Side by side at Enda’s homecoming, Big Phil, colourful Frank Quilter and Coleman Sheehy’s brother

THIS was the scene on March 12, 2011, when a victorious Enda Kenny returned home to his home town of Castlebar as Taoiseach.

A crowd of 5,000 supporters gathered at the TF Royal Theatre to greet him.

Speaking to RTÉ just before he went on stage to join just over 70 Fine Gael ministers, TDs, party officials and schoolchildren, an emotional Mr Kenny gestured towards the party members assembled on the stage and declared how proud he was to have led his team to victory in the election.

‘There’s a real sense of pride on this stage here, to see the faces of those who have done their work over the years,’ he said.

After being introduced as ‘the real messiah for ireland’ by constituency colleague MEP Jim higgins, Mr Kenny took his place at the podium to address the packed hall.

Directly behind him, among the Fine Gael party hierarchy gathered for the celebrations and standing side by side, the camera captured:

1 Frank Quilter, Fine Gael’s leading organiser in the Kerry region and a friend of Enda Kenny.

2 Kerryman Andrew Sheehy, a property developer and Fine Gael donor who is an associate of Mr Quilter. Three years later, Andrew Sheehy’s brother, Coleman, would become a mysterious and controversial appointment to the board of the newly established irish Water.

3 The then newly appointed environment minister, Phil hogan, who later cleared the appointment of Coleman Sheehy to the board.

After a speech in which he said the irish people ‘have within ourselves as a people the creativity, the imagination, the ingenuity, the capacity to be the best in the world,’ Mr Kenny received an ovation.