A Wanderer first and always
From Wexford to Lansdowne Road, via Johannesburg
WITH IRISH rugby, both professionally and at club level, facing into its most critical few months, Wexford native Tom Walsh is still looking forward to taking office with one of the country’s oldest clubs, the Dublin-based Wanderers F.C.
A native of Taghmon, Tom is a much travelled player from Wexford Wanderers, to U.C.D. Wanderers (Johannesburg), and back to Dublin where he linked up with Wanderers F.C. as a player before going on to an administrative role in the club.
This past few months have provided some sobering messages for not alone rugby, but all sports, along with every aspect of life, since the outbreak of the pandemic.
On foot of that, Tom will be assuming the role of Presidency of Wanderers F.C. in less than twelve months, at one of the most difficult times, not alone in the history of this distinguished club, but for sport and life in general.
Wanderers F.C. is one of the bestknown rugby union clubs in the world, and is Ireland’s second oldest, having been founder in 1870 by some former members of Dublin University F.C. Up to that time, they had to seek opponents outside of Ireland, as there was no other Irish club to play against.
Wanderers F.C. was one of the founding clubs of the Irish Rugby Football Union (I.R.F.U.), hence the title Wanderers F.C. and not R.F.C., as all clubs were football clubs prior to the founding of the I.R.F.U.
The club has just celebrated its 150th anniversary, and is proud of its contribution to rugby football, having provided 87 Irish international players, five captains of Ireland, and one captain each of England and Australia, in addition to one captain of the Lions.
When it comes to clubs synonymous with rugby in Ireland, Wanderers F.C. is right up at the top of the list.
Rich in history, the club has stood the test of time and continues to be a proud Senior outfit. Nestled in the heart of Dublin, and in an area where you can’t escape rugby, Wanderers continue to be at the forefront of the sport in the province.
The home pitch is in the iconic Lansdowne Road, also the home of the Aviva Stadium. Many people will remember the old Wanderers club pavilion as the Tudor-looking building situated at the Lansdowne Road end of the old stadium.
Originally the clubhouse was situated in South Frederick Street, but in the 1960s new grounds were acquired in Merrion Road, Ballsbridge, where the club’s training grounds are still situated.
Wanderers had the honour of providing the captain of the Lions, with Ronnie Dawson bestowed with that accolade on their 1959 tour, while Mike Gibson, who played with Wanderers while a student in Trinity College, a winner of 69 international caps and former Ireland captain, also represented the Lions on five tours.
Another name synonymous with Wanderers was Tony Ensor, an Enniscorthy-based solicitor, now retired, while Philip Matthews and Robbie McGrath were other leading players, and Andrew Slack captained the Wallabies.
Both Dawson and Roly Meates have coached Ireland, while Gary Murphy was the coach when the country played in the 1995 World Cup.
Rugby has remained a constant in Tom Walsh’s life since his early days with Wexford Wanderers.
‘As a student I started out with Wexford Wanderers before going on to college and U.C.D. Initially I played my way through the system into the colleges team,’ he said.
‘Basically, I played most of my club rugby in Dublin, but my family have very strong links with Wexford Wanderers.
‘My uncle, Tom, was captain of the club’s last Provincial Towns Cup-winning side back in 1945, while my father, Dick, was also a member of that side.
‘The family links continued through the club, with my brother, Greg, having also played, and another brother, Richard, also had some playing time with the club.’
Tom is sure that close connection with rugby in Wexford will always stay with him.
‘You can understand why. In fact, the family presented my father’s Provincial Towns Cup medal to the club. When my father was captain of the club, he kept a handwritten log of each game which I was also proud to present to the club for display.’
On moving to study in U.C.D., Tom linked up with the college’s rugby team, and he also played with St. Mary’s College before joining Wanderers.
‘Also during a period in my work career I moved to South Africa where I linked up with a club side, ironically named Wanderers, in Johannesburg, where I played for two years.
‘Perhaps the highlight of my club career was in 1978 when we won the Senior Cup. Tony Ensor was a member of the side on that occasion. Ironically, he went out on a high as he retired following that final.’
Having finished his own playing career, Tom became involved in administration with Wanderers, which now sees him about to take on the role of President.
‘Certainly I enjoyed the playing side of rugby, but now am looking forward to my administration role as President,’ he said.
‘I now see that it’s going to be a hugely difficult time for clubs going forward, difficult for players, particularly players with young families, deciding whether to play the game at present.
‘I pretty much envisage a totally different style of rugby whenever it returns. It will be mostly a running game, running rugby where sevens could become very popular, but whatever is devised it will not be the game we grew up with,’ he added.
‘We are going to have a new scrum approach, a whole set of changes, which will make the game somewhat different. But these are challenging times and we must move with it.’
Moving into a new season is going to present its own pitfalls and challenges.
‘It’s going to be difficult, but Wanderers are well placed to meet the challenges that it presents both on and off the pitch. Nonetheless, the challenge is going to be fielding teams.
‘We have no idea as of yet when club rugby will return and in what format. No games would be devastating, and would not be good for rugby, but we are remaining positive, and looking forward to when the game returns. Hopefully we will be able to meet whatever challenges that presents.’
Wanderers F.C. have a further link with Wexford Wanderers in Conor Fenlon. Conor, who came up through the Wexford town club’s under-age system and Junior ranks, went on to play with Lansdowne before joining Wanderers, where he has progressed into an outstanding back row forward.