"Warrior" glad to see his record fall
December 30, 2009Warrior". It's a great nickname. One of the best I've heard. It has echoes of Gladiator and Braveheart about it. What modern-day footballer wouldn't love to be known as "Warrior"? It's just the coolest name ever…
Back in the '60s, a man by the name of "Warrior" - AKA Patrick Duff from the Fechins - made history when he captained Louth to a rare Leinster JFC victory. For the past 43 years, Pat held the distinction of having been the last Louth man to lead Louth to an adult junior provincial championship. Colin Goss emulated him in '09, but history repeated itself in an unwanted way as the Reds were once more toppled at the All-Ireland semi-final stage by Cork. Those Cork losses - 43 years apart - leave a bitter taste in The Warrior's mouth as he feels Louth were led to defeat like lambs to the slaughter:
"I've always been a players' man and I was disappointed the way things worked out for the 2009 team. In 1966, I was disappointed that we had to go to Cork to play them within a few days of the Leinster final … we were just an afterthought.
"This time around, we really should have dug our heels in and had the game brought to Dundalk or Drogheda. The Louth County Board should never have agreed to play that match in Portlaoise, but they were afraid to be heard.
"We travelled to Cork on the Saturday for a match on the Sunday afternoon, having beaten Kildare after extra time in the Leinster final at Croke Park on the Wednesday night. We should never have had to make that journey. We had a team capable of winning the All-Ireland but that chance was taken away from us.
"This year, we should have pointed out that we travelled to Cork 43 years ago so we wanted a home match. So what if it was 43 years later? It was Louth's turn to play at home. With home advantage, Louth would probably have beaten Cork. Our representatives from the County Board should have put their foot down and refused to play in Portlaoise."
Incredibly, the 1966 team only had one collective training session ahead of their successful Leinster campaign. Warrior quips: "I hardly knew my team-mates. It's only now that I've got to know them!"
That training session was held in Knockbridge alongside the county seniors, who were preparing to face Dublin in the first round of the Leinster SFC. The Wee County juniors were also due to meet the Dubs, but the Sky Blues pulled out for some reason and Louth instead opened their campaign with a provincial semi-final derby defeat of Meath. A thrilling victory over the Lilywhites ensued, followed by that ill-fated trek to Cork.
And it was quite a slog travelling down to Leeside in those days, as Warrior reflects: "Sammy Conlon from Castlebellingham loaded six of us - and himself - into an old Volkswagen van and drove us the whole way down on the Saturday. Larry Geraghty was one of our best players at the time, but he was self-employed and couldn't afford to take the Saturday off work. So he went down on his own by train on the Sunday morning and played the game almost as soon as he arrived. It wasn't ideal preparation."
Other well-known players on that Louth XV included Ollie Geraghty, Danny Nugent, Blackie Judge and Paddy McGlew. Was Pat Duff in any way disappointed to see them eclipsed by the Louth junior class of '09? "No, it doesn't matter in the slightest that they took our record away from us. The junior championship is there for our county to win. We were glad to win it back then and I was glad to see Louth do it again this year. It's always nice to see Louth winning championships and the win will hopefully give football in the county a welcome boost."
Warrior made the county senior panel for a while and was on the bench for national league games against the likes of Wicklow, Meath and Kerry, but serving as captain in 1966 was by far and away the highlight of his playing career. "I played all my football with the Fechins and I was never even vice-captain there, so to captain the county junior team was a great honour and to win a Leinster championship with them was very special."
Almost unbelievably, Pat's playing career with his home club spanned FIVE decades. He explains: "I played my first adult match with them in 1959 and played my last match in 1990, when I filled in as goalie for an ACC Cup game. I came out of retirement for that match and I did alright on the day, but they still dropped me for the final…"
Having given as much as he could to the Hoops, Warrior one day decided to walk away. "I was very much involved with them all my life but I decided to leave after being involved with two teams and going to meetings and acting as bag man etc.," he continues. "I had no time to myself and one night I just decided that I needed more personal time. All of a sudden, I could come and go as I pleased. It was terrific. My time was my own again and I still enjoy it to this day. I had given the Fechins as much as I could and it was time to step aside."
Pat "Warrior" Duff played for St Fechins in the Louth senior championship final in 1968 but unfortunately Ardee St Marys prevailed by one point at Drogheda on county final day. He did win two junior championship souvenirs, a Macardle Cup and two ACC Cups, but the Joe Ward was the one that got away. "I would love the same chance again because the county final wasn't one of my days," he admits.
Pat's wife Frances is a sister of former Louth captain (and former O'Raghallaighs and Dreadnots player) Sean McEntee. Frances and Sean are aunt and uncle respectively of a certain former Louth star: Colin Kelly.
And finally, to the most important issue of all … the information we all want … how did Pat Duff come to be known as "Warrior"? "I'm actually not the original Warrior. There was an old uncle of mine who lived on his own on a farm and he was always known as The Warrior Duff. When I started to play, this lad who knew of the connection put the name on me and it stuck. A lot of people wouldn't even know me by my proper name; they wouldn't know who Patrick Duff is, but they'd know who The Warrior is.
"It has passed on to one of my daughters as well. I never minded it, and I think she quite likes it too!" Tweet
