotshot Gilzean kept St Patrick's Athletic's 100 per cent home record intact and hauled their title defence back on the rails at Richmond Park last night.

A powerful 57th minute header and an 83rd minute penalty were almost the only highlights on a night when the champions had to dig deep to battle past a dogged Waterford side who finished the game with ten men following the dismissal of youth international Tim McGrath for a profes sional foul seven minutes from time.

CLOSES THE GAP The three points closes the gap at the top to just one point although Cork will fancy their chances of restoring their four, point advantage when they meet bottom of the table Bohemians tomorrow at Turner's Cross. After last week's defeat by Dundalk, Pat's 'boss" Liam Buckley made two changes.

Packie Lynch returned after injury arid suspension for Willie Burke while U-21 interhational Thomas Morgan was

RELIEF PALPABLE

PITCH BATTLE... Waterford United’s Jason Kabia and Colin Hawkins of St Pat’s fight for possession at Richmond Park.

dropped in favour of Paul Campbell who hadn't started a league game since October. Waterford had pipped Pat's during thc week for the right to take Cork City striker Jason Kabia on loan but the 27-year-old Englishman didn't make much of an impact and ended up with only a yellow card to show for his debut. Waterford set out their stall straight from the start with a five man defence and for the first 45 minutes they frustrated a Pat's side seeking their eighth successive home win in the league. Central defenders Sean O'Riordan and Tim McGrath, together with sweeper Dave Smith, combined brilliantly to shut out the normally free-scoring Pat's attack.

On a bitterly cold night, the first half fare did little to warm the large crowd watching and it took the champions 31 minutes to register their

Suddenly Pat's were in full flow with Devine twice saving from Gilzean before the big striker was denied a goal after 65 minutes by an offside flag.

But Gilzean made no mistake seven minutes from time when he drilled home a left-footed penalty after McGrath had pulled down substitute Martin Reilly just inside the box. That earned McGrath a mandatory red card while it was an early birthday present for Gilzean who celebrates his 29th birthday next Thursday.

St Patrick's Athletic: Wood; McGulnness, Lynch, Hawkins Croly, Campbell (Devereux 66), Osam, Russell, Doyle; Molloy (Reilly 79), Gilzean.

Booked; Campbell (60), McGuinness (88).

Waterford United: Devine; Power, O’Riordan, Smith, McGrath, Kelleher, Gannon, Reynolds, Keith; Kabia, Brown.

Booked: Kabia (20), McGrath (33).

Sent Off; McGrath (S3).

ON THE ATTACK: Waterford United’s Jason Kabia tries to find a way past Trevor Molloy at Richmond Park last night.

50

2021 Season • Vol. 33 • No.32 • St Patrick’s Athletic v Waterford

2021 Season • Vol. 33 • No.32 • St Patrick’s Athletic v Waterford

51

Local Heroes Anne O’Brien Stephen Bennett

@stebenn15

with her and there are lovely photos of the two of them walking the streets of Paris together.

In a new series, The Saint celebrates the local heroes who have made an indelible mark on the national and international sporting scene down through the decades.

Our second Local Hero is Anne O'Brien - the trailblazing footballer and aunt of former St Pat's defender and current Director of Football, Ger O'Brien.

Just go back in time for a moment to Inchicore in the 1950s - a time of harsh austerity, where the church ruled the State, and when children had little else to do for fun and enjoyment but play in the streets or a rare patch of grass.

This was the Inchicore that Anne O'Brien was born into and the town where she first learned to kick a football.

Born in 1956, little did anyone know back then where Anne O'Brien's love of soccer normally the sole preserve of boys at the time - would take her.

She may have raised a few eyebrows and was quite possibly labelled a 'tomboy' for having the audacity to start kicking a ball on a regular basis in the first place.

52

Anne with France in 1974

would change the course of her life forever.

Anne while at Reims (France) in 1974

The fact that her death at the age of 60 in 2016 was international news will tell you how far the game had taken her and the influence she exerted.

Shortly after her passing in Rome, her brother Tony, as part of an award-winning feature with the42.ie's Eoin O'Callaghan on Anne's amazing career, remembers her early years: "She started playing football from a very young age, on the road in Inchicore. She was about 14 when she played for a team called Julian Vards and they played out

of Donore Avenue or around that area.

"She got her first football boots around that time, when my Mam finally gave in and bought her a pair."

It's clear her fascination with the 'Beautiful Game' in the 1960s turned into a determination to take it a step further, to get boots and join a team.

After a year at Julian Vards, Anne joined All-Stars - a Ballyfermotbased team for a stint which

2021 Season • Vol. 33 • No.32 • St Patrick’s Athletic v Waterford

A step up from Vards, the AllStars did exactly what they said on the tin - it was a collection of some of the best players from around Dublin.

"The game was against Stade de Reims from France who were on a tour of the country. She was only 17 at the time but afterwards they asked her to travel and play with them for the rest of the Irish tour. And after that it was all done really quickly.”

Following a number of hugely successful seasons with All-Stars, international recognition came in 1973 and with it an opportunity to impress on a bigger stage.

Anne - still only 17 at the time didn't disappoint.

Such a move was groundbreaking in Irish and UK footballing circles - no female footballer from those shores had ever played professionally in mainland Europe before.

Tony told the42.ie: "She won everything with them (All-Stars) for a few years and it was through them that she was spotted, really. In the summer of 1973, she was called up to an Ireland Selection team.

After another successful stint where she helped Stade de Reims win three successive French championships between 1974 and 1976, her footballing skills was gaining her plenty of attention, as Tony O'Brien explains: “My Ma was in France

2021 Season • Vol. 33 • No.32 • St Patrick’s Athletic v Waterford

“She was after winning the French Cup and was after scoring a hat-trick in that game. Her face was all over the billboards. They called her ‘Nanou’, a nickname that was probably derived from Anne. And there were trips all over the world to play games too. She was in places like Guadeloupe and Haiti and those matches were watched by thousands of fans.”

Anne - by now the shining light in a stellar Reims side and a forward in the classic number 10 sense - experienced another 'sliding doors' moment in 1976.

Paris, 1975

53

Local Heroes Anne O’Brien Stephen Bennett

@stebenn15

"It was brilliant to be there and to see her on the pitch. I know she was my sister but, my Jesus, she was a brilliant player. She was way better than half of them over in Italy. She nursed the ball and she fed the ball.

"She fed everyone everything. A great passer, great control, great technique. Brilliant at taking the ball down from the air.

Dribbling. Crossing for the forwards. Then, bang! Back of the net!

Anne with Lazio in 1985

Stade de Reims had embarked on a tour of Italy and Anne instantly attracted interest, most notably from Lazio.

Still only 20, Inchicore's own Anne O'Brien headed for the bright lights of Rome, and was about to dazzle there too.

“The money was much better in Italy,” Tony explains. "She was always happy there because it was Rome and she loved it. That was her home, really.”

At the end of her first season, Anne had helped Lazio win the Coppa Italia, beating the reigning champions Milan in a penalty shootout. In 1979, Anne and Lazio had won their first Italian league title and retained

54

their crown the following season.

Tony explained to the42.ie the type of player she was and the joy he derived from watching her play.

“I would’ve been over a lot to watch her and it was brilliant,” Tony says.

“The matches were packed out and the way they did it over there was that if it was a big game like the semi-final of the cup, they’d have the women on before a men’s fixture so everyone would be in the ground and it would nearly be full capacity for the last part of the women’s match.”

"And isn’t it a pity that we don’t have any videos of her playing?

There might be something out there but it’s probably like trying to find a needle in a haystack.

"There could have been a fella taping a men’s game and even caught the final few minutes of a women’s fixture. But maybe we’ll never know.”

The sad lack of media exposure and international recognition put paid to a lot of things in Anne O'Brien's career. It perhaps robbed Anne and her family of footage of her in her prime playing days and the logistics of representing her country while playing abroad meant Anne, sadly, won only four Ireland caps.

2021 Season • Vol. 33 • No.32 • St Patrick’s Athletic v Waterford

Paul O’Brien with Paul McGrath at FAI HQ

“She would always come back in the summer and every Christmas too,” Tony recalls.

“In conversations in the house she would talk about it. But there was always a money element involved in those days with the Irish women’s team.

"There was very little to go around and I’m not sure if there was even much given to the players. If I remember correctly, around 1980 there was a story about them having to pay their own way to Wales or Scotland.

"The trip was only subsidised and not fully covered.

Anne played a lot for Ireland when she was younger and on one occasion they did fly her home for a game against the Netherlands.”

2021 Season • Vol. 33 • No.32 • St Patrick’s Athletic v Waterford

Not allowing the grass to grow under her in a brilliant club career, Anne was on the move again in 1982 to Trani - another Italian club situated on the west coast.

The move coincided with more success as she lifted an Italian Cup and helped Trani finish runners-up in her first season before going one better and winning the league title a year later - Anne's third 'scudetto' in eight years.

A return to Lazio brought another Italian Cup success and as she reached her 30s, she enjoyed further stints at Modena - during which she gave birth to a son, Andrea - Napoli and Prato.

“She was back playing straight away,” Tony said.

55

Club Shop

Ronan O’Flaherty

https://supersaintsstore.com/

Home Jersey Small Youths to 4XL

Staff Match Day Jacket Small Youths to 3XL

56

50 65

50 65

@karl_pats

Home Walk Out Jacket Small Youths to 4XL

Home Warm Up Jersey Small Youths to 4XL

50 65

27

Away Jersey Small Youths to 4XL

Red Training Jersey

35

2021 Season • Vol. 33 • No.32 • St Patrick’s Athletic v Waterford

Small Youths to 3XL

50 65

27

White Training Jersey Small to 3XL

Navy Training Jersey

35

2021 Season • Vol. 33 • No.32 • St Patrick’s Athletic v Waterford

Small to 3XL

35

35 57

A View from Afar

Ronan O’Flaherty

Ian Templeman

@iantemplemanloi

I was intrigued recently to read about a new website that has been set up to record the history of Luton Town FC. The site is run by an organisation called Hatters' Heritage, a volunteer-run charity which has recently been established under the guidance of Luton Town Club Historian Roger Wash, and has received UK National Heritage Lottery funding to undertake and implement an interesting concept that other clubs would do well to look at.

club history documented and uploaded, there is still much to admire about the work that has been done so far.

reports, photographs, and most fascinating of all for me, you are able to download a full colour PDF of the match programme.

Simply by typing in the link above and landing on the home page, you are greeted with a colourful and well laid out screen full of links to the impressive array of information that is on the site already.

Best of all, that feature is in place for both home and away games, so by clicking on those, you are able to get an interesting insight not only to Luton programmes from those seasons, but all their

Hatters Heritage adopted its constitution with a clearly stated objective: “The objects of the Society are for the advancement of education to benefit the public by encouraging the preservation and appreciation of the heritage and history of Luton Town Football Club”.

You are also invited, via a pop-up message, to read a statement from the afore mentioned Roger Wash, where he sets out the target end result for the site: “Eventually, we will be publishing every page of every programme, every photo we hold, every match report, club minute books and handbooks plus photos of memorabilia. On top of this, there will be player profiles and a variety of features relating to our rich history including contri-

a full record of every competitive match that Luton Town have played from 1885 to 2014, including tables, players appearances and photographs. Following the link brings up the message “Please note that this is a large file and may take time to download”…. I imagine it would, and I didn’t bother proceeding to try it out either.

There is much to admire on the site, and I enjoyed the “Features” section, which covers a wide variety of memorabilia and topics, such as an eight minute long film, containing highlights of Luton Town’s 4-1 win over Preston North End on 27th September 1958, which was notable as the debut game for Billy Bingham, who of course went to manage Everton and took Northern Ireland to two World Cup final tournaments in 1982 and 1986.

opponents too.

The website – which can be found at www.hattersheritage.co.uk – is already up and running and the eventual aim is to have a comprehensive website depicting the 133year history of the Club, which will include match reports, programmes, photographs and imagery of each match (where the material exists), together with player information.

While the site is very much work in progress, it is already well worth a visit, and although it will obviously take some time to get an entire

58

butions made at three Roadshows last year”.

So far, there are full season’s worth of information on the club’s games in the following seasons: 1967-68, 1968-69, 1969-70, 1970-71, 197172, 1972-73, 1973-74, 1974-75, 1977-78, 1978-79, 1981-82, 200102 and 2004-05. For games in those seasons, you are able to view and read individual details on each one, including newspaper match

I have absolutely no connection with Luton Town as a club, or indeed the town itself, and in my 30-odd years of living in England and attending professional football matches here, I have probably seen the team play a few times but none of the games stick out as being exceptional. On that basis, and I mean this in the nicest possible way, Luton Town were never going to be a club that captured my attention for any particular reason, and probably never will either.

None the less, I found browsing through this site absolutely captivating, and I think any football follower will too. The range of features and information already available to look at is like “Christmas come early” for all stattos and lovers of English football trivia.

Just for starters, you can download

2021 Season • Vol. 33 • No.32 • St Patrick’s Athletic v Waterford

Also within this section of the site is “Memories of the Hatters” with stories, memories and images from fans in response to an initiative where supporters were invited to tell their own stories of their support for the club.

There’s also match reports reproduced from Luton Town’s first ever game, which took place on Saturday 31st October 1885, when they travelled to meet Great Marlow F.C. in the FA Cup First Round. The quaint, old fashioned language used to describe the action that ensued on the day offers a tantalising snapshot of how a sports journalist described football action 136 years ago.

Then there’s the Collection section, which gives you the chance to browse through memorabilila such as old match worn shirts, international caps, minutes books from club meetings and a series of scrapbooks in a downloadable PDF, which run from 1967 – 1970. These, we are told, were started in the summer of 1967 by a 15 year old Luton schoolboy who decided to keep a comprehensive scrapbook of newspapers cuttings about the club over the course of a season.

There’s no doubt that any club looking to replicate what has been achieved by the Hatters Heritage team will face a daunting task that will take many years to

2021 Season • Vol. 33 • No.32 • St Patrick’s Athletic v Waterford

complete.

But I do hope that this site serves as an inspiration for others to follow suit. We are currently living in times where what we use to consider as our normal activities are restricted, and many people will be looking for additional and new interests to occupy their time. So for many clubs, it could be that there will never be a better time than now to get fans and volunteers involved in getting together to plan similar projects.

It’s obvious that much of the work involved wouldn’t necessarily need a great deal of expertise, just time and commitment to the jobs that need to be done, and many of them could just be picked off in spare time in small manageable chunks. And I get the impression that if anyone wanted to make a start on planning their own scheme like this, the guys at Hatters Heritage would be only too happy to give advice.

I can see no reason why this model and method of recording a club’s history can’t be replicated elsewhere, and I do hope that others take inspiration from the work that Hatters Heritage have undertaken so far, and we see more sites like this appearing. The whole concept certainly offers plenty of food for thought.

59

Player Apps & Goals 2021 League of Ireland

Total

Start

Sub

App

Goals

Start

Sub

App

Goals

Start

Sub

App

Goals

Vítězslav Jaroš

5

0

5

0

0

0

0

0

5

0

5

0

John Mountney

5

0

5

0

0

0

0

0

5

0

5

0

Ian Bermingham

3

1

4

0

0

0

0

0

3

1

4

0

Sam Bone

4

0

4

1

0

0

0

0

4

0

4

1

Lee Desmond

5

0

5

0

0

0

0

0

5

0

5

0

Jamie Lennon

5

0

5

0

0

0

0

0

5

0

5

0

Robbie Benson

5

0

5

1

0

0

0

0

5

0

5

1

Chris Forrester

5

0

5

0

0

0

0

0

5

0

5

0

Nahum Marvin-Lambert

0

0

1

0

0

0

0

0

0

0

1

0

Ronan Coughlan

5

0

5

2

0

0

0

0

5

0

5

2

Jason McClellend

2

3

5

0

0

0

0

0

2

3

5

0

Matty Smith

5

0

5

0

0

0

0

0

5

0

5

0

Paddy Barrett

1

2

3

0

0

0

0

0

1

2

3

0

Billy King

2

2

4

1

0

0

0

0

2

2

4

1

Alfie Lewis

0

2

2

0

0

0

0

0

0

2

2

0

Darragh Burns

1

2

3

1

0

0

0

0

1

2

3

1

Ben McCormack

0

0

0

0

0

0

0

0

0

0

0

0

Shane Griffin

2

0

2

0

0

0

0

0

2

0

2

0

Barry Murphy

0

0

0

0

0

0

0

0

0

0

0

0

Josh Keeley

0

0

0

0

0

0

0

0

0

0

0

0

Cian Kelly

0

0

0

0

0

0

0

0

0

0

0

0

Kian Corbally

0

0

0

0

0

0

0

0

0

0

0

0

Daniel Norris

0

0

0

0

0

0

0

0

0

0

0

0

Jamie Whelan

0

0

0

0

0

0

0

0

0

0

0

0

Own Goal

0

0

0

1

0

0

0

0

0

0

0

1

PREMIER LEAGUE TABLE

SSE Airtricity. Official Sponsor of the Premier Division.

FAI Cup

LAST 5 MATCHES

Pld

W

D

L

F

A

GD

Pts

1

Shamrock Rovers

5

3

2

0

8

4

4

11

W W

W

D

2

St Patrick's Athletic

5

3

2

0

7

3

4

11

D

W W W

D

3

Sligo Rovers

5

3

2

0

6

3

3

11

W

D

W W

D

4

Finn Harps

5

3

1

1

6

4

2

10

L

W

D

5

Drogheda United

5

2

2

1

8

4

4

8

D

W

D

L

6

Bohemians

5

2

1

2

4

4

0

7

W W

L

D

L

7

Longford Town

5

1

1

3

5

9

-4

4

L

L

L

D

W

8

Waterford

5

1

0

4

4

7

-3

3

L

L

W

L

L

9

Dundalk

5

0

2

3

4

7

-3

2

D

L

L

L

D

5

0

1

4

2

9

-7

1

D

L

L

L

L

10 Derry City

2021 Season • Vol. 33 • No.32 • St Patrick’s Athletic v Waterford

D

W W W

61 61

Results & Lineouts 2021 Date

Opposition

Fri 19 Mar

Shamrock Rovers

Sat 27 Mar Drogheda Utd

League

Venue Comp Score

4th Sub

5th Sub

1 Goals Scored P Penalty OG Own Goal For

Away Series 1

1-1

Jaroš

Mountney

Griffin

Desmond

Barrett

Lennon

King

Benson

Coughlan

Forrester

Smith

McClelland

Bone

Bermingham

Home Series 2

2-1

Jaroš

Mountney

Griffin

Desmond

Bone

Lennon

McClelland

Benson

Coughlan

1

Forrester

Smith

Bermingham

Burns

King

Coughlan

1

McClelland McClelland King

Bohemians

Away Series 3

1-0

Jaroš

Mountney

Bermingham

Desmond

Bone

Lennon

Burns

Benson

Derry City

Home Series 4

2-0

Jaroš

Mountney

Bermingham

Desmond

Bone

Lennon

King

Benson

Sat 17 Apr

Dundalk

Away Series 5

1-1

Jaroš

Mountney

Bermingham

Desmond

Bone

Lennon

McClelland

Benson

Tue 20 Apr

Waterford

Home Series 6

0-1

Fri 23 Apr

Finn Harps

Away Series 7

0-1

Fri 30 Apr

Longford Town

Home Series 8

0-1Supersub Darragh Burns hits the second for St Pats versus Derry City.

Away Series 9

0-1

Fri 07 May

Shamrock Rovers Home Series 10

0-1

Fri 14 May

Drogheda Utd

Away Series 11

0-1

Fri 21 May

Bohemians

Home Series 12

0-1

Mon 24 May Derry City

Away Series 13

0-1

Fri 28 May

Home Series 14

0-1

Sat 12 June Longford Town

Away Series 15

0-1

Fri 18 June Sligo Rovers

Home Series 16

0-1

Mon 21 June Finn Harps

Home Series 17

0-1

Fri 25 June

Waterford

Away Series 18

0-1

Fri 02 July

Bohemians

Away Series 19

0-1

Fri 09 July

Derry City

Home Series 20

0-1

Fri 16 July

Drogheda Utd

Home Series 21

0-1

Fri 30 July

Shamrock Rovers

Away Series 22

0-1

Fri 06 Aug

Dundalk

Away Series 23

0-1

Fri 13 Aug

Waterford

Home Series 24

0-1

Fri 20 Aug

Finn Harps

Away Series 25

0-1

Fri 03 Sept Longford Town

Home Series 26

0-1

Sat 11 Sept Sligo Rovers

Away Series 27

0-1

Fri 24 Sept Shamrock Rovers Home Series 28

0-1

Fri 01 Oct

Drogheda Utd

Away Series 29

0-1

Fri 08 Oct

Bohemians

Home Series 30

0-1

Fri 15 Oct

Derry City

Away Series 31

0-1

Mon 25 Oct Dundalk

Home Series 32

0-1

Sat 30 Oct

Longford Town

Away Series 33

0-1

Fri 05 Nov

Sligo Rovers

Home Series 34

0-1

Fri 12 Nov

Finn Harps

Home Series 35

0-1

Fri 19 Nov

Waterford

Away Series 36

0-1

Extra.ie FAI Cup Dates

EA Sports Cup

1st Round - Week Ending 25th July

The 2021 edition of the EA Sports Cup has been cancelled

2nd Round - Week Ending 29th August

1

* Own Goal

Yellow Card

Red Card

Substitutes

Fri 09 Apr

Dundalk

1st Sub 2nd Sub 3rd Sub

Starting XI

Sat 03 Apr

Mon 03 May Sligo Rovers

FAI Cup

1

Forrester

Smith

Barrett

Coughlan

Forrester

Smith

Burns

Coughlan

Forrester

Smith

Barrett

1

Burns

Kelly

McCormack Melvin-Lambert

Murphy

Keeley

Corbally

Lewis

McCormack Melvin-Lambert

Murphy

Keeley

King

Corbally

Lewis

McCormack Melvin-Lambert

Murphy

Keeley

Lewis

Melvin-Lambert

Barrett

McCormack Corbally

Murphy

Keeley

Lewis

Corbally

Burns

McCormack Melvin-Lambert

Murphy

Keeley

1

Quarter Finals - Week Ending 19th September Semi-Finals - Week Ending 24th October Final - Week Ending November 28th

62

2021 Season • Vol. 33 • No.32 • St Patrick’s Athletic v Waterford

2021 Season • Vol. 33 • No.32 • St Patrick’s Athletic v Waterford

63

OG

OUR TEAM ARE LOOKING FORWARD TO HEARING FROM YOU. For Commercial Insurance Enquiries:

Cian Morris 086 3520 854