REMARKS BY PRESIDENT McALEESE ON THE BESTOWAL OF HONORARY LIFE MEMBERSHIP
REMARKS BY PRESIDENT McALEESE ON THE BESTOWAL OF HONORARY LIFE MEMBERSHIP AND TOUR OF EXHIBITION AT QUEEN’S UNIVERSITY
Tá lúcháir mhór orm go bhfuil mé ábalta bheith anseo libh anocht, agus ba mhaith liom mo bhuíochas féin agus buíochas Mháirtín, m’fhear céile, a chur in iúl daoibh as an chuireadh, agus as fáilte a bhí caoin, cneasta, agus croiúil.
I am delighted to be able to join you here this evening and I would like to express my warmest thanks, on behalf of Martin and myself, for your invitation and warm welcome.
It has been said that the only use for football is to give small boys something to kick besides their sisters. But many students in this University, myself included, found in Gaelic football and in this club, a common identity, a place to feel at home, among friends and the place I had to frequent if I wanted to find Martin! I freely admit and with some pride to being one of this Club’s most vocal supporters. While I couldn’t play football, like most spectators I was nonetheless usually more expert than the referee and most of the players, particularly those on the other side. I know that on many occasions the outcome would have been different if my advice had been listened to and that the only time Martin was sent off was as a result of his misunderstanding of my advice; when I told him to deck his opponent I presumed he would know not to do so under the referee’s nose.
The GAA is a hugely important contributor to community life the length and breadth of Ireland. It has been a crucial heartland of our sense of identity and pride at local and county level. The friendships and networks involve players, families, generations. School rivalries melt into lifelong friendships at College. The GAA is really part of who we are. Nowhere is that more true than in Northern Ireland. We owe so much to the many volunteers who have freely given endless hours of their time, with dedication and passion, to ensure that this important part of our heritage goes from strength to strength – that the gift of friendship and friendly rivalry is freshened and deepened in each generation. For our generation of Queen’s men and women the bonds of affection for that club go very deep. The shared memories have carried us through life, the friendships made have proved enduring.
It is a personal pleasure and honour for both Martin and myself that the Gaelic Football Club here at Queen’s has bestowed us with honorary life membership. I know I am here not because of my undergraduate days at Queen’s – not because I was a Director of I.P.C.S. or Pro Vice-Chancellor but because I am a President of Ireland who was fortunate to have both her husband Martin and brother Phelim play for this Club with some level of distinction – which has grown distinctly inflated with the passage of time.
How could I resist opening an exhibition which features Martin at his one and much milked moment of triumph as a member of the memorable team that won the Sigerson Cup competition in 1971. Missing from the exhibition is the best picture from that weekend in Galway – Martin waltzing with Moss Keane. It is a wonderful exhibition – and an important opportunity to remember with real pride the enormous contribution that Queen’s has made down through the years to the GAA and the GAA to Queen’s. Queen’s success, not just in the Sigerson Cup, but in producing a range of outstanding players of national stature over the years is an indication of the exceptional calibre of the Club. Each generation continues to take pride in the accomplishments of the next – seeing in their success a vindication of their own part in keeping this club vibrant and dynamic. My congratulations on winning the National League once again in January and commiserations on missing out at the semi-final stage of the Sigerson this year. If only Martin had been playing, as he said himself repeatedly to anyone who would listen, who knows what the outcome might have been! I hope it was some consolation that your hosting of the event was such an outstanding success. Queen’s GAA’s legendary hospitality is what drew so many of us to the Club’s orbit – it was our home from home. The biggest and the best of all sporting clubs in this University. I never hear its name without a glow of pride and a tinge of nostalgia.
Let me finish by thanking you all once again, especially the Chairman of Queen’s GFC, John Devaney, for this honour. I wish the Club many more years of success.
Guím gach rath oraibh agus ar an Chumann. Gura fada buan sibh.
Go raibh míle maith agaibh.