Rugby fanatic Seamie passes the test of time
AFTER almost half a century of continuous service to rugby administration - among many other commitments - Seamus Briscoe was belatedly inducted into the Hall of Fame to a standing ovation in the packed Westcourt Hotel.
So lengthy was his citation that compere Michael Lyster had to omit parts of it due to time constraints, but from 1972 until 2017 he was involved at committee level with the Delvin and Boyne rugby clubs and also served in various roles within the Leinster Branch and other rugby bodies.
On top of all that, he was on Drogheda Football Club’s Ways & Means Committee during the early 1970s when they reached the FAI Cup Final, and despite being ‘no good at Gaelic’ he returned to his native village to manage St Fechin’s to a Louth Senior Championship during the best years in their history.
Seamus described himself as a ‘multi-sports person’ but there is no question that rugby was his big love and coincidentally it was a man sitting at a different table at Saturday’s awards who actually shaped his future.
‘The most influential person in my sporting life is someone who is here tonight, and he managed the Newtown Blues, and that was Brian Phillips who introduced me to rugby,’ he told compere Michael Lyster to rapturous applause.
‘That was in 1971 when I joined McDonnells Unilever and we had a bus that used to take us up to Mosney which was the home of Delvin at that particular time.
‘Previously I had a love of rugby through those great Kyle days, but that’s when I experienced the game physically and on the pitch and that’s where it all began in terms of rugby football and everything else.
‘In relation to St Fechin’s, a gentleman who is here tonight - Johnny McDonnell - came out and asked me in 1981 to be honoured with the task of going down and training my village team and to achieve what we achieved was absolutely outstanding and will never be erased from my mind.
‘I would be a multi-sports person. I’m not a fan of cricket, American football, no, but all our own National games, yes, athletics, yes, and I’m glued to the television when all of those sports are on.’
Seamus agreed that he hadn’t seen his massive commitment at voluntary level as a chore.
‘I put quite a lot of time in and I reflect on the successes, of course, and there are failures, but I also reflect on the sad times when we encountered losses of young lads,’ he responded.
‘There’s up and downs, but to be involved you have to know everything across the wide spectrum of the sport that you’re involved with. The club has to reach everybody and anybody and it has to be a community effort.
‘I have to go back to the conception of this event, with Hubert Murphy. I think this is one of the greatest events that rewards sportspeople and that actually gives them an opportunity to come up here with celebrities like yourself, Michael, to give the people and their clubs, their communities the opportunity to display their talents.
‘I’m deeply honoured to be put into this situation with a Hall of Fame. I’ve seen in the past serious people up here standing receiving this Hall of Fame - the likes of Philomena Garvey who came from my parish of Baltray and all those people.
‘I’m humbled by it and I thank the Drogheda Independent, Westcourt and Coca-Cola for this marvellous night.’