By Mark Owens
Many great scribes have come out of the town of Derry; Brian Friel (playwright), Seamus Heaney (poet) and Phil Coulter (music). It appears that when it comes to writing a play, a poem or a few songs, then there’s a good chance a man from Derry was behind it. So what about when it comes to sports? Journalists in Derry have come and gone, but there is one man who perhaps flew under the radar both in Derry and here in Cleveland, Ohio, when it comes to writing about sports.
Sadly though, as with most great people, we don’t hear about the ‘other’ things they did until after they leave us. A great friend of everyone, Ben Clingain, sadly packed up his clubs and took them upstairs to play a few rounds with the other greats that have gone before him. In the nine or ten years that I knew Ben, it was always Derry and sports that we talked about. We also had another strong bond in that, along with Friel, Heaney and Coulter, we all attended St Columb’s College (Catholic boy’s high school) in Derry.
When we talked sports, it was usually about Derry City Football Club, and how maybe they had come through another turbulent season, or maybe it was when they went to Paris to play Paris St. Germaine in the UEFA Cup. But whatever it was, Benny was up to date and knew what was going on.
Those that knew Ben knew he was an avid golfer, but some may not know that he also helped scribe and edit a few sports-themed books over the years. Some of the title’s Ben had a hand in included Boxing Clever, Dog Tails: Great Stories of Greyhounds and their Owners, Hunting Tales, Tales of Anglers Rest: An Anthology of Fishing Stories and International Golf Almanac (1995).
To Ben’s family I would like to pass along my condolences. To Ben, thanks for the friendship and the memories. As Ben would say ‘bloody hell mate, it was great craic.”
Football -
Robbie Keane Makes History
When you talk Irish or British football records rarely does the name of an Irish player come up, but recently Robbie Keane made sure that for the time being his name will be the answer to the trivia question: Which Irish or British international player has scored the most international goals. With Keane scoring his latest two goals against Macedonia in the Euro 2012 qualifying game, he took himself to the top of this unique scoring chart. Keane became the first player from Britain or Ireland to score fifty senior international goals when bagging the double in his country’s 2-0 win over Macedonia in Skopje.
The previous benchmark of forty-nine was held by Manchester United and England great Sir Bobby Charlton. Keane, thrilled at his feat, said: “It means a hell of a lot. When I first started off, Niall Quinn said I’d reach it so I’m delighted.”
Keane’s current career is one that is up in the air, he most recently was on loan to West Ham United in the English Premier League but with their relegation to the lower division it is unclear whether or not he’ll stay the course with the Hammers, or if he’ll find his way back into yet another EPL club. My guess is Keane will move to one of the newly promoted clubs into the EPL, or maybe he’ll stick it out with Tottenham, the club who currently owns his contract.
Keane would certainly do the job for a club whose main goal is to do enough to stay in the league, if anything else, Keane is a player guaranteed to give it 110% every time he pulls on a shirt, regardless of what team it is. As it stand right now, his own personal record is pretty impressive. In 108 games for the Republic of Ireland he has now scored fifty-one goals—nearly a goal every game—I’d take that in a heartbeat for any team I followed. In the Premier League he is currently the 10th all-time top scorer with 123 goals.
Trivia
First last month’s question: In Ireland teams in Gaelic Football play annually for the biggest prize in the sport, the Sam Maguire Trophy, awarded to the winner of the Senior Football All-Ireland Final. What is the hurling equivalent known as?
The answer is the Liam McCarthy Cup. The Cup commemorates the memory of Liam McCarthy, who was born in London to Irish parents in 1851; he was prominently involved in the establishment of a GAA county board in London in the 1890’s. In 1921, a trophy in his honor was presented to the Central Council of the Gaelic Athletic Association and replaced the Great Southern Cup as the All-Ireland trophy. Limerick, as All-Ireland champions in 1921, was the first recipient of the Liam McCarthy Cup.
In 1992, the original Liam McCarthy Cup was retired. Tipperary was the last team to claim the original. An exact replica was produced and has been awarded on an annual basis since then. Kilkenny were the first team to win the ‘new’ McCarthy Cup.
This month’s question: Earlier I mentioned that the Republic of Ireland have not fared well when it comes to playoff games. In 1995 the Irish had to play a playoff game in order to qualify for Euro 1996 in England – who did they play and what was the result?
*Mark Owens is originally from Derry City, Ireland and has resided in the Cleveland area since 2001 where he is employed by State Farm Insurance Companies, having previously spent time studying at John Carroll University. Send questions, comments or suggestions for future articles to Mark at:
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