Dermot O'Brien, who captained Louth to All-Ireland glory in 1957, has passed away. The Ardee St Mary's clubman is one of the most famous names in Wee County GAA history, having lifted Sam Maguire on behalf of the Reds in '57. His death is poignant as 50th-anniversary celebrations of that success will take place this year. Louth haven't won a Leinster championship since. Dermot O'Brien was also one of the leading showbusiness personalities in Ireland, performing in every major theatre in England, Ireland and Scotland, including several headlining appearances at London's Royal Albert Hall. The former Louth footballer toured and shared the stage with Johnny Cash, Hank Snow, Bill Haley and the Comets and Buddy Herman, and recorded a St. Patrick's Day Special with Bing Crosby in Dublin, which was shown coast to coast in the United States. As well as performing, Dermot also arranged and produced records for many Irish and Irish-American artists, including The Furey Brothers, Larry Cunningham, Dermot Hegarty, The Wolfe Tones, Johnny McEvoy, Philomena Begley, Ray Lynam, Dermot Henry, Mary McGonigle, Pat Roper, Noel Henry, Al Logan and many more. In May 2001, Dermot was the subject of a documentary in TG4's "Laochra Gael" series, tracing his sporting and musical history. Despite his astonishing success on the showband circuit, the 'King of the Accordion' is most affectionately remembered by Louth gaels for his leading role in the Wee County's greatest day ever - September 22 1957 Dermot was centre forward on the team that famously defeated Cork by 1-9 to 1-7 at Croke Park that day. A feature we published on the late Dermot O'Brien in November 2001 follows: O'Brien in the nick of time Dermot O'Brien has become one of Ireland's top showbusiness personalities since leading Louth to their first All-Ireland success for 45 years in 1957. But the greatest day of his life almost didn't happen after he was locked out of Croke Park with less than an hour to go before throw in. Henry Wymbs hears his story. Croke Park is echoing to the sound of 72,000 fans, the teams are just minutes away from taking the pitch for the All-Ireland - and one of the star players is locked outside the ground. It sounds implausible - but that's what happened to Louth captain Dermot O'Brien before his team's 1957 triumph against Cork. Instead of waiting nervously in the dressing room for the biggest game of his life the Ardee-born star instead faced a race against time to get into the stadium. "The team travelled to Dublin on the morning of the final and had a light lunch at the Hollybrook Hotel in Clontarf," he explains. "Unfortunately, I was carrying an injury and after lunch I went for a painkilling injection and then on to Croke Park with the driver. "When we got there the gates were closed and no more people were allowed in. "There were 72,000 people inside and thousands outside. It was impossible to gain entry. I finally managed to squeeze through and speak to a gateman. "I explained my dilemma and who I was, the captain of Louth, but he refused to let me through. "I remember looking at my watch, it was under an hour before the game started and here I was stood outside and nobody would believe me. "Luckily for me a large contingent of Louth supporters recognised me and started to chant: "Let O'Brien through. Let O'Brien through.' "It was only then that I managed to get in and across the pitch to the dressing room. I remember the public address system appealing for the Louth captain to get the dressing room immediately. "I had 10 minutes to spare and I was dripping with sweat. What a way to start the biggest game of your life!" But his persistence paid off as Louth went on to take the title for the first time in 45 years in a match that made the team legends. And it was the end of a long and arduous journey to fame for O'Brien - who was born in the town of Ardee as the only son in a family of five. He was introduced to Gaelic football at the local Christian brothers school. He still cherishes the memory of being taken to the nearby town of Drogheda to see the county final at the tender age of 14. The local Ardee team St. Mary's were playing and won. "I thought at the time I would love to play for St. Mary's," he says. "My prayers were answered in 1951 when I was part of the team that won the county final. Prior to this I got on to the Louth minor team of 1949 and 1950. "Growing up as a teenager in the 1940's was a far cry from the Ireland of today. Money was scarce and I worked for the local farmers during school holidays." Louth is the smallest county in Ireland but has a wonderful tradition in Gaelic football. In the early part of the last century they won All-Irelands in 1910 and 1912. The resurgence was heightened in the later decades with brilliant players such as Eddie Boyle, Sean Thornton, Jack Bell, Johnny Malone, Paddy Markey and Nickey Roe. "I was certainly influenced by those players and my first game for Louth came in 1951 against the great Meath team that lost the All-Ireland the previous year," says O'Brien. "There was great rivalry between the two teams throughout the 1950s - somewhat akin to the present Meath v Dublin encounters." O'Brien started work as a clerk in Navan in 1951 but still had burning ambitions to further his duel love of football and music. "I won my first Leinster medal with Louth in 1953 but lost the semi-final to Kerry. This game was a real baptism of fire for me. "I was only 20 and a slip of a lad at the time. "During the second half I switched positions and had to face the biggest man on the field, the Kerry captain Jas Murphy. "He was a giant of a man and whatever chance I had of improving my game vanished when he gripped my hand and said in a strong Kerry accent: "How are you, you poor cratur." I am pleased to say we later became good friends." O'Brien's career was halted when he suffered a bad injury in 1953 and was out of the game for the next four years. But he couldn't stay away - and returned in 1957 for the greatest sporting year of his life. "I decided to devote all my time to football," he says. "The build up was slow. We got over Carlow, Wexford and the Leinster champions, Kildare, and managed to beat a good Dublin team in the Leinster final. "Expectations were high within the county and after a good win against Tyrone in the semi-final we had this belief - Louth would win the All-Ireland. "The game itself was over very quickly and my memories are rather sketchy. I remember thinking Cork were a huge physical team and the closeness of the scoring kept it exciting. At the final whistle the crowds rushed onto the field and I had to fight my way to the Hogan Stand to get the Sam Maguire Cup and make my speech." O'Brien was the last captain to receive the cup from the old Hogan Stand as it was demolished the following day. This was Louth's first All-Ireland for 45 years and the celebrations began immediately. O'Brien remembers the homecoming clearly. "We stayed in Dublin that night and the next day set off the county Louth. There was a civic reception and dinner in Drogheda, after which we went down the main road through various villages. "There were crowds and bonfires everywhere. I reckon there were 20,000 people in both Drogheda and Dundalk. Finally, at about 3am, we went up the main street of Ardee. I got to bed at 5am - a day and night to remember forever." Louth's dominance continued for another couple of years when they reached two more Leinster finals. However, Dermot O'Brien hung up his boots for good in 1960 and became a full time singer/musician. "I hosted by own television show on RTE and had a number of songs in the charts. The most notable one being The Merry Ploughboy, a record which went to number one in 1966 and remained there for seven weeks." Other songs associated with O'Brien included The Galway Shawl, The Auld Claddagh Ring, Connemare Rose, The Turfman from Ardee and Dublin 1962. O'Brien is still in huge demand and his appearances are sellouts. He spends a considerable amount of time touring, particularly in the United States where he has a home and but also in England for three months of the year. "I still enjoy the music and team up with my sister Marie who lives in London. She is a terrific singer and musician in her own right," he says. Despite the musicial success O'Brien's love of Gaelic football has not diminished with time. His great football county has failed to win another final since that eventful day in 1957 - something few would have predicted. There have been many days of frustration and disappointment for the loyal followers of the Wee county, yet the memory of 1957 is still warmly remembered. The feats of Dermot O'Brien and his men will always live on. Tweet

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