'The Boot' is the sign above the door of the pub - number 116, Cromer Street, St Pancras, London, WC1H 8BS. Enter here and ask of the boss, and you will be introduced to Packie Hughes, one of the finest footballers Co. Monaghan ever exported to Britain, or to anywhere else for that matter. By Seamus McCluskey. It is here also that you will be treated to the finest hospitality possible, and it is not the slightest wonder whey so many Irish people, both emigrants and visitors, congregate in this highly popular establishment. Packie Hughes, a native of Emyvale, first came to football notice in 1952 when, as a youngster, he played at midfield on the Emyvale juvenile team that won the Monaghan under-14 championship - the club's second success in that series and their first from 1928, when they won the Fr Maguire Cup, then the trophy for the under-14s. Apart from Minor grade, there were no other more senior Juvenile competitions in existence at that stage, so it was not until three years later, in 1955, that Packie Hughes, as a 17-year-old, found himself on the Emyvale Junior Team and won his first adult medal - a 1955 Dr. Ward Cup medal, to be followed by a Bro. Coughlan Cup medal shortly afterwards. He was the mainstay of Emyvale minor teams at the same time, but success eluded them. In 1956 he played at right-half-forward on the Emyvale team beaten by Cremartin in the Junior Championship Final of that year in the old Gavan Duffy Park, Monaghan, and from here onwards the number ten jersey on the Emyvale premier team was always his. Along with three other Emyvale minors he played on the county minor team of 1959, but, at club level, disappointment came his way when, after the Emyvale minor team had won their way to the Fr. Maguire Cup Final, they lost out to Aughnamullen. Despite being losers in the 1956 Junior Final, Emyvale made the mistake of opting for senior status the following year and this error of judgement probably cost them a junior title of some kind or other the following year. Despite this, the club reached the Senior Championship semi-finals of 1957 only to lose out to Ballybay, then riding on the crest of a wave. Back to Junior in 1958, Packie won his second Bro. Coughlan Cup medal, as well as a series of Tournament medals at Dunmoyle and other Tyrone venues that year. His proudest moment, however, came in 1959 when Emyvale won the county Junior Football Championship title and McCaldin Shield, beating Toome by 2-4 to 1-1 in the Final at Ballybay, a Sunday or two before Christmas. The Cavan 'Anglo-Celt' newspaper reported that game and gave Packie Hughes the credit for creating Emyvale's first goal when they wrote: - 'A sideline free from Packie Treanor reached Packie Hughes, who sent in a high dropping ball, and a lovely-times opportunist flick by Stevie McAree sent the leather sizzling in to the corner of the net from fourteen yards range'. The report also referred to the fact that Packie had been one of the most outstanding players in the Emyvale attack that same day. At this stage Packie Hughes had attracted the attention of the senior county team selectors and he won his place on both the county junior and senior sides. Along with three other Emyvale men - Packie Treanor, Jimmie Murray and Sean Hendry - this was the biggest contingent of Emyvale players ever to play on the Monaghan senior county team at the one time. Back in senior ranks at club level, it was 1962 before Emyvale again reached a Senior Championship semi-final decider, as those two long established south county club teams were then involved in a series of objections, counter-objections and appeals, that had absolutely nothing whatsoever to do with Emyvale, but into which they were inadvertently drawn. Unfortunately, it was at this stage also that Packie Hughes, like so many other young players from so many clubs in the county, had to take to the emigrant ship, and so he left his native Emyvale and crossed over to nearby Britain. Here again Packie simply could not be kept away from Gaelic Games, and he became deeply involved with the St Brendan's club in London, a club that had only been found in 1956 and which has featured several prominent Ulster players over the years. They were only a junior team at that stage, but the presence of the north Monaghan man made a big difference to their fortunes, and they would go on to win the County Junior Championship in 1977, one of their outstanding players in every single one of those games being Packie Hughes. What was Monaghan's loss was certainly proving to be London's gain. Prior to his departure from Emyvale, Packie Hughes had been assistant secretary of the club, and had also been minor secretary. He took complete charge of the minor squad and, very often, it was a common sight to see Packie piling a whole contingent of minor players into his pick-up truck to transport them to some venue of other for a game, and no bill ever came from him to the Emyvale committee. In London he again became involved in a an official capacity in the capital's GAA circles. He was appointed Assistant Secretary of the London County Board and, when their headquarters at New Eltham became totally inadequate for the staging of their games, and moves were being made to obtain new grounds, Packie Hughes was again wholeheartedly involved. The purchase and development of Ruislip, currently the main London GAA venue, followed shortly afterwards, and Packie Hughes was appointed as Chief Steward for the new venue, certainly a fitting tribute to the organising ability and qualities of the exported Emyvale man. He would hold on to the post of Chief Steward at Ruislip for some ten years, during which time he also became involved in refereeing, and was one of London's most efficient referees for almost twenty years, from 1972 to 1990. He was also appointed President of the St Brendan's club and steered them to eight county finals, two of which they won. His generosity to the club also knows no bounds and he has sponsored the entire team kit for the St Brendan's team for several years now, positively showing that he is one of those people who 'put their money where their mouth is', and helping the London club immensely as a result. The white-and-green strip features the 'Hughes Taverns' logo, and is now one of the most respected sights on the GAA fields of Britain. Despite his deep interest in the game across the Irish Sea, Packie Hughes has never lost his love for Monaghan football, and particularly for his native Emyvale. He never misses a game in which the county is involved, and probably know more of the form of each and everyone of our county team players better than many of our own mentors. In addition, he travels over regularly to see other inter-county games, even when Monaghan teams are not involved, and has already attended most of this year's Ulster Club Championship fixtures. And when the Emyvale club gets anywhere near a final, or even a semi-final, he is sure to be there - in fact he was even over for the Ladies Junior Championship Final on the last Sunday of November, when the Emyvale cailini met Eadestown of Kildare in the All-Ireland Final. Such a deep interest in Gaelic Games can rarely be equalled. Packie Hughes' work for the GAA in London received due recognition earlier this year when he was awarded the 'Lifetime Achievement in Sport' award at the 'Irish World' newspaper's twelfth annual presentations in Cricklewood, north London, in the first week of March last. It was an award that was richly deserved, and there were loud cheers and prolonged applause from the huge crowd, which included so many GAA people, when Packie went forward to receive the honours. More than five hundred people attended the function, which was held in the Galytmore Hotel in the north of the city. These 'Irish World' awards were first introduced in 1994 and, of all the awards that went to sportsmen or to people involved in sport in any way in the British capital, over the years, few deserved the accord better than Packie Hughes in 2006. A GAA career then, that has spanned several decades and which has few equals, but just ask Packie Hughes what was his proudest moment ever in the game and he will quickly tell you that it was that bleak December in 1959, when he won a Co. Monaghan Junior Football Championship medal with his native Emyvale, by overcoming a gallant Toome side, to win only their second ever Junior Championship title. Tweet

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