A guess would be hazarded with a fair degree of confidence that this corner is not alone in admitting that, aside from Al Paccino’s Inches speech, not a thing is recalled of the American Football based movie, Any Given Sunday.
That’s all a soul would need though. Not only to get a proper grasp on the movie, but, maybe even more so, to simply get from one day to the next.
Inches. You suspect the people of Donegal have to refer to the few minutes clip in the red-walled dressing room more than most. Because the north western beauty spot seems to be beset by tragedy every so often. You think of the Gaoth Dobhar footballers killed in a car accident, and the Creeslough gas explosion.
However, even allowing for all of the above, the folk of that beautiful place have been floored by another unspeakable tragedy.
The difference this time around is that the tragic loss of former Donegal footballer James McHugh and his wife Noreen (nee O’Donnell) has been and will be grieved utterly by Gaels of a certain vintage far and wide.
Most obviously the McHugh and O’Donnell families, particularly the couple’s son Eoin and daughter Emma.
Speaking from personal experience, to lose one parent is shattering, when they’re both gone the world’s a completely different place, but not for all of Stephen Hawking’s grey matter could one even contemplate the life changing earthquake of losing them both at the same time.
Now, I have heard of it previously, elderly neighbours of ours, Jim and Alice Doyle, passed within a few hours of each other. One in a nursing home, the other a hospital. Then, only weeks back, Eamon Walsh, a local farmer who’s part of the folklore of this place due to enduring connection with the footballers of his native Kerry, lost two brothers within hours of each other.
But even all of that would still leave you clutching at straws to quantify the enormity of what the folk of the Hills will have had to even attempt to process since Monday last.
In the circumstances, you might think sport would be the last thing on anybody’s mind. But no, just as Donegal players and mentors past and present, fans and GAA people with no connection to the county will find strength in unity to get through these darkest of days, sport itself can be the beacon which etches out the chink of light at the end of the current very dark tunnel.
In fact, it already has. Or at it least it will in the times ahead. As is so often the case, sport has poignantly done its thing yet again. Just as spirits in the land of Tir Chonaill could hardly be under more strain, Dr Mark English goes along and produces a career best performance to almost glide to gold in the 800M at the European Athletics Championships in Birmingham.
No doubt, you are wondering why the prefix was added in front of the Letterkenny athlete’s name. In all honesty because it surely, aptly and poignantly underlines the healing which can and does accrue through sport. Aside from that, though, it is a completely deserved career highlight for the Donegal man who has been performing with distinction in his area of expertise for as long as this writer can recall and probably well before that.
You could hardly begrudge him if he was to hang up the spikes and toss the singlet into Lough Swilly. Who wouldn’t want to go out of their career on a high? Suspicion (and hope) would be that that won’t be the case. Firstly because, like a fine wine, the athlete appears to be getting better with age. Secondly, however, because of what the late, great Sean Conroy described as The loneliness of the long distance runner in paying tribute to his fallen friend and comrade Mattie McGrath.
Which I always took to be an almost drug-like obsession with chasing the impossible dream. It’s a theory which can be applied to many pursuits but you look at the likes of, most pertinently, Mark English, and Sonia O’Sullivan and Catherina McKiernan and Rob Heffernan who kept going until they nabbed the goal(s) they had long chased.
Mind you, at the time English struck gold midweek it appeared it was going to be a frustrating week for the Irish with Sharlene Mawdsely pulling out before then event started, Sophie Becker coming up short and middle distance runner Cathal Doyle falling at the second major event in a row.
However, if there’s one aspect of life where we Irish punch exponentially above our weight it’s sport. Whether that be Horse Racing or Soccer or Rugby or Golf or Athletics or Swimming or any other discipline you care to mention.
Not only was Mark English’s gold medal a crowning moment for the athlete himself but it has proven to be a catalyst for further Irish sporting greatness to unfold.
More to follow…
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