Politics and sport mix well in this book

DAIL STARS By Conor McMorrow MENTOR BOOKS €16.99 POLITICS and sport mix very well in Ireland and in particular in the West which can claim six of the fifteen famous sportsmen who became major players in Irish political life according to the book Dáil Stars by Conor McMorrow. But when the Dáil's top 15 sportsmen are given their positions the present Taoiseach, and former Offaly under-21 footballer, Brian Cowen, ends up on the substitutes' bench. Even there he is in exalted company, alongside former Labour leader and ex-Tanaiste Dick Spring and Seamus Mallon of the SDLP who served in the Seanad in 1982 and who helps give this book an all-island spread of stars.[private] The late great Galway All-Ireland winning star Sean Purcell from Tuam who stood unsuccessfully twice for the Dail for Fine Gael in this area, Kerry's Mick O'Connell, top Tipperary hurler John Doyle, Dublin footballer Barney Rock and Meath star Graham Geraghty are listed among the also-rans. But this book is not just about sport or politics or a combination of both. Indeed you don't need to have much interest in either sport or politics to enjoy reading about the myriad backgrounds and the strange changes in life's circumstances that resulted in some of those players leaving their fields of dreams to sometimes dream in the Dail. It presents many interesting insights into this life-changing career move for some. It unearths countless lesser known facts about the lives of those who wore diverse political jerseys and served their counties and country, usually, though not in all instances, with distinction. How many people in his native Galway know that Deputy Mick Donnellan, from Dunmore, father of former Fine Gael Minister of State John Donnellan, was at one time a Fianna Fáil Co Councillor? Political lines have often been crossed on the sports fields as is well documented in this book. Current Mayo Fine Gael TD, and former Galway All-Ireland double winning trainer, John O'Mahony, once captained a Mayo team that had the son of his Fianna Fáil predecessor Sean Flanagan in its ranks. It is good how McMorrow has set out the sporting politicians in 15 positions, as in a typical football or hurling team. While the West may have won fewer All-Irelands than the other three provinces, Connacht still comes out on top with six key positions in this book. The Donnellans, John of Fine Gael at No 5 in defence and his late father Mick, a founder of Clan na Talmhan at No 11 in the half-forward line, represent Galway. Two Mayo men stand side by side in the full back line, John O'Mahony of Fine Gael at No 2 and the late Seán Flanagan of Fianna Fail next to him at full back. The father of the current Fine Gael leader, Enda Kenny, the late Henry Kenny, has a pivotal midfield role. One of the more radical politicians from the West, the late Jack McQuillan, who stood for three different political parties during his lifetime, is named at No 15 in the forwards. McQuillan was a real radical from Roscommon and a member of the socialist- leaning National Progressive Democrats Party, which he helped set up with Dr Noel Browne in 1958. He was also a member of Clan na Poblachta, Labour and at the end of his career he stood as an independent. The bitter sweet success for John Donnellan of lifting the Sam Maguire Cup after Galway's victory in 1964, while not knowing that his father and former Galway great Deputy Mick Donnellan had just died in the Hogan Stand, is captured here both in words and in one of the photographs. The photo shows clearly that John is unaware of his father's death while the gravity of the situation is clearly reflected in the faces of the late Fr Paddy Mahon, also from Dunmore, and the GAA's Alf Murray who are standing beside him. John's subsequent political career and his rise in the higher echelons of Fine Gael, to the rank of Minister of State, are covered here in a clear, condensed but concise manner. This chapter also alluded to him being on a collision course with the then leader of the party Alan Dukes long before his remark that the latter would be holding a fork if it was raining soup which saw him and Fine Gael part company. The book states that there is still a sense to this day among some Fine Gael figures that the 'raining soup' affair could have been handled better by Dukes. There is a nice human interest story in the chapter about John's father, Deputy Michael Donnellan, and how two mascots asked to have their photos taken with him on the day that he captained Connacht in the Railway Cup final of 1934. When he asked one of the mascots what was his name the little lad replied that he was Sean Purcell. 'That same child went on to become one of the greatest Gaelic footballers ever,' states this book. The author has carried out his research well to uncover that the young Mick Donnellan joined Sinn Féin as a 16-year-old after the 1916 Rising and he was so impressed by the new party, Fianna Fail, in 1926 that he joined it. However, after falling out with the Fianna Failers he helped set up Clan na Talmhan in 1939. Unlike many of the others in this book, who happened to meander into Dail seats on the back of sporting successes, Mick Donnellan was interested in politics long before sporting success came his way. Dublin's Des Foley had a different attitude to Mick Donnellan when he fell out with Fianna Fail, then under Jack Lynch's leadership during the Arms Trial. A staunch Charlie Haughey supporter, the Dublin dual player, even though he became an independent towards the end of his political career, would never leave Fianna Fáil for any other party according to his widow, Rita. But while he was loyal to one political party Des was obviously not the party type when it came to celebrating winning the Sam Maguire Cup. 'I can remember him having the Sam Maguire Cup sitting on the kitchen table on the evening of the match and everybody that passed by for weeks afterwards called in to see it,' states Rita. Sadly Des passed away at the age of 54 and to compound the sorrow for his widow his collection of GAA medals was stolen from their home shortly after his death and never recovered. In a more recent leadership crisis, this time in Fine Gael, Deputy John O'Mahony recalls the emotion that he felt when Enda Kenny won in the leadership challenge mounted by Richard Bruton. The book describes O'Mahony as being 'ecstatic' and 'having tears in his eyes', 'clenching his fists in the air' and 'almost stumbling as he walked' after his fellow Mayo man's victory. Long before either men were fighting for Fine Gael's survival the founder of the movement known as The Blueshirts, associated with the more formative years of the party, Monaghan footballer Eoin O'Duffy had been a Sinn Fein Dail star back in 1921. He is listed as the goalkeeper in this book which charts his career including a stint as Fine Gael leader, though not a TD, in 1933. After a disastrous stint as President of the party he resigned 18 months later. The book states that history has not been kind to him but it adds to this vilification by describing him as 'being motivated by egotism and megalomania'. Sinn Féin's Kerry TD Martin Ferris is interviewed about winning an All-Ireland under-21 medal while he was an IRA fugitive on the run. Dermot Flanagan, son of the last Mayo man to lift the Sam Maguire Cup, the late Sean Flanagan, also recalls his late father getting a 'Fianna Flanagan' vote in Mayo during an EU election. All in all this a book full of interesting anecdotes and you can simply dip into for your favourite chapter or else read it from cover to cover.[/private]