gormanston.net

I was aware of the 1966 world cup because it was in England but paid litlle attention to the games. The opening game was very boring but 1970 was different, we were collecting coins of the players when you got petrol. I had been going to occasional Arsenal games for a few years, however it was the Leeds  Chelsea cup final that go me and many others really excited about soccer. Then we went home for the summer holidays and if you had been in any doubt the world cup and Brazil convinced everybody to have a team and many collected the stickers of players.

Every week I think I was in a fight, I had a temper in the

early years, remember even going for Blacksod, which I was always going to come out second best. He held me upside down and banged my head on the floor, Martin Harvey who I knew from Ring came to my rescue.  Everyone would form a circle and if there was not enough action push you together

 Fr Virgil was the priest who would tell you the facts of life but somehow Ronnie Bennett got his oar in there.

Start of an era of football sucess that would in in 75 Gormanston St Finians  3-9 to 8 points

Lost to Chriost Ri 22 of March in Thurles

First time in my life I saw the effects of organised activism and its stayed with me all my life. John Lennon returned his OBE and his “Bedin” Mai li  Ali. Anti apartheid protest against rugby in January. Troubles in Ireland, Ministers accused of arms smuggling.

My mother dropped me off, we went up to the dorm to put out my things. Parket floors and partitions separating each bed was luxury compared what I had got used to in Ring college where I had been for 4 years