Six ‘outsiders’ in total have donned our Under-21 shirt

THIS WEEK I’ll continue with my look back at non-natives who represented Wexford in football, although I must clarify two matters from the last column before I proceed. Firstly, I should have been more specific by stating clearly that John Bradley is the only Donegal man ever to line out in football with the county.

That word Senior is most important, because Peter Devine of Castletown did play the full 70 minutes at centre-back for our Juniors in the last championship game we contested at that level before withdrawing - a 1-17 to 0-10 defeat to Meath in Navan three years ago.

The Letterkenny native has since moved back to his home club of St. Eunan’s after securing a teaching post in the north-west.

Staying on the topic of words, each and every one is precious, especially when an omission can completely alter the meaning of a sentence.

I meant to write that Tom Meally was the last of only two non-natives to feature in the Under-21 grade but, by leaving out the italicised word above, it may have caused confusion as I had already outlined the involvement of Tom Byrne and John Bradley.

There was John Kennedy (’64), Byrne (’65), Bradley (’65 and ’66), and Meally (’70), but it turns out I was wrong about the latter being the last non-native at this level.

I had forgotten that Eddie Shiely from Kilmacabea in Cork, and now of Horeswood, played in 2013.

And, I was only partially correct about Kennedy being the first as well! The Roscommon man played in the county’s first-ever Under-21 championship game in 1964 against Laois, but so too did Tom O’Donnell of St. Martin’s, a Dublin native, who top-scored with five of the points in a 3-5 to 0-7 defeat. So, that’s six in total!

Tommy Kirwan was the last Senior I had mentioned one week ago, so I will take up the story at that level from his era in the early seventies.

Another Dub, Denis Noonan, arrived in Gorey for work purposes and played Junior in 1972, and with the Seniors from ’72 through to ’75. He also refereed a county Senior football semi-final in the latter year - Gusserane’s 3-12 to 0-6 win over St. Joseph’s - but he moved on to Clonakilty in Co. Cork in 1976.

I have plans to do a piece at some stage on the men who played just one Senior game for Wexford in either code.

And fitting neatly into that category is Peter Cashin, who was an apprentice tailor in Bunclody when he played at right half-forward in a 2-7 to 0-2 National League win over Kilkenny in Nowlan Park on December 2, 1973 (with Noonan at right half-back).

My good friend and fellow statistician, Leo McGough, gave me the full career details of Carlow native Cashin - an Eire Og clubman before and after his brief Bunclody stint who came on for them in their first-ever appearance in the Leinster Club championship, when they beat Kilanerin by 3-9 to 2-7 in Gorey on December 8, 1974.

Readers from New Ross town may recall Joe Duffy, a Mayo native who assisted Geraldine O’Hanrahans and Wexford in 1975 and 1976.

There was a gap of five years then until Eddie Mahon from Athboy in Meath came on the scene after arriving to teach in the county.

A prolific marksman in purple and gold from 1981 to 1986, he also gave distinguished service to both Gusserane and Glynn-Barntown on the club scene.

Another teacher, Longford’s Jim McGovern, shot to prominence as the full-forward on the Senior-winning Starlights team of 1983. His top flight career with Wexford lasted from 1984 to 1988, and he later played in three Leinster Junior campaigns - 1990, ’91 and ’93.

He was most unfortunate, therefore, to miss out on the All-Ireland winning year of 1992. If memory serves me right, Jim decided to return to his native club of Colmcille for that season only because the team had secured the training services of an accomplished fellow parishioner, the late Eugene McGee of Offaly 1982 fame.

After moving to live in Killurin, Jim had assisted Glynn-Barntown in their three successive county final losses to Duffry Rovers from 1989 to ’91, and in ’92 he also managed the Wexford Minors who had a superb championship win against Dublin.

I’m out of space once again...part three to follow next week!