“Cousins” Paddy Tumelty and Brendan ‘Beansy’ Elliott

Rather than conduct this interview over the phone, on Tuesday evening myself [Kevin], Bukey, and the ‘cousins’ Paddy and Beansy got together on a Zoom call which lasted 1hr and 45 mins and below are some of the fabulous memories they recalled

Cousins and primary school memories:

Paddy: “The reason that Beansy calls me cousin- and I call Beansy cousin is because my Granny’s maiden name is Elliott and when we discovered this- we decided to melt his brothers head [Pearse] by calling each other cousins. Pearse said ‘you aren’t cousins’ and we said – yes were are cousins, our Granny’s an Elliott. We met each other at primary school and our Gaelic careers started through Mr McCormick in P6. Bukey came in substitute teaching one day and my first meeting with Bukey when I stupidly tried to challenge his authority that was my first introduction to Buke”.

“I had never played for another club before but Buke took a load of us up from Plunkett to Lámh Dhearg to do training – Ben Cassidy and Seamy McGlone. Beansy was at Davitt’s and we’d been playing from P6 at Plunkett – but we were in the same class from P1. Him and McGuigan [Micky McGuigan] ‘bullied ‘ me and then I met Peter Kane and he sorted them all out because he was the top fighter among them. I have great memories of attending dinner dances in the Ballymac as ward winners and then the juvenile awards the at the club. Brilliant nights for us all”.

Beansy: “Paddy’s great Granny and my great-Granda are cousins- that’s the connection. We’ve met each other at primary school [St Oliver Plunkett] we were in the same class from P1 right through to P7. I played for Davitt’s until U-10 and my Da moved away from Davitt’s and I didn’t play for about a year. How I joined the club – Shanty [Pat McCague] was driving by our house- I was out the front playing hurling with my Da and our Kevin and Micky McGuigan stopped the van and shouted out the window ‘Beansy do you fancy playing a hurling match?’ that was how I joined the club- mental”.

First big games for the club:

Paddy:

“The first match I ever played was an U-12 against St Colm’s first years – Bukey was subbing at St Colm’s and arranged the match. It was absolutely freezing and wee Terry Dunlop nearly had hypothermia- we had to put him underneath the heaters for two hours. I was in tears; Shanty had my hands underneath the blow-heaters in the changing rooms trying to get a bit of heat into me’.

“Obviously joining the club was through Bukey- he pulled us all together and was instrumental in making us hurl as well.  Roy ‘Micko’ Irvine and Kevin McCambridge were also very committed to us and very influential. Bukey told us to get out there and hurl- it’s as good a game as football. He coached us in U-12 and U-14 football and hurling. Bukey used to take me and Kevin [Elliott] the odd Saturday or Sunday along with [Block and Kaneso] – to big games at Croke Park. They fed us a big steak dinner on the way back- Kevin used to get more bacon butties in Bukey’s mum’s house than he did”.

“Daryl [Fegan] alluded to it – our first big game in hurling was up in Loughgiel in the U-14 Féile final. We beat St Pauls and all the Ramsey’s and the Shannon’s at Rossa. We beat all the Belfast teams in the hurling and went up and played in the Féile final at U-14. That was my first big game at Lámh Dhearg that I remember”.

Beansy: “There was 10 or 11 of us from Lenadoon and 5 or 6 of us were in the same class in Plunkett. We won in the Raffo Cup semi-final against St Finian’s – it was the first time they were ever beat- they’d lads like Georide [Mervyn], Geoaroid [Adams], Donal [O’Hara], Damien [Ferris]. Brother Christopher called Bukey a turn-coat for coaching us all”.

“We got beat by Loughgiel in the Féile final in U-14 at it has a hard defeat to take but two months later they brought in the Belfast hurling Championship and we were playing Rossa. We were 8-points up at Rossa Park and we took our foot off the pedal and they levelled. Bukey went berserk, Cobbler [Gary McKenna] and Block went mad. We played the final replay at the club and the whole of Rossa thought they were going to beat us. I was playing corner-back and Stevie Collins was playing full-forward for Rossa. Everybody that came in on top- I can safely say the sliotar  was always well competed for

“Paddy was playing as a third midfielder and Rossa never caught on – they took Seamy Shannon out of the game and Ciaran McDonald, Joe Boyle and Peter Rogan. They were dead strong around the middle and our Kevin kept hitting short puck-outs to Paddy and Rossa never caught on. It was sweet revenge in a sense because it made up for the disappointment of the Féile final. Donal [O’Hara] and Kipper [Cormac Carmichael] joined us that year and came into that team. It was shrewd tactics from Bukey”.

Trip to Banagher and Newcastle:

Paddy: “We went down to Banagher in Offaly to play St Rynagh’s – everybody was paired up with a partner- I went with Micky McGuigan because I lived beside him. Dayrl Fegan was paired up with somebody else who had a few quid at the time. Me and Micky ended up with a family in a mid-terrace house – they were as good as gold- but the back yard wasn’t great. They’d a wee back yard the same as my Ma’s backyard and they’d a pig in it. They came after us when were leaving and gave us a packed lunch- in the packed lunch was banana sandwiches. They were waving cheerio to us and me and McGuigan were in tears- glad to go home”.

“I remember St Rynagh’s in a friendly – Marty Collins was there. They were swinging sticks for fun but I went in for this ball and jumped in the air and Marty Collins shouted – Tumelty ! and pulled me off. He said ‘no player of mine ever pulls out of a tackle’ he pulled me off and I sitting on the bench raging. That the was the last time I ever pulled out of anything at U-12 because I never wanted taken off again. What a man Marty Collins was”.

“We had trips to Newcastle as well- they brought us there and used to rattle us up at all hours the next morning. We were up to all night and they took us up bouldering in cold freezing water- the next night we were in bed sleeping from 9.30 shivering – we were never so glad to get back.   Beansy and me  took the U-16s a few years ago and stayed in the Hut, Hostel. We took that wee team to play Bryansford and got them up the next morning and took them to the top of Slieve Donard on a wet terrible day”.

“Paul Dowling was a cracking player- our number six- he doesn’t play anymore. We called him the Bull and I told them to bring boots or old guddies for going up the top of Donard. Jim Watson, Beansy and myself were going back and forth and making sure that everyone was keeping up. I looked at Paul Dowling half-way up Slieve Donard and he was wearing football boots with studs. He said ‘you told us to wear boots’ – I said walking boots, not football boots!. He walked to the top of Slieve Donard in a pair of studded football boots- unbelievable”. 

Beansy: “I was paired up with Gary Murray for the trip and our Kevin stayed with somebody who was a Barrister. I remember Paddy and Micky got Offaly rigs for £5 – you don’t get deal like that in O’Neill’s. We arrived on the Friday night there was about 100 locals on the pitch. This kid was sitting on his knees on the 21-yard line taking cuts, he was on his knee’s at one stage and we said what are you doing? – he said, ‘I’m going to win All-Irelands’ – he was something else”.

“The trips to Newcastle were class as well and some great craic – there was one time that two Ulster busloads of us to Newcastle for a day trip. We played Bryansford and Bukey ordered 100 fish supers from top of the town. After we had the fish suppers we were allowed to go to the amusements for an hour. We got back onto the bus everyone was really quiet. Bukey got onto the bus and some people started combing their hair – someone got his hands on some combs and Bukey wasn’t happy to say the least  had to go back and apologise and sort it out. They were great memories and to go back down years later with the U-16 team that we were taking with Paddy was just superb. They didn’t get to have us much craic was we did though – as we were poachers turned game keepers”. We also had a brilliant day out at Rossa v Buffers Alley in All Ireland club final at Croker and of course a memorable experience at the All Ireland final Antrim v Tipp in ’89. What a day and one you will never forget apart from the result.

Other trips / memories:

Paddy: “My recollection of America was Micky Herron playing beach volley-ball – that was my best memory. Seeing him with his glasses on wearing a pair of speedos, flying through the air playing beach volleyball with Terry McCrudden, Eamon McGarry, Gavin Brown, Joe Finnegan and a few others for a few others. They were playing beach volleyball in the Gulf of Mexico in Pittsburg. The craic in the Irish Bar- we found a wee Irish Bar that could hold 100 of us and they must have made a clean fortune. They were running out of kegs each night”.

“There was also the Letterkenny 7s at St Eunan’s. Fitzy brought the whole senior team up and he could only name 10 players. It was two days away over Easter in Letterkenny. We were on the way down and he was calling the team out – he’d named Frankie Wilson, Micky Boyle, Colm McCabe, Terry McCrudden and the rest. It coming to the end and he listed Beansy Elliott as 9 and Paddy Tumelty as 10 – we said, ‘ah for god sake’. We didn’t want to play- we only to go down and watch and have a swall. Fitzy heard us and said’ do yous two not want to play? You’re down here to play football not to drink!’. We went out against St Eunan’s, Lavey, Ballinascreen and the top teams in Ulster”.

“Some of pitches had puddles and the referee’s said if the ball goes in there just stop and pick it up and lift it out. Anto, Beansy, Stevie McFadden and myself seen Ann [McCague] who was washing our rigs at the time- bear in mind we were playing in white. Ann was standing there was Shanty on the side-line and we said- come on we’ll hold hands. We ran at her and went down on our bellies sliding towards Shanty and she was shouting ‘Stop it- No’ they’d to wash the kits and we were doing belly flops in the puddles after we won it. It was some craic”.

“We boxed Frankie Wilson off that night that he had got player of the tournament- we phoned St Eunan’s bar and boxed them off to pretend that Frankie got player of the tournament. We told him he got it and big Fitzy was in on it – we took back to the club and a fella was standing there with a ladies darts trophy. There was about 3 people in the club and we went on in and someone had a camera and took photos – standing there in front of us thinking he’d one it. We said ‘Frankie, that isn’t the trophy’ it was a ladies darts trophy”.

“We played the Kilmacud Crokes in 93 and played in the 7s – I think we got beat by the eventual winners Errigal Ciaran. We got out of our group and they beat us in extra-time. It would have been the likes of Micky Boyle, Frankie Wilson, Anto Finnegan, Beansy and myself”.

Beansy: “That holiday was unbelievable for the club- there was so many brilliant memories and it was unbelievable. Paddy and myself met up with the others in Florida- it was brilliant. We went to bars and you couldn’t get the microphone off Anto [Finnegan] the craic was brilliant him singing Grace. I’ll never forget sitting around the campfire on the beach in Florida and we were all singing to Micky Herron – Cecilia. He was up dancing to it. It was brilliant”.

“The Letterkenny 7s was class as well- the water was up to your knees and it was wild and unbelievable. There’s two pictures, one of us just after winning it and we all dived into a puddle and were covered in muck. The next one is with clean tops on. They were brilliant times. We were in St Eunan’s bar and singing Frankie’s the captain of our ship –  after he’d won his ‘player of the tournament’ award. Kilmacud Croke’s was brilliant and a good experience and brilliant camaraderie”.

U-16 and minor (pre-92) :

Paddy: “We’d a bad defeat to St Johns in the U-16 football final the beat us in a few finals over the years. But we were starting to build something. We won the U-17 winter league and beat Dunloy in our last match. It was a foggy day and they weren’t going to play the match; we were winning 21-1 and someone went over to the referee and said, ‘I want the match abandoned- this isn’t a fair result’. The referee blew the whistle and we won the league- you couldn’t see two yards in front of you on the pitch that day”.

“Frankie Quinn came in to take us in U-16 hurling and the training was ahead of their time. We were doing Burpee’s and stuff with cones and your legs were six inches off the ground. We were doing all that in the winter and playing a lot of friendlies and running around the back of the pitch when we couldn’t get on the pitch. You didn’t have mobile phones back then- if you weren’t at training- everybody else would be at you at school or at the next session asking you why you weren’t there. You didn’t want to miss it and Bukey had in the classroom the next day to ask the same. The whole team were on your back if you didn’t go to training or you weren’t there”.

“We all had our positions and we all knew where to go and where the ball was going to be -it never changed. We were always taught a quick low ball into space- you got the ball, won the ball and put a low ball into space. Bukey  was  always drilling  into us and it was simple football”.

“I’ll say one thing about the minor team- in training session when we played backs and forwards- we had tougher training sessions against each other than we did in a lot of the matches that we played. That’s what made us such a good team- we were going out and playing teams and they weren’t hitting you half as hard as you were being hit in training on a Tuesday or Thursday night. We were ploughing into each other- I hated going near Robbie Murray, Marty Matthews or Raymie Herron in the full-back line – they’d have broke you in two”.

Beansy: “The Johnnies beat us in the U-16 football final as well as U-12. They had Marty Crummey and Stephen McCann and Pat McStravick and other good players as well. Jim Brady and Pat McCague  took the team with Bukey – they beat us handy at Casement . We got beat in minor final by Cargin. I was played at full-forward and we beat the Sarsfield’s dream-team in the semi-final”.

“We turned it around in U-16 and started to realise that we were half decent- our training started to go better for us. The following year it was minor and our pre-season training was all in the parish hall in Hannahstown. Frankie set it all up and Pat [Toland], Block [Kevin McCambridge] and Cobbler [Gary McKenna] took us for circuit training. We only had one player that didn’t play hurling and that was Colly Gorman- everybody else played. He was the only one who went to College, everybody else was working at that age”.

“Without Greenway’s – none of us probably would have been there. Our parents had no cars and couldn’t of afforded taxis three times a week.There was no other way for us to get up to Hannahstown. Shanty and Shaker used to come to lift us in the buses. We used to go up Hannahstown Hill and there was a fella that used to run up the Hill. Micky McGuigan shouted something out the back and Shaker’s bus took off going up the Suffolk Road and it got to the steep part and couldn’t move any faster. He was getting closer and closer to the bus – he was chasing the bus and we were afraid. We thought he was going to kill us”.

“I remember Buke took a session in Musgrave – me and Paddy were paired up with each other for a ball between two. All he did for a whole hour was drill the ball in low into each other and attack the ball. You were trying to catch the ball first time at speed. You used to have to pair up in hurling for blocking sessions. Donal O’Hara and Robbie Murray were so competitive  and used to drive the ball into each other – as hard as they could and they used to come off with bloody noses and bloody knuckles and it was only a training session. It was brilliant” .

Memories of 92 finals and build ups:

Paddy:

“The minor hurling was amazing – We had 15-year olds like Peter-Martin [McGuigan] – Kevin Elliott was just 16 and Gary Murray. Beating the likes of Cushendall in the semi-final. They said we were a bunch of ‘hatchet-men’, they’re not hurlers. It was hard, tough hurling- we played a match against Cushendun a couple of years ago and Raymond Herron, Gary Agnew and myself went into Sambo’s bar in Cushendall. There was this guy giving me the evil eyes and I went up to by my drink and he says, ‘do you not remember me’? I said no mate. He said, ‘you broke my brothers arm in the minor semi-final at Casement and cost us the minor championship’ he remembered it 20-years later and was still smarting about it”.

“I remember getting the grey sweet-shirts from Bukey and John Dunne and there’s a picture outside Shaker’s bus with the sweatshirts. Frankie brought us to mass at Hannahstown. Kevin [Elliott] and I were doing a reading and Kevin was nervous – I said it’s okay I’ll go first. The reading was up there and I knew that Kevin struggled with the big words- it was only one sheet and his reading was after my reading. I got a pen before I went up and scribbled out all the big words that Kevin had to read- he’d no idea that I scribbled them out. After I said my reading I stood back and Kevin had make up his reading. He stuttered everywhere and the Priest was looking at him thinking – can you not read son?’

“Frankie gave us a banana up at the club and something to drink – at the start of the match – he had this big Lucozade bottle and said, ‘take a drink of this’ and pushed it round every one of us and made us take it- it was disgusting. I think it was brandy and Lucozade- a few years later at the reunion he said, ‘ you mustn’t have disliked it that much because yous finished it all before you went out’”.

“I remember playing that match was like when you were a child and was Christmas eve- you just wanted it to end. We were up by a point before Maxi [Paul Maxwell] scored the goal to seal it. It was coming near the end and the ball just got palmed out by PJ [O’Mullan] their keeper. He was in nets this time but he was playing forward in U-14 and scored six goals against us. Maxi hit it on the deck on the 21-yard line and it went in- what a hit”.

“The game was played before the senior hurling final and there was a big crowd in- Loughgiel were playing in the senior in that as well. The whole Casement stand was filled and round the corner and the concrete stand was filled. We were celebrating and they couldn’t get us off the pitch- you have to hand it to Frankie Quinn and his management team of Marty Collins, Cobbler, Block and Pat Toland. A magnificent achievement for our club to win the county hurling title. The two teams eventually got to come on for the final after they got us off”.

Beansy: “I remember Donal O’Hara got dropped off the county team and he was out to prove a point. He never had a campaign like it and the final he was exceptional- he played number 11 and he was unmarkable – he won everything for us. We’d revenge on our minds going into the hurling final because Loughgiel had beaten us in the Féile final four years earlier. I’ve a wee side story to the final”.

“Every so often I would bump into one of the umpires, he always talks about our final. he said it was a cracking game and a very keenly contested one. As an umpire- it was a game you had to keep your eyes focused on. he say’s it was one of the best games he recalls seeing at Casement”. 

“Daryl [Fegan] got sent-off, someone dirty joed me and Daryl came over and banged him and that’s why he got sent-off. That’s just the way it was, if one got hit in that team – football or hurling- the other ones were in backing them up. There was lot of camaraderie. I’ll never forgot Maxi’s goal- I was standing behind him and he caught the ball and it curled. I can still see it curling into the top corner. It was unbelievable”.

Tony Stanley – Partner

Beansy: “I remember training with Frankie Quinn and we were put in pairs – I was playing left-half back and Tony Stanley were left-full back and we were put in pairs. From that day on- we’ve always called each other partner and we still call each other partner”.

Milk-float to Casement:

Paddy: “There was no Shakers bus that day. A guy called Murphy that Micky McGuigan used to work for stopped. We got on the milk-float and were sitting in our grey jumpers the whole way down to Casement. The Hannahstown ones went down with Shanty. We’d our Lámh Dhearg bags and our grey jumpers- it was outstanding”.

Beansy: “We all met at the bottom of Lenadoon and were heading down to Casement and a Milk float pulled up at the bottom of Lenadoon. We all jumped onto the back of the milk-float, that’s how we got to Casement that day”.

Minor football final:

Paddy: “The hurling win gave us belief – if we could beat the Loughgiel’s of the world in hurling- what could we do in football as well? remember St Johns had beat us the whole way up from U-12, We’d revenge on our minds with them as well- getting the milk float to the match probably quelled our nerves a wee bit. Bukey would have saw us getting off the milk-float at Andytown Leisure Centre and thought – whats going on. That chilled us out and got us into the changing rooms”.

“In the first half we didn’t perform at all, I was hobbling a wee bit and strapped up. The first half just didn’t happen at all for us- every time they attacked, they scored. We were seven points down at half-time. They went nine up at the start of the second half but Kipper Carmichael was out of this world in the second half. If you had to mark Kipper in backs and forwards in training- you were on a hiding to nothing. You couldn’t mark him, he would just run everywhere behind you could get nowhere near him. Both feet and he was unbelievable. It was the best comeback that I had ever played in-ever- at any level”.

“Oliver Kelly wouldn’t give me the microphone- the captain usually got to make a speech and he kept the microphone and wouldn’t give me it. I wanted to sing the wee song ‘Feeling so happy’ from the Coca-Cola ad. Celebrating afterwards, you would have went to the Hunting Lodge, the Whiteford for a full week. It wasn’t just the next day and Monday club. We were only 18-years of age and everywhere we went- everybody wanted to buy you a drink. You were like a celebratory because you’d beat Loughgiel in the hurling down in Belfast – which a lot of Rossa and St Johns boys were so happy about. Beating the Johnnies in the football- everybody was so happy about it. After the matches the club would have taken us up to the Ballymac for a huge Sirloin steak& chips. I always thought that steak was vegetable roll. That’s for sure the club always look after you well”.

Beansy: “the first-half was a blank – everybody froze, nobody had a clue and we weren’t going well. We were seven points down at half-time and I was walking behind Pat McStravick and he lifted the cup and kissed it to the crowd – the whole crowd cheered and it almost woke us up. Bukey started the hairdryer treatment  and Jim Brady disappeared and came bursting through the door with the Ballymena Guardian and showed us the full page from the hurling final a few weeks previous. The speech was unbelievable and  inspirational there was a lot of shouting – but what woke me up was the cup being lifted”.

“we came out and from what I remember- every single ball that they kicked-out- O’Hara won and gave it to Kipper and this happened for about eight of our scores. Peter-Martin got a couple of scores and Colly Gorman as well. The St Johns boys remember it more than us- it still kills them that we came back after being down by that much. It was unbelievable and the minor success was unreal. The club looked after us well and fed us in the Ballymac afterwards. It was the first time we ever had steaks”.

Immense pride as captain:

Paddy: “That’s the only cup that I ever lifted as captain for the club. Being captain of that minor football team- you were just a captain in name because somebody had to take the toss- there was 15 captains every time a ball was thrown in. Honestly- everybody knew how to do their job and everybody knew what they did wrong and what they needed to do to fix it. They knew not to look across the line to Buke, Shanty  or Jim Brady- they knew to look inside themselves and went and didn’t lose the next ball”.

U-21 campaign:

Paddy: “The U-21 campaign- my best memory of that was the semi-final win. We drew with Cargin at St Pauls – Gavin was playing full-back and went forward for the kick and wanged it into the net. We then had to go up to Rasharkin for the replay and it was an unbelievable win. Gavin’s top was ripped open afterwards and my white top ended up red”.

“In the final we got inside the Johnnies guys heads- it was one thing about us- we knew how to get inside their heads- I think we invented sledging. Pearse Rice was our captain – he was another cracking player. He said to us afterwards ‘I thought we’d no chance’. That was the same St Johns team who hammered the team the year before with Dodger, Micky Boyle, Ciaran O’Neill and Frankie Wilson. There was no light by the end of the game and we gave them another rendition of the feeling you get when you beat the Johnnies”.

“Out of that panel that year- we’d one player on the county football team and one on the hurling in minor. I was on the football and Gary Agnew was on the hurling. I played Championship against Fermanagh and was sent-off”.

Beansy: “Nobody really wanted to take us because we were all young and full of 18-year olds. Dodger then stepped up and joined up with the minor management trio – Dodger was so keen because his team had been beaten the year before by St Johns- who were the same that we beat. They brought in U-18s as well as senior players- who we had never played with. For us to draw the first day out- we were getting beat by three and we had a 45’. I kicked it and Gavin [Brown] punched it into the back of net to get us a draw. In the replay Braniff [Dee] and Kevin Finnegan scored wonder goals to win it for us, Cargin thought they were going to win it”

“The St Johns team we were playing in the final – lost one player from the year before- who beat Dodger’s U-21 team. They were all these unbelievable players and playing county: you’d Gearoid Adams, Jimmy Wilson, Sean Kelly, Charlie McLarnon, Paddy Nugent. They were all playing county football and senior football. There were 5 or 6 of us that were 18 and came from the minor team. We’d just won the minor double, there was Paddy, Daryl [Fegan], Donal [O’Hara], Kipper, Anto [Finnegan] and we were buzzing and thinking- we’re unbeatable. We had that in our minds”.

“During the game we just seemed to have the upper hand mentally as we were so confident because of the successful season we were having. At the start of the match Dee Braniff- an ex St John’s man- went past three of them and put it in the back of the net. It was unbelievable goal and it started us- we knew we were here. We’d only Colm [McCabe], Stevie McFadden and Micky Gorman from the year before. Dee Braniff was with us two years from St Johns. it was so dark by the end”.

Moving into senior:

Paddy: “After minor- the next year Fitzy [Frank Fitzsimons snr] had us in the panel. He put me into corner back and that’s where I stayed for the duration. In saying that I played in three football finals- in the first in played number 4, the second I played number 7 and the third under Dodger and Terry McCrudden I played number 11 to mark Sean Kelly – it didn’t go according to plan. Fitzy put me into corner-back and kept me in that corner whereas all the rest – Bukey had me in midfield and played there for the minor hurling- I played half-back in the U-21 team. I was born a corner-back, as long as big Fitzy was there that’s all I was good for. Being a wee small man- I was stuck in one corner and big Hughsie in the other”.

Beansy: “I remember me and Paddy’s first game playing senior football- both of us were 18 and we went up to the Moneyglass tournament. Our first game was against Cargin up there and I was playing left-back and Paddy was in right-back. Paddy was marking big  corner forward – I’ll never forget that Fitzy ran onto Paddy and shouted ‘Tumelty, test the water!’ I was in tears laughing. In thought thank God I’m not marking him. Paddy turned round and looked at him and grabbed him and said, ‘son don’t be at it’. That was our introduction to senior football”.

Final defeats and talent within football:

Paddy: “In the first final in 2003- St Gall’s were the better team of the day and we came back in the last minute thanks to a Kevin Murray goal. We beat them twice in the league that year and we’d a chance. The bookies had us even money each, I think I was marking Karl Stewart and it was tough game. He must have scored 2-04 off me. I can’t remember much of the replay. The Cargin game in 2006 was the one that got away – that was the one that got away more than anyway- it still hurts to this day”.

“We had an extra-man for almost half an hour, we scored a point and the umpires said it was wide. It was hard to take. If we had have kept the kept nucleus of that minor and U-21 team with Anto Finnegan], Kipper [Cormac Carmichael] and Donal O’Hara and nurtured them into that senior team, we would have been on a par with that special team that came through from St Galls with the Niblock’s and McGourty’s. Although it was disappointing to lose those finals I still had 3 league medals and some success in my senior football career”.

“Beansy and myself always seemed to know where each-other was- you always knew what ball to give him and when to move, when to pass and was always an outlet for me at corner-back. There was always some new kid coming in that wanted to take your spot. You’d always got them coming in and I was always on my toes and dead weary that I always needed to plough on and be better in training – cause I wanted to keep my place in the team. For a club in a small catchment area, we always seem to have a conveyor belt of youth coming through. You’d Micko [Herron], Christy [Tumelty], Paddy [Cunningham]”.

“Terry McCrudden was the only footballer that I wanted to be like in our club. He was the only defender that I thought- I wanted to be like him. He was out of this world, he would put his head in and make blocks, pulling you up and down the park and he’s 8-years older than us. He was my role model”.

Beansy: “It was desperate – in the first final we got beat- I got a block and went up in the air and bounced with a spin and they got the goal. I think we got beat by two-points. I marked Kevin Niblock- he was only a kid at the time and I was doing full-back. He didn’t get much ball because I didn’t let him move at all. We got in the 2008 final and then went down to Division 2- getting there was good but we got relegated. That was the worst thing in my senior career to go into Division 2. But it was probably one of my best years to go straight back up into Division 1. Although we didn’t win a Championship we still won 3 Division 1 league medals”.

“We senior team we got brought into was an unbelievable senior team- you’d Frankie Wilson, Colm McCabe, Dodger, Russ, Bukey  and Micky Boyle. As a defender you’d Terry McCrudden, Paul McCabe Eamon McGarry, Totes, Bill Molloy, Hughsie, Stevie McFadden etc. I remember one of our best victories- we were playing St Galls in Milltown and had no team. Our Kevin and Sean were playing, Kevin didn’t play much football and Sean was only a kid at the time. I played centre-half back, Kevin played left-half back and Sean played right-half back. It was during the summer when everybody was away on holidays. The best game ever has to be the game up in Cargin – we’d 3 players sent-off and beat them with 12-men. we played with 12-men behind the ball and beat them. Hughsie, Stevie McFadden and Bill [Molloy] were sent-off and it was Terry [McCrudden], Paddy and myself in the half-back line. It was a scorching day and my best game for the club.

Hurling:

Beansy: “I played senior hurling up until we got to Division 1 and then I said, I’m just going to stick to the football. I got a bad injury at Casement against Gort na Mona. We had unbelievable hurlers coming through and I didn’t think I was good enough for Division 1 hurling and that’s the reason I stuck solely to the football”.

Paddy: “The were unreal times but hurling was always tough. When you’re playing two games a week and two training sessions a week- lucky enough most managers understood. They worked with each-other and if you played football and hurling, you only trained one session. 2003- the game we beat Sarsfields under Big Barry Armstrong in a replay at Corrigan- that was my proudest moment as a senior hurler and the best match”.

“I had my brother [Christy] playing with me that day and cracking hurlers like Ciaran Herron, Brendan Herron, Micko Herron, Daniel McGreevy, Baby [Conor McConville], Raymie Herron, Cathal Kelly, Reg [Brendan McComb, Paddy Cunningham and Daryl Fegan. All sorts of hurlers and mates that you’ve grown up with in the minor hurling team and kids coming through that saw us win minor and wanted to emulate it”.

“Going up to senior was some experience- honestly it was. We were playing Cushendall, Dunloy, Loughgiel and Ballycastle. It was proper hurling and before we playing that’s that you lucky if you got to work the next day, never mind getting off the field. It was pure hurling and amazing”.

“We’d two brilliant wins that stick in my mind, we beat St Johns down in Corrigan Park. What a match- it unbelievable; Donal [O’Hara] wasn’t playing that match [he was injured] and I played and I was relishing playing against him. But then in the return match I had picked up an injury in a football so I didn’t start the second game. He played and starred and they beat us- I came on late-on against him – but I couldn’t get anywhere near him because I was still carrying an injury”.

“There was another night that Ballycastle came down with all the McKillop’s and Campbell’s and came down to give us a lashing. We just stood up to them, I was playing midfield- I played midfield in the senior hurling team. All we dd was supply balls for Paddy Cunningham and take ball’s off Micko, Ciaran and Christy. That was some team. It was the time of Bukey’s Da’s wake and we came down to the house full at 2 o’clock with Micky McGuigan – I think we were heading to the pigeon club”.

“The time we beat Cushendall in the Championship was some match- they came up and rested all their county players – because they were playing us and it was going to be handy enough for them. It was a wet, dingy, foggy night and what a game it was. Ciaran Herron had the match of the century- he was unreal- barging through, shoulder tackling, winning every ball and he just dragged us around the park. They came at us with everything and put all their county players on in the second-half, they couldn’t get near us and we won by a point in the end”.

“They went on to win Ulster that year- they weren’t beat the whole year in the league and were only beaten in Championship by us. The Championship was run off league the Champions League- a round robin basis. We had Gort’s, themselves and us in our group. They came out of it- we beat them and Gort’s but beating them was just unreal. Lámh Dhearg senior hurling beating Cushendall senior hurling was unheard of. You got the wee buzz back from minor but hurling was always tough”.

“I remember after dropping down to Intermediate we got beat after a replay by St Galls in the 2009 final under lights at Casement. The year we won Intermediate in 2011 was the last year I played hurling for the club. I played in the first round against Tír na nÓg but didn’t play in the semi-final, final or Ulster because I was dropped- I remember the number I got in the final was 25. That number means a lot to me and I keep all my jerseys – number 25 means a lot to me now. It was a great year and some achievement for the club- it’s just a pity we couldn’t push on into senior. It’s tough for a dual club with limited players at your disposal is tough”.

Coaching:

Paddy: “I first started coaching the U-16s with Stevie McFadden and in the second year he couldn’t go any longer so I asked Beansy if we would give me a hand and he came in. they were a cracking side- we’d a keeper Gerard Walker who was outstanding. You’d Jack Trainor, Ryan Diamond, Paul Dowling , Eoin McKeown and Cameron Flynn. They were struggling for coaches and Peter Kane got me involved when Cameron [my nephew] was U-12. I took them for 6-years and Beansy came with my last year with them. It was around 2014 and that was the last team to win an A South Antrim Championship and league. We were competing in A and they were a treat to work with. We spoke earlier about bringing that team to Newcastle and stuff. They’d some talent – you’d Francie Dugan and other cracking players”. I would have  also helped Christy with the U-16 hurlers when I was U-16 football manager”.

“After that I’d two years looking after our senior hurlers- Christy came in on the second year to help me out coaching. Next to playing with your brother, it was the second-best experience- getting to coach with him. Christy played the first year for me but the second year he came in and said he couldn’t play anymore because he was injured. It was a good experience and I was very proud to look after the senior hurlers in our club. The second year I was looking after us we got to the final of the Senior Football Championship and we were up against it trying to get the boys to hurl when they were going for a Senior Football Championship. It was tough and I don’t hold it against them- I was delighted to see them win the Football Championship two years later”.

“My first year of managing the team was horrendous- we were playing a game on Easter Sunday and Daniel McGreevy sustained a nasty injury and he lost an eye- he was my skipper. Hugh Savage- a cracking number 7 I had playing for me- his wee daughter was involved in a car accident and is still on the road to recovery after the life changing injuries that she received. That’s what we went through and we run event and tournaments to raise a few quid for Daniel and actually donated some of the money from the Tour De Fitz towards a wheelchair for Hugh Savage’s daughter”.

“I had all the boys playing for me the first year and they were outstanding, the stand out for me was being able to coach boys like Baby [Conor McConville], Reg [Brendan McConville], Paddy Cunningham, Cathal [Kelly] – he stepped in as skipper once Daniel got injured and was outstanding and for two years for me- gave me all he had and Paddy-Joe in nets for me didn’t let me down. These boys all put their shoulder to the wheel for hurling in the club- they really did and can’t be faulted”.

“Then my son Aodh was in the U-16 team and Buke said to me- ‘you’re here dropping your son to training- you may as well stay and help out’ and that was me involved with them for two years. We won the South Antrim league and championship double and got beat in the all-county final. It was along with Buke and Kevin [Herron]- who was doing stats and it was invaluable. Having somebody on the side-line to tell me every free, every mistake and stats- I’d never had that before and that was the team-talk sorted. I had a stats team with clickers back when I was taking the senior hurlers- because it’s stuff that you need to know at half-time as a manager. You need to know where you’re failing – and having someone on the side-line with the iPad to let us know where we went right or wrong was just brilliant”.

“We had a few cracking matches and wins during the first year and just like having your brother on the side-line with you- I had the thrill of having my son [Aodh] on the team and winning. It was outstanding and I was proud was punch, it was another feeling of triumph  and victory at the club. I remember before the U-16 final Kevin showed the lads his U-16 medal that he won and scared the lads to death. We had beat Ardoyne twice in the league and in the final we just about beat them- it was thrilling final. We had players like Fay [Kieran Fay-Kelly], Dan Murray, Aaron McCloksey, Lee Clarke, Conor Rogan, Daire Cunningham, Butch [Michael Braniff], Fionn Mervyn and Niall McGarry. All cracking players”.

“It’s outstanding to have taken the team with Eoin McKeown in it and you teach how to turn- when you see that kid toe-tap and ultimately going on and lifting a Senior Football Championship- something I couldn’t do in 20-years of playing football and you see that kid doing it. I’m not saying I’m responsible for it- but you play a small fraction of a part. You see the likes of Ryan Diamond and Jack Trainor collecting medals- you think to yourself Christ. You were just a small cog in that big wheel of Lámh Dhearg, keeping it turning is just so proud. We tell the kids it’s about winning- we want to win at all costs- yes. But Beansy, Buke, Kevin and my priority – is getting them to become a senior footballer or hurler for our club”.

Beansy: “ The year that Russ [Frank Fitzsimons jnr] came in was my last year. we had that minor team from 2010 coming through and they were all about 20 and flying. It was Russ team and that’s whenever I stepped down and starting playing reserve football. I still would have trained with the senior footballers”.

“Paddy came to me and asked me to help him coach with the U-16 and before that Russ had asked me coach the U-21s whenever Reg and boys like that had played. But the real team was with Paddy and the U-16s they were a brilliant wee team. You’d Cameron Flynn, Pearse Fegan, Jack Trainor, Ryan Diamond and others. I was with Paddy with that team and then took a year out. I took the same squad at minor with Gavin [Brown] and Fra [Fox]. Ben Rice and Eoin McKeown came into that team- though Eoin was hurt that year- he did his cruciate playing soccer. We played Creggan in Championship, they scored two goals near the end of the game and they went on to win the Championship. There are 6 or 7 of them that are still playing senior reserve or senior. I’ve dropped down to the younger ages and my son [Jude] team in the U-12s, I help out with the U-16s as well with Dee McLaughlin and Brendy McCloskey” 

“We’re taking kids at U-12, 14, 16 and at the start of the year they can’t hand and toe, catch the ball or whatever and at by the end of year you’re seeing them progress and they’re getting better and enjoying it. That’s what that we want and I want- to make them that we bit better. Whenever you see them coming through and playing senior you’ll just say -amazing. You’ve done your job”.

Referees- poachers turned game keepers

Paddy: “The second year I was taking the U-16s with Buke and Kev- I remember we were always looking referee’s for pre-season so I phoned Tote’s [Brendan Toland] and said I need a referee- can I do it if nobody comes here? He said, ‘no you can’t do it’. I told him to sign up and I can referee matches if we can’t get one, he said, ‘you’ve to do a course’ and I didn’t think there was anything to it and said I’d do it. He got back to me and says, ‘if you’re serious about this you’ve to do two coaching courses in Dunsilly, an online course and your final course in Croke Park’. He told me on the phone that Beansy’s brother Sean [Elliott] was interested in refereeing so I phoned him and he said’ I’m going to go for it’ so I went for it too”.

“When I played- if somebody told me that I would end up refereeing- I would have said ‘sign yourself into an asylum’ because I would never do that job. I did the course and enjoyed it and I love refereeing. It’s brilliant and a way of staying involved in the GAA and I think more ex-players should become referees. I got a buzz refereeing a wee bit and I thought to myself- this is a way of keeping my GAA career going a wee bit longer with not too many miles on the clock. I’m 46 now and I’d say I’ve a couple of years left refereeing if I’m lucky and then my plan is- when I can’t referee anymore- my plan is definitely to be involved in Lámh Dhearg. Whether it be back to coaching or helping in some capacity up in the club”.

Beansy: “The bigger laugh was whenever I heard that Paddy and Sean were doing it- two of the biggest balloons. Paddy has been sent-off a hundred times [Paddy at this point confirms he was only sent-off twice in his career]. I just said to myself what are they doing? To be a referee- it’s the hardest job ever, but they both love it and fair play to them.

Over 40’s tournaments:

Paddy: “I don’t enjoy them as much as Beansy does- like he said- it’s just injuries. It’s alright refereeing when you’re just going going your wee own half pace up and down the pitch but contact and hitting- you feel it the next day. I enjoy meeting up with the boys but I think I’ll maybe manage the next team rather than play in it because it’s too sore”.

Beansy: “It’s brilliant- all those boys who we’re playing against- we’re playing against fella’s that we haven’t seen in 20-years. Whenever you see them it’s brilliant and the craic is great. It goes back to that way of thinking about friendships forever – it’s people that you’ve hit and they’ve hit you- yet at the end of the matches you’re shaking hands. That’s what the GAA is for me. It’s brilliant and I’ve got asked to put these wee teams together for over-35’s and under-40’s and every one of them when you phone them up or text them- they’re saying no problem because we don’t see much of each other anymore and they’re all buzzing to get back. The worst thing is getting injuries and Kevin Murray got a bad one down in a tournament in Ardoyne. He was out for a couple of months with it”.

Influence of Bukey:

Paddy: “Bukey taught us right from wrong- he taught us our left foot and our right foot, taught us the high ball and gave us the hurl. He took us everywhere and introduced me to Croke Park. He gave me the buzz of the GAA and I wouldn’t have that buzz- I don’t’ know where I would have been without him? He helped me in school as well and kept me on the straight and narrow. He’s more than just a friend- he’s a mentor and a role model for us”

Beansy: “You’ve to give me credit to Bukey- we wouldn’t be sitting talking now if Buke hadn’t have coached us all those years ago when we were kids. Now we’re just giving a wee bit back- that’s all. He brought us up and a big massive shout-out to him”.

*Although singling out Bukey they’re fully appreciative of so many people who they have already mentioned and where influential to both of them

Family connection:

Paddy: “I loved playing alongside Christy there was nothing prouder. In training, I’d push him harder than any manager would ever push him and he hated me for it. We’d more fallouts in training than I had with anyone else. Playing with your brother- there is nothing more special. It was brilliant and he was a far better hurler than I ever was and when you hurl alongside him- I loved going to it and there was nothing better. That’s what the GAA ethos is all about, it’s one big family connection” .

“My Ma later on in my career would have gone and watched a lot of games like semi-finals and games at Casement but my Da would have followed us everywhere we went. Minor, County and U-21 – he went to a lot of them Championship. He introduced us to Chase the Ace and we’ve playing it in the club for 20-years now. Every time we get together it’s a game of Chase the Ace and it’s brilliant craic”.

“We know how much good it did for us – so we have to keep pushing our kids. Katie is still playing senior ladies and she played county up until U-16 and I would have gone and watched her all around the place. It must be the same feeling my Da got to watch us play all around the place. Managing Aodh was fantastic as well. The two years that I managed the senior hurlers- Deborah was on the committee as registrar. Getting to manage my nephew [Cameron] as well. There’s such a family bond and we were heavily involved”.

Beansy: “It was brilliant to be able to play alongside my brothers. I’d mentioned about Kevin, Sean and myself in our half-back line when we beat St Gall’s. that was brilliant because certainly after- Kevin didn’t play much because he took his acting career and disappeared off the planet. He came back and was part of the Intermediate hurling Championship win in 2011. Our Sean has still stuck at it and I played a lot of years with Sean at senior football. We play reserve football now and we argue but I love playing alongside my brother. There’s nothing better”.

“We played a match and there Elliott’s, Tumelty’s, Herron’s and Lynches – there was something like 6 sets of brothers in the one team. That says it all to me about our club. After the game’s your Ma’s and Da’s would have been at the games. I’ll never forget the time when we were playing senior hurling and I came into the club rooms after. Pat Toland, Frank Young- who is a world champion boxer and my Da were sitting beside each other drinking. Pat Toland and my Da were talking over him and they were talking about hurling, Frank Young turned round and said something about hurling and the both of them turned round and lit on him as if you’ve never played hurling in your life. This guy was an All-Ireland boxing champion and I thought – Oh No, he’s going to get knocked out here. That’s what we had coming into our club rooms – it was brilliant. Dee O’Connor came to me and asked me to help coach Jude’s age group [U-12] so I’m helping coach him. It’s just great to get him into the game and I want to see him enjoying the football”.

Friend as Chairman:

Paddy: “A lot of us from the minor team were all the same class in school and our current Chairman Peter [Kane] was in that group. We’d go to Spain together to watch All-Ireland finals- a lot of us are still together with a few additions and a few loses. Not one of that team ever got in trouble or in jail- they’re all good solid people with families of their own now. All good people and good Lámh Dhearg men and they’re people that will carry our coffins. It’s great to have Peter as own of our own – as chairman of the club now”.

Beansy: “Peter [Kane] was in our primary school from P1 up and was part of the 92 team. There was 10 from Lenadoon alone in the minor team and 6 of us were all in the same class in school. We’re all still best mates and in the same Whats App groups. It’s great to see Peter as chairman and there’s no better person to be looking after the club at this moment in time” .