Offaly GAA heroes inducted into Hall of Fame

Two Offaly GAA heroes were inducted into the Offaly GAA Hall of Fame on Easter Monday. Seamus Darby and Danny Owens  join a list of Offaly GAA greats who were inducted in previous years.

Hall of fame – Football - Seamus Darby

HE scored one of the most famous goals in the history of gaelic football and it earned him GAA immortality. However, to sum up his career by talking about one kick of the ball is to do him a great injustice.

Seamus Darby's contribution to Offaly and Rhode football went infinitely deeper than that and he was far from a one kick wonder.

He was a deadly corner forward, a real opportunist who played to his strengths, a natural poacher who never strayed far from the goals, he got a lot of important scores for Offaly. It is of course inevitable that when people talk about Seamus Darby, it is generally in relation to the famous late goal that denied Kerry five in a row in the 1982 All-Ireland senior football final.

A late sub in that final, it is all part of GAA folklore. Kerry were arguably the greatest ever footballing side and there was so much hype around their bid for the first ever five in a row. A tremendous force of nature, Kerry had beaten Offaly in the 1980 All-Ireland semi-final and the 1981 All-Ireland final. Seamus Darby had been in the stands for both those games with his county career seemingly well and truly over.

He was called back into the panel in 1982 after Eugene McGee spotted him scoring a spectacular goal for Rhode in the championship in Daingean and he took full advantage of his chance when he started in the Leinster final against Dublin, scoring three fine points. Johnny Mooney's return from abroad and a hamstring injury meant that he didn't see action in the All-Ireland semi-final tightrope win over Galway and he was on the bench for the showdown with Kerry.

Even then, Raheen protege Martin Fitzpatrick was earmarked for an attacking cameo but as the game took on a life of its own, rain fell and Offaly fought back into contention after it had appeared to slip from their grasp, the selectors turned to Darby. The rest was history as he fielded a long punt from the late Liam O'Connor and arrowed a superb left footed shot beyond the reach of a flailing Charlie Nelligan.

That goal brought so much joy to generations of Offaly people, even those too young to remember it or not born then and it defined the life of Seamus Darby to a large extent. There was of course so much more to Seamus Darby, the man and Seamus Darby, the footballer than that.

His haul of 46 competitive league and championship appearances may be much less than many of his colleagues but he is one of only three Offaly men with three All-Ireland senior football medals – Martin Furlong and Sean Lowry are the others. He was not used in 1971, making his debut in the league against Tipperary but he was very much a part of the team that retained the Sam Maguire in 1972.

He started in the wins over Meath, Kildare and Donegal, lost his place for the drawn final against Kerry but was selected instead of Murt Connor for the replay and was very sharp that day, scoring two points in Offaly's ultimately facile win. He has downplayed his own influence in 1972 himself, stating that he was not one of the marquee players, but he contributed very well and continued to play regularly until 1976.

Those were a difficult few years as Offaly relinquished Sam Maguire when losing to Galway in 1973. Seamus Darby missed that championship and Offaly went into decline after that. He was one of the 1971-1972 players jettisoned when Eugene McGee took over as manager for 1977. He played one league game, coming on as a sub in a 1979 win over Wexford, but was off the panel until that remarkable 1982 comeback.

His original omission rankled with him, though he grew to accept it. Even when it looked like the county ship had sailed for him, the impression of unfinished business never left him and the rest was history. He played on until 1984 and his last game was a championship defeat by Dublin.

He gave tremendous loyal service to Rhode, though much of his club career co-incided with their longest famine as they went from 1975 to 1998 without winning a title. He won senior football medals in 1969 and 1975 and was a fiercely proud Rhode man. He transferred to Edenderry in the late 1980s, playing for them in a senior football semi-final defeat by his home club in 1989 when he was also the manager. He had a business in Edenderry at time but make no mistake about this, he is the epitome of a Rhode man.

One of Offaly football's most loved figures, he has regularly spoken about the impact 1982 had on him, including in his excellent autobiography that was published a couple of years ago. He went through his up and downs in business and spent several years in London before returning home. A great Offaly football supporter, he has been a terrific ambassador for the county. He has always reflected very well on his home county, the football hall of fame is Seamus Darby.

BIG PICTURE SPECIAL: Stars of present and past honoured at Offaly GAA Awards

Hall of fame - Hurling - Danny Owens

One of Offaly hurling's favourite sons, Danny Owens' career can be divided into two separate parts – the first half as an outstanding Offaly forward, come midfielder, the second as a very successful manager.

A very proud Killoughey and Mountbolus man, Danny Owens got a crucial late point when he came on as a sub in the 1981 All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship final win over Galway. That point came shortly after the famous goal by the late and much mourned Johnny Flaherty and helped drive Offaly across the line as they won their first ever All-Ireland title.

Owens had made his debut in a league win over Limerick in November 1980 and he was used as a very effective impact sub in the 1981 championship. He went on to establish himself firmly on the team, playing outstanding hurling in attack and later midfield.

Accurate from play and frees, he made a whopping 103 league and championship appearances during a terrific era for Offaly hurling. His last game was a league defeat by Tipperary in November 1992 and he played an important part in the early emergence of outstanding young talent as Offaly built towards All-Ireland wins in 1994 and 1998.

More or less an automatic starter from 1982 to 1992, he had some truly outstanding games for Offaly. He was in outstanding form and was the captain as Offaly won their first and only National Hurling League title in 1991, beating Wexford in the final. He was superb at midfield as Offaly won their second All-Ireland senior hurling title in 1985 and he won Leinster senior hurling medals in 1981, 1984, 1985, 1988, 1988 and 1990.

Danny Owens was an outstanding underage hurler and won a Leinster U-21 hurling medal in 1978. Considering his hurling excellence, it may be news to some people to learn that he was also an excellent footballer in his youth.

He came on as a sub in the 1976 Leinster minor football final defeat by Dublin in 1976. He was outstanding in the attack as Offaly won the Leinster U-21 football title in 1979 and he was man of the match in the Leinster final win over Louth when he scored six points from play. He went to secondary school in the famed football nursery Carmelite College in Moate, and he won three Leinster senior football and one All-Ireland colleges medal there in the second half of the 1970s. He captained them in 1977 when they lost the All-Ireland final to St Colman’s of Claremorris.

He played alongside several of the 1982 All-Ireland senior football heroes during his Offaly underage football career and some outstanding players in Carmelite. There was a period when he was close to committing to the football team as well as the hurling.

He played two National Football League games for Offaly in 1978 and 1979 and Eugene McGee told him he would be brought onto the Offaly panel if they had won the Leinster final in 1979. They didn’t, that was more or less that for his football career and he missed out on Offaly’s breakthrough Leinster hurling win in 1980 as he was in Edinburgh on a college placement.

Hurling was his true sporting love. He came from hurling territory in Killoughey and possessed an obvious love and affection for the ancient game.

Playing success at club level was sparse for him. He won intermediate hurling championship medals with Killoughey in 1980 and 1984 and after they amalgamated with Kilcormac in late 1986, it took them a long time before they made the breakthrough at senior level. He also won minor and U-21 football medals with the then parish underage club, Na Piarsaigh in 1975 and 1976 but none in hurling.

The Kilcormac-Killoughey club had some great underage success in the 1990s and 2000s but suffered a series of devastating defeats in big senior games with Danny only retiring in 1998. The presence of a near unbeatable Birr team was one of the factors in them struggling to make the breakthrough but when they reached the promised land and won their first Senior Hurling Championship title in 2012, Danny Owens was at the helm.

He was a key figure in their great successes from then until 2015 when he stepped down as manager. They won the Leinster club title in 2012 and were beaten by St Thomas of Galway the following March in the All-Ireland club final while they retained their Offaly crown in 2013 and 2014.

A hugely popular individual, he is modest about his own career and his role on the great Offaly team of the 1980s. He has managed several other club sides as well as Offaly minor and U-21 teams. A long time Fianna Fail member of Offaly County Council, he is opting out of politics later this year. He has left a lasting legacy to Offaly and Kilcormac-Killoughey hurling, the hurling hall of fame inductee is Danny Owens.

BIG PICTURE SPECIAL: Stars of present and past honoured at Offaly GAA Awards