League of Ireland | A Bohemian Sporting Life

Patrick Sex from the Freemans Journal 1921

The Death of Sex

It started in somewhat unusual fashion, a Whatsapp chat with some fellow historians, a screenshot from the Irish Newspaper archive with the unusual headline “Replay for Sex Memorial Gold Medals”, which of course provoked a bit of schoolboy humour but also planted a seed of curiosity. From the short clipping I could see that it was a replayed football match between Bohemians and a Leinster football XI, the Bohemian teamsheet was shown and I could tell that this was a game from the early 1920s with several high profile players featuring, including future internationals like Joe Grace, Jack McCarthy, John Thomas and Johnny Murray as well as South African centre-half Billy Otto.

But who or what was “Sex” referring to? Memorial games or charity matches for sets of gold medals were not uncommon in the era but I could find nobody with the surname Sex as having been associated with Bohemian FC in their first thirty or so years, and as the opposition were a selection of other Leinster based players then there was no specific opponent club who might have been arranging a memorial. A quick look at the 1911 Census suggested a possible answer, as it displayed 22 people with the surname “Sex” living in Dublin.

Having ascertained that there indeed may be a “Sex” living in Dublin, deserving of a memorial game, but unsure of any footballing connections I started searching the Irish newspaper archives for the early 1920s and quickly discovered a likely candidate for the “Sex Memorial Gold medal match”, namely Patrick Sex of Dominick Street in Dublin’s north inner city with the memorial match and replay taking place for him in May 1921.

Patrick Sex was born in Dublin in 1880 and by the time of his marriage to Mary Kenna – a dressmaker living in Mary’s Abbey off Capel Street – in September 1901, he was living in Coles Lane, a busy market street off Henry Street and working as a butcher. Coles Lane, which now leads into the Ilac Centre but once ran all the way to Parnell Street, was full of stalls and shops selling everything from clothing to meat, fish and vegetables and formed part of a warren of streets and lanes feeding off the busy shopping areas of Henry Street and Moore Street. The area was a booming spot for a butcher to find work, it is likely that Patrick was raised and apprenticed in the trade as “butcher” is listed as his father James’s trade on Patrick’s marriage certificate.

Patrick and Mary, welcomed a son, James in August 1902 and they moved around the same small footprint of this section of north inner city Dublin in the coming years, with addresses on Jervis Street, Great Britain Street (now Parnell Street) and Dominick Street. It is on Dominick Street where we found the Sex family living in the 1911 Census, by which point they have five children, with one-year-old Esther being the youngest and Patrick was still working in the same trade, being listed as a Butcher’s Porter.

Moving forward ten years to 1921, the year of Patrick’s violent and untimely death, and the family had a total of ten children and were still living at 72 Dominick Street. Patrick was still working in the butchery trade in McInnally’s butchers at 63 Parnell Street, close to the junction with Moore Lane, roughly where the Leonardo (formerly Jury’s) hotel is today and would have been close to Devlin’s Pub, owned by Liam Devlin and a popular meeting spot for the IRA during the War of Independence.

*Parnell Street as it appears on the Goad Insurance maps from 1895*

By this stage in his life, as well as his place of work and large family we know that Patrick was active in the trade union movement, being Chairman of the No. 3 branch of the Irish Transport and General Workers’ Union (ITGWU), this branch featured many from the butchers’ trade and was known as the Victuallers’ Union. Living and working where he did, no doubt Patrick would have clear memories of the Lock-out in 1913 and the infamous baton charge by the Dublin Metropolitan Police on Sackville Street in August of that year when two workers were mortally wounded.

Parnell Street 2025 — Parnell Street as it appears today – the Point A hotel is built on the site of the former Devlin’s Pub, McInnally’s butcher shop would have been within the footprint of the current Leonardo Hotel and Moore Street Mall

On March 26th 1921, Patrick Sex was, as usual, working at McInnally’s butcher’s shop on Parnell Street, it was owned by Hugh McInnally, originally from Scotland he had set up a number of butcher’s shops in Dublin and by the 1920s was entering his 70s and living in some comfort near Howth. The city and country more broadly were far less comfortable – more than two years into the violent period of the War of Independence, Dublin had seen the city placed under curfew in February 1920, there had been wide scale arrests, November 1920 had seen Bloody Sunday when fourteen people were killed in Croke Park by Crown Forces in reprisal for the wave of assassinations earlier that morning by the “Squad” and the Active Service Unit of the IRA. Croke Park was just a few minutes walk from Patrick’s home and place of work, he likely knew many who had attended the match, or perhaps some of those arrested in the wide scale arrests across the city by Crown Forces that followed. As mentioned, McInnally’s butcher’s was just doors away from an IRA safe house and meeting place in Devlin’s Pub, while Vaughan’s Hotel was just around the corner on Parnell Square.

This was the backdrop against which Patrick Sex and his family lived and worked in Dublin. On that fateful day of the 26th just before 3pm a lorry, carrying Crown Forces were attacked by members of “B” company of the 1st Dublin Brigade of the IRA as they journeyed up Parnell Street. The brigade report, taken from the Richard Mulcahy papers reads as follows;

“8 men… attacked a lorry containing 16 enemy at Parnell Street and Moore Street. 3 grenades exploded in lorry followed by revolver fire. Enemy casualties believed to be heavy. The lorry drove into O’Connell Street and was again attacked by a further squad of this coy. [company] numbering 18 men. They attacked another lorry at Findlater Place but were counter-attacked by lorry coming from the direction of Nelson’s Pillar. 3 of our grenades failed to explode so we retired. One of our men was slightly wounded”.

The Freeman’s Journal, reporting on the attacks a couple of days later goes into more detail on the impact of the grenade and gun attacks as they affected the public caught in the melee;

“the first bomb was thrown and exploded with a great crash in the channel opposite MacInally’s (sic) victualling establishment, 63 Parnell Street. The explosion was followed by a wild stampede of pedestrians.”

They continued: “The glass and woodwork of the houses from 63 to 66 Parnell Street were damaged by the flying fragments of the bombs. Mr. Patrick Sex, an assistant in the victualling establishment of Mr. MacInally was wounded in the hip and leg… and others in the shop had narrow escapes from the contents of the bomb, which in the words of Mr. O’Doherty ‘came through the shop like a shower of hail’.”

John O’Doherty the butcher in McInnally’s, mentioned above, would later given a statement to a subsequent court of inquiry at Jervis Street Hospital, stating that he heard “two explosions and three or four shots”, before adding that “several fragments of the bombs came into the shop, and Patrick Sex who was attending a customer at the time said ‘I am struck’ , I saw that he had a wound in his left thigh and hurried him off to hospital.”

Another of those to give testimony at the court of inquiry (inquests into deaths had been suspended during the War of Independence) was Charles Smith of the RAF, he was in one of the Crossley Tender lorries, with two other RAF men in the driver’s cab as it made its way up Parnell Street, when he recalled that a man armed with a revolver stepped into the street and shouted “Hands up” and “Stop” at which point “3 or 4 other civilians fired at us, the driver was immediately hit and collapsed in his seat. Several bombs were thrown at us, as far as I know three or four.”

The driver who was hit was Alfred Walter Browning, a nineteen year old RAF recruit from Islington. He was taken to the King George V Hospital (later St Bricin’s Military Hospital) at Arbour Hill where he died later that evening. The other passenger was David Hayden from the Shankill in Belfast, he was badly injured but survived. All three men were based at the airfield in Baldonnell which was in use then as a RAF base. There was another fatality related to the attack on the lorry at Findlater Place, just off O’Connell Street, when 15 year old Anne Seville was struck by a ricocheting fragment of a bullet as she watched the fighting below from her bedroom window. Despite an operation in an attempt to save her life she passed away two days later.

But what of Patrick Sex? His wound was deemed to be not particularly serious, he was brought to Jervis Street hospital and initially it seemed that everything would be alright. Patrick was seen by Dr. L.F. Wallace who also testified before the inquiry and he stated that there was a wound to Patrick’s left thigh, with no corresponding exit wound. Despite being admitted on the 26th March, Patrick was not thought in need of emergency surgery and was not operated on until April 4th when an “irregular piece of metal” about half an inch long was removed from his thigh. However, despite all seeming to have gone well Patrick contracted tetanus and his condition immediately worsened, he only survived until April 6th. His death notice read “cardiac failure following on tetanus caused by a wound from a fragment of a bomb”.

This left Mary, widowed with a family of ten children to support, and while it may not even have been known yet by Mary and Patrick, she was pregnant with their eleventh child, who would be born in November of that year and would be christened, Vincent Patrick by his mother.

Mary hired prominent solicitor John Scallan who had offices on Suffolk Street in the city centre to pursue a claim for compensation from the Corporation of Dublin and the Provisional Government in January, 1922. Scallan’s letters to the military inquiry requested information on the outcome of the inquiry and a list of any witnesses that they could call, the letter also incorrectly states that Patrick Sex was wounded by a bullet and not a bomb fragment. These claims were reported on in May, 1922 with it being stated in the Freeman’s Journal that a claim for £5,000 had been lodged by Mary Sex “in respect of the murder of her husband, Patrick Sex”. The article describes the compensation claims as those “alleged to have been committed by any of the several units of the British forces in Ireland”. While Patrick was an innocent bystander from the medical reports it would seem a bomb fragment from a grenade thrown by members of the Dublin Brigade, rather than a British bullet was the ultimate cause of his death. It was reported that by November 1922 over 10,000 claims for compensation had been made.

While Mary lodged that claim in January 1922, after the ceasing of hostilities and the signing of the Anglo-Irish treaty, she still had to provide for her large, and growing family. The tragic case of Patrick’s death had clearly struck a particular chord among the Dublin public, despite the amount of violence and death they had witnessed over the previous two years. Perhaps it was the fact that he left a widow and ten children, his role as a prominent trade union organiser, or perhaps it was also the fact that several newspapers, including Sport, The Freeman’s Journal and The Dublin Evening Telegraph had reported that Patrick had sustained his injuries while protecting others leant even greater emphasis to his harrowing story.

The mention that Patrick had protected others is hard to confirm but from piecing together accounts in various newspaper reports it seems that Patrick may have shielded a child who was in the shop from the blast, possibly the child of an Annie Flynn who was mentioned as also being injured by the grenade blast, (see header image) though this is not specifically mentioned by John O’Doherty, the one witness at the inquiry who had witnessed Patrick get hit by the bomb fragment.

Funeral of Patrick Sex on Marlborough Street — *Clipping of Patrick Sex’s funeral from the Freeman’s Journal*

Patrick’s funeral took place on the 11th of April in the Pro-Cathedral, just a couple of minutes walk from his place of work. There was a huge crowd in attendance, estimated by the Evening Herald as numbering as high as two thousand with the funeral described as “one of the largest witnessed in Dublin for a considerable period”. As well as family mourners there was a strong representation of Patrick’s trade union colleagues, they presented a large floral wreath in the shape of a celtic cross. His funeral cortege passed through a Parnell Street which shut all its shops in a sign of mourning and was then met by more of the ITGWU branch members at Cross Guns bridge where they took the coffin from the hearse and carried it to Glasnevin cemetery for burial.

Grave of the Sex family — *The grave of Patrick Sex in Glasnevin cemetery*

The burial itself was somewhat unusual as the gravediggers at Glasnevin cemetery were on strike, which they would not break, even for a fellow union man, so Patrick’s grave was dug and closed by friends and family members. Gravediggers’ strikes were not uncommon at the time, they had taken place in 1916, 1919, and again in 1920. The one exception made by the gravediggers during their strike did take place a couple of days before Patrick’s burial, for the internment of Dublin’s Archbishop, William Walsh.

*By contrast, the elaborate grave of Archbishop William Walsh*

The outpouring of public support for the Sex family was evident not only in the strong turnout for Patrick’s funeral but also in the sporting world. A memorial committee had been established and a month after Patrick’s funeral there was to be an end-of season benefit match staged in Dalymount Park between Bohemians and a Best of Leinster XI, a set of high-quality gold medals were to be presented to the winning team while the proceeds from the game would go to help Mary Sex and her children.

*The selection to face Bohemians in the charity match which included future Ireland internationals Alec Kirkland and Paddy Duncan – from the Evening Herald* *16th May 1921*

The game was played on the 18th May, 1921 and a crowd of around 4,000 was in attendance to witness an entertaining 2-2 draw. With no extra-time and no penalty shoot-outs a replay to decide the winner of the gold medals was set, which also guaranteed a second opportunity to fundraise for the Sex family. After some back and forth around a replay date, the 26th May was chosen and Dalymount Park was once again the venue, this time Bohemians were the victors, triumphing 1-0 over the best of Leinster selection, thanks to a goal by Billy Otto. It was said that the game was played “before a good attendance” and this hopefully translated into funds for Patrick’s family.

It had been suggested in a Dublin Evening Telegraph report that Laurence O’Neill, the Lord Mayor of Dublin might ceremonially kick off the game, but this did not happen due to his having to travel to the USA where O’Neill was working with the “White Cross” who were providing aid in Ireland during the War of Independence. It was suggested in O’Neill’s absence that W.T. Cosgrave, then an Alderman on Dublin City Council, might take over that role but it is not clear from reports whether this happened.

The same report stated that “this is the first time the Dublin footballers and supporters have come forward to do something the alleviate the sorrow of at least one household in these unsettled days” while also encouraging those who did not attend football matches to “rid themselves of all petty prejudices and bring all their friends and associates for the once to Dalymount”. Which would appear to be a not so subtle appeal to supporters of the GAA codes to ignore “the Ban” and attend a soccer match due to the good cause that it was supporting.

One final question that arises, considering the level and scale of violence witnessed over the previous two years, why was Patrick Sex the first victim of the violence in the War of Independence to receive a benefit match? While Patrick Sex may have been a football fan, though it is not specifically mentioned in any reports, he doesn’t seem to have been mentioned in any role in connection with any club or with the Leinster Football Association (LFA). As previously discussed the size of Patrick’s family, his role in the Trade Union movement, and being well known in the local area having worked for many years for McInnally’s butchers all contributed to the prominence given to his funeral, but he was sadly far from unique. Many people with large families, who were well known within their communities lost their lives during the War of Independence, so why a football benefit for Patrick if we can’t find any specific connection of Bohemians, the LFA or any other football club?

I would suggest the answer lies in the timing of Patrick’s death in April 1921, with the benefit match and its replay being held the following month. For context, long-standing issues within the Belfast-based Irish Football Association and its relationship with the LFA and its member clubs were coming to a head against the backdrop of internal bureaucratic strife and the ongoing violence of the War of Independence. In February 1921 there are been consternation among the IFA officials at the displaying of an Irish tricolour at an amateur international against France in Paris, those involved were arrested and there were charges within Dublin football and local media of bias on the part of the IFA. The IFA had also made the decision to not play that season’s Junior Cup and move Intermediate Cup matches which had been scheduled for Dublin to Belfast. The final straw arrived in March 1921 when the venue for a replay of the drawn Cup game between Glenavon and Shelbourne came to be decided. The original match had taken place in Belfast so custom would suggest that the replay should take place in Dublin. However, the IFA ruled that the replay should also take place in Belfast.

On June 1st, less than a week after the Sex memorial match replay, at the annual meeting of the LFA in Molesworth Hall in Dublin, an overwhelming majority of committee members voted to break away from the IFA. The LFA had been polling its member clubs on the subject since April before passing the motion at the beginning of June and by September of that year the Football Association of Ireland had been established, and surprisingly quickly a new League of Ireland cup and league competition had also been formed.

As Neal Garnham notes “by mid-May the LFA was effectively operating independently of the IFA”. Somewhat bizarrely the IFA held a Council meeting on June 7th, seemingly blissfully unaware that the LFA had voted to remove itself from IFA jurisdiction, among the items voted on and approved at the meeting was a motion by Bohemians to play a benefit match for Patrick Sex. It perhaps, shows the sporting and communications division between Belfast and Dublin, that the IFA were unaware that the LFA was no longer affiliated, or that two benefit matches for Patrick Sex had already been played. The organising of the game by Bohemians, the LFA and the role of the memorial committee which seems to have included prominent Republican politicians like Laurence O’Neill and W.T. Cosgrave, seems to suggest that the Patrick Sex memorial match was part of a larger, ongoing process of Dublin football moving away from Belfast control and taking charge of its own affairs, this coupled with the specific nature of Sex’s death and his background suggests why he, and not some other innocent victim was the first to receive such a benefit game.

With special thanks to Aaron Ó’Maonigh, Sam McGrath and Gerry Shannon for their help with elements of the research, and for Aaron for sending on the original “Sex memorial” clipping.

Forever Young

Posted on July 25 by gerrytastic

I can’t say that I’m in any real way qualified to talk about Billy Young, the man, the player, the manager, the Bohemian. His managerial spell had finished a few years before I started going to Dalymount, my knowledge of Billy the talented League of Ireland full back was limited to the stories told by my Dad, a brief, erstwhile teammate of his who always singled out Billy and centre-half Willie Browne as the two great players of a difficult Bohemian era.

However, I did get to spend a few hours in Billy’s company on different occasions to interview him for various projects, to hear his amazing recall or games, events, characters. Most importantly, as recently as March this year at our home game against Drogheda United I saw the love and esteem in which Billy was held by many of his former players. There was a half-time presentation at the game to honour Billy and the players of the League winning 1974-75 team, and in the Jackie Jameson Bar beforehand (of course it was Billy who brought Jackie to Dalymount) it was like a celebrity had walked in when Billy arrived with his son Paul.

So many former players, men who won so much in the game, who had been capped at international level, were straight out of their seats to shake his hand, to ask after his health, to share old memories and stories. Walking down in front of the Jodi stand at half-time was a slow process given the amount of well-wishers seeking to stop and chat. Roddy Collins, raced down the steps to embrace his former manager at the halfway line.

Billy was a man who encapsulated so much of Bohemian Football Club’s history, one of the best fullbacks in the League, he stayed loyal to an amateur club through the 1960s knowing there was little chance of silverware. A thoughtful and forward-thinking coach, he replaced the great Seán Thomas in 1973, by which stage Bohemians had abandoned the club’s famed amateur status and would remain at the helm for an unbelievable sixteen years.

During that time he assembled several exciting teams, built around his unerring eye for talent. The 70s witnessed Bohemians win a fist league title since the 1930s a feat achieved again in the 1977-78 season as well as Niall Shelly’s famous winner in the 1976 FAI Cup final. There were numerous other minor trophies as well as many famous European nights. Billy was in change when Bohemians made the last 16 of the European Cup despite having to play home games away from Dalymount, he was the man at the helm when Rangers were beaten in Dalymount in 1984.

The list of players he brought through cannot be done justice in the space available but suffice to say that through the 1970s and 80s it was not unusual for there to be senior Irish internationals in the Dalymount dressing room, or for players to make the step of transferring straight into the first teams of topflight clubs in Britain.

Billy told great stories of transfer dealings with Tommy Docherty, or calling Bob Paisley for advice on European opponents. He was selected as coach for numerous League of Ireland sides, travelling to Libya when under the rule of Muammar Gaddafi or bringing the first side to face the Basque national team in the famous San Mames since the death of Franco. He was a modern, progressive coach in a league with dwindling attendances, aging infrastructure and in time when transfer fees for top players were a pittance and European football often ended up diminishing club coffers.

One wonders, what a man of his talents could achieve in the game were he coming through today. By 1989 some in the club were losing patience with his tenure in charge, a decade of near misses, runner up finishes, a decade that promised much but delivered only occasionally. A group of members tried to force an EGM to have a change in manager but it never got that quite far. After almost 25 years as player of manager Billy’s time with Bohemians came to end. But thankfully, not his involvement in the club, he has still been a regular sight at games, has returned in previous seasons to speak to new players an instil the Bohemian values, and with the benefit of hindsight the scale of his achievements is all the more impressive.

Beyond all this Billy was a gentleman, great company, a wonderful storyteller with a fine eye for humour. I can only imagine how much he will be missed by his family and those close to him. With an association with the club that goes back to 1962, and a winning personality and footballing CV sure we can say that Billy Young is one of the greatest ever Bohemians.

This article originally featured as a tribute to Billy Young in the Bohemian FC match programme in April 2025, the display shown in the photo is the work of the NBB and was unveiled in July 2025

Charlie Harris – A Sporting Life

Posted on July 2, 2024 by gerrytastic

Charlie Harris spent the early 1910s collecting an array of titles on the Irish athletics scene, excelling over a variety of events; four miles, five miles, steeplechase, cross country. He beat the best, including John J. Daly an American-based, Irish runner who had won a silver at the 1904 Olympics. Harris even faced off against competitors of the non-human variety, when in 1912, he raced a trotting pony over 10 miles around Jones’s Road (later Croke Park). Harris had a 20-minute head-start over his equine foe, named Kathleen H. and narrowly lost out over the final 100 yards but setting an Irish (human) record for 10 miles in the process.

*An advertisement for Charlie Harris’ race against a horse*

Eight years later Harris was once again on that touchline where he had once raced a pony, this time trainer of the Dublin Gaelic football team when British Crown Forces opened fire into Croke Park causing murder and panic. No doubt, he feared the worst when he and the other Dublin players and officials were crowded into the dressing rooms in the aftermath of the outrage. Quite the sporting life, and we haven’t even mentioned the football!

*Harris can be seen on the far right with the Dublin GAA team on Bloody Sunday*

From around 1916 onwards Harris was trainer to Bohemian FC, a role which was part physio, part coach, part cheerleader. His role in various teams over the years puts one in mind of Mick Byrne and the impact he had under Jack Charlton and Mick McCarthy.

Charlie quickly developed a reputation as the best in the business and despite a background of having worked as a sales assistant and carpenter during his running career it was as a sports trainer and physio that he became increasingly sought out, with players from outside of Bohemians and across a variety of sports seeking his assistance.

At international level Charlie was asked by the IFA to accompany its amateur team to France for a match in Paris in 1921. This match caused some controversy when Irish tricolours were displayed by fans in the Parc de Princes which was not well-received by the IFA and added to existing tensions with the Leinster FA just months before an eventual split.

After the split in September 1921 and the formation of the FAI it was inevitable that Charlie Harris would be the go-to man for the new association’s international programme. This meant another trip to Paris for Charlie in 1924 for the Olympic games as a one-man coaching team. Charlie would remain on the touchlines for Ireland, for Bohemians and for the League of Ireland representative sides for more than twenty years to come, travelling Europe in his customary white coat and carrying his faithful leather satchel full of cures, ointments and health salts.

*Harris can be seen on the left in his trademark white coat.*

In 1940 Charlie was given a benefit match by Bohemians to acknowledge his 25 years service with the club, Belfast Celtic were the guests on that occasion in Dalymount. Some nine years later with Charlie now in his 60s and his health beginning to fail there was another game to honour one of the most popular figures in Irish football. In June of 1949 Manchester United were Bohemians guests in Dalymount as over 40,000 turned up to see United defeat a Bohemian Select XI 3-1 and to pay tribute to Charlie.

*The cover of the testimonial game against Manchester United for Charlie Harris*

Charlie would pass away just three months later in September 1949, the Evening Herald recalling him as “witty and genial and of a very likeable personality and he will be keenly missed by his legion of friends”. His funeral was attended his wife of 41 years, Kathleen, his children and wider family and by senior representatives of the Army, Gardaí the wider football world but also from the fields of athletics, rugby and boxing showing the esteem in which he was held and the impact he had on the Irish sporting landscape.

A version was first published in the Ireland v Hungary match programme in June 2024. Images of Charlie’s kitbag, watch, pistol and whistle are shared by his family.

FAI Cup catastrophe – a fatal accident between Dundalk and Distillery

Posted on April 7, 2024 by gerrytastic

The 1935 FAI Cup final remains the highest scoring final in the history of the competition, Bohemians triumphed in an entertaining, back and forth game 4-3 over Dundalk who were playing in their second final but were still searching for their first ever Cup triumph. On their way to the final Dundalk had defeated Shamrock Rovers in the opening round, Sligo Rovers in the semi-final and in between had to overcome Leinster Senior League side Distillery F.C.

Distillery took their name from Distillery Road just off the North Circular Road, close to Croke Park and home to the DWD whiskey distillery which would operate in the area until its closure in 1941. The club Distillery FC were considered one of the greatest Irish club teams never to play at League of Ireland level, winning the Leinster Senior Cup by a 4-1 margin against League of Ireland side Bray Unknowns on St. Stephen’s Day, 1941 in front of the crowd of over 3,000. The same year they won the Intermediate Cup, the Junior Cup and the Leinster Senior League. In fact, they were Leinster Senior League Champions on five occasions from the mid-1930s through to the early 1940s.

*Photo from the Irish Press, December 1941*

The Distillery side that was about to embark on this period of unprecedented success was drawn against another non-league side in the first round of the FAI Cup, facing off against Cork team, Butchers with the game listed for Dolphin Park on the southside of the river, despite the northside origins of Distillery. Despite the sides being from outside of the League of Ireland they did both have several players with League experience, Butchers featured several former players of Cork Bohemians while Distillery had a number of former Dolphin players among their ranks, such as forward Joe Ward who would move to Shamrock Rovers the following season and enjoy a successful career there. The club captain was Christy “Dickie” Giles who had played in the League of Ireland for Bohemians and Shelbourne but is probably best known to history as the father of John Giles.

On a cold January, Sunday afternoon Distillery were trailing 1-0 to Butchers but the Cork team suffered an injury to their right-back Brien who had to go off. With substitutions not allowed this meant that Butchers were down to ten men and Distillery began to work this to their advantage. An equaliser was finally found when the Butchers keeper, O’Connell who had been excellent to that point was decieved by a cross-cum-shot by Charles Recusin of Distillery and misjuding the flight of the ball conceded with the game ending 1-1 and a replay being arranged for the following Wednesday to be played at Turner’s Cross.

A short note on Charles Recusin who scored the equaliser for Distillery, he had previously been a player with Queen’s Park, a team based around Pearse Street and Pearse Square (formerly Queen’s Square/Park from where the team took their name), and had enjoyed success with them in the early 1930s as a winger and had been selected for an FAI Junior international against Scotland in 1933. Recusin was a member of Dublin’s small but vibrant Jewish community. His family were likely part of the significant emigration west from the Russian empire in the late 19th and early 20th century.

*Charles Recusin, wearing his junior cup, in a team photo for Queen’s Park*

For the replay there were changes to both sides, Brien who had been injured for Butchers was out, while Distillery were without Samuel Beattie at full-back and took the somewhat unusual step of replacing him with Molloy their usual centre-forward. Butchers, who had impressed in the initial game were favourites, especially with home advantage and a vocal, passionate crowd behind them. However, the match was a disappointing stalement, ending 0-0. The greatest excitement was at the final whistle, when the referee, a Mr. Dwyer from Dublin had to be escorted from the field by stewards and players from both sides after being surrounded by irate spectators.

A second replay was fixed for the following week in Tolka Park, crowd numbers suffered for this game as it clashed with another cup replay between Bohemians and Reds United just a kilometre away in Dalymount which proved a bigger draw. Beattie returned to the Distillery line-up and despite the closely contested games previously this proved to be a far easier test for the Dubliners who ran out comfortable 3-0 winners thanks to goals from Dorney, Redmond and Molloy. Distillery were solid in defence and according to the match reports could have scored four or five. After 270 minutes of football they were finally through the first round of the cup to what was effectively the quarter-final stage. Awaiting them would be League of Ireland side Dundalk.

Dundalk had been League of Ireland champions just two years earlier in the 1932-33 season and regularly included in their line-ups Irish internationals like Billy O’Neill and Joey Donnelly as well as players like “Jim Mills” and “Craig Gaughran”, a pair of Irish League players for Portadown, brought south of the border and playing under assumed names, Mills was really Jim Mailey and Gaughran was really Willy Craig. Shamrock Rovers had protested their loss to Dundalk the previous month on this point but had lost their appeal due to lack of evidence.

The match was played in Shelbourne Park on 9th February, 1935 on a pitch that was described as heavy. It seemed that the occasion had gotten to Distillery a bit, despite their win over Butchers and ongoing excellent performances in the Leinster Senior League they were perhaps overawed facing a side of the calibre of Dundalk? The Distillery tactics seemed set up to spoil and various reports mention the high number of frees given away and the “vigour” of the approach of the Distillery players who seemed more intent on stopping Dundalk from playing than anything else.

However, despite this approach it was Distillery who took the lead after mistakes from Tom Godwin and Jerry McCourt allowed Joe Ward to fire a powerful shot past Peter McMahon in the Dundalk goal to give them a first half lead. Dundalk did bounce back however and there was a good move by inside-left Jerry McCourt who beat Distilley full-back Sam Beattie and crossed for Billy O’Neill to score the equaliser. The game continued in a stop-start fashion with continuous niggling fouls. The Dundalk Democrat report mentioned that the referee at one point halted to game to converse with the two captains about the number of offences being committed. The same reporter said that the second half’s opening minutes produced the best of the football, and then about twenty minutes into the second half a ball was cleared from a corner by Power in the Distillery goal. McCourt and Beattie both clashed heads as they challenged for the ball and went down hurt.

The referee was George T. Davies of Bury, Lancashire, brought over for a high-profile cup game as was standard practice in the League of Ireland of the era, with British referees deemed to be of a higher standard and more impartial. Davies was an experienced ref who had taken charge of games at the highest level in English league football. He halted the game and both players were given a minute or two to get up and continue, no foul was deemed by the referee to have been committed and both men stated their willingness to play on.

The second half continued in much the same manner as the rest of the game but various reports said that as the game progressed Dundalk’s edge and superior fitness came to the fore. McCourt used his skill to good effect in attack before being fouled from behind by a Distillery player in the box to win a penalty, which was duly converted by Mailey/Mills to give Dundalk a 2-1 advantage which they maintained to the final whistle. It was the Lilywhites that were through to the semi-finals.

Again according to reports in the Dundalk Democrat there was some bad blood at the end of the game with Distillery players looking to confront their opponents after the game “invading the Dundalk dressing room”.

As for Sam Beattie he returned home to his family home at 7 North Gloucester Street (around modern day Sean McDermott Street and what is now Larkin College) where he lived with his parents and sisters, initially at least he seemed to be in good health. However, as the evening progressed he complained of head pain and a doctor was called. The doctor, according to the evidence provided by his sister Margaret, advised Sam to go to the hospital and called an ambulance was called but Sam refused to get in it. Later as he became delirious he was brought by ambulance and taken to Jervis Street hospital.

Giving testimony at the inquest the Jervis Street hospital House Surgeon, Dr. P.K. O’Brien stated that Beattie arrived to the hospital having lost consciousness, which he never regained and he passed away later that night. A post mortem examination found no skull fracture and proclaimed the cause of death as a cerebral haemorrhage.

The referee George Davies, Dundalk player (John) Jerry McCourt, Garda Sergeant Reidy (who seemed to have been at the match), and the Distillery trainer Joseph Walsh, who like Beattie also lived on Gloucester Street, all gave evidence at the inquest held in Jervis Street Hospital. All concurred that the clash of heads between McCourt and Beattie was accidental and that both players had agreed to play on the remaining 25 minutes of the game, McCourt stating he felt a bang on his forehead and fell to the ground and had had no grievance against Beattie and that he was shocked when he later learned that Beattie had died. Sgt. Reidy stated that he saw Sam Beattie directly after the game and that he definitely refused to go to the hospital. Davies said that there had been no foul play in the game which does seem a slight exaggeration when compared with the newspaper reports all of which highlighted the number of frees given in the game but the tact displayed in his testimony is understandable.

*Jerry McCourt of Dundalk* (pic from Dundalk’s Who’s Who)

Various parties present at the inquest, including a solicitor representing Dundalk FC and the FAI Secretary Jack Ryder all offered their sympathies to the Beattie family, and Beattie’s father, also named Samuel, stated that he was satisfied that the collision which had caused his son’s death had been purely accidental. The inquest jury added a rider, that in their view Jerry McCourt was in no way responsible for Sam Beattie’s death.

On February 13th, Sam’s funeral took place in Our Lady of Lourdes Church on Gloucester Street, before his remains were brought to Glasnevin cemetery. The funeral cortege had passed the Level Brothers soap powder works on Sheriff Street were Sam had worked as a labourer, the 300 mostly female staff had lined up outside in tribute to their former co-worker. The chief mourners were his parents Samuel and Margaret, and his four sisters, Eva and Margaret (both older) and his younger sisters Julia and Josie. Sam, the middle child and only boy in the family was only 27 when he died.

There was of course a significant representation from the world of Irish football, FAI Chairman Larry Sheridas was in attendance as was the Secretary of the League of Ireland Jim Brennan. Many of his Distillery team mates were there including Christy Giles and Charlie Recusin and club secretary John Blakely. There were also representatives from Bohemian FC, UCD AFC, Hospitals Trust FC, Reds United, Queens Park, and St. James’s Gate. Beattie’s former clubs, Shamrock Rovers, for whom he had played at reserve at Leinster Senior League level, and Dolphin for whom Sam had represented in both the Leinster Senior League and League of Ireland for a number of years and in a variety of positions were also well represented. Dundalk who had provided the opposition that fateful day were represented by players Henry Hurst, Gerry Godwin and Jerry McCourt. There had been a minutes silence the day after Sam’s death observed by the 17,000 football fans in Tolka Park to watch Drumcondra take on Dolphin in the cup, no doubt many of the Dolphin fans would have known him well.

McCourt would go on to enjoy an illustrious career with Dundalk, born in Portadown in 1905 as John Gerard McCourt, Gerry/Jerry as he was known joined the club in 1930 from Glenavon and would eventually become the club’s record goalscorer for a time before being eclipsed by Joey Donnelly. Dundalk FC historian Jim Murphy would profile McCourt as a “universal favourite, playing his heart out for the team, yet eminently fair and clean, a real gentleman of the game”. McCourt’s playing career was curtailed just two years after the clash with Distillery when he suffered a bad leg-break in a Cup game against Waterford. He continued to operate as a trainer for the club and it was in this role that he travelled with the Irish international team on its 1936 tour to Hungary, Germany and Luxembourg.

*Signatures of the Irish and German players from a match played in Cologne in 1936. Jerry McCourt’s signature is fourth from the top on the right* – *photo courtesy of the Behan family*

Sadly for the Beattie family, and many others in the era, football could be a dangerous and even lethal game at the time. In 1924, Samuel O’Brien died after a touchline dispute in the Phoenix Park, in 1931, Gerard O’Sullivan, a worker for Dublin Corporation died in very similar circumstances to Sam Beattie, making just his third appearance for Bohemians he was involved in a clash of heads, went off the pitch and was apparently fine but later complained of head pain, and similar to Beattie was rushed to Jervis Street hospital where he later died. Over the same weekend as Beattie met his tragic fate two other footballers were hospitalised with injuries they received during matches being played in the Phoenix Park. Deaths from concussive head injuries, or limb amputations caused by bad breaks remained tragically common into the 1950s while the true extent of brain damage caused by heading footballs is still coming to be fully realised.

*The inscription on Sam Beattie’s headstone in Glasnevin cemetery*

With thanks to Sam McGrath of Come here to me for suggesting Sam Beattie to me as a possible person to research

The Brideville bus crash

Posted on January 7, 2024 by gerrytastic

On New Year’s day 1934, along the cambered road to Sligo near Drumfin the team of Brideville FC had just opened their packed lunch and were enjoying sandwiches and a sing-song. They had set out early that morning from Dublin on their way to face Sligo Rovers in a Leinster Senior League game in the Showgrounds. Brideville were a team from the Liberties area of Dublin who had spells in the League of Ireland during the 1920s, 30s and 40s. Sligo would be elected to the League of Ireland for the first time later that year, while Brideville would return to that level again in the following year.

The travelling party of players and officials, numbering around nineteen in total, had stopped earlier along the way in Mullingar for tea, while the two coach drivers, taking shifts on their journey west, went to get a late morning Mass. The road past Boyle was poor and the conditions were wet and slick, the two drivers claimed they never passed 30 miles per hour on their journey, sometimes creeping along at around 15mph due to the conditions, statements which the other passengers on the bus would corroborate later.

*Brideville in action in the 1930 FAI Cup final – taken from the Irish Independent*

As they travelled along the stretch of road near Drumfin, driver Harry Costello found the bus going into a skid, the road was surface was poor and raised in the middle and was slick and wet in the early January weather, ultimately unable to right the bus it tumbled from the road and down an embankment of twelve feet, somersaulting into a nearby field. The roof was ripped clear off, Costello was wedged in by his feet at the wheel while many of the Brideville players and officials were also trapped inside.

One man who wasn’t trapped however, was the 62 year old club secretary Timothy Finn. He had tragically been thrown clear and was described as sitting quite lifelike on the torn roof of the bus, he had died instantly from a broken neck. Finn had worked for many years in the printing trade, working for Independent Newspapers in Dublin City Centre, he had been married to his wife Elizabeth for almost forty years and they had four adult children. He and Elizabeth lived in Block F of the Iveagh Buildings off Bride Street, in an area from which Brideville would have drawn much of their support.

John Doyle, a local man returning from Mass, was the first on the scene, he quickly gathered together other men from the local area and was able to push the bus over on its side and free those trapped inside. Soon news of the crash reached Sligo town. The crash ahd taken place just after 2pm that day with the match against Sligo Rovers due to kick-off at 2:30pm. By 3:30pm it was clear that the Brideville team were unlikely to arrive and the large crowd that had gathered in the Showgrounds began to make their way home, only encountering the terrible news of the crash as they filtered out.

The inquest that was held in the following days excused the drivers of any blame for the crash instead citing the condition of the road and driving conditions. In total £2,000 was paid out to the Finn family & the injured Bridewell players in damages at a court case in November of 1934. Several of the players suffered quite severe injuries that would likely impact not only their ability to play football but also their regular day jobs. As well as injuries to the playing staff the club Treasurer, James Keyes suffered a “crushed back” in the crash.

*Descriptions of the injuries suffered by the other passengers*

There was a large funeral for Tinothy Finn, he had been given a guard of honour by Sligo Rovers as his coffin was brought to the train station in the town to return his remains to Dublin.

Sympathy was offered by the local Council, the football club and by John Fallon of the Sligo District Football Association. Fallon had been a footballer himself, was involved with founding Sligo Rovers and would later become a Councillor and Mayor of Sligo. His son Seán Fallon would find fame as a player and coach for Celtic and Ireland. The Brideville players and committee seemed to appreciate these sentiments and were fulsome in their thanks to the people of Sligo for the help and generosity they received in the aftermath of the bus crash.

The main funeral in Dublin took place in the Chruch of St. Nicholas of Myra on Francis Street and was a very well attended affair. The main mourners were his widow Elizabeth and children, Sarah, Mary (Maisie), Elizabeth and Timothy. Representatives from Timothy’s workplace, including the Irish Stereotypers Union executive and numerous staff from Independent Newspapers (as well as their associated sports club) including the newspaper directors like James Donohoe and Timothy R. Harrington were present.

There was of course a large representation from the footballing community, from Finn’s own club Brideville as well as Bohemians, Sligo Rovers, St. James’s Gate and representatives from the League of Ireland and the FAI. His coffin was draped in the colours of Brideville and the players gave a guard of honour at the church before eventually Timothy Finn was taken to Mount Jerome cemetery for burial.

Brideville didn’t play a match for another three weeks, eventually returning to action against Queen’s Park and securing a 2-2 draw in the FAI Cup, most of the injured players had returned but some were reported to be “still feeling the effects of the tragic bus crash”. Three months after the accident, in April, 1934 a fundraiser match between a Brideville select XI and Aberdeen was held in Dalymount Park in aid of Timothy Finn’s family and the injured Brideville players. Aberdeen would have been a significant draw at the time and had prominent Irish internationals Joe O’Reilly (signed from Brideville) and star striker Paddy Moore in their ranks. Brideville strenghened their side with players from Cork, Shelbourne, Drumcondra and Belfast Celtic and the match was a lively affair with Aberdeen prevailing 3-2 in front of 12,000 spectators in Phibsborough.

Brideville would would return to League of Ireland level in the 1935-36 season, acheiving the ambition that Timothy Finn had worked so hard for, they would continue in the highest level of Irish football until the 1942-43 season when they failed to be re-elected to the League.

Seán Byrne and a game of two hemispheres

Posted on December 14, 2023 by gerrytastic

In 1954 Dessie Byrne had the misfortune to head a ball a bit too firmly back to goalkeeper Jimmy Collins, his St. Pat’s teammate and brother-in-law, the resulting own-goal was enough to secure the cup for Drumcondra and create the beginnings of the lore around St. Patrick’s Athletic’s cup-curse. The hoodoo around the supposed curse was only dispelled in 2014 when Pats next lifted the trophy, although by then it had included another member of the Byrne family, Dessie’s son Seán, a versatile, tireless and hard-working midfielder or defender who also had an eye for goal. Seán was part of the Pats team that lost the 1974 final 3-1 to Finn Harps which saw the Donegal team claim the trophy for the first time.

Seán did do better than his Dad in that final, scoring Pat’s consolation goal, and he would taste cup success with his next side, Dundalk. Forming part of an impressive midfield which featured the likes of Barry Kehoe, Mick Lawlor and Leo Flanagan, Byrne would taste cup success twice as well as winning two league titles and impressing in Europe during his time at Oriel Park.

It was also during his spell at Oriel that a connection with New Zealand would first arise. In May of 1982 Dundalk manager Jim McLaughlin was tasked with selecting a League of Ireland squad for an end of season tour to New Zealand. The League of Ireland side was to provide the opposition for the New Zealand national team as part of five warm-up matches ahead of their first appearance at the World Cup that summer.

In preparation for facing Brazil, the Soviet Union and a strong Scottish side in Group six of World Cup 82, New Zealand would be up against Seán Byrne and his League of Ireland colleagues. With the season just ended the League of Ireland squad faced a trek of almost 20,000 km ahead of the first game in the town of Rotorua, landing just 48 hours before kick-off. The extent of the journey may have contributed to back-to-back 1-0 defeats on successive days in New Zealand before a 0-0 draw was achieved in Gisborne. The fourth match of the series of five took place in the city of Dunedin and would be the League of Ireland’s only win on the tour, a 2-1 victory thanks to goals from Seán Byrne and Athlone Town’s Denis Clarke.

An important connection was made on that tour, with Kevin Fallon the assistant manager of New Zealand, the Englishman had spent time in the League of Ireland with Sligo Rovers (he was part of the Sligo team which lost to Bohemians in the 1970 final) and he was impressed by Byrne’s performances. Back in an Ireland that was facing high unemployment, and a bleak economic outlook Seán Byrne was finding working life a struggle. A former coachbuilder for CIE and later a lorry driver, (gaining him the nickname Yorkie) Seán spent most of 1982 and 83 looking in vain for a job and getting by “with the dole and the few pound I made from playing football”. Fallon suggested that Byrne and his young family relocate to the city of Gisborne in New Zealand where he was managing the local team and could also arrange for work for Seán in the local shipbuilding industry.

Seán enjoyed almost immediate success with his new antipodean club side and eventually took out New Zealand citizenship, and with Fallon installed as national team coach from 1985 Seán was included in squads for the 1986 World Cup qualifying campaign, appearing in a victory over Taiwan and a defeat to Israel in what was ultimately an unsuccessful qualifying attempt. Byrne would eventually win five caps for his adopted homeland before moving again to Australia where he worked as player-coach for Morwell Pegasus close to the city of Melbourne.

In 2000 Seán was diagnosed with Motor Neurone disease which sadly claimed his life aged just 48 in 2003. A popular footballer on and off the pitch his passing was mourned in Dublin, Dundalk and is his adopted homes of New Zealand and Australia.

Originally published in 2023 as part of the Ireland v New Zealand match programme.

Jack O’Donnell – the Dolphin trawling the seas

Posted on May 4, 2023 by gerrytastic

As excuses go for missing training it was at least original. Being absent because you were caught in storms aboard a fishing trawler off the coast of Iceland and at any moment feared that you’d be washed overboard to a watery grave. This was the excuse offered by Jack O’Donnell, full-back for Blackpool FC in 1932, when they were still a top-flight side. It wasn’t to be O’Donnell’s first brush with authority, nor his last. This is the story of how a talented footballer went from being a League champion with Everton to making intermittent appearances for Dolphin FC and Reds United in the League of Ireland either side of a stint in prison.

O’Donnell was born in Gateshead in March 1897, the son of John and Grace O’Donnell. John was a labourer from Newcastle, though the O’Donnell surname does suggest an Irish lineage some way back in the family. By the age of 14 young Jack was already working as a driver in a coal mine. Like many young miners-cum-footballers in the north east of England he began playing with his local colliery team, Felling and then later with Gateshead St. Wilfrids, before being signed by Darlington in 1923. At the time Darlington were in the Third Division North, and were on the lookout for a stiker, however a series of injuries meant that O’Donnell was pressed into service on his debut as a left back, the position that he was to make his own over the coming two seasons.

In early 1925 Darlington were drawn against Cardiff City in the first round of the FA Cup. While Cardiff would ultimately prevail, and make it all the way to the final that year, Darlington did manage to take them to two replays with back-to-back 0-0 scorelines. O’Donnell was especially impressive in these games and drew the attention of Everton who signed him just weeks later in February 1925 for a fee of £2,700, huge money at the time for a defender, especially one playing in the Third Division and was at the time far and away the record fee ever received by Darlington.

One issue of note however, is that at the time of signing for the Toffees, O’Donnell was a month shy of his 28th birthday but the newspapers at the time of the transfer list him variously as 20 or 21 years of age. A journalistic mistake or a case of O’Donnell shaving a few years off his actual age? He certainly wouldn’t be the first or last footballer to attempt it if this was the case.

O’Donnell quickly made the Everton first team, although his versatility was occasionally to his detriment, twice in his early days he ended up going in goal to replace an injured goalkeeper as substitutions were not yet allowed. He also ended up featuring as an inside-left for the Toffees and while ‘Dixie’ Dean was clearly the first choice centre forward O’Donnell did contribute five goals in the 1925-26 season when pressed into the forward line. While he made 27 and 24 League appearances respectively in his first two, full seasons with Everton there is a sense that his adaptability stopped him from cementing his place in the team. That was to change for the 1927-28 season though, O’Donnell, along with Scottish winger Alec Troup, were the only two players to feature in all 44 games for Everton that season (42 League, 2 FA Cup) as Everton, propelled by the brilliance of ‘Dixie’ Dean who scored 60 League goals, won the League Championship.

O’Donnell the ever-present, won plenty of praise that season, he was a physically tough player but with surprising technical skill, his bravery and fearlessnesss in the tackle also marked him out and there are numerous reports of last ditch tackles saving the day at Goodison Park and elsewhere.

It was also during that league winning season that Jack married Margaret Butcher, with the first of their two children, John, being born the following year. It seemed that everything was going well for Jack. For the following two seasons he was a first team regular for Everton and while they won the Charity Shield the following year there was a drop to 18th in a 22 team league. Worse was to follow the next season (1929-30) as Everton finished bottom and were relegated. In August of 1930, as Everton were facing into the prospect of a season in the Second Division there was a note at a club board meeting mentioning O’Donnell as “suffering from a disease of owing to his own misconduct” and being suspended for 14 days. He would never play for the Toffees again.

Rather than spend a full season in Division Two, especially having fallen from favour with the board, O’Donnell joined Blackpool in Division One for a fee of around £1,500 just after Christmas 1930, as the seaside club aimed to stave off a relegation battle of their own. Blackpool did manage to narrowly survive that season with O’Donnell installed at full-back and he even was named as team captain. O’Donnell and was a regular starter for the rest of the season as Blackpool finished 20th out of 22 teams, with only two sides relegated Blackpool survived by a single point as Leeds and Manchester United dropped into the second tier.

*A cartoon of O’Donnell after his move to Blackpool*

The following season was to be a similar experience for Blackpool, once again finishing 20th and avoiding the drop by a single point. Again, O’Donnell was a regular, playing 31 out of 42 League games, however there was significant drama for Jack off the pitch.

In November of 1931 O’Donnell was suspended by Blackpool for fourteen days for an unnamed “breach of discipline”, he had also been stripped of the club captaincy just weeks beforehand. When interviewed later in 1933 for the Topical Times O’Donnell gave a robust, if rambling, defence of himself. In an interview which featured allegations of club directors taking backhanders, O’Donnell alleges that his initial suspension at Blackpool resulted from false rumours being spread about him by “somebody with a nose for trouble-making and a character which didn’t have truth in his make up” who made the claim that O’Donnell was going out and getting drunk every night. O’Donnell denied this but said that these allegations had reached the ears of the Blackpool directors who called him for a meeting. O’Donnell recounts that he was “furious that they even listened to such tales” and that as a result he “said things he didn’t mean”. The outcome was another suspension by the club.

It is however, the way in which O’Donnell chose to spend his suspension that gained him most notoriety. Due to return to training in early December O’Donnell was a no-show at the day he was due back. His landlady, and his friends in the local club where he socialised didn’t know where he was but his landlady did mention that O’Donnell had previously expressed a desire to become a fisherman. A man answering to O’Donnell’s description and wearing a pair of plus fours was seen boarding the trawler Cremlyn in the port of Fleetwood in the company of the trawler’s cook.

Jack O’Donnell had indeed gone to sea! Speaking to the media later in December, after he’d returned to dry land he gave the somewhat implausible story that he had simply been talking to the ship’s cook who was a friend of his, had boarded the Cremlyn with no intention of sailing, but without realising the boat had pulled away from shore. O’Donnell was also quick to deny the allegations that he had claimed he was done with football and was planning on pursuing life as a fisherman.

This rather thin excuse is contradicted by O’Donnell himself in the 1933 Topical Times interview when he says that being suspended and having little to do, that he was invited to go sailing on the basis that it was to be a short trip and that he would be back in Blackpool in plenty of time ahead of the lifting of his suspension. However, these plans were waylaid by Poseidon when, off the coast of Iceland the Cremlyn “ran into one of the biggest storms ever seen in the North Atlantic” according to O’Donnell. He claimed that the lifeboat was washed away in the storm and he feared that “every minute would be out last.”

*Jack O’Donnell is front page news over his fishing trawler exploits in 1931*

O’Donnell did of course make it back to dry land, but unimpressed with his explanation the board of Blackpool, still fighting off relegation, gave him a further fourteen day suspension. On this occasion O’Donnell had the good sense to remain off the high seas. Jack’s aquatic adventures had further reprecussions for him off the football field, as the New Year turned to January 1932 he found himself served with a court order by his, now estranged, wife Margaret. While Jack was living in Blackpool, Margaret was still living in Gateshead with their son John. There had been a legal agreement in place since July of 1931 that Jack would pay £2 a week in maintenance to his wife, but that around the same time as the trawler incident these payments had ceased.

It was at this point that Margaret declared that she was “absolutely destitute” and had to “apply for relief”, meaning that she had to seek the limited form of social welfare available under the “poor laws” that existed at the time. Representatives of Blackpool FC pleaded with Margaret to cease proceedings in the case, promising a £4 postal order and £2 a week as long as he was employed at Blackpool and further stating that “Jack is making a big effort to make a man of himself and we are doing all possible to assist him.”

The case was adjourned for a week and when it was eventually heard in Gateshead a court order of £2 a week maintenance for his wife and son was made against Jack. Margaret mentioned a particular personal cruelty from Jack, despite being in Newcastle for three days for a cup game against Newcastle United (which was taken to a replay which Blackpool lost) in the week before the hearing, Jack made no effort to get in touch with his wife or three year old son.

O’Donnell finished out the season for Blackpool as they clung on to secure their top-flight status, but there was further drama during the summer as once again Jack went missing, this time in July during pre-season training. Blackpool quickly sought to have O’Donnell suspended by the FA, who duly obliged. With the new season on the horizon Jack O’Donnell found himself in an unevniable position, suspended from playing football but with Blackpool still holding his registration and hoping for some return in terms of a transfer fee for their errant star. The club denied that a transfer was forthcoming but there was still a protracted saga as Hartlepools United, then in the Third Division North, sought to sign O’Donnell. Hartlepools were managed by Jackie Carr, a former England centre half who had briefly played with O’Donnell at Blackpool towards the end of his own career. He clearly believed that his former teammate and powerful full back still had something to offer despite his many off the field issues and disappearing acts.

A prolonged transfer saga was finally brought to an end when Hartlepools paid a fee in the region of £500 for O’Donnell’s services. Blackpool placed certain conditions on the transfer and successfully requested the FA to lift the player’s suspension so that he could move to the County Durham club.

Jack was once again a regular, playing out the season with Hartlepools, and once again he was made club captain making 28 league appearances, scoring twice as they finished lower mid-table in Division Three. It was to be his only year with them as with the season coming to a close he was transfer listed in May 1933 and by August of that year Jack had joined Wigan in the Cheshire League where he was once again made club captain on his arrival.

This return to football wasn’t quite guaranteed as during the summer of 1933 Jack once again took to the seas, taking a job as a steward on an ocean liner sailing between Liverpool and Montreal. In the Topical Times interview he recalls playing football for a team made up of the ship’s crew, playing against barefoot teams in the Canary Islands and against American and Canadian sides, recounting the physicality of the game as played in America (which is saying something considering the physical nature of O’Donnell’s own game but also tallies with other descriptions of the extremely physcial nature of the game in the United States) as well as describing a sporting encounter with Everton legend of the teens and twenties, Sam Chedgzoy who had relocated to Canada.

Despite being installed as captain and some encouraging early performances at Wigan, Jack was once again in trouble with the club heirarchy after only a couple of months. By October 1933 he had pulled yet another of his “disappearing acts” and there was speculation on behalf of Wigan Athletic that his well-known wanderlust and love of deep-sea fishing had gotten the better of him and that he had once more gone to sea, which to some extent he had, bacause Jack was with the Dolphins. He had crossed the Irish sea to sign with League of Ireland side Dolphin, located in the south Dublin suburb of Dolphin’s Barn.

*O’Donnell during his time at Dolphin FC*

Dolphin FC had finished the previous season as FAI Cup runners-up and were under the tutelage of player-manager Jerry Kelly. The Scottish defender/midfielder had enjoyed a successful career in England winning a league title for Everton alongside Jack O’Donnell and it is likely that his former teammate was responsible for Jack’s trip to Dublin. While Jack had been suspended by Wigan, the fact that they were a non-league club and the somewhat fluid nature of transfers between British and Irish teams at the time meant that transfer rules were less hard and fast, however it still took a couple of weeks for clearance and paperwork to be finalised by Wigan to allow Jack make his League of Ireland debut for Dolphin.

O’Donnell impressed in his first game for Dolphin, a 3-0 win over Cork Bohemians on 26th November 1933, he was praised for his “powerful kicking and positional play” and got on the scoresheet with a penalty after a Cork handball. It is obvious that O’Donnell had impressed not only at the back but with his attacking play and a move to centre-forward, where he had previously played on occasion for Darlington and Everton, was planned for the next game against Shelbourne. This would allow a return to the defence of Dolphin’s international pairing of Larry Doyle and George Lennox. Of course, this wasn’t to be, Jack O’Donnell had pulled yet another one of his “disappearing acts” going missing for both the Shelbourne game and the subsequent match against Bohemians.

By the time O’Donnell returned in mid-December after dealing with unnamed “business” Dolphin had signed a new striker in the form of Jimmy Rorrison who had joined them from Distillery. Rorrison, something of a journeyman striker in the Scottish and English Leagues had impressed at Cork the previous season and took over the centre forward berth with O’Donnell continuing in his favoured role at left-back.

Dolphin cruised to an easy 4-1 victory in their next match with Bray Unknowns with O’Donnell scoring another penalty and his overall display being described as “polished and clever”. O’Donnell featured in a run of games for Dolphin over the Christmas period and into the New Year of 1934, scoring a third penalty in a 2-1 defeat to Shamrock Rovers in January. There was a return to form the following week in the opening round of the FAI Cup, as Dolphin were drawn in something of a local derby with fellow southsiders Jacobs. O’Donnell was installed as centre-forward in place of Rorrison who was released after only a month at the club. O’Donnell scored twice from open play as Dolphin swept to a facile 5-0 over the Biscuitmen which was followed by a victory over Queen’s Park (from the Pearse Street area of the city) after a replay in the second round. All of a sudden Dolphin were into the Cup semi-finals.

However, the cup run seems to have distracted from their league form and Dolphin slumped to a 2-0 defeat to bottom side Cork Bohemians with O’Donnell being utilised as an inside-left to little effect. This slump in form continued for Dolphin as they were beaten in a dull game 1-0 by St. James’s Gate in the Cup semi-final, Billy Kennedy scoring the decisive goal as Jack O’Donnell was returned to his more usual position of left-back. O’Donnell continued as a regular for the remainder of the season, and although Dolphin’s form was patchy he did win praise for his displays, mostly in the full back position although he did score his fourth, and final, league goal for Dolphin in March 1934 as a centre-forward in a resounding 3-0 win over Dundalk in the final game of the season.

Dolphin finished fifth that season and had made the semi-finals of the FAI Cup, however they had probably hoped for a little bit more having recruited heavily from outside the league, including the signing of O’Donnell. Dolphin had led the way in the League in the recruitment of cross-channel players and were known as one of the clubs in the League of Ireland who were prepared to pay higher wages to bring talent across the Irish Sea to Dublin. This also influenced their choice of coaches such as Arthur Dixon who would join the coaching team at Rangers and bring the young Dolphin star Alex Stevenson with him, and Dixon’s eventual replacement, Jerry Kelly who brought his former teammate O’Donnell to Dublin.

Reports stated that Jack had returned to Blackpool for the summer months, he was gone from Dolphin for their League of Ireland Shield campaign and missed the friendly match against Notts County arranged as part of Willie Fallon’s move from Dolphin to the Magpies. However, it wasn’t to be a relaxing summer on the beaches of Lancashire for Jack, in May 1934 he faced another summons from his wife Margaret for once again abandoning her and his family as Margaret had once more been forced to go to the “Public Assistance Committee” to makes ends meet. Jack was now a father of two, as a daughter, Kathleen had been born earlier that year. In her statement Margaret recounted that he had briefly returned to her after being suspended by Wigan and that later that year his “disappearing act” from Dolphin in November had seen him briefly return to his family in Gateshead. After finishing with Dolphin in March he seems to have ended up in Blackpool where he claimed he was looking for work on the town’s pleasure beaches. At the court hearing in Gateshead he was sentenced to a month’s imprisonment.

Upon Jack’s release at the end of June the court ordered that he pay 25 shillings a week in maintenance to his wife and growing family. Faced with this challenge it is unclear what Jack did for the remainder of his summer however he reappears in media reports in September with the news that he has signed for non-league side Clitheroe. Although 37 years of age by this stage, (if his clubs were even aware of his real age), it was to football that he returned yet again to make a living. As always with Jack it wasn’t plain sailing, having only played once for Clitheroe there was an objection to his registration from Dolphin, he remained their player and they claimed that he had been suspended by them and as such couldn’t turn out for another team. This would suggest that Jack’s return to Britain at the end of the previous League campaign wasn’t something that had been agreed with Dolphin.

Frustated in these attempts it seems Jack returned home to Tyneside, lining out for Wardley Welfare FC in his home town of Gateshead, and perhaps spending a bit more time with his family. His younger brother Bill, who had mirrored Jack’s career somewhat, joining Darlington and later Everton, without ever enjoying Jack’s success, was back playing his football in Gateshead as well, turning out for Gateshead FC in the Third Division North. Back in Dublin, Dolphin enjoyed one of their best ever seasons, winning the League title, the Dublin City Cup and finishing runners-up in the Shield without the suspended Jack O’Donnell. Ray Rogers finished as their top scorer, the former Bohemians man solving the centre-forward problem that had plagued them during Jack’s season with the club.

There was one final footballing adventure for Jack and it involved a return to the League of Ireland. With Dolphin beginning the following season as defending champions they once again came calling for the services of Jack O’Donnell, however his time with them was to be very brief. After just one game, a 4-3 defeat to Sligo Rovers he was released only to be signed a week later by another Dublin side, Reds United who were enjoying their sole League of Ireland season. As luck would have it his first, and only game, for Reds he came up against his old side Dolphin with the game ending in defeat for the League newcomers. Once again Jack was released after a single game.

Be the end of the 1930s, his playing days behind him, Jack was back in the North East of England, living with his family and working as a labourer in a timber yard. He made a few more brief appearances in the sports pages – in 1948 when he visited the Everton team ahead of a game against Newcastle in St. James’s Park, while in 1952 he was listed as turning out in a charity match in South Shields alongside a number of other, well-known, retired players. It must have been one of the last games he played as he passed away later that year.

With special thanks to Rob Sawyer of the Everton FC Heritage Society for his assistance, especially the Topical Times article and photos of Jack O’Donnell while at Everton.

Who was Albert Straka, the penalty king of Sligo?

Posted on February 14, 2023 by gerrytastic

Hundreds, maybe even thousands of the record crowd had flooded onto the pitch, reports said that there were six, maybe seven thousand packed into Showgrounds. The English referee, brought from Sheffield to the west coast of Ireland to take charge of a first round FAI Cup tie, had trouble restoring order. It was unclear to some why J.E. Bennison had blown his whistle in the first place, a penalty had been awarded for a foul on a Sligo Rovers player but thousands of heads straining for a view from amid the multitude weren’t sure exactly what had happened. Sligo were trailing 2-1 in the dying moments of the match to Shamrock Rovers, and already struggling in the League, the chance of a Cup run was all that was left of Sligo’s season. A last minute penalty, a lifeline, the dreams of Cup glory might live for another day.

But first, the decisive kick had to be taken. Bennison had made it clear that the penalty kick was to be the last kick of the match, miss and Sligo were out, score and a replay was secured. It took twelve minutes to clear the crowds that had swarmed onto the pitch, dozens still encroached on the playing surface but enough space had been cleared to allow a clear sight of the goal and Shamrock Rovers netminder Charlie O’Callaghan. A ring of players from both sides was formed around the man approaching the penalty spot, around them another ring of the “suddenly hushed spectators”, Albert Straka placed the ball on the spot, calmly ran up and dispatched the it into the corner of the net, Sligo Rovers would live to fight another day.

Three days later, thanks to goals from Paddy Coad and Liam Touhy, Shamrock Rovers won the replay 2-1 and would go on to lift the cup that year, defeating Drumcondra in the final. Despite this ultimate outcome the “Straka penalty” has entered Sligo Rovers history, it is included in a panel at the club’s outdoor museum at the Showgrounds and is still recalled in media pieces almost seventy years after the fact. But who was Albert Straka? Signed by Sligo Rovers in February 1955 as a player-coach with the club languishing at the bottom of the League, his time in the north-west was brief and he was released by the time the season had concluded at the end of April, his penalty in the Cup game and the chaos that surrounds it were probably his most lasting legacy from his short time in Ireland.

Straka, according to the limited biographical information furnished after his signing, was from Vienna, Austria, spoke very little English, was thirty-two years of age, 5’9″ tall, of stocky build and had previously played as a forward with well established Austrian clubs like Simmeringer SC, Admira Vienna and Floridsdorfer AC. It was further stated that Straka had once been a teammate of Austrian captain Ernst Ocwirk, probably Austria’s most famous footballer at the time and known to Irish soccer supporters having played in Dalymount Park in an international against Ireland two years earlier. Ocwirk has been at Floridsdorf as a young player before moving to Austia Vienna in 1947. Straka however, had listed his most recent club as FK Pottendorf, a club based fourteen miles south of Vienna.

Now, while the small town of Pottendorf is indeed south of Vienna, their football club was not as the Irish Independent stated, sitting fourth in the Austrian League, any team with Pottendorf in their name were playing in the amateur leagues in Austria. In fact, the Austrian football writer Richard Turkowitsch confirmed that SVg Pottendorf were a third division club at the time (Landesliga Niederösterreich to be precise), so at the time of his transfer Straka had been playing in a regional league. It is also interesting to note that while Austria had allowed professional football as early as 1924 in several newspaper reports it is noted that Albert Straka was a barber rathen than footballer by profession.

It is in more recent publications that Albert Straka is listed as having been an Austrian international, no such claim seems to have been made at the time, but it was stated that along with being a former teammate of Ernst Ocwirk and having played with prominent Austrian clubs, that he had also been on European tours with his clubs to nations such as France, Norway and Sweden. The statement that a small town amateur team like Pottendorf were fourth in the Austrian league sounds like it could have been a significant exagerration on behalf of Albert. I’ve written previously about how Sligo had signed Siegfried Dobrowitsch, a supposed Hungarian international in 1949, who was most likely a lower league Hungarian player who had never been anywhere close to the Hungarian national team. Both the signing of Dobrowitsch and Straka were organised through Alec McCabe.

*Alec McCabe election poster from ‘Football Sports Weekly’*

McCabe is an interesting and controversial character in his own right. A Republican revolutionary, he was a member of the Irish Volunteers and later the IRB, he met with Seán McDermott, Patrick Pearse, Tom Clarke and James Connolly immediately prior to the Easter Rising of 1916 and tried unsuccessfully to ignite an uprising in County Sligo at the time to little effect. Interned in the Rath camp in Kildare during the War of Independence he was a TD in the fourth Dáil for Cumann na nGaedheal, resigning his seat after the failed Army Mutiny of 1924. McCabe, was a teacher by profession and a founder member of the Educational Building Society (EBS). As the 1930s progressed he became more involved with the Blueshirt movement and with the Irish Christian Front at the outreak of the Spanish Civil War. At a large public meeting in College Green in 1936 McCabe spoke to the crowd about the dangers posed by Communism and praised the efforts of Dictators in other European nations in fighting its spread, stating of the perceived Communist threat “thanks to Hitler, they [Communists] were crushed for all time in Germany, and, thanks to Mussolini, they had been checked in Italy. Thanks to Franco, they would never come to Ireland.“

McCabe was briefly interned in 1940–41 “because of his pro-German sympathies” however on release he returned to teaching and his work with the EBS, eventually becoming its full-time managing director, a position he held until 1970. His interests also clearly extended to sport, in his youth he was an accomplised Gaelic, soccer and rugby player and after hanging up his boots he remained very active in various roles with both Sligo Rovers and the FAI. In relation to Straka he was referred in the Sligo Champion as the key organiser of the signing and was described as Sligo’s “representative in Dublin” as due to his role with the EBS he was by then, permanently living in Ranelagh.

McCabe seems to have had several connections in Continental Europe, perhaps through various roles at the FAI. There are newspaper reports of him providing Irish journalists with hard to find European sports publications as well as the fact that he somehow found a network that allowed him to sign Straka and back in 1949 Siegfried Dobrowitsch, a former WWII soldier in the Hungarian army for the Axis powers who later claimed to have fled Hungary after the rise of Communism and found his way to Ireland via a spell in France. Speaking later in 1955 at the end of season AGM the Sligo Rovers secretary Charlie Courtney said that Straka had been “highly recommended” to Alec McCabe by an unnamed party, and that McCabe “at no small expense and inconvenience to himself obtained Straka’s services” which confirms that there was at least some sort of informal football network who viewed McCabe as someone likely to take a risk on a European player.

Straka put pen to paper just before the first round draw of the FAI Cup, Sligo were at the time bottom of the League and as mentioned were hoping for a Cup run, boosted by a high profile signing to give some meaning to their season and increase gate receipts at the Showgrounds. It was a path Sligo had travelled before, signing Dobrowitsch in 1949 and most famously signing ‘Dixie’ Dean in 1939 where he enjoyed a brief and prolific spell propelling Sligo all the way to the final of the FAI Cup while drawing massive crowds everywhere he played during his Irish sojourn.

This practice of course wasn’t just limited to Sligo Rovers, Cork Athletic had pulled off something of a coup in 1953 by bringing in a 39 year old Raich Carter. Carter, one of the standout creative attacking talents of the 30s and 40s who still possessed enough of his footballing gifts to make a major impression on the League of Ireland and help Cork Athletic to Cup victory over city rivals Evergreen United. The same week that Albert Straka signed for Sligo Rovers another veteran English forward was signed by Shelbourne, Frank Broome had been a star for Aston Villa and Derby County during the 30s and 40s and Shels hoped the former England international still had enough in his locker as he appraoched his 40th birthday to deliver some silverware for them. However in six games he failed to find the net for Shelbourne, and unlike Albert Straka he failed from the spot when presented with his best chance in a Cup match against Shamrock Rovers.

Despite his limitations in the English language Albert Straka was to be more than just a player for Sligo, he was also going to fulfil a coaching role, alongside his joint-coach and fellow player Jimmy Batton, a Scottish defender then lining out for the club. Straka made his debut on the 6th February, 1955 in a League game against a Waterford side who were chasing the League title. The presence of the new signing in the starting XI had the desired effect, at the turnstiles at least. Over 3,000 fans, a record attendance for the season to that point paid £230 in gate reciepts to see the Austrian make his debut. The Donegal Democrat reported that over 250 cars from Donegal and Derry made the journey south for the game, while other papers had reports of long journeys by bicycle or even on foot after early starts from all over County Sligo.

Waterford even though they were missing their star striker Jimmy Gauld through injury, proved too strong for Straka and Sligo, winning a poor game 2-1. The reviews of Straka were not very complimentary, while it seems from the reports that Straka was a danger from set pieces and that he could create good chances with his accurate crossing it was felt that he overall had a limited impact. In fairness most reports listed the various mitigating factors, that he had endured three days of travel to get to Sligo, that he had only just met his teammates who did not speak the same language as him, and that the League of Ireland played a more “robust” style of football than he might otherwise have been used to.

Straka himself, through an interpreter, told Seamus Devlin of the Irish Press that he wasn’t fully match-fit as the Austrian league had finished and he hadn’t played in five weeks, while he also complained of the heavy pitch at the Showgrounds. In the first half he seems to have picked up a minor injury and spent much of the second half relegated to the right-wing as a virtual passenger in the game.

The following match was to be more successful as Sligo surprised many pundits by defeating Shelbourne 3-1 in Tolka Park with Straka linking up especially well with his partner in attack Johnny Armstrong. Straka scored his first for the club, a penalty kick which he “clipped into the corner of the net like he did it every week” in what was to become something of a trademark for the Austrian. There were several mentions of displays of prodigious technique and creativity by Straka who clearly impressed those in attendance. Shelbourne, on something of a bad run of form were without Martin Colfer for most of the game and were effectively down to ten men after losing their star player to injury after half an hour. They also conspired to miss a first half penalty and it really seemed to be a day for them to forget at Tolka and things could have been even worse. Sligo were awarded a second penalty and with the game effectively won rather than let Straka take a second spot kick the opportunity was given to Armstrong who preferred power to accuracy and missed with his kick. The win lifted Sligo off the bottom and gave them a bit of belief that they could avoid having to apply for re-election to the league.

The following week Sligo were back in the Showgrounds hosting St. Patrick’s Athletic who would ultimately go on to be crowned League of Ireland champions that season. Clearly with their confidence bouyed by their result against Shelbourne there was an impressive performance by Sligo, especially in defence, with goalkeeper Tommy Oates and Jimmy Batton earning high praise. The game was tightly contested and Straka had his name taken by referee Michael Byrne after his reacted to a rough tackle by Tommy Dunne. Straka would have some measure of revenge later in the game. Johnny Armstrong made one of his bursting runs and was only denied a goal when one of the Pats defenders cleared ball from the goal-line with his hand. From the resulting penalty Straka “simply stroked the ball into the corner of the net” in what the Sligo Champion described as “one of the best penalty kicks ever taken in the Showgrounds”.

Despite the penalty award the Sligo fans clearly felt aggreived at the refereeing performance of Michael Byrne who was pelted with snowballs on the cold February evening as the match ended and he quickly made his way to the pavillion after St. Pats had snatched a late victory with Sligo down to ten men due to injury. Not content with snowballs some of the other Sligo fans “besieged” the St. Pat’s team bus as they tried to make their exit in the direction of Dublin. There would be more visitors from Dublin soon, the Cup game against Shamrock Rovers was on the horizon, three trains full of fans from Dublin were expected to add to a huge expected local attendance in the Showgrounds.

In the meantime there was the small matter of a trip to face Cork Athletic in the Mardyke. Straka was on the touchline in purely a coaching role, an injury from the ill-tempered St. Pat’s game (perhaps from the attentions of Tommy Dunne) ruling him out as Sligo slumped to a 4-1 defeat. In terms of his coaching the Sligo players were complimentary of Straka’s ideas, all of which had to be communicated via interpreters. Tommy Oates praised his techical ability as a passer and dead ball specialist and most of the players seemed to hve been shocked by the intensity of the phyiscal and fitness training introduced by Straka. However, the heavy defeat to Cork brought home the reality of their limitations.

Which brings us back to the “Straka penalty” and the chaotic game against Shamrock Rovers on March 6th, just over a month after Albert Straka had been first signed. Little did anyone know it at the time but that last minute penalty was to be his last goal for the club. In the replay in Milltown days later the newspaper reports were unforgiving of Straka’s performance as Sligo lost 2-1 with William P. Murphy in the Irish Independent referring to him as the “insignificant Straka” and singling him out as the weakest of the Sligo players on the day and bemoaning the absence of Victor Meldrum from the starting eleven.

Murphy got his wish the following week when Straka was dropped (who did the dropping of the player-coach?) and was replaced by Victor Meldrum (I don’t believe it!) for the visit of Transport. Meldrum didn’t disappoint, scoring twice in an easy 3-0 victory in the Showgrounds. Albert Straka wouldn’t feature again for Sligo Rovers. The next mention of Straka appeared in the Sligo Champion at the end of April to say that he was released from his position of player-coach and was in France and expected to sign for an unnamed French side.

Straka then disappears from the records, certainly in Ireland. In subsequent years his penalty taking ability, especially the spot kick against Shamrock Rovers after a pitch invasion became something ingrained in both the folklore of Sligo Rovers and the League of Ireland more broadly. The judgements made about Straka’s short time the League of Ireland from those who saw him play and those who played alongside him tend to focus on the positives, both Tommy Oates and Victor Meldrum praised his technical ability, which is also attested to by several references in match reports, even those that were not overly complimentary did tend to praise Straka’s skill, trickery and dead-ball mastery. There was an appreciation that as a coach, if nothing else, he significantly raised the fitness levels of his team-mates with his training methods. Where there was criticism, and indeed there was a signifiant amount, especially after the Cup replay, it was at least tempered by the acknowledgment that the League of Ireland differed greatly in its style of football than that more commonly found in Continental Europe.

Speaking years later to the Sligo Weekender in 2017, Paddy Gilmartin, who filled numerous roles for Sligo Rovers said of Straka “he came with a pedigree, he was a very good player and scored a few goals. His style was probably ahead of the League for that time.” This seemed to concur with the view of the Sligo committee back in 1955, returning to the summer AGM of 1955 after Straka had left the club, the club secretary summed up the signing as follows,

“He did not meet…with expectations and while he imparted much information to the team and kept them fighting fit he was just beaten by the type of football played in these islands. The signing of Straka was their second experiment with continental players and as it was felt they did not fit in with the type of game played here no useful purpose was to be gained in recruiting players from these countries.”
Sligo Rovers secretary Charlie Courtney

What became of Albert Straka after he left Sligo is unclear, perhaps he did indeed sign for a French club and his technical skills were more appreciated in a different style of football to the League of Ireland. Having consulted with a couple of Austrian football historians they have confirmed that the much later claims in Irish media that Straka was an Austrian international have no basis in fact. Similarly, the name Straka is not readily associated with any of the Austrian clubs from the 1940s and 50s mentioned in the early reports after his signing by Sligo. My own best guess is that Albert Straka was a decent amateur league player who like other players before and after “exaggerated” on their CV to embellish their footballing credibility and gain a contract. This is as last partly clear from the initial claims that a non-league club like Pottendorf were in fourth place in the Austrian league.

If anyone in Austria, Ireland, France or further afield has any more information on the enigmatic Albert Straka I’d love to hear from you.

A club for all seasons – 1929-30

Posted on February 9, 2023 by gerrytastic

Bohemians began with a pre-season tournament in August of 1929. While the club had played matches in England and Scotland in the past this was to be our first foray onto the Continent and things could not have gone better with Bohemians winning every game on the tour and securing the Aciéries d’Angleur Tournoi trophy after victories over the likes of Standard Liege and R.F.C. Tilleur. The invitational tournament ran for many years and would feature the likes of PSV Eindhoven and Bohemians Prague. Bohemians became only the second Irish side, after Glentoran in 1914, to win a European trophy, though it is worth noting that it would not be Bohemians’ last such title.

In the league it was a case of third time’s a charm as Bohemians won our third title in the 1929-30 season. It was a much-changed line-up from that of the all-conquering 1927-28 side, many of whom had moved to pastures new, although the likes of Jimmy White, Jimmy Bermingham, Johnny McMahon and goalkeeper Harry Cannon remained in the side. Cannon once again was a feature on the scorers list, hitting yet another penalty-kick that season. Added to these Bohs veterans were newer players like Stephen McCarthy who hit thirteen goals in the league that year, as well as a young Fred Horlacher (shown in cartoon form on the left) who continued to delivery on his exceptional promise. Further back in the midfield was the likes of Paddy O’Kane, yet another future Irish international.

Bohs only lost twice all season in the League, both away fixtures, while winning every single game at fortress Dalymount, they ultimately pipped defending champions Shelbourne to the title by a solitary point. Shels had a fine side that year, propelled by the goals of Johnny Ledwidge signed from LSL side Richmond Rovers, as well as former Bohemian inside forward Christy Robinson, they had to content themselves with victory in the League of Ireland Shield that year. There were no other changes to the make up of the League from the previous season and while Bohs finished top, Jacobs would finish bottom, winless all season, amassing only a meagre three points, despite featuring the talented Luke Kelly Snr. (father of the future Dubliners’ frontman) in midfield.

In the cup there was high drama as Shamrock Rovers won a controversial final 1-0 against Brideville thanks to a “Hand of God” moment from David “Babby” Byrne, the diminutive striker fisting the ball past Brideville’s Charlie O’Callaghan (in the Peter Shilton role) to secure Rovers second consecutive Cup triumph. Despite losing to Fordsons in the second round of the Cup, Bohemians did make history that year when forward Billy Cleary scored six goals in a 7-3 win over Bray Unknowns in a first round replay. Cleary’s record for most individual goals scored in a Cup tie remains intact to this day.

At international level Ireland’s sole match was a 3-1 win against Belgium in Brussels in May 1930, with Jimmy Dunne scoring twice. Among the starting eleven were Bohemians’ Fred Horlacher and Jack McCarthy who returned to Belgium after their successful, pre-season trip to Liege, also in the line-up was Billy Lacey who became Ireland’s oldest ever international, just four months short of his 41st birthday. Lacey would later become a successful coach at Bohemians in the 1930s.

Part of a series in the Bohemian FC match programmes. The 1928-29 season review can be found here.

A club for all seasons – 1928-29

Posted on February 9, 2023 by gerrytastic

Bohemians entered the new season as champions and were fancied to retain their crown after their clean-sweep the previous year. The league remained at 10 teams with Athlone Town, who had finished bottom and been on the end of a number of drubbings failing to be re-elected to the League and their place being taken by Drumcondra who had been Cup winners in 1927 and beaten finalists a year later.

It was one of the tightest title races ever with a ding-dong battle between Shelbourne and Bohs for the Championship, despite only losing once and drawing twice in the League campaign Shelbourne pipped Bohs to the title by a single point. David “Babby” Byrne and Jock McMillan supplying the goals while Shels had also added Bob Thomas, a star of the all-conquering Bohs the previous season to their midfield where he’d play alongside his brother Paddy.

For Bohemians Billy Dennis was once more top scorer but getting in among the goals was a young inside-left named Fred Horlacher who made his debut that season and would go on to become one of the greatest players in the club’s history. The son of a Mormon, German, pork-butcher Freddie Horlacher would play in numerous positions for Bohs as well as making several appearances for Ireland in a career that would see him become one of the club’s highest ever goalscorers.

Top scorer in the League overall however, was Eddie Carroll (left), a former Northern Ireland international who had spent the previous seasons playing in Scotland for Aberdeen and Dundee United, Carroll was in his first of three spells with Dundalk.

There was further disappointment in the Cup for Bohemians, despite knocking out St. James’s Gate, Jacobs and Drumcondra on the way to the final, we were ultimately defeated in a replay by Shamrock Rovers as they won their first of five consecutive Cup titles. The initial final had been played at Dalymount and ended in a 0-0 draw, however the replay was moved to Shelbourne Park and Rovers would triumph on the southside 3-0, with two goals from John Joe Flood and one from veteran forward Bob Fullam.

Bohemians would get a modicum of revenge when they defeated Shamrock Rovers 2-0 in a test match to settle the winner of the League of Ireland Shield later that season. Although Bohs were comfortable winners in that game with Jimmy White grabbing both goals it was Rovers teenage forward Paddy Moore who caught the eye of a Cardiff City scout who signed up the prodigious talent the following month.

At Inter-league level the LOI had mixed fortunes, beating the Welsh League 4-3 in Dublin, with Johnny McMahon and Peter Kavanagh of Bohs getting three of the goals, but then losing to the Irish League 2-1 later the same season. At international level Ireland only played one game, a resounding 4-0 victory over Belgium in April 1929 front of 30,000 fans in Dalymount. John Joe Flood scored a hat-trick with Babby Byrne getting the other goal. Jimmy Bermingham was the sole Bohemian in the starting XI for Ireland that day. Just four months later Bermingham and his Bohs teammates would be part of a visit to Belgium that would see them enjoy further success.

Jimmy White who scored the decisive goals to secure the Shield for Bohemians.

For the 1927-28 season click here.

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