Andy Phillips was one of Wicklow's Greats Marvellous Railway Cup Record /Wicklow Town All-Rounder was a footballer to his finger-tips Those of us who were brought up in the fifties depended on the radio and the newspapers to provide us with our heroes. In hurling there was Christy Ring and Nicky Rackard. In football there was Paddy O'Brien, Kevin Heffernan, Sean Purcell, Frankie Stockwell and Jim McKeever. After school, we picked teams and we all assumed the names of our heroes. In our school we had an outstanding goalkeeper . and he'd always inform us that he was Andy Phillips. The Wicklow custodian was the game's No. 1 at the time and Andy Phillips was as much part of our games as were Ring or Purcell. We never actually saw him in action until that memorable St. Patrick's Day in Croke Park in 1961 when the R.T.E. cameras arrived in headquarters for the first time. The Leinster-Ulster game was an historic event, and although it was 'live' on television, a crowd of over 60,000 turned up to watch. And among the thirty players making history was Andy Phillips the goalkeeper from the St. Patrick's club in Wicklow town. "Believe it or not, it was the first occasion for my late mother to see me playing and she didn't have a leave the house. The Railway Cups were huge occasions in those days, and, for me, they represented much of the G.A.A.'s ethos. Players from counties such as Wicklow, who would not normally be in the limelight, were playing in front of huge crowds and a Railway Cup medal was second only in terms of prestige to an All-Ireland medal. In the end, the competition was a victim of changing times and attitudes. Players felt that it was much more important to strive for success with their county teams and their appetite for inter-county provincial competition disappeared. It's a great pity because it certainly provided a great platform for the players who would not otherwise have had the opportunity." Andy could be described as an authentic expert on the Railway Cups and their importance. He was Leinster's sub goalkeeper in 1959 and was the province's No. 1 custodian for the next eight years. Ironically, it was his failure to earn selection on the Leinster team in 1969 that provided one of his sources of disillusionment with football. "At that time the provincial champions played 'The Rest' in a trial game. We were playing Offaly in Tullamore and I had the best game of my life. I had enjoyed a lengthy spell on the Leinster team but badly wanted to continue. The selectors met after the game and while we were having the meal one of them emerged to tell me that I hadn't been selected. He even told me I'd had a good run, as if I should have been happy at that. I was bitterly disappointed and it was a terrible blow for somebody who wanted so much to represent the province". When the demise of the Railway Cups are being written about Andy Phillips' experience in Tullamore could emerge as a possible key. County representative had to be looked after and the best teams were not always selected. Disillusioned, Andy played against Carlow in the following championship and also lined out for the St. Patrick's club but he found it difficult to generate the same enthusiasm and his career gradually came to an end. The career had begun in the town of Wicklow under the guidance of the De la Salle brothers, a community about which Andy is loud and sincere in his praise and appreciation: "not only from a sporting viewpoint but also from an educational perspective. They were prepared to put in the work after school hours and gave invaluable encouragement to the young fellows of the town. They contributed immensely to the success of the St. Patrick's club, both as players and officials. Brother Francis O'Sullivan, Brother Gregory and Brothers Augustine, Gabriel McGarry and Francis Donnelly. They were great football and hurling men". The games against other De la Salle schools feature highly in Andy's memories, particularly the trips to Ardee and Dundalk where he recalls playing against Dermot O'Brien and Frank Lynch. During his underage career Andy played outfield and earned selection at left-half forward on the county minor team for the Leinster Championship tie against Kildare (coached by the same Brother Gregory) in the 1949 Championship. But Andy was also a keen soccer player, even in the days of the infamous Ban. His displays for Wicklow Town were noted and in 1949 he signed for St Patrick's Athletic, as a left-winger. He was with the Inchicore side for two years but in February of 1952 he chipped a knee-bone, an incident which was to change his entire career . dramatically. The injury kept Andy out of football for six months but when the Wicklow Championship came around, several members of the team had been suspended for playing rugby and he was persuaded to "stand in the goals" to take the team out of a fix. They ended up reaching the final and Andy's goalkeeping career had begun. He was selected on the county team for the following league campaign and made his debut against Galway at Ballinasloe. So how was he able to mix soccer and Gaelic during the era of the Ban? "I was never suspended even though I always used my own name. Pseudonyms were all the rage at the time but I never agreed with that method of beating the system. I wanted to play both games and I played them. There was on awful lot of hypocrisy surrounding the implementation of the Ban. Some were suspended and others were not. It may gave been that because I was on the county team I was not punished." Andy had returned to soccer action with Wicklow Town in 1953, but returned to senior soccer in 1955 when Shelbourne signed him as goalkeeper. Having played in the first game to be television live by RTE, or Telefis Eireann as it was then known, he also contributed to sporting history when he played in the first League of Ireland game to be played under floodlights against St. Patrick's Athletic at Tolka Park. And all the time he managed to mix his Gaelic and soccer careers successfully. Successfully? Wicklow had little success during Andy's playing career. And luck could often play a cruel role, as in the Leinster Championship game against Meath in 1954 - the famous, or infamous day of the long hour. Wicklow led by three points at the end of the sixty minutes but referee Bill Delaney played an extraordinary amount of added time, about twelve minutes, and Meath managed to eke out a fortunate victory. They went on to win the All-Ireland. "I remember the umpire saying to me, 'you're safe', and still the whistle didn't sound. It was incredible". A change in the rules governing playing time followed but that too was subsequently reversed. "The breaks seldom fall for the underdogs. Look what happened to Wicklow against Kildare in June". Despite his lack of success with the county team, he won Railway Cup medals in 1960, '61 and '63. Wicklow had some great players during his era, most notably Gerry O'Reilly and Jim Rogers, but Andy often thought that he was called into action so often. Why, if Wicklow had some fine individual players, was success so elusive? "It was always difficult to get fellows to train with the county team. They were happier to train with their clubs, maybe on account of the amount of travelling involved. It wasn't easy with the mountains causing a natural East-West divide in the county. On the day that I made my debut in Ballinasloe, I was collected at 6 a.m. in the morning and didn't arrive back until 4 a.m. on the Monday morning. We had to go around the county picking up players and dropping them off again. It was often later on Monday mornings when we got home from league games. But we were always well treated. The late Billy Lawless was Secretary and he was a great man for the players as was his successor, George Nichols" It was George and his wife who accompanied Andy to the Cuchulainn All-Stars Presentation in the Gresham hotel in 1963 when Andy again made history by becoming the first 'All-Star', "The Cuchulainn All-Stars was the forerunner of the present All-Star scheme and I was deeply honoured to be selected. It was the same system as the current one with the GAA journalists picking the team. I suppose you could say that I was the first, the goalkeeper was called out first to receive the special jersey!" He was also honoured to be selected on the Irish team for the then-popular representative games and recalls playing for 'Ireland' against Kerry along with Jim McKeever, Stephen White, Micky Whelan and Sean O'Neill before a crowd of 35,000 The greatest satisfaction that I derived from my career was in the friendships that were formed. The GAA is a tremendous organisation in which to meet friends and that can also be a great help in the business world." Andy is the Managing Director of the French-owned La Farge Plasterboard Ireland Limited in Walkinstown and is also an executive of its UK company. His work commitments include a great deal of travelling to both the UK and France and nowadays his sporting interests are largely confined to golf, a game, which he thoroughly enjoys. Married to Evelyn, they are the proud parents of three boys and a girl. Eldest son David has recently joined La Farge as Sales Manager and also plays soccer with Ashford. Norman is a good all-rounder enjoying badminton and golf as well as football, while youngest son Ronald is a dairy farmer in Ashford. For a time it appeared as if Ronald would follow in the illustrious footsteps of his father. He was the St Patrick's goalkeeper and earned selection on the county minors. But an injury ended his career and also had a diminishing effect on his father's enthusiasm for the game. "I would have loved to see him go further in the game but the injury was a real sickener. His thigh muscle was severely damaged, and he was on crutches for ten weeks. He has played a bit of soccer since but he will never return to the GAA. It was a terrible blow to him. He was so committed and enthusiastic. Unfortunately there are a few people who should never be allowed to play the game and its lucky that this minority haven't ruined it altogether." Daughter Sharon lives in Dunlavin where she is virtually immersed in enthusiasm for Gaelic football. Andy is pleased with Wicklow's improvement in recent years, culminating in last year's 'B' success. "Baltinglass showed what could be done when they won the club title. They had great belief in themselves and that is ail-important. The county team must also find that self-belief and their weaknesses will have to be worked at and eliminated. It's much the same as work. More help has to be given to the less efficient and a person's weak points have to be identified and improved upon. Wicklow were never devoid of skill on the field but they lacked confidence and team-work. I think that both faults are close to being eliminated." And how does he see the GAA's position these days? "The games are immensely popular and things are going well for the association. But there is a danger that the importance of the club is diminishing against the background of increased popularity at county level. Clubs are being requested to play without their county men in a lot of games and they are suffering as a result. We're talking about the best players in a club. I don't think the development of Croke Park is great idea although it disproves the old theory that the GAA is behind the times. They might be better advised to sell off Croke Park and build a new stadium outside the city where access would be less difficult and where cars could be parked in safety. Modern stadia in other countries include restaurants and shopping areas - the GAA could do the same. The trend nowadays is for families to enjoy a day out rather than just a few hours. But there's no doubt about it, they have products - the hurling is brilliant and the football too is excellent." Andy enjoys his golf at the Wicklow Golf Club just as he once enjoyed his football, soccer and rugby. He was always an all-rounder - often playing soccer in the mornings and Gaelic in the afternoons. He is of the opinion that the GAA is much better organisation for its removal of the Ban and believes that the games should be more about enjoyed than about winning. He remembers fondly going out to play in that Railway Cup Final in 1961 . the highlights of his career, and also the League play-off against Dublin in the early 50s which attracted a huge crowd to Croke Park. And the first floodlit game at Tolka and the Cuchulainn All-Stars. But they pale into insignificance when they're set against the friendships the he formed from his days with Wicklow and Leinster. Friends like Paddy McCormack of Offaly and the other heroes of the 50s and 60s. "That was the best thing about it all. the friendship". Written by the Hogan Stand Magazine 30/07/93 Tweet

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