Our columnist Frank Brandon on the grand reopening of Fuerty Forge, the latest boxing news, local events in Creggs, and more!
It’s a wild, wet Monday morning as I write – but neither hail, rain, snow, nor anything else could stop me going for my morning walk… though a hangover might. And so, with my five laps of the rugby club done (about 4.7km), I am tucking into the sausage sandwich for breakfast, which I am certain my doctor would say I shouldn’t be having.
Bridie in Mikeen’s and I agreed that I should stay away from all the lovely cooked hot stuff on display in the deli, as we felt that with a pacemaker, several stents, and all kinds of blood pressure and cholesterol issues, they mightn’t be great for me. But I felt I deserved a treat, and so I brought home a couple of sausages and was settling into my sandwich when a knock came to the door.
It was my old friend, Charlie Clarke. When I saw him, my mind drifted all the way back to the first time I met him – when he was only 16-years-old. I picked him up on the bridge in Castlecoote to bring him to rugby training in Roscommon. I was driving an old retired Garda squad car, a Hillman Avenger, which had two big long rubber yokes sticking out from the boot, and which had to have one extra big tyre on the left front to keep the steering balanced.
Despite those little inconveniences, we got Charlie to training – and little did I realise how good of a rugby player I was picking up and how important he would be in the history of Creggs Rugby Club.
However, his visit on this morning had nothing to do with Hillman Avengers or rugby. He was here to tell me of a big event taking place in Fuerty at 4.30 pm on Sunday, September 21st. On that afternoon, Fr Breslin is going to cut the tape for the grand reopening of Fuerty Forge, and everyone is invited to an evening of nostalgia, history, and fun.
Several local craftspeople provided their services free of charge to do up the old forge, and the end product is testament to the quality of their efforts. Lots of local public representatives will be there, including Cllr Domnick Connolly, TD Michael Fitzmaurice, and the Honorary Consul of Azerbaijan, Terry Leyden – whose wife Mary will give a historical talk on the old forge.
It was known as the Willie Kelly family forge and was in the Kelly family for more than two generations. There is a possibility that the current Minister for Education, Helen McEntee, might make it as well, but even if she can’t, the political world will be well represented.
Charlie told me not to mention him in conjunction with all of this so I agreed not to, but his sister, the renowned Roscommon poet Jane Clarke, will be reciting two poems – one by the great Seamus Heaney, and one about the forge that she wrote herself. She is one of our best known internationally regarded poets and authors, and has won so many literary awards she must have an enormous mantelpiece down in her adopted country of Wicklow to store them all! It’s great that she will be there on the day to showcase her own work and talent.
Another local talent, musician and singer Joachim Dunne, will be there on the day to play a few tunes and sing a few songs, and after all that it’s off to D’Alton’s pub (Tommy O’Connor’s) for a great evening’s entertainment.
So put it in your diary – or if you haven’t got a diary, store it on your head – but either way, don’t forget to be in Fuerty at 4.30 pm on Sunday, September 21st for the grand reopening of Fuerty Forge. I hope to see you there!
Ringside report
On this Monday morning (as I write), I have boxing on my mind. I am the first to admit that while I like the sport, I am not one of those people who are almost like boxing encyclopaedias and can tell you all about every fighter that ever lived. However, I did know about Ricky ‘The Hitman’ Hatton – one of the most colourful, talented, yet troubled fighters of recent times – and I must say the death of the Manchester native and Manchester City supporter at the age of 46 is both a huge shock and a huge loss to not only his family and friends, but also to the wider boxing community and his thousands of fans.
His career, like his life, had lots of ups and downs, but he always gave everything he had in the ring. He became a double world champion, and was adored by all who supported him. May he rest in peace.
Then on Sunday, the Sunday World told us that Katie Taylor is now Mrs Sean McCavanagh – so good luck to Katie and her new husband.
And finally on boxing, Sunday evening saw our own Castlerea woman Aoife O’Rourke become a world champion at the 75kg category. Sometimes I don’t think we appreciate the enormity of that achievement. To win any kind of medal at any type of sport takes a huge amount of hard work, commitment, and sacrifice, but to be a world champion is off the scale altogether, so what an amazing thing it is to have Aoife follow her sister Lisa in winning the world title.
Two world champions from a little rural village like Tarmon is hard to believe. It also shows that anything is possible if you are prepared to follow your dream and work hard enough to achieve it.
Well done Aoife, and of course congratulations to all of your family, who are so much part of Creggs Rugby Club as well.
Train capacity is off the rails
Occasionally I use my free travel pass to go by train to Dublin for something or other, and I usually book my ticket a day or so in advance. However today, when I went to book tickets from Roscommon to Dublin Heuston, I found that almost all the trains were sold out!
The same thing applied to most of the returning trains as well. Out of curiosity, I had a look at tomorrow’s timetable, and most of the trains either way were also sold out.
Now, that had never happened me before. I wonder is it to do with the ploughing championships in Tullamore?
Either way, if you plan to take a train from this side to Dublin, book your seat in good time as sadly I was too late!
Round trip
Back to Friday night: at nine o’clock, my nephew Mattie arrived to bring me on Creggs Rugby Club’s first ever Friday night outing outside of the village.
The rain was bucketing down, and it would have been easy to stay put and give the trip a miss – however we are made of stern stuff. And so my younger brothers, Duff and Billy, and I headed off to O’Boyle’s in Laught, a pub that I recently returned to after a 51-year absence.
There, we met up with two of my late brother Peadar’s lads, Raymond and Gareth, along with Paddy, who is married to Peadar’s daughter Edel. Once again, we thoroughly enjoyed ourselves.
The boys are always slagging me that I must be the Roscommon People’s Pub Spy (I wish I was) because I write so much about pubs, but as a Guinness man, I can only say the pint in O’Boyle’s is first class, and Sean and his staff once again made us very welcome.
I met a young lad called Eanna Moran and he told me his mother reads this piece regularly, so I’d like to say hello to her and the Moran family. We reckoned I am now up to 50 readers in total – after nearly 20 years, that’s not too bad!
Anyway, how times have changed, because Mattie and Liam (Peadar’s eldest son) arrived to chauffeur us all home and we wound up our first ever Friday night club’s away trip. It took me 51 years to make it back to O’Boyle’s the first time, but only a few months this time!
You better watch out Sean, or pub spy might become a regular!
Culture Night in Creggs
Out here in Creggs, there is a Culture Night event taking place in the Heritage Centre at 9 pm on Friday night, September 19th. The event will feature a talk on the townlands of Creggs and surrounding areas, given by Larry Kilcommons and Seamus Ward.
Placenames will be deciphered and there will be a question and answer session afterwards. Everyone is welcome, and there will be refreshments served.
Please come along for an evening of cultural enlightenment – the local historical group, who do a lot of great work, are organising this event, so do come and support it if you can!
And finally…
As you may know, my wife Carol passed away almost a year ago in the wonderful care of the Mayo/Roscommon Hospice in Castlebar, and on Saturday morning, September 27th, my family and I are hosting a coffee morning in the school hall in Creggs, with all proceeds going to the Hospice Foundation.
We will be on site from 10 am until about midday, and everyone is invited to come along, have a coffee, a cake, and a chat, and if you can, make a donation to this most deserving of causes.
I said it before, but we as a family never fully appreciated the extraordinary work the hospice staff do, and the care and kindness that they show all their patients, until we actually experienced it ourselves. None of us will ever forget it, so please come along to the school hall on Saturday, September 27th and support a most wonderful organisation!
I might even take my baking tray out of retirement and treat you to one of my iconic chocolate chip buns – no promises, but you’d never know!
‘Til next week,
bye for now!
