It’saLabourof love for Macroom man McSweeney

When Macroom, captained by the great Tom Creedon who died tragically the following year, won the 1982 Cork intermediate football final, their mascot was a five-yearold named Morgan McSweeney.

Perhaps that gave him a taste for success because last week, as Director of Campaigns for the British Labour Party, McSweeney presided over the utter destruction of the Tories in the local elections.

He’s viewed as the driving force behind the project which has propelled Keir Starmer to the brink of power. Macroom is having quite a moment on the international stage.

There was also a sporting connection to Labour’s biggest win. Re-elected London Mayor Sadiq Khan was one of seven brothers who joined the Earlsfield Boxing Club in Wandsworth to protect themselves against racist bullying. His brother Sid stayed on and has been head coach for 40 years, training numerous champions including super-heavyweight Joe Joyce, who won silver at the 2016 Olympics.

Joyce says it was Sadiq who suggested he try for the Olympics and the Mayor still swears by the value of boxing: “The skills you learn are life skills: being magnanimous, what to eat, how to keep fit, how to look out for each other.”

We’ll soon find out whether these sporting victories are good omens for the likes of Nina Carberry, Seán Kelly and Mick Wallace in the European Elections.