The real story behind this picture
In our edition of The
Avondhu, dated October 22, we carried this picture headed ‘Kilworth/ Araglen team of the 1940s’. The real story behind the picture is the fact that this was not a combined Kilworth/ Araglen team but rather, an Araglen team with Kilworth players involved.
Why, you might ask? Well, it appears that during the 1940s, Kilworth GAA Club was suspended for two years by the GAA for fielding an illegal player and what is even more interesting, is that the three officers heading up the Kilworth club were banned from the GAA - for life. They were the chairman Jimmy Hanlon, secretary Michael O’Mahony and treasurer Tom Cotter.
The ethos of the GAA was (and still is) very much based on the parish. In March of last year, the matter was discussed at a seminar hosted in Northern Ireland by Club Tyrone where Kerry chairman Tim Murphy stated: "The parish rule is sacrosanct,” explaining that it was designed 'to stop big clubs poaching good players from small clubs'. That said, he noted that the parish rule may need 'a 21st-century re-assessment' in light of rural depopulation, suggesting that the rule should be changed to facilitate a flow into small clubs from elsewhere.
The story behind the picture from the 1940s was handed down by one of the officers to a family member, who explained that a neighbouring club had got wind of the fact that Kilworth had included in their side, a player who lived over the County Waterford border. This player suffered an injury in the game and ended up in hospital. A few from the neighbouring club took it upon themselves to check out what they had been told and visited the player in hospital. The men, who let on they were from Kilworth, weren’t known to the man from the Deise and, having handed over the customary visitor’s bottle of Lucozade or whatever, got the whole story and subsequently set the objection in place.
At the time, the GAA ban on foreign games was very much in vogue but because the three Kilworth officers were banned for life from the GAA, this meant they could freely attend any of the prohibited games. We are not sure however, if they took advantage of the situation.
The GAA ban ultimately ruled that anyone who played, promoted or attended ‘foreign games’ such as rugby, soccer, cricket and hockey, was prohibited from membership in the association. GAA clubs were not allowed organise ‘foreign dances’ and any member who attended dances run either by the British security forces or by foreign games clubs, was liable to be suspended for two years.
After 1921 support for the ban hardened further, with vigilance committees established to police the rules, which were broadened to include a ban on ‘foreign music’ and it wasn’t until the 1960s that a serious campaign emerged, calling for their elimination. The change in Irish society in the ‘60s and the televising of all sports brought a reassessment of policy and in 1971, the GAA voted to remove its ban on members playing foreign games and attending foreign dances. The ban from the early days on members of the British security forces was retained and, despite infrequent attempts at deletion, it remained until November 2001.