Louth GAA legend looks back on the famous 1957 All-Ireland success, its aftermath and what might have been

‘WE imagine that we remember things as they were, while in fact all we carry into the future are fragments which reconstruct a wholly illusory past.’ On recalling my story, I am reminded of John Banville’s assertion on the unreliability of memory, yet for me, the events and circumstances as they unfolded are as existent and whole today as they were sixty two years ago when Louth reclaimed the All-Ireland Senior Football title after a lapse of forty five years. Perhaps I can attribute clarity of memory to my teenage self - as the youngest member of the Louth All-Ireland senior team. There are numerous reflections that I could have chosen, but this story merits precedence; giving belated voice to the narrative of an untold fact that, I believe, if voiced at the time would have made all the difference in the Wee County’s big, yet attainable, ambition of achieving back-to-back All-Ireland titles. And indeed one or two more, such was the talent available until the mid-Sixties.

With experience and mature years on my side, I preface my piece in the knowledge that I have been simultaneously humbled and proud to have served in ‘four disciplines of GAA activity…All-Ireland winning player, inter-county manager/coach, County Board chairman and the first chairman of the National Coaching Council’. The respect that I have always held for my fellow players, committee members and football supporters is immeasurable, so with that in mind, please join with me as I journey back to 1957 where this story begins.

I had been playing and training with the Louth senior football team for almost 12 months when, on the 22nd September 1957, we triumphantly held aloft the Sam Maguire Cup.

To place some historical context on this momentous occasion: it had been forty five years since Louth won the All-Ireland in 1912. In 1910 the Wee County also took the title. In 1913, Louth played in the two Croke Memorial football finals against Kerry in May and June of that year (the first match resulted in a draw that necessitated a replay, in which Kerry were triumphant before an attendance of forty thousand in Jones Road, now known as Croke Park). In the words of Marcus De Búrca: ‘To the ordinary member or supporter of the GAA in 1913 [they were] the most important events of the year…which remained lifelong memories for those who attended and made a permanent impact on the fortunes of the GAA…Louth, a county where in relation to its size and population the game had probably been more extensively played than anywhere else since the 1890s, had thus proved its worth in important competitions’. Louth were indeed a strong force in the 40s and 50s.

In 1957, Louth’s star was once again in the ascendancy; De Búrca, the official writer of the GAA’s history and Michael Cusack’s biography, described the Louth team as ‘formidable’ and ‘brilliant’. This perfect constellation was in no small way due to the leadership, training, motivational and strategic skills of our mentor-in-chief, Jim ‘Sogger’ Quigley, who brought us to the top of our game. With typical modesty, Quigley said: ‘He was naturally very proud to have helped in some small way to bring back the title to Louth after such a long spell’ [and that he was] simply thrilled at the victory, and that it more than makes up for the disappointments that he himself endured during the thirteen years or so he played with the county. As ‘Sogger’ is at the core of my story, adding substance to his character is important, and with due deference, I will refer to him as Quigley. Although I do not know how he got his nickname, I will hazard a guess that it derives from the colloquialism ‘soggy’ and, by extension, perhaps his ability to play football aimsir an-fhluich. However, this notion of being able to absorb so much is also a figurative way of expressing our mentor-in-chief’s in-depth knowledge and sporting intellectualism; a tactician with great foresight who was prescient of the importance now placed on psychology in sport. As an eighteen-year-old novice, I recall his clarity in explaining to me why my speed on the left wing was an essential component to the team’s effectiveness. Anecdotally, my ‘speed’ and level of fitness was in no small way due to the fact that I had to cycle a total of sixteen miles to and from secondary school every day! Undoubtedly, Sogger had a finely-tuned understanding of the game itself, and of the manager/coach relationship - a straight talker, pragmatic rather than charismatic, with the right measure of aloofness, self-surety and faith in his team. Despite his success as trainer coach, and his popularity of heading the voting at the previous year’s meeting, he was defeated by Jack Regan for the final seat for the upcoming Selection Committee in 1958.. Now the seemingly unbreakable bond that connected Louth’s 1957 winning team to its aptly named mentor in chief was suddenly severed. The general consensus would agree that a manager or coach’s tenure is reliably secured on his previous year’s success.

I understand how flawed and easily dented the human ego can be. Having won the All-Ireland, I recall the post-victory deluge that descended upon our changing room at Croke Park. Quigley’s quick action of slamming the door shut prevented euphoria turning to a chaotic free-for-all. His reaction was the right one. Yet unwittingly, the proverbial closing of the door may have left someone of importance feeling like an outsider. In my view, perhaps this did not help or auger well when it came to the proposal not to re-elect the Selection Committee en bloc.

As a momentous year closed, a new year began with a massive void that I felt was tantamount to amputation, with the de-selection of the team’s mentor-inchief. I remember the shock waves that reverberated among the Louth supporters on hearing the news that Quigley was not to be part of the Selection Committee for 1958. The Dundalk Democrat devoted a column under the somewhat benign and understated heading; ‘Senior Committee Surprise,’ reporting: ‘From the outset it was proposed by Tommy Kelly, Wolfe Tones, that the Selection Committee be returned en bloc as ‘it is the best tribute we can give them, for I believe that along with having a great Louth team last season, we also had a great Selection Committee.’ This would have been the normal practice, and the motion was seconded by Larry Mc Crudden, Dundalk Young Irelands. However, Owen Rogers, from the Dowdallshill club, proposed an amendment (which was seconded) that the elections should be made individually, and in a vote this was carried, much to the delight of the top officials.

Despite my youth, Quigley instigated my promotion to the senior Louth team, and while I accept a measure of subjectivity, in how he inspired me through his selflessness, passion and diligence for the game, I want to underline my objectivity and clarity of memory in relaying the following facts that most likely precipitated his re-election failure. The events which influenced this outcome began on the 10th September 1957. After our usual training session with Jim Quigley (ably assisted by Mick McKeown and Brian Reynolds in Pairc Mhuire, Ardee), the team had the extraordinary pleasure of meeting three respected officials from the New York GAA Board: John Kerry O’Donnell and brothers, John and Frank McArdle, formerly of south Armagh. The excitement was palpable as they came with great tidings so to speak; words of encouragement for our All-Ireland final against Cork, and that conditional to us winning the All-Ireland, we would be issued an invitation to New York the following summer. The respective County Board chairman and secretary, Jimmy Mullen and Peadar Kearney, were also in attendance. The former introduced Frank McArdle, who in turn presented Quigley with $600 to lighten the team’s expenses. From John Kerry O’Donnell’s statement it was clear that this was a goodwill contribution towards the trip to America should it arise. This was a big deal! Contextually, $600 equated to £215 which was almost a half-year’s salary, as the average male industrial wage was £9.11 per week. All in all, the County Louth Society of New York’s kindred spiritedness and monetary generosity were terrific morale boosts for management and team alike. Within twelve days, as All-Ireland Champions, Louth’s footballing star was most definitely in the ascendency!

Yet despite the jubilations, in the few short weeks that passed since receiving the $600, unsubstantiated rumblings surfaced as to the possible misuse of the money. Subsequently, in November 1957, Louth played the 1956 All-Ireland Champions, Galway, in Tuam (Louth lost by one point). Following the after-match meal in the Shamrock Lodge (Athlone), an ad-hoc meeting was called by Quigley. The sole purpose of the meeting was to ask the players what they wanted to do with the money. I recall how Quigley placed the money on the table for all to see, and how for me, it was a fitting metaphor of his lifelong openness and integrity. Unanimously, the players agreed that Quigley was to remain custodian of the money until it would be needed for the team’s expenses and the hoped-for invitation to New York. This decision was based in the belief that it was respectful of