World of Sport

An open letter to my two new friends, Annie (11) and Lois (8).

Girls! Wasn’t that a great day’s fun we had with your Daddy at the Ulster hurling club final? Dunloy were mighty as they crashed into those Slaughtneil boys!

I’m sure you noticed I was checking my phone a lot – too much maybe! You see, I like to follow all different sports and there was a big World Cup game on last Sunday afternoon. Sure, just last month, me and your Daddy went to the Aviva Stadium in Dublin to watch the Irish Cup final. It was a fabulous day out, with the northern team Derry City beating Dublin side Shelbourne 4-0 – loadsa goals! There were 20,000 fans supporting Derry and your Daddy and me were singing and clapping with big red and white Santa Claus hats on us! A happy day… I call it ‘making memories’!

You’re not going to believe it Annie and Lois, but when I was your age there was a rule that GAA people were not allowed to play soccer or – get this – even watch it!

It ended when I was 11-years-old.

By then most GAA people were watching soccer even though some pretended they were against it and liked to say, “You can’t be a ‘GAA man’ and a ‘soccer man’.

I should really say ‘girl’ as well!

If you think Messi is good, you should have seen this boy from Brazil called Pelé, he was scoring goals in a World Cup final when he was 17… Wow! 17!!

That’s final year in your school and I’m sure none of them boys in St Joseph’s or the Bunscoil will score goals in the World Cup final.

Your Daddy is like my Daddy was, he enjoys all sports. In July, we went to the All Ireland hurling final, the best day ever although it was so hot your Daddy sat watching the game with a hanky with knots in the corner on his head so not to get sunburnt, and people were looking at him and saying, ‘There’s a man with a hanky on his head!’

There was this American writer called Napoleon Hill, who said, ‘A closed mind stumbles over the blessings of life without recognising them’.

I suppose that means be open to all sports and don’t listen to people who tell you ‘soccer is no good’, ‘rugby is rubbish’… Go watch it before deciding.

My Dad used to take us to the hurling and football games in Croke Park, we sat on the sofa cheering the Ireland rugby team on mucky pitches and used to hear the result of a big boxing fight before going to school.

Then, that night we’d all watch it on TV. There was no SKY live boxing in those days. Would you believe, if the picture on the TV was going wobbly, you gave it a punch on the side of the head. Ask your Daddy… or your Granda… It’s true!

It’s great to be open to all sports and your Daddy tells me you play camogie and Gaelic football and water sports and watch the soccer games in your Chelsea tops and even do dancing and acrobats. That is wonderful!

And Annie, well done on playing in Croke Park at half-time at the camogie club final this weekend, the second time this year! That’s making memories, something you’ll always remember and cherish.

We are blessed to have so many heroes, such as the runners Nick Griggs and sisters, Eilish and Roisin Flanaghan; world champion gymnast, Rhys McClenaghan; Katie Taylor; Darragh Canavan; Conor Grogan; Niamh Hughes… and lots more…

Following and participating in many sports does not lessen them, it brings more fun and skills. Maybe later on, you will find a game you are particularly good at or like best… and will focus on that… or maybe you’ll just keep playing lots of sports.

When I was in America, I went to baseball. I don’t think it is a good TV sport at all but it was fabulous watching the New York Yankees and Darryl Strawberry hitting a home run out of the ball park. I cheered like I was in Croke Park!

Then there was a game in the Giant’s Stadium, New Jersey when Ireland beat Italy in the World Cup. It was rocking.

You’ll not believe I got so carried away, I sang Amhrán na bhFiann at my loudest and couldn’t hear my own voice with the noise from 60,000 Irish supporters.

There were great days watching Brian O’Driscoll playing rugby for Ireland and I saw world boxing champion, Barry McGuigan fight in the Ulster Hall, the roof rising with the cheers.

I’ve also seen more hurling and football finals than you could hardly count. The Ladies’ Rugby World Cup final between the All Blacks and England in Kingspan Stadium in 2017 was also brilliant.

Then there’s all the great GAA club games, and I also went to watch Coalisland Athletic win the Irish Junior Cup this year in Windsor Park.

It’s all about making memories.

Enjoy playing your sports and watching the games.

But, if you really want excitement after the World Cup and camogie finals, go to greater heights and watch the World Darts Championship that’s on now.

There are women playing against the men too!

Better still, maybe write a letter to Santa, if it’s not too late, and you might get a dart board.

180!

Merry Christmas Annie and Lois.