Delaney, Jimmy
April 11, 2008
Sixty years ago today,
Since I first sailed away,
And left my dear old home
So far behind,
But since that lonely journey
My heart has always yearned,
My happy home in Laois
Once more to find.
Lovely Laois, I hear you calling
In my dreams I hear you say,
Come back home to dear old Ireland,
Lovely Laois,
I'll come back to you some day
If ever a funeral song had heartfelt resonance it was as Trudi Lalor 'Lovely Laois' played quietly in the background when Jimmy Delaney's family carried his coffin from Askea church last Thursday to commence the journey that would bring him to his final resting place.
'Lovely Laois, I hear you calling' wafted from the church as family and friends prepared to fulfill the song's and Jimmy's prophecy that "I'll come back to you some day."
The day had come; Jim Delaney was going home to his beloved Killeshin where he began life in the townland of Cappalug 80 years ago. Jimmy Delaney was leaving his adopted Carlow Town where his trojan work for the local hurling club will never be forgotten.
The Jim and Jimmy in the previous paragraph are intended. From a perusal of the excellent little brochure produced by Killeshin GFC to mark the reunion of their great football team of the 50s who won junior in '57, intermediate in '58 and were beaten by the eventual champions in the senior semi-final of '59, one notices all references to him are as Jim. One notices too that apart from being a player Jim was also the chairman,early proof of his leadership qualities.
In Carlow he was known as Jimmy though you know there were a few who may have been tempted to call him 'neighbour' a form of greeting very popular with the quiet spoken Gael.
About a month ago stopped at the lights outside of Brennan's of old, as I was crossing the road, was Bridie Delaney and husband Jimmy in the passenger seat of the small car. We exchanged a small wave, a farewell wave as it happened.
Mr and Mrs Delaney were a very united couple and, would you believe they first met at an All-Ireland hurling final in Croke Park in the late 40s. She being from Waterford, the story of their courting must be an interesting one.
Though a football-man himself, winner of a JFC medal with Palatine in 1948, Jimmy was drawn to the hurling club by the deep playing involvement of his sons. The Delaney brothers, Michael, John and Chris brought a passion and a work ethic to their preparation and play that helped power the club to minor, under 21 and senior championship success.
They also got involved in every single aspect of club activity as did John's twin James, the non-hurling brother as well as their mother Bridie and sisters Marie and Phil.
The Delaneys inherited a strong-work ethic from their father. If the song 'Lovely Laois' was appropriate, the adjective Trojan to describe Jimmy's work for the hurling club was equally apt.
Trojan: "Somebody who does something with great dedication, determination, stamina and courage." Tick, tick, tick that was Jimmy with the hurling club.
Proof of his impact came last Tuesday when news of his passing began to travel the town by word of mouth.
"Delaney, the hurling man is dead," was the way I heard it more than once that day, Palatine's Michael Cunningham the first to pass on the sad news.
The hurling man, spot on, even though to the best of my knowledge he never hurled. But make no mistake, he did more for hurling in Carlow Town than a lot of people who wore the blue-sashed jersey, then drifted away.
Jimmy was a grafter. No job to menial, too unimportant, no task too big to be taken on with dedication and determination.
When Jimmy got involved with the hurling in the mid '70s a gypsy club was in existence, training was held on the outside pitch owned by the County Board while the Regional College ground also housed the hurlers.
Meetings took place the CBS Primary and Secondary Schools, the Workman's Club, upstairs in Reddy's of Tullow Street.
Members longed for a home of their own, it became an obsession and in the late '80s it became a reality. Right there in the van throughout the negotiations, the fundraising, the stone picking, the sowing, the erection of goal posts was Jimmy Delaney. And when it came to lovingly nurturing that pitch Jimmy Delaney was out on his own.
'Inch by inch, row by row,
You've got to let your garden grow,
All you need is a rake and a hoe
And a piece of fertile ground'
The hurling club was Jimmy's fertile ground. "You're doing me good now," John O'Brien tells me was a favourite phrase of Jimmy's when a task was nearing completion.
Well Jimmy, you did the hurling club a lot of good, you treated the grounds and surrounds with tender loving care and the flower beds and quaint old water pump in the front yard stand as a testament to that tender loving care.
One of Jimmy's greatest personal honours was when named the Carlow Ciba-Geigy Clubman of the Year, the award ceremony taking place in Dublin a memorable day for the entire family who gave the Patriarch a moving send-off last week.
Personal memories of my own mainly surround the 1980 Carlow County final, the high-point of my playing career. I had come on as sub in previous matches, scoring a vital goal against Myshall in the semi. A 20 year old, trying to break into a settled team, I was wondering if I would make the final 15.
The night of our last training session before the final we were togging-in under the shelter of the wall of the outside pitch of Dr Cullen Park when Jimmy Delaney, chairman of the club and a senior selector, approached: "Listen son, if you were given your choice on Sunday, to start or come on, which would it be," he asked.
Now, I might not have been picked to start anyway, for remember the boys had won the championship twice in the previous three years, but my answer, right or wrong, was that I'd prefer to come on.
I took Jimmy's nod as he walked away, hands behind his back in that trademark fashion of his, to mean that I had made the task of picking the team a little easier.
The following Sunday I came on, scored the clinching goal against favourities Ballymurphy and can still see John 'Dinty' Delaney's greeting of approval as I landed from my leap of celebration.
Strange I can't remember meeting Jimmy Delaney in the immediate aftermath of the match but the following Monday dinner time I received a phone-call from him.
"You enjoyed that yesterday, it worked out well," or words to that effect opened the conversation but typical Jimmy this was not a call of congratulations.
A brother of our captain Eugene Hession had passed away in Galway and, naturally, a big hurling club contingent were heading West for the funeral.
"Listen son, would you do me a favour," queried Chairman Mao as he was affectionately known when things were going well.
"The under 16s are playing in Tullow tonight and committee members will be thin on the ground because of the funeral, would you go along to represent the committee and the senior team?"
No sooner said than done but again it showed the kind nature of the man. Having consulted a youngster before the county senior final, he was now looking after the needs of the next generation of hurlers. Sowing the seeds.
The following Wednesday celebrations and funeral complete, Jimmy and myself met on Tullow Street, outside the old Presentation College. Content as he was at a job well done, he still had a grouse. Not with me but the newspaper I was associated with.
"We didn't get much praise from your boss" he grumbled.
The Nationalist report of the county final had cast aspersions on the quality of the match but, still floating on cloud nine, my reply was "sure we have the cup, that's all that matters." True for ya, son", chimed Jimmy walking away placated. Cloud Nine was well populated that August evening.
My last story might well have been in this week's column even if Jimmy Delaney hadn't passed away. You see I was planning an article on Davy Fitzgerald, the Clare goalkeeper, who announced his retirement on Monday, and of how I had had an involvement with both his arrival and departure from the inter-county stage.
The departure part will have to wait for another day but I mentioned here before of how my only senior intercounty appearance with the Carlow hurlers came against Clare in Ennis in the Autumn of 1989 and of how that national league match was Fitzy's first time to be part of a Clare senior panel, sub goalie to Leo Doyle.
Like the county final nine years earlier, I came on half-way through the match in Cusack Park, well won by Clare and like after the county final, I had a brief conversation with Jimmy Delaney, the following Wednesday.
We were in the late Jim Kenny's car, getting a lift home from Kelly's when knowing my Clare parentage and having heard of my fire-fighting debut (Carlow were stuck for numbers) Jimmy asked as we drove past the 'Wimpy' on Dublin Street: "Did we score?"
Upon being told no that my lone shot flew narrowly wide of the far post Jimmy, looking away into the distance, whispered "a pity", realising I'd say, the enjoyment I would have got out of that point.
And it is appropriate too that the last story should concern a point that never was. A famous catch-phrase in the hurling club, coined by Jimmy Delaney was "a disputed point will do." And that long before Michael Turley's infamous shot for Laois against Carlow in Portlaoise!
Lads would be discussing a forthcoming match of maybe how we would win it with a bit to spare when Jimmy would quietly say, "now look neighbour, a disputed point will do."
The great umpire in the Sky has that flag now and to Jimmy's heart-broken wife and family we extend our deepest sympathy, to Jimmy we say slán abhaile.
Courtesy of The Nationalist, 11th April 2008
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