The G.A.A. in Waterford looses another unsung Hero – Seamus O’Brien R.I.P.

The G.A.A. up and down the country is full of heroes and heroines. Waterford is no different to the rest. Like much of the rest of the country, many of our heroes and heroines are players. Some are coaches or managers. Others are involved in different parts of the G.A.A. and there work is often not seen or appreciated as much as it should by many within the G.A.A. Community.

In the past six months, Waterford has lost some of its greatest assets when it comes to the G.A.A.

To name all of those that have recently departed us would be a near impossible task. However I am going to name some.

Jimmy McCarthy or Jimmy Watty as he was known to many was the first of many known to me that left us.

Jimmy was Mr Melleray. Jimmy loved the area he grew up and lived in up to the latter years of his life when he had to move out of his own home and into a nursing home. He loved to get involved in all that was happening in Melleray especially the G.A.A. He had a keen interst in the young players in the area, and for many years when the club had an underage section, in a time when road traffic laws were not as tough as they are now, and if transport to an away game was thin on the ground, Jimmy would think nothing of getting his famous tractor and transport box and sit the children in the box and around him in the cab of the tractor and head off to a game and then return those travelling with him to their homes after the game.

In later years when Melleray did not have an underage section to the club, he got involved in administration at underage level and for many years served as the diligent treasurer of West Waterford Bord na nÓg.

Jimmy’s way of doing things may not be too pleasing to modern day accountants and people dealing with money, but he could account for every penny he collected. If Jimmy collected £20 and one penny at a gate, that is what was banked and if he collected £19 and ninety nine pence, it was most often rounded upwards.

Earlier this year we lost Journalist John A Murphy, or Johnny as he was known to most. He for many years was involved as an officer of the Western and county boards, but it was possibly as a reporter with the Cork Examiner and later the Irish Examiner as well as the Waterford News and Star that he was best known.

A few days after Johnny died, Johnny Flynn died after he was involved in a road traffic accident.

The Lismore man was well known to many, but was possibly best know to many through his involvement with the Lismore Camogie Club.

Less than a month later Tony Mansfield left us. Tony was deeply involved with the G.A.A. He was Chairman of his beloved Abbeyside/Ballinacourty Club at the time of his death. He was a G.A.A. Correspondent with the Dungarvan Observer for over four decades at the time of his death. He was a former Waterford manager, coach and selector at different levels of hurling and was a former Referee and administrator at Board na nÓg and Adult levels within the county.

Today (May 29) Waterford lost another of its unsung Heroes.

Seamus O’Brien was born in 1921 and all throughout his life was actively involved in the G.A.A. Its fair to say that he was even looking forward to seeing the Waterford hurlers playing against Clare this weekend and reporting on the game in the Dungarvan Leader next Wednesday.

In 2007, fifty years after he began to write a weekly column in the Dungarvan Leader, Dungarvan Town Council decided to honour the Abbeyside man.

On that occasion, the then Mayor of Dungarvan, Cllr Damien Geoghegan said of Seamus “Seamus has made a difference to those around him, and has enriched, through his many talents, the lives of the people whom he has encountered and has also enhanced the quality of life in his own community. What Seamus has achieved was done without fuss or the fanfare of publicity, usually working quietly and efficiently in the background, yet always achieving a great deal, generally for the benefit of others.” This quote really summed up Seamus and will be how he is remembered.

It was over seventy years ago that Seamus took up a position within the post office as a telegram boy and later became a postman in the Piltown and Kilmacthomas before taking up a position in Dungarvan in the early 1950’s.

Working in Kilmacthomas proved to be a lucky thing for Seamus as it was here that he met Cait McGrath who he later married and spent 50 years together and raised a family of eight between them who were all very important to Seamus, as were his Grand Children and Great Grandchildren in later life.

It is through the G.A.A. that most knew Seamus, not just in Waterford but up and down the country.

He took up a position of Secretary of the Abbeyside Hurling and Football Club in the mid 1950’s and in 1960 he was elected as secretary of the West Waterford Board, a position he remained in for over two decades.

In the early 1970’s Seamus made a bid to become the County Board Secretary when the position became available, but he was narrowly missed out in a contest against Seamus Grant, a many that he became great friends with though the G.A.A.

In the 1970’s he became the Counties Central Council Representative and held onto the position until he had to relinquish the position as a result of the (Controversial – in the eyes of some) five year rule a few years previous which limits all non full time officers with the exception of the Treasurer to holding the same position for more than five years.

As a Central Council representative he was invited to be part of many different committees and National Level where he became an important figure as he had amassed a great knowledge of the G.A.A. and its rules down the years and could be called upon at any time to give clarification on any issue.

Within the county Seamus was also seen as an important figure to be on any committee. He served as Secretary of the Fraher Field Committee for a time and was also a secretary of Coiste Peil.

He was invited by a number of successive County PRO’s to be part of the County Communications where he could at short notice pen a piece for an upcoming match programme or pull together some facts and figures. He was also involved in Bord na nÓg at Divisional and County Level for many years.

In 1957, Seamus began to write the ‘Commentator’ Column each week for the Dungarvan Leader. The Column was always well thought out and views expressed were always fair. It was a must read each week for many of the papers readers.

Seamus not only served the area he lived in through the G.A.A.

He was heavily involved in many different committees and groups. In his earlier days he was involved with the Scouts in the Abbeyside area. In the early 1940’s he joined the FCA and continued to be involved until 1967 when he retired holding the rank of Captain and Company Commander of the Dungarvan Companies 13^th Battalion.

He was very involved in putting the Abbeyside Parish Newsletter together and was also heavily involved with the Abbeyside Reference Archive group where he served as Chairman of the group for many years.

He was also involved with the Abbeyside, Ballinroad and Garranbane Senior Citizens Group and was also a chairman of the West Waterford Emigrants Committee.

Seamus was actively involved in all he did throughout his life, and it was only a short view days before his death that he rang me to know if I knew something off hand that he was trying to find out for his column in the Dungarvan Leader.

In March of this year, the Inaugural Abbeyside Community Sports Awards took place at Minnie’s in the village.

How apt it is now, that the people of the area who are involved in the different sports club in the area honour Seamus with one of its inaugural ‘Hall of Fame’ awards. The others to be honoured on the night were John Woods, John Walsh, Br Finbar Spring O.S.A. and former Waterford hurler Austin Flynn.

When a person dies, the words Gentleman or Lady are often brandished when talking about the person that has died.

Seamus O’Brien was one of these Gentlemen. There can be no doubting about this. Seamus was a friend to everyone that had the honour of knowing him, and he counted those he worked with on different committees as his friends as well.

He was a man that you could turn to for advice and he would give you great advice. When he suspected that there might be something on the mind of someone, Seamus would lend you his ear, and what was said to him it could be said hardly went any further.

Ar Dheis Dé go raibh a anam.