Lady ‘Limerick’ shouts for hurlers Down Under
A NICKNAME which stuck ‘Down Under’ has followed one Limerick native around for years, having gone to Australia for ‘a year’ to backpack in 1998...and never returning home!
Janet Cunneen, better known as simply ‘Limerick’ in Brisbane, Australia where she has now lived for the past 25 years, is a dedicated hurling fan and has never denied her roots.
“It’s funny, because the person who christened me ‘Limerick’ in Australia as my nickname, is actually a Kilkenny man who came out many years ago to live here!”
Janet did make it home last year and managed to fit in a match, Limerick against Waterford in round two of the Munster Championship which was played in the TUS Gaelic Grounds and which Limerick came out on top.
Described as the ‘22 milestone tour’, Janet says they managed to ‘cram’ a lot into the week, with the Treaty hurlers victory over the Déise being the highlight.
“I haven’t gotten home to see a winning final at all - great that the decider is on Sunday at 3:30pm Irish time, making it 12:30am here, but not as bad as Limerick v Galway which was 3am!” Janet said.
“I’m not the most popular here, roaring in the middle of the night while watching the matches and Facetiming home!”
While Janet often gets the latest jerseys sent to her by her family in Ireland, she reminisced on when she worked at home in Limerick before emigrating for good.
“I worked in Gleeson Sports, and, ironically, sold that famous red helmet to Áine Lohan, Brian Lohan’s sister, for Brian as a gift.
“When I was home last April/May, I bumped into loads of local legends, school friends etc, and lots of reminiscing on the old days before I left for the outback!” she explained.
“I’m so disappointed that I can’t get back to Ireland after all of those years up in the stands in Croke Park in the 90s, when we lost out.”