The Orchard County’s trailblazers of 1953

By Alan Rodgers

STEADY progress over the previous five years provided the backdrop to a 1953 All-Ireland Final appearance which is remembered with pride by those who were in attendance at Croke Park that day.

Many more in successive generations have been raised on stories of that famous occasion when Armagh ran Kerry so close in the decider.

It was 1953 and the Orchard county were in unfamiliar territory. A second Ulster title triumph was followed up by victory in the All-Ireland semi-final, and the prospect of a tilt at the Sam Maguire.

Standing in their way was an all-conquering Kerry team. The Kingdom were going for their first title in seven years, and were keenly fancied to make their mark once again.

Thousands of fans travelled to Croke Park for that big game on Sunday September 27th, 1953. A record attendance of 85, 155 paid in, and there were several thousand more who gained admittance and many more turned away.

Armagh’s hopes were raised when a goal from McElroy helped them into a 1-3 to 0-5 interval lead. But Kerry came back strongly on the resumption and soon led 0-10 to 1-5.

It was at this stage, as the game entered its closing stages, that the crucial moment happened. A foul resulted in a penalty. Croke Park was tension-filled as Bill McCorry stepped up. But he shot wide in a moment that was remembered for decades to come.

One of the players for Armagh that day was Dr Pat O’Neill. He had captained the team to the Ulster title in 1950 and remained a key member of the side for this date with destiny. He remembers well the events leading up to that seminal achievement 71 years ago.

“We beat Cavan in that Ulster final in 1950. A lot of the players at that time were College footballers and some were senior players – they were all probably nearly all students. That was more the reason why they were pretty good,” he recalls.

“It was a big achievement to have got to the All-Ireland Final. We had been beaten in the semi-final in 1950, so there was a big determination to do well when we won the Ulster title again in 1953.

“We were in collective training for about 10 days down in Maghery before the final. It was a matter of physical jerks and running around the field. That was the way training was and nothing like keep fit and diets – some of them dieted a bit on the alcohol.

“There was a hotel down there in Maghery. We stayed for about a week and then were three or four days home before the match. The schedule was the same day after day. You were up at the usual time – started running at about 10am – three or four laps of the pitch and afterwards that would be the first session and a bite of lunch and an hour’s working. Then we’d play a match against some of the other opposing teams. After that you went to the study hall and started work.”

“Fr Rowan I think was our trainer at that time. There was great excitement. My memory of all those things is relatively vague.”

As the build-up to the final began, the excitement in Armagh increased dramatically as well. Buses and trains were booked, as supporters of all ages planned for the big day.

For the players, there was also a real sense of what was at stake against their Kerry opponents. Armagh were bidding to become the first team from the north to win the Sam Maguire, and their recent progress suggested that they were capable of challenging strongly.

“The build-up was enormous,” remarks Pat O’Neill.

“The sheep were painted and the cattle and they were up on the hill and people were cheering as we were going through. The team went down on the bus. It was shortly after the war and you had to have a permit to get a car.

“You weren’t going to romance about that match every day. Kerry had a great team at that time.”

The story of the game was, of course, dominated by that penalty miss by Bill McCorry. With the game on a knife-edge, that miss into the Canal End effectively ended Armagh’s hopes of taking the title, as the Kingdom went on to win.

But the experience of that game stirred Armagh and the rest of Ulster as well. While Cavan had been the dominant team up until then and won five All-Ireland titles between 1933 and 1948, they would never again dominate to the same extent on the provincial stage. Armagh’s exploits arguably inspired a Tyrone breakthrough to theri first Ulster in 1956, Derry’s inaugural success in 1958 and then the glorious Down team which won the Anglo Celt Cup for the first time in 1959 and the Sam Maguire just a year later in 1960.

“Poor oul Bill missed the penalty – it was the first penalty he’d missed and he was very good,” remembered Dr Pat.

“He was pretty good at taking penalties because he was playing a bit of soccer at the time. He put it wide and that was the end. There were about 20 minutes left and we were only two points behind. That goal would have worked wonders.

“There was a lot of disappointment at the finish. A lot of us were pleased at getting to the final. It was a close enough game – there was very little between the teams and it still ended up only about three or four points between the teams.

“It was a different hotel that we stayed in afterwards. There was a meal and then the next day we went home. There were flags flying and people were content enough that we’d put up a good show.”

By then, life was taking Dr Pat in a different direction. He had moved to Omagh and would be part of the Tyrone team for the future. But he remains a man with a great love of Armagh, and a hope of seeing them lift the Sam Maguire again.

Unlike in 1953, though, the fans will hardly to too content with a three or four point loss against Galway on Sunday. Instead, a second Sam Maguire success is what they’re aiming for.

But for the men who will line out on Sunday before 82,000 at Croke Park, the trailblazers of 1953 have provided their inspiration alongside the 1977 heroes and the teams who made such a mark in 2002 and 2003.

And if this Sunday’s final has as much drama as the 1953 decider, then supporters in Croke Park and those watching on TV are in for a real treat.