Australian Memories
Weeshie Fogarty Recalls his Trip to
Australia with the 1970 Kerry Team
Faraway
places with strange sounding names
The latest instillation of Weeshie's 1970 tour with the Kerry
team following our All-Ireland win over Offaly in 1962 (the 21st
to come to Kerry), we set off on a fairytale trip around the world
as a reward in March 1970.
The words from that beautiful melody, "Faraway
Places With Strange-Sounding Names" had come true for me
as we visited Fremantle, New Delhi, Adelaide, Auckland, Sydney,
the Fiji Islands, Hawaii, Perth, Wagga Wagga, Melbourne, San Francisco,
Chicago, New York, Bankok and many more exotic places.
But back to one of our many games on tour. We arrived in Adelaide
on National Flower Day, when Victoria Square was alive with colour,
and the Festival of Arts, at which Irish writer Edna O Brien was
a guest speaker, was also in full swing.
Our game in Adelaide would be played under lights, the first for
any Irish team, and the Australian oval ball would be used for
the first fifteen minutes (this would change, so brilliantly did
Kerry adapt to it).
Some of the people I recall meeting at that game all those years
ago included John
Stack from Dundalk, Jimmy Fry, President of the Adelaide G.A.A.,
Vice-President Jim Farnam (Meath), Mrs. Betty Hannigan from Limerick,
Peggy Power from Thurles and husband Bob from Waterford, Police
Sergeant Bart Maxwell of Multyfarnham, Paddy &
Rita Barry (Rock St. Tralee), Charlie Roulstan (Donegal), Bart
Lawlor (Kerry), Michael McAlary (Derry) and I often wonder, "Where
are they now?"
The late great John D. Hickey, a renowned journalist with whom
I became great friends, very kindly sent me his match report,
and even to this day, 32 years later, it captures the greatness
of that side; trained and captained by my own Killarney Legion
clubmen, Jackie Lyne and Johnnie Culloty.
As our own great Seamus Moynihan leads his own men against the
present Australian touring side, it is only right and fitting
that we recall that historic Kerry victory under the lights of
the Norwood Oval in far-away Adelaide so long ago. I was so fortunate
to have been part of that now-historic journey around the globe.
So, this then is part of the "Secret Of Kerry" and indeed,
memories are made of this. And so the Australians have left our
shores victorious over the best of our Gaelic players. Over 100,000
spectators watched the Compromise series over the past 2 Sundays
in
Croke Park, the latter in the worst weather conditions possible
heavy rain and storm.
It was 1968 Meath became the trail blazers when they travelled
down under and so
began the Compromise Rules that we have seen over the past
2 weeks. When Johnny Culloty (Kerry Goalkeeper)
and Captain made that brilliant match winning save against Offally's
Sean Evans just
after half time in the 1969 All-Ireland Final, he began the process
that would take Kerry on a wonderful and memorable trip around
the World organised by Joe Walsh Tours L.T.D.
We had beaten Galway in a league game in Croke park that afternoon
and a huge
number of supporters had come out to Dublin Airport to wave us
off, from the balcony.
On to Amsterdam, Vienna,and a stop to refuel in Bahrain.
Off again to New Delhi and there in the shimmering heat of the
fields that surrounded this run down airport we saw Women doing
the hard back breaking work of labouring men. We were sternly
warned by the Armed Guards that "photographs were not allowed
under any circumstances".
On to Bangkok airport, and the first thing I took notice of was
a group of "Buddhist Monks", heads shaven to the skin,
and their magnificent saffron robes rippling gently in the stifling
hot summer breeze. A truly dramatic sight for me, as we were moving
further and further away from the World we knew so well. It was
surely a long way away from kicking a rag football around the
streets of lower New Street Killarney, where I grew up and listened
to the radio broadcasts of the late great Michael O'Hehir, a man
who inspired and motivated countless generations of Kerry youngsters
to the ultimate dream of wearing the Green and Gold.
Finally we went to Singapore, a beautifil, exotic and memorable
place, and our headquarters was the Hotel Malaysia where we experienced
the unique sights and
sounds of the East. So many boats clogged the vast harbour, we
watched as if we were spellbound....maybe we were?
The Chineese Theatre performed before huge crowds as the strong
inviting aroma of oriental cooking wafted up the nostrils of all
us Kerrymen, so far from home.....bacon and cabbage never smelt
like this?
"Mesmirised"?. We were as the rick-shaws , with their
Chinese Drivers implored us to drive with them, and indeed we
obliged.
My photograph shows one big strong Kerry Defendeer running down
the packed streets pulling the rick-shaw as the bemused Chinese
Driver clung on for Dear life. Now as i am writing this , memories
are coming like the current weather, in Floods. We are only beginning,
as the present teams from both Australia and Ireland know very
little if any thing about "Kerry's " historic trip down
under in 1970.
Australian M..
