Mixed Bag with Liam Tierney

Deniese chatted to former Longford GAA footballer and now radio analyst Liam Tierney. Longford GAA, his time playing Australian Rules, the Longford Championship were among the topics covered in this podcast.

Transcript

SPEAKER_00 0:00

Bixbag is probably sponsored by Refined Barbershop mainstream runner. You can find Refined Barbershop on Instagram and Bixback. This man has played in every position except goalkeeper for Longford. He was selected for the Australian World Series back in 1984 and then was an all-star nominee. Currently an analyst with Shannonside Radio. It's my very good pal, Liam Tierney. Now I was just telling you, Liam, that unfortunately Frank, busy man, he's got a Leinster final. But you're myself and yourself, we know how to ya, and we're used to yapping together. So we'll we'll we'll go on without him.

SPEAKER_01 0:59

Very good, Denise.

SPEAKER_00 1:00

So how are you keeping anywhere first and foremost?

SPEAKER_01 1:03

Uh very good. Uh actually miss uh long for game uh son uh because uh I have holy communions and it's that time of the year that's I'm caught. I'm caught everywhere. I don't ever high demand on time at the moment as well. So it was the first match I actually missed in a long time. And I think you could be under pressure for the player match as well because I have another grand side getting clear uh getting uh holy communion. So there's a high demand for me and as I said there could be the both papers if I if I if I don't know what these family does at all.

SPEAKER_00 1:35

I was just saying you sound like Father Simon in here in Grannard with all these communions.

SPEAKER_02 1:40

Ah, well you see that's it's when you have a lot of grandchildren and they're coming up anyhow and y you'll be missed as a fellow says you'll be missed. You have to put your pri you have to put your priorities right.

SPEAKER_00 1:49

Yeah, I know that, yes. When I got a text message from my cousin about my godson's communion, the first thing I done, probably what you done, was checked fixtures to see if I had anything on and luckily I didn't, and you said declare game and I was kind of praying for a long for the way game because I'm on holidays, so I thought if I'm on holidays I'll probably have to get my good pal Jerry Buckley to step in, but I won't have to do it now because uh Cusick Park, yeah, because someone said to me, I wonder is Liam Tierney okay? Because he wasn't in Ennis Skill and so you were missing.

SPEAKER_01 2:20

I was missing. I actually got two uh it's a good friend of mine, Peter texts me.

SPEAKER_02 2:23

He's like, Everything all right. No sign of you no sign of you a giant. Oh I said, Oh no, okay, at Holy Communion. No, no, actually it's nice it's nice to be missed a long time anyhow.

SPEAKER_00 2:37

Well, that's exactly it. Yeah, it was Michael Keenan said it to me, and I said, Well, I d don't think he's aware or anything, I said, because I'm talking to him tomorrow, so good to hear that. Right, we roll back the years, Liam, and you had you had some career and my dad was just talking about you earlier this evening, and I remember him always telling me about what a great footballer you were. I would have been too young to remember you playing, and he was just on about yourself, Desi Barry, Jerry Clark, Kevin Soda, or but he just said that uh Tierney he said it was special. So there you go. It's a compliment from my dad.

SPEAKER_02 3:10

Yeah, look, I I went back, I suppose I started playing football really with Metals College, and that's uh where a lot of Longford footballers and it was the be-all and end all really at that time where where young people, Metal College was very strong. Uh, we were beaten actually in the Leicester Finals, but minor we captain the minors then uh to a couple of club championships and we joined up actually with your neighbor still at Bilara. We we we won two minor championships, 73 and 74, and then uh uh I was just I was in college and leaving Celtics and I was pulled into the long field on the 21 team in Cusick Park and uh look at it I was uh i it was it was you know, I lived for football, I enjoyed it and uh had a long career. I was probably, you know, lucky enough for the injuries. But I actually uh I was doing uh uh an interview there lately and I was asked about uh 1966 team. Uh uh and actually I played with some of those players that uh stayed on with the county make the likes of Jimmy Hannafee, I played intercounty football with him for two years. I was quite young, Jimmy was uh well ahead of me at the time. And I also played with Jackie Devine uh club level. So, you know, I came from that era where very successful and and even at that time when the club scene was strong, like like for some of your uh Granite was very strong at that time and um a member of Granite a few times at Jody Sheridan scoring a great goal there in a lovely house. There was thousands in the parking on Sunday even and um you know I didn't all didn't great memories and one thing I have is what we're doing now with great communication over the years that's that you know you d as I said, if I my car got broke down in any county in Ireland, I'd know somebody. So that's the kind of indictment of what the GA is all about.

SPEAKER_00 4:46

It's so true. You're a bit like Roger Martin because you could go anywhere around Ireland and mention Granard and someone would say to you, Do you know Roger Martin and that's it? You you'd end up getting chatting about that. And that is that that is what the GA and I love this, and I you know it's a pity Frank is all on the pod, because when we started off the podcast, it wasn't a case of you know having the usual podcast, it was more kind of a a laid back, more about a chat, reminiscing about different things, and I love to talk, so that's no problem with me. But I I love listening to the stories, like because obviously I know you from an into the park and all that, but listening to you telling them stories and I'm gonna find out about you know the Aussie Rule series and obviously your all-star nomination and things like that. It's lovely to listen to those stories.

SPEAKER_02 5:32

I always look at you know, footballers in every uh in every county is they put in the same effort, like whether it's uh Carl or Ki Kenny used to play at the time, Waterford, Wexford. You you if you have a number eleven in that county, you have a number six, you know, that's the best numbers that's the best centre back in the county, the best best centre forward. So if you were given your jersey to mark them, you were you mind your own house, you put yourself up, you try to dominate your own area first, and you have to respect it was was always there. It's just come to r it's coming to the uh four and I was a buzzword now, but but there was always great respect uh years ago. And what happened on the pitch, stayed on the pitch, and football has changed, as you know yourself. Football has changed a lot. I always into I was kinda ahead of myself, but I I always watched what uh the diet was of all about. I was into the athl athletics as well. I ran into c I was uh in connet sprinter, sprint champion of one school as well. So I always watched what I actually ate and I always watched what soccer players were at and I was always into training and I always thought I thought myself that I wouldn't be I'd go into the training end of it, the tracks are in it. I never really got into that as well because I probably played on too long. I actually my last game my last game w I was at age forty yeah. It was a long career and I've seen the football change over the years. Now for the good, for the bad, there's pluses, there's nine negatives as well. But at the at the moment the area uh like considering the matches we've seen even yesterday. Yeah, it's it's high s every game is high score, and I think the one thirty-three was the average score in all the league games uh during the league. That was the average score for b from first to uh to fourth division. The average scale score each game each team score was one thirty-three, which is phenomenal as well. So you don't have the the seven, the six six points, eight points game to more. You have this you have that. So you have we have seen a huge changes and a lot of more professionalism brought into it. But you know, no uh at every level as well, even at at the football at the players level. But the one thing I would would have noted is if you look at it, very few players are playing county football into their thirties. That's the demands that have changed now. When years ago you had fellas playing could play into thirty-five, thirty-six, it's the exception rather than the rule now. And a lot of guys in that club level are up and out at twenty-seven. So huge demands is even it's at as you know yourself, you've seen your own club, how it's developed and what's the plans for this year. Very professional.

SPEAKER_00 7:54

I love where I'm from. You're the same. And sometimes I've often thought if we could move Longford, not and never leave Glenn, but if we could move Longford into Connuct, how many times down to the years, no disrespect to the teams in Connuc, would we have said, Gosh, we would have won a Connock title. Just we were so unlucky that we'd come up against a really good meet or a really good Dublin, but so many times we were just so close.

SPEAKER_02 8:18

Yeah, probably the closest I've ever beencome when you mentioned a few players there who would have played. Probably when John Murphy took in, took over, we were at the bottom of Division Four, we were lucky, we were lucky. He came in, he brought a bit of professionalist into him. The first thing he did, he stopped all the pe all the players going by cars on their own. He got a bus, and he also brought the women with him. He said, If any of the girlfriends or partners want to come, they bring them on, and the first day we went down, we went down to Carla, we won by a pint, and we went straight up from Division Four, Division III, and the one thing about it, all the girls and girlfriends at the same time, we were all younger, and they said, When is the next match? When is the next match? So we were on a winner straight away, and we were up to division two. So in eighty-three and eighty-four, we had a great team, Deji Barries, John McCormick, Kevin O'Rourke, Kevin, you know, all the great players, uh, France McNamee, Maggie McCormick's, uh, you know, we Mickey Harra, all them play great players, John Martin, early mercy and we uh we played awfully and basically eighty three, eighty four. We had them under on the were all Iron Champions and Lindsay Champions. We had them on the rack, eleven points to six, and we had them on the rack, and a couple of referee indecisions really went against us. One actually went against us for equalising point when he had went to me against equalizing point, eleven points each. I think it ended up in Pierce Park and then the Bears and the famous uh game in uh when Lazarus came from stand above in Co Park and the court keeper with Martin Furling got injured him with the called the man over the standing hit a huge game. He does uh Lars Malloy, he does uh radio on for Midland and Offaly Radio. And he's on it, he does a commentary down there. He he tell you the story. So we actually I think scored something 313 or 314 that time and still lost. That was when Matt uh Matt Connor was at his best and and and had uh all them boys, you know, there were brilliant little Connors there. Um Johnny Mooney was superb that time as well. So they're a huge team that time, and uh that was an ear which I think we should have probably could have won in Leinster that year, but they had a huge team and and uh we had to beaten us in that time. Did he barry rattle like uh crossbar that time and we had we had them beaten, yeah, in a lovely sun trench Pierce Park and it was huge. I so I think there was if it was seven, there were seven or eight thousand. It was a huge crowd that day, wasn't it?

SPEAKER_00 10:24

I suppose yeah, looking back, there are great memories, but there are the ones that got away. I always if someone said to me, especially with Longford, and there have been ones, obviously the Dublin game in 2006 in uh Pierce Park when we had the dubs rattled, and then obviously the great journey we were down to Killarney, both Kyle was down and Kieran Donahy was introduced. But for me, um I'm trying to remember what year it was, the time we were beaten by Wexford in Tullamore in a replay, and it was the one that got away, and it was the one game where I actually cried after a match that we had lost. Now I got emotional after the under 21 final in 2013, but I was so upset after it, and I remember having to go and get reaction afterwards from Glen Ryan and uh not one of the players spoke to me. And normally after every game, when loser draw, the lads had always come out hi to knees, hi denise, and it was just like Damien Short, and those lads were just were heartbroken. So that for me was the one that got away. But that game against awfully be that, or is there another game that you think that was the one that got away from us?

SPEAKER_02 11:30

I think there was the one that got away, and then the other one, you're talking about Wexford. Wexford in eighty-five. In eighty-five, mm, we had we were supposed to give it a real rattle after the year before, and I came back from America that year now, and um we uh had them beaten and um uh Han Rahim, John McMahon, I think, uh that that young Matton fella, they had a Wexford and they scored a surprise win. We c we I think saw that uh Kevin Roque battled across for twice that day. Philip Kieran had a huge game. We had them beaten up a stick, and I think they got three goals in the second half and the better by a couple of points, and we were if you're looking at uh possession wise and territory wise, we had eighty percent possession, but at the end of the day the scoreboard doesn't lie, and we were devastated and coming from eighty-four what we should have done and then eighty-five, I think it was eighty five, it could be eighty six, eighty-five, eighty five, around that time, mid eighties, we definitely that was the that was the one with the off the game, more or less m we were after each other. Uh they were the two definitely because that team was that team was good. That would play that was a division two team at the time, and we played division two at the time, and uh we beat Dublin above in Crow Park at the time as well. And that was a game that stood out, and all the stars were playing with Dublin at the time. We beat them fair and square, Frank McDonald got two goals that so you know the that was the mid eighties was the time I think we had our best team and other times in like the circle of life, you know, the circle teams come back. That's a bit like Granard.

SPEAKER_00 12:57

We lost in the championship in eighty two, and I keep on saying that, you know, people say, Oh, what's your wish? and oh I'd like this and like that, and that one wish is for me to see the Sean Conney Cup back here in Granard.

SPEAKER_02 13:09

Um Uh well we won it in eighty-four and it was unique because football of the E B you know, it was be all and end all at the time and uh being armored at the local rivalry, there wasn't much entertainment levels and all the local crossroads of shops still in the small towns and everything else, and the flags were up. I remember every young fella every minor at the time, seventy-four, yeah, it was minors. I we were well I never lost. We won it uh minor we won an under twenty final, won a uh we won a minor finals.

SPEAKER_00 13:39

We lost the final in ninety-three. You had won the championship the year before in ninety two.

SPEAKER_02 13:43

Yeah, so that was the first one, the seventy-four. And then ten years after we won the next one. But um and then won the next one, then some won the next one in ninety-two. But the first one to won, I was only a minor. That was back in seventy-four. And um uh seventy-four, and that went to uh draw the first game, and then it went to a replay and then another replay. So it was it was it was uh three took three games to settle it and it had kind of got the national national uh prominence as well in the papers that the county final in in Longford had gone to three games and plus extra times in both of them. So it was it was a kind of unique. It hasn't happened since uh looking is going to happen again.

SPEAKER_00 14:23

That would be interesting now having a county final decided by penalties in Longford.

SPEAKER_02 14:28

Yeah, yeah, but it was great because all the West me and Crow come down and lead some Crown Calone Calvin, it was huge at the time. It was absolutely huge. Every game we played was getting and then the winner was getting worse as well because it wasn't October.

SPEAKER_00 14:39

Down to the years, and it always depends. If there's a few clubs or any club from, say, North Longford, you'll have the Mullerhorn and the Gowners in. And now what I found, a lot of county finals are nearly all at the same time now, and they clash, and you don't get that. But down to the years, yeah, you'd see the crowd that nearly or if Mullerhorn weren't in a county final or Gowner weren't, they'd say, actually, we're not going to go to Brefany, we'll go into Longford, there'd be more interest whatever it was, there were more interest in coming in to Longford. You mentioned 1985, and down to the years, Longford have had some remarkable players, some tremendous players. Because where we are and because of our you know, we don't go too far in a championship to get recognition for those players, it stops at a certain round. But you actually were um an all-star nominee.

SPEAKER_02 15:24

Yeah, well it was lucky. I said as I said, I had my best playing year probably uh in I was twenty-eight at a time, which was your buddy supposed to get his best between in your mid-20s, but uh I would have trained a lot, I've trained a lot on my own as well, as well as extra curriculum stuff. In eighty four I probably was playing left half back and uh I I always you know, I felt I felt I actually played better with the county jersey army than I would be with the club. I was one those five players that once you got the county jersey on me, I I just performed, everything just seemed uh alright. But I just I did an honorable year that year. I actually played superb and then in Crow Park I had one of my best games and then from that I probably got recognition that we got into it. The other is uh the the compromise was at the train, which is probably starting off and I got into a huge panel of players and we went and trained, we played trained a lot and a lot in Connett in South Hill. That's where we did a lot of training and uh we trained, we played against uh uh uh I played for Connors uh against uh uh the an Australian selection down there, did well in that game, and then it was picked then to play in the first test, which is blowing cock, and that was really an eye-opener because you know, I w we were coming from uh basically amateur, we didn't really know what to expect. But when we hit the when we hit the first half in that, them boys, you know, shook hands, that was it, and they just tore it. They they tore into you and it was just total physic physicality, and you could see that they were professional, it was a great difference, and that came really got out of hand and uh there was huge in that and you just it just then it set it up really for the next 'cause people the publicity of course and even the hell at the time and the pictures and the fights and the whole lot and that created a huge uh momentum factor and a huge um interest for the second test uh in in Crow Park and a huge crowd for the second second games. And yeah, look and I was lucky. I was I would one of my assets would be, as I said, I was always fairly mobile, I was fairly fast, uh lucky enough with injuries and uh uh you know, low and stature as well. And uh sure it kind of suited me. A running game suited me, given go, that sort of way uh so it was it suited me. I wasn't even man for the catch the big high ball, you know, I I I I played to my strengths and strength with speed and mobility and in and out and uh uh you know that was that was my strength. So that game actually sued me, so it's lucky.

SPEAKER_00 17:46

So you would uh suit now a con a Ross Common team because that's what I love about Ross Common, you know, the right to go with the ball, run with the ball. So that's your type of player, is that it?

SPEAKER_02 17:56

Well look at it if I I sat look at yesterday if you're looking at Chris Common, counter-attacking, and most teams are counter-attacking at the moment, but they haven't brought it to a new level and basically they're getting their kicks once you get your kicks out and get them away, you're generally going to get a you're going to set yourself up for a kick at the other end of the goal. You're going to have a shot at goal if you can get working out, unless you're turned over. But generally now, teams are few enough, you know, the turnedovers are probably not as prevalent prevalent as the world. So that's common with the keeper here at Hard Clark was getting them a pinpointed and he was looking out and he was giving them and being fair in the backs, they were had had it's worked out, the systems worked out, they were getting the ball, and uh you know, every time they got the ball, they were getting the kick off, kick off away at the far end as well. But then being fair, Garlow were very good as well, Galo was superb as well. It was a superb game football. A great advertisement, and Roscollan deserved it because the team comes back from eight points, the team that comes back with six points down with ten minutes to go, it just can't say they didn't deserve it.

SPEAKER_00 18:57

No, you mentioned goalkeeper, and it's the one position that you didn't play in for the county, but then I'm thinking I played in goals and I was always told you had to be a little bit mad playing goals, so I can't see you being that little bit crazy enough to play in goals.

SPEAKER_02 19:11

But I wouldn't be a great man kicking a dead ball off the round, so that would be one thing I wouldn't be in there, would never would never have been at him. I missed one penalty in under 20 one final, one year in uh against Raken um against Pat McGrath back in 1974 and never took a free since. But we won the game, lucky enough, um midfield with Lord Mercy John Victory. That just put you off with missing the penalty and that just Yeah, yeah, no, no, it'd be I was a coward who wasn't brave enough to take any more freeze after that. But getting back to goalkeepers think when we were going to school and everything else, the fella did was no good at anything, uh you know, the fella that was slow, that had mobility issues, uh he was putting goals. But now in the school yard, now the good footballer wants to go on goals because he he he know he has to set up the attacks, he has to kick out, he looks up, he can come out the field a little bit, you know, you can come over the square. So, you know, he it's a different ball game now. Young fellows don't want to play on goals, whereas years ago you didn't want to play on goals. You usually have the fellas that just make up the numbers be putting goals, but there was a different ball game.

SPEAKER_00 20:10

Well I played f um underage football in community games in Granard, and I always wanted to be a goalkeeper. I'd look at John O'Leary and all that, and then Roger Martin when we were playing community games, he uh picked me and he said you're the tallest. Like imagine, like at that age, people would look at me now and say you were actually tall at one stage for your age. But yeah, I was and I just absolutely loved it. I just love being in goals, but yeah, now it's it's amazing what years ago then it was no one wanted to be in goals. Like that's why I didn't want to put up my hand and say, I'll go in goals. So I was glad Roggie kind of put me in there. Australian, you played the the Aussie rules. Were you ever tempted, or would you say back then if there was opportunities like there is now, would you have gone down under?

SPEAKER_02 20:52

Yeah, look at the same there was uh there was approaches you know, I was I was said it would have suited Australian rules and everything else, but don't forget I was twenty eight at the time. If I had to come say five years beforehand, I look at it, I probably would have chanced uh I'd have got um leave a leave leave for my job, I suppose, just uh just uh not led by by and see could I do it. But like you can never say if I was younger, yeah, but at the time no, it was it was never uh the age was against me at the time. But um prior to that, yeah, I would have been brave enough to go all right, uh like anything with a ball, I'd I'd I'd give it a chance and as I said, I was comfortable with it as a and I I don't have any wing mirrors, I've no fear, uh I never had any fear. So um uh all I could see at any time was the ball anyhow and whatever come after that, but no, I never pulled out of anything. So um, you know, I've no one thing about it is over the years as well, I've played an awful lot of football at every level from intermediate, junior and everything. I have never been sent off. So I'd have I like I l and that's why it's it's what I see fellas in center off for now, which is you know, it's uh it's against uh it when you look back at their career there's

SPEAKER_00 22:04

Sure that you didn't shirk away from a tackle or something like that, but you done it fairly.

SPEAKER_02 22:09

I did, yeah, yeah. But look as at the end of the day football has changed as well, like you know, the y y you didn't say like to show your your your weaknesses by staying, say hand around, you know, you like to give the other fellow the hand off and you said, Jesus, you know, as I said, a fella said to me, I'm I I'm not going off. He says, uh he he knows he got the better of me then. So that was again the mentality at the time. So uh you hide a you're hungry there anyhow, right? And you got it you got yourself. But that's that was football then, this is football now, and as I said, it's it's uh it's a it's a it's a lovely game actually to play and now it's uh it's a running game, it's uh it's uh the athletes and you know, it's you you can't really hide that much in the either at the moment. You have to get involved and it's a it's it's it's it's it's good to be playing now at the moment, I think.

SPEAKER_00 22:55

How did you find with your job, because you would have had a tough enough job and then obviously you played football for said lohman's up there in Mullingar, but how did you find was football kind of a release, a breakaway from work?

SPEAKER_02 23:06

Well, football is a breakaway from anything really as such. Anyone it's it's good for your mental health, it's it's it's good for your but uh in in where it worked, actually there was a big problem because we walked every second Sunday. So there was a huge issue is getting getting off on the Sundays as well. There were huge issues and been fair to County Board, Longford County Board were very good because uh Sunday Fay was double pay and it made up a lot, especially when you had a young family, you know, you could be missing, but at the time uh the the lawn for County Board were quite good to me. And I worked in Port Leash for early years then in the late 70s and eighties and I would have to come I had to come from um Port Leash for training and everything else. And actually it got to the stage when travelling was was very, very tough. I had my uh I was transferring actually down to Fort Leash because travelling with two young kids was was a bit much. I had my transfer papers almost done and um uh John Green then was involved here as well, kind of was well, he didn't want me to go, but uh Port Leach was strong, but Leach team was strong, early prending gas and Natchwell and and and all them boys were playing and they won the Leinster as well. So I was training with them, even though they I stopped coming up for training, I I ended up training with the Portly with the Leash senior team and I spent there for a year and a half with them and I was about to join the Port Leech team and they went down and won three Leinster titles in a row. But anyhow uh as as it turned out, um my transfer went went through then the change of uh political powers and uh I got a transfer to Wellingar in eighty one then. But the my direction could have changed very much. It was within uh was it my father got my father was very sick at the time and that was one of the reasons I got back as well. And um you know, my career and my life would have told changed completely in that month if I had probably uh stayed put and not got that transfer. So it's amazing how you know uh the the signature of a pen can work for you or against you.

SPEAKER_00 25:01

Yeah, that's the way with life. Like my dad's adopted and Mike Ran, I remember years ago saying to me, you know, about it's a long story that she never gave um permission for daddy he was signed over and she didn't know about it. And, you know, she always cried about not having dad. And I said it joking, but I was kinda meaning in some ways. I said, But if dad wasn't adopted, you wouldn't have me. You wouldn't have my brother, you know, a ma'am. And she had kind of thought about it and she said, Yeah. And in some ways it's those things in life. Football has been your life. How come you didn't go in or maybe you just weren't brazen enough to go in to refereeing like your good brother Stephen? I was trying to remember, I was going, What's Rocky's first name? Now 'cause everyone knows him as Rockney Stephen.

SPEAKER_02 25:45

Well, I tell you, Denise, uh there was uh you mentioned about St. Lowens Hospital. You're still there, yeah. Yeah. Uh um Killarney was playing Killarney was playing um uh St. Etes in the hospital and they came down to a playing important leash and I went to the match uh just to look on and uh Brendan Lynch was playing for Killarney and Harry Keegan was playing for Etas and Jimmy Finnegan uh from Mayo, all them county players. And the referee made a Maur fella from this referee from Leash was supposed to turn up and he he got sick and he so the boys had come up and displaying from Ken Arney, the boys had come down from Dublin. So they wanted somebody referee to match. So anyhow, they knew me, I was an intercountry player at the time, so they bring directly, I referee it. So I said, Oh yeah, referee, I'll do the best I can. And I never referee him again. And uh Brendan Lynch, the famous Brendan Lynch from from Kerry, and uh the the the Conan fellow thing that was under the team as well from Kerry as well, a couple of county players as well, and uh and anyhow, so anyhow, after that, uh helper letter broke loose and everything else. I I couldn't control it. So that was like the penalty. Never again. So that's the reason I didn't referee. So I had me taste the referee and I said, Oh god, no, no, no, no, no. Did you referee?

SPEAKER_00 27:03

Did you referee them before Rocky?

SPEAKER_02 27:05

I would have refereed, I refereed that was the only referee in match I ever did, Denise. So I I wouldn't have refereed I refereed the school by a match at one time as well, and the parents and here they got it as well. So no, no, that's that's another that's a that's a uh an animal of a different breed altogether, so no, I wouldn't I wouldn't be brave enough to referee, no.

SPEAKER_00 27:23

Oh yeah, we'd always have but uh do you know what though, I'm not just saying it because he's your brother, but we'd always have a great bit of quack in him, or I used to say to him before a match, come here, I want to abuse you beforehand in case I forget about it. But um remember when he had the shop, I used to love going into the shop and all his uh memorabilia with Liverpool and everything. You though didn't follow your brother with supporting Liverpool. Leicester City. How did that come about?

SPEAKER_02 27:47

Uh Leicester City Mum and Dad actually uh met, they went to the work like everyone else at the time at a younger age they emigrated and my father we had of Galway connections and uh the the the my father's parents then ended up with a shop actually in Del when the Gales came up from the Gales up in Galway and then my mother was uh she's a Westmade woman. And they went over there met in in they actually met in Leicester, say Leicester and uh even and uh the started going out together and and then you know she my mother was a nurse over there in Leicester and my father then worked uh I think he works in a factory over there and then he came over to come back home and then decided then that uh there was a shop for sale. It was the shop that you were talking about, you went into that was originally a chemist and uh they bought it and they set up uh the shop there and it was very successful. I think it was back in the nineteen fifty-two they set up and then uh I was born in fifty-six. My sister Miss Rocky was my sister was born fifty-four and uh Stephen is actually I'm actually five years older than than my brother, so he's still he's he's still like younger than me. So, um that was the story, that's how how we we got. But the sh the sh my parents let us help that shop, but it was like a social centre, it was like a little mini market because uh they had everything in it. They had confectionery, they had the books, they had cigarettes, they had groceries, they had my mother even had jewelry. She even used to do the old lit this little tables in the shop, would have served ice cream with the the whole. She was well ahead of herself and uh it was kind of a uh a counselling place a lot of people single people used to come in and chat there and Saturda Saturday night stended the bachelors and would come after a few pints of the pub and he'd know the knock on the door, they'd have m my mother'd have rash of sausage, the usual stuff and get. So look at it was simple times, it was great times and Christmas and we've we we've actually great memories, we toys and everything. They did well, very well, and uh a lot of people, even the shop that's there now, but it's it's a restaur it's uh it's a cafe now and it's great to see life in it and the little mi m pi pictures of m repair's shop back in the fifteen, sixties and seventies. But look, time changes, uh the small shops were w were uh uh gathered, you know, they were just soaked up by the the multinationals and the bypass game and you know, it's uh like many a s uh small town, uh the small shop just can't survive and it had to stay and uh but it's great to see a cafe there at the moment and and it's it's great to see all pictures of my parents. I I I I got them done up and gave them to the to Luca Lucas there and Jason there. So they're doing okay there as well. So it's and people come back to Edwardstown and go in there and just remember as well.

SPEAKER_00 30:28

So we toss, you know, that was it with Rocky and then the referee and bus. He must love Granite so much because he's working in Granite.

SPEAKER_02 30:36

Yeah, look at it, he had uh several opportunities. I think he could have come back to Longford and he couldn't come back to Edwardstown, but uh look at he loves the Granite people coming in and uh he can get away with it over there. He can get away with some of the things and and I think the the the the the the the the ladies and everything else give him hell over there and they're well level for him. So look at he's enjoying it, he enjoys look he he enjoys um uh his work as well, and I think people love coming in for every good crack as well and a bit of a laugh as well.

SPEAKER_00 31:03

But that's about shopping. I'm just thinking a friend of mine came down from Dublin, it was her first time in Longford, and um uh years ago and I brought her up to MacBrian's and Mickey was there, and well Denise, how are you? blah blah blah, and she was like, You know your shopkeepers and they know you Because from Dublin that's something that wasn't happening, whereas you go down there and even my nephew was up a few weeks ago and Daddy was going out to fresh today and down to Ellis's, that's what we don't even call fresh day, we just go Ellis's and Liam wants to go down to see Rocky, 'cause I had told him about Rocky being a Liverpool fan. Of course Rocky wasn't there when poor Liam went down. But that's it, you know, they're not really shops, they're places that you go to have a bit of crack, to have the chats. It's for a lot of people, especially elderly people, it's their way of getting out and finding the news and the gossip and everything. It's you know, we're very lucky to have the local shop still.

SPEAKER_02 31:55

Yeah, it's probably one word is giving people time that they're not Russian and that you're not just an i a number. Uh it's nice to be called by your first name and it's nice to have a smile. And uh, you know, if you lose that which a lot of places have, but majority of people, you know, the uh a smile is worth anything and just being made made, you know, respect, I suppose, in in in life as well. The most hurtful thing it's supposed to do to anyone is actually just ignore them. And uh just and you go know yourself when you went to I know myself and I go into Dunstores or went to Tesco's or I'll do any of the things and it's amazing and just observe the person and they you have to have a smile on their face. Makes an awful difference to you as a person going out that day or even being served but you have a girl there and joy a fella and say, Good evening, lovely days, you know, just a simple thing. And like if you don't enjoy your job, don't stay in it. Like you don't have to stay on it. And a lot of people I said to a g I said one day to this girl and she was uh she maybe she'd hunt it one thing as I say, you're not enjoying your job and I kinda she she stopped for a second and she thought Yeah. You know, yeah, it's it's it's very important to just uh smile and just make people just make people feel a little better because everyone can without going over your way, you know, just how how we act to them it's very important as well.

SPEAKER_00 33:16

I was always rare like that and I would always say it and even it's such an Irish thing because when you go abroad, thank you, no matter where you go, thank the bus driver. Um, you know, over in Glasgow you'd know the two paddies getting off, or even when I'm over in my gran and Harry Gates, uh thank you. Like one or two people would say thank you, but the the Irish you'd know straight away where we were from, thank you. But it's other little things, but uh with your job and mental health, and we're coming out for it from it more, and I want to give give a mention as well because um Owen Harry, he'd be uh a good friend of our podcast, he used to play for bowls and shells, a managed um them a managed Sliger Rovers, and he's involved, he's got um a game this Sunday. It's at twelve o'clock in Ballymon. He's playing with a League of Ireland selection against Ballymon United, and it's for mental health awareness. And now more than ever, and we have the darkness into light over the weekend. But those little things of saying hello to someone, just asking someone, Are you okay? and then uh waiting for them to answer or just being there or just knowing. I'd often say to my friends, If you need anything, I'm always here. Those little things, Liam, because people forget about it because there's so much happening in this world, but we don't know what the next person or how the next person is feeling.

SPEAKER_02 34:30

Yeah, well I suppose you did touch out there uh look I did work on mental health for over forty years and I've seen big changes. I worked in the drug units as well. And there is a tsunami coming down the line, you know, if we want to talk really serious about what's happening in GEA at the moment and it it's not just at at intercounty level, it's uh in the coun in the county in every county, and it's a huge issue with the drug use and because it's cheaper and it's accessible. And the amount of admissions to the psychiatric units as well, because of different issues, because it's it because it we you take your drugs, it leads to psychotic episodes and behavioral changes and everything else. Uh you will end up so we where you had say ten admissions say in a couple of days in a week, ten admissions in a week before this, and you'd have uh eight of them would be preferred behavior or psychotic or depression or whatever it is. Eight of those people or eight of them ten now, you could say, are ju are drug induced, especially with the underage as well, because young people are taking a younger level, the brain is still the brain is still developing and there's there's a little bit of susceptibility, a little bit of weakness there, it tends to go down that path and you know the recovery is that bit harder as well. So there's a huge issue and that's why the GAS are tackling it and uh they are tackling it in a way, but uh y you can never do enough. You have to get people who have recovered, etcetera, etcetera, and they're the ones to get in, and they're the ones to say how they got uh into it in the first place, how they were exposed to it, and you know, and help the stairs and there is help available and you see very stories of people, players coming back from the abyss and going back and having a big play, and they're being used by the G and they've been used by the Hell the HSC as well as it. But it's a huge, it's a huge problem, and anyone that says it's not happening, you have to have their eyes uh you know closed because it is there and either seen it either seen it at first hand, either seen it in the ward level, either seen it in in behavior, I've seen it in sad cases, and I've seen students up and out of college because of lack of concentration and mammies and daddy's wonder where's all the money going and everything else, and this peer pressure, you know, you have to mind you have to mind if they're in a group, you mind each other. You if you work together, you come back together and if you go and handle this together, you make sure everything's okay. So you have you have watch your peer group. So there is a huge issues in the GA, in the series stuff, which weren't there when we were talking about the good times in the past, they weren't there now. There's a huge mode, different football, it's a different life, it's a different challenges, uh you know, and there's different different aspirations as well, there's different rating for success while it's success. But you know, i it's a different world, uh the needs are different world.

SPEAKER_00 37:15

When I was growing up, and it's not that long ago, and sometimes I I sound like Uncle Albert during the war, but um I had a very good group of friends and back then it was just drinking, but I drink never never bothered me, never wanted to drink, and they'd never put pressure on me. But I'm just seeing more and more youngsters now, and even thirteen, fourteen year olds I was asked recently by a thirteen-year-old would I buy him a bottle of F WKD, and you know exactly what I what I told that person. That's it now. Youngsters are being pressurized into it, and and it's also their friends as well. Like I look at my two little nephews, Liam and Sheamel are six and four, and in some ways I worry, and I'm I'm hoping by the time they're a little bit older, they have each other as well, which is good, that the world will be a a different place. But um it it is, it's it's sad, and as you said about the GEA, we do have to tackle it, and it's the people like I remember Philly McMahon came down to Granard years ago and gave us a talk about his experiences with his brother and everything. And those kind of people, we need to have more of them out there and talking and it really trying to hit home with a lot of these young lads and girls.

SPEAKER_02 38:24

Yeah, public schools is the way to go. Education is the way to go in anything, and I think it with schools and the skills of life to survive, there's an awful lot of things we can do, and uh that's one area, like bring them to the rehab, bring them up to the areas where uh rehabilitation in Dublin, bring them to the you know, what h happens with accidents and what happens, you know, and let them see right along the line, you know, a lot of things we can do in life in schools, like teach them how to drive, teach them how to swim, te teach them how to cop in skills if they're being bullied as well. All that things because no point to having a huge leave and search with five hundred points and you go off on your holidays and you can't even swim, you know, and be drowned, you know. That's the way it is, and being able to drive and even able to cook everything that it's ever they're also with skills to survival. It's not just you're academically you're very skilled. Like an awful lot of people having the skills of being able to say no when the pressure comes on. That that ought to be in school, that's to be incorporated, it could be a joint venture with the GE as well. And once you have people playing together, socializing together, playing games together, being you sometimes you learn more in defeat than you do in in in in winning. And um you know, that's sort of an attitude to take. And how to actually how to accept defeat and how to accept winning. And you know, some people and parents and everything else, you know, they i i winning at all ki at all at all costs and the the loser will run in track of themselves. So the GA has a huge part to play in every aspect of life and it has been used, but it can be but used more as well.

SPEAKER_00 40:03

Exactly. Look as the thing about mixed bag is we talk about everything and anything and we go back to other things. Um I just want to ask you, I know Divine Park and probably Pierce Park, but Glenn Brothers will give them their proper in C and D Park, we'll give them Divine Park, we'll give them their proper names. But um grounds, what were the favourite grounds that you loved that's when you put on either the the green and red or the blue and white or the blue and gold that you just loved playing at?

SPEAKER_02 40:28

There is no I have I there actually is only one part that I actually love playing in. Absolutely I I I think it's a great part to play. Cusick Fat Mulling Gar. I absolutely love it. I I one of the reasons I uh I like it is I never had a bad game in it. I always played well in Until Jersey, whether it was in St. Lawrence, whether it was Longford or whether it was uh whoever it was, I I enjoyed it. I enjoyed Port Least as well, it's a huge big park as well. And be up there as well. Pierce Park would be would be there, but but we we'll be down the list as well. But um, yeah, um Carlo Carlo pitch uh down there uh it was a fine park years ago as well. So they they're the pitches, but definitely cute attack willing out because the side is actually the the history of it is it was taken the s the the the charcoal coals that was in St. Roman's hospital, the old hospital, it was all laid underneath, and then there was uh kind of peat moss and everything. It wasn't a way winter pitch, it was kind of but once the summer comes, it's that lovely soft, lush grass grass on it, it looks kind of soft peaty ground was on it. And um that look at it, probably has changed a good bit since since I stopped playing. But that was that was my memory of uh super pitch. I was in Co Park was looking, I played in a a good few times and that was super, but that was a different, unique uh experience. But regularly now you'd you'd you'd have to appreciate QC Park because I would have played a b a couple of times every year or Burn Cups and all that, championships and everything else. It was all the pitch. The paid the the crowd of being in toppy as well, and um it was much the same as Pierce Park, but whatever it is in in Cusic Park, it was um it was a unique occasion once there was a big crowd in it.

SPEAKER_00 42:05

You mentioned um O'Mora Park and for so long our record down there. I remember seeing m say Mel's loose there. Remember the under 21 final that uh myself and poor old Eugene McCormick, the two of us trying to hold back tears afterwards in twenty thirteen, but all those things, but was one ground that oh my gosh, I just no fault to the people at Port Leech, and it's a lovely ground, and I was there last year when we beat Dublin in Leinster and I enjoyed it that day. But whatever it was about certain Longford teams going down there, our record was terrible.

SPEAKER_02 42:41

He got down twenty-one that yeah, he bet Longford in his own, played it for another year or two for for Wexler and he went to uh that big Grandi fellow playing centre back that day as well. So I was at that match well, and it was at that um some of them Mills matches as well that lost with with um Sherman thing was playing that day as well. Yeah, uh yeah, look at the but the you compared the grounds then then to now, there's no such thing as a bad ground nowadays, even their own club grounds, even your own club grounds Edgeone. Look at all the lovely club grounds. Yeah, we're very lovely, yeah.

SPEAKER_00 43:09

That's what I said.

SPEAKER_02 43:10

Fantastic grounds all over the place. Every club, but look at the club grounds in West Lead and we need Leeds from and everything else. The amount of money they've put in. Now they're saying like, you know, in in in GA now, fantastic club grounds everywhere and having teams. That's a fact, they just uh there's there's there's a lot of these small clubs have fantastic grounds and lots of grounds to be GE has have uh developed some fantastic grounds even at lower at intermediate level and everything else, and now the teams uh when they had teams that no grounds now they have now they have grounds and no teams.

SPEAKER_00 43:41

Yeah, 'cause Daddy was saying to me about um some club and you look at it even in our local fixtures, some clubs are not able to field and you're there going, Wow, you know, would have been big towns and that and not able to which which is sad. We're very lucky at this moment in time in Granage that we have so many youngsters now even from the under sixes up now, um that want to play and that lads are are still around and please God we just seem to have always have injuries, so just keep us away from injuries this year. We go back to it. We love our county and all that, but it always goes back to the club, doesn't it? And that's all over the GE and people give out about oh what's the GE spend the money on? And then you look at the grounds and you say that's what the GE spends its money on. That's what the money goes back into and that's why we we do it all because it starts off with the club.

SPEAKER_02 44:29

Yeah look at the club is very important. Uh the club starts off and the club is is number one with a lot of players. But like you were talking about your club you play he played um Cut and Kill there one even and uh two for two fine teams there and two some fantastic players on both sides and not one of them on the county panel. And look at you look at Bally Mahan, Edwardstone, Cashel, look at all the teams that actually have no representative on the county teams and there's another team a few teams I would mention as well that there doesn't seem to be you know you know I know it starts with clubs, but it's every club's aspiration to get men on the county team. And that's where the club should be looking at as well. You know, make yourselves available. You know it's an honor to play for the county. It is an honor for your family as well. And it's it's actually a great way of opening a few doors if you're looking to you know to to progress your your your your your career as well in some places as well. And the amount of clubs in overall these counties only 48,000 people uh living in Longford and 3,000 of them are it's probably in Central Park when the when the census is done. So you know it does only that amount of money does amount to people living. So you know y you're trying to get I'd be very disappointed myself as a an ex-county player and as an analyst level that a lot of these clubs have nobody on the county team which it doesn't make sense.

SPEAKER_00 45:49

Yeah but um I don't want to get into the politics of it all but there were lads in there and there weren't weren't treated right and there still is that little bit of politics and I always said I didn't care if there was an Abbey would be our big rivals, if there was ten players from Abbey Lara good enough to be in a county panel then they should be on a county panel and that's the way it has to be. I think still think there's a little bit and you know Longford is too small for it of politics and that kind of has to go away. I'd love to see people like yourself on some kind of a a panel or a committee to go round and find out and help the county because that's the kind of things we need is because you don't have any agenda. You just love your county whereas there are people there I feel that do have agendas but that's just me me being me, me talking out.

SPEAKER_02 46:34

Well look when you when you start a chatter you have to be a little bit controversial as well and you have to say what you say what you believe in. But I have been around like I've never met I the the big Lomford draw is on tonight now here in in Pierce Park and there'll be interesting we'll be talking about later on it'll be interesting players as well. And I never missed I don't think I missed too many matches last year went round there and I've seen players that you know if they got got the chance of a county jersey I'd say they would they they would do well and you know just to bring in the the players the right players and just ask them and as you said like politics shouldn't have any part to play or you know just uh team safety should be just brought in if they're good enough let them see what it's about and uh you don't have to come up like a fellow can be give him a county jersey and he can do the job for you. He doesn't have to come up through the the the the minor ranks or twenty and twenties ranks. He just might mature at twenty or twenty-three or twenty-four and he's playing good footballer and Darren shouldn't be a barrier either.

SPEAKER_00 47:36

Look at Darren Gallagher you know um I always talk back 'cause they were saying about you know youngsters should we play an a championship and I used it that Darren Gallagher never played a championship underage and Galler just ended up and even in secondary school he wasn't getting the game and Canuck Rera and went to the tech and even then, you know, because the tech weren't it was sport football wasn't that big in the tech or there wouldn't have teams like Canuck Rah and Darren went under the red Darren and look at him, you know, to me I was so lucky um to say that one of my favourite players was actually from my my club it doesn't matter who you are. I was actually going to ask you are you involved in the draw tonight and will you be in there?

SPEAKER_02 48:10

I'll be in there yeah I'll be in there John Luffy will be closing me and see where the interest someone's in there. So I'll be in there after a while there as well. So yeah but you're talking about John Car Philip Kearning in my time when I played Philip never uh played for Melissa he went to Mells he never played put a Mells jersey on him and he didn't put on a uh county jersey until he was a senior county player. Look at he was a phenomenal player he was some he was a fantastic player. So look at it does happen. It happened now and it happened in them times as well and probably still other players I think I can name him just I wouldn't be sure but I know one or two players that that that are nearly sure that wouldn't wouldn't wouldn't have been through the underage ranks as well. But that them things happen as well like so but um yeah you your own team granard this year now would be interesting to see because uh you have a new management structure up there and as you said there's a lot of players who will come up through the underage group if Darren Gallery if he's injury free you could be the underdogs you could be you could be the dark horses.

SPEAKER_00 49:06

Oh because I was going to ask Mystic Tierney um to get his little crystal ball out because um long on their day anyone could nearly beat anyone that was the last couple of games like Granard were legal in games and then we just uh lost our composure but I know the Pat is training out an awful lot of players um in the league which is which is great for the young lads to get an opportunity and a lot of the young lads like Brendan Martin and those lads are getting an opportunity now to uh play senior football for Brannard. So I was going to say to uh Mystic Tierney you know how does he see the championship going uh looking forward to a good one again.

SPEAKER_02 49:40

Yeah looking for I'm looking forward to look at you can't go away from the the normal teams and out for the rally and call him kills and and uh uh killos and but uh you know if to get a favorable draw if they get into it and get momentum because Pat Slanig is an experienced manager uh managing Westcommon managing Westmead managing awfully you know and uh he loves winning cups and he'll bring in a great lot of experience which kind of just need and to have a few problematic players hard manage which is they always a test to a manager and he takes them and I like to tell it with a bit of bite in them and he has a few players that if he got them right there'll be they'll be they'll be good asses as well. But the the it is a championship is always a very good championship in Lamford very very good. It's as good as comparable to anyone any other uh championship and uh I'd be looking forward to it as well and hopefully hopefully we unearth uh uh we unearth we need a number six we need a number nine we know we need a number eleven and probably you know you're you're looking at unearthing six good players this year with the county and look at I'd be I'd be very confident we'd a great under twenty twenty team this year but so would everyone else awfully with Smee Mead Killer you know everyone had a good team uh under twenty team this year and it was a great competition. Longford had five great games there with uh Don Ledwick and and and and and Jimmy Higgins uh Jimmy Higgins was there as well and sorry Sean McConnell Sean is there and they're they're they're a good that's a good setup and a couple of great young players coming on there. So I'd be very positive for for um Longford in the in the next couple of years and I was there don't rush them and keep that management system a kind of in situ as well. Let's bring on because it's as I said it's a circle and I think I think if these players stay around and one thing that that team has that we haven't for a while we have a bit of physicality around them in that team as well.

SPEAKER_00 51:31

And they're not afraid to get to get in there and you look at mine underage then Canuck were a with senior you know titles have come unfortunately mine they didn't have an all Ireland series to go into but Canuck were a All Ireland a senior B champion so it's great and an awful lot of them which was great to see no disrespect to the lads from Mullerhorn or Gown or Lacken or that or Ballymaw but it was great to see so many involved from Longford and a captain from your own club as well Liam.

SPEAKER_02 51:59

Yeah look a conveyor bell like the the Convent as in Brannard Hill has been a conveyor bell for the counties around it as well and uh you know and to win like they did and it was a great game and go on a beat a Mayor team as well uh you would delight to get one up on Hegerty. Yeah the best 80s there and it was made up from Mayo as well which is a which is a huge which is a huge scalp as well and to win and then look at our neighbours up the road then with Smeed winning uh St. Mary winning the EA competition which is very unique for two the Midland counties right beside each other to win you know two the two top colleges games. So that was that was very unique unique for the Midlands as well. So I argue as well so it it'll be it's look it's we we it's it's it's all to look forward to really in in Longford um and it'll be it'll be a hard way like a lot of the teams like you have Mullinata who set the standard and he kill all call him kill all have done very well and but um so I have a funny feeling that City might be a change in the in the hierarchy in this year.

SPEAKER_00 53:02

I tell you I'll be I'll be saying Nov I'll be saying novenas. Well I'm hoping to God now that I don't use up all the novenas with Celtic over the next um couple of days and uh there's there's still there's still there yeah some goal alright. Um we mentioned Russ Common earlier on and it was great to see years ago I'd be kind of going oh gotta support Russ Common sorry the Rossies and because they're your neighbours you like to have a bit of crack but then it's great to see and also um our neighbours Westmead in the Leinster final on Sunday.

SPEAKER_02 53:32

Yeah look at Luke Loch then a huge loss to Talley's man he'd be an awful lot but uh do the rest of the players look for Westmead to to win everything has to go right uh the freeze have to go everything you know luck which you can't legislate for you need that but Dublin have gone in there under the ring there haven't really played that well played well the last day and uh you know they'll be going half favorites as well and uh the top players going back and Dean Rock there you know Shrewd young man there, Shrewd there they'll play for him as well. So look at West Mead having all to do and hoping in the best they'll they'll do it all right. They have the forwards but there needs everything to you know every box has to be ticked and if they hang in there, if they hang in there, ask questions, stay in the game as long as they can and see what happens and there'd be a huge crowd uh from the Midlands cheered them on. There'd be a huge crowd from West Smead going up to see them because they're good supporters as well. So Matthew will have them fairly you know he's a good defensive coach as well.

SPEAKER_00 54:26

So and he would he would have done an awful lot of work with West Common if he was with him yeah he was and I also want to give a shout out to Frank because um his ladies are in the Leinster intermediate final on Saturday and also the Longford ladies are in the junior final. So you know a good weekend. Listen Mr Tierney go off and um put on your best radio voice for Shannon side and yap about the championships. It was great having you Liam I love the fun we have in the press box um you're always a joy to talk to and uh you've been a good friend over the years. So uh thank you so much for coming on the pod. Okay bye