Weeshie's Week

A Cowardly Assault on Eamon Horan

August 9th, 2011
by Weeshie Fogarty

 I as I expect like all readers of this paper were deeply shocked and saddened having read of the brutal and cowardly attack in Tralee recently on the former renowned journalist with The Kerryman the exemplary Eamon Horan.  The graphic photograph of the seriously injured Eamon following the attack was truly horrific and certainly spoke a thousand words. Sadly it's not an isolated assault in this county or throughout the country and indeed while statistics may not be available many families at one time or another, including my own, have been the victims of this savage behavior.

Three thugs, waited until darkness descended, attacked from behind, showed no mercy, made sure it was an older person they targeted and then when challenged by the brave taxi driver ran like the cowards they are.  And yes I feel very strongly about this and admit I was near tears when I learned what had happened to a person who have in the past and always will admired greatly. Eamon Horan is a special person. Gentle, kind, inoffensive, quite spoken, wonderful company and one of the most talented GAA journalists this county has ever known. I am one of the fortunate people who befriended Eamon during the course of my life, and I consider myself extremely fortunate to have spent many a happy hour in his company. Behind the bruised, shocked and battered face that stared out at us so poignantly and confused in this paper last week is a man who as my late grandmother would say, "wouldn't' say boo to a goose".  This makes the attack all the more greatly reprehensible as it was perpetrated on one of our county's most gentle defenseless of our older citizens.   

Eamon was born in Bridge St Tralee and his sporting interests were greatly influenced by two of his great boyhood heroes, Kerry winning captains from that street, Jas Murphy (1953) and John Dowling (1955). An outstanding handballer in his youth he was always superbly fit and won four minor All ireland handball titles for his county in the early fifties. He also helped Tralee CBS to win a national title also in handball. Eamon began his journalistic career with The Kerryman in April 1957, spent some time in Dublin and retired in 2001. I first got to know him during my playing days with various Kerry teams and also with East Kerry.  As captain of this divisional side for one of our six county final appearances being interviewed by "Eamon Horan of The Kerryman" for his column was while in it self an ordeal, meeting him face to face for the first time remains one of my most enduring and special football memories. He had taken over as GAA journalist from the legendary Paddy Foley and Eamon would go on and put his own special stamp on GAA coverage in this county.

As a result of my involvement as GAA analyst with Radio Kerry I got to know and appreciate Eamon greatly as he would travel on a regular basis to matches all over the country with the late Liam Higgins and me. He never had a car and never drove. They were unforgettable days, in the company of two of the most knowledgeable and respected Kerry GAA  lovers you could hope to meet in a days march. Eamon sitting in the back seat would regale us with stories of Kerry football going back to the forties and even earlier and the clashes with Antrim and Kildare because he had literally followed and read every match account and previews P. F. had written.  I never ever once heard him speak badly of anyone. A rare gift in to day's mad world.  He was revered in press boxes all over the country and all the great journalist of the pre computer era, Paddy Downey, The Irish Times, Pedar o Brien, Jim o Sullivan, Cork Examiner all made him off for the chat at some period of the afternoon.  The homeward journeys with Eamon were unforgettable. A few short pit stops, a meal on the way, Eamon always ordered mustard with his steak. I have never before or since come across a steak and mustard man. And then there was his magnificent singing voice.  Liam as only he could would persuade him to sing a few songs. And what a magnificent voice Eamon has. I can still vividly recall his beautiful tenor voice as he launched with gusto into that memorable song "Girls were made to Love and Kiss" from the operetta Paganini or some other classic from The Student Prince or The Pirates of Penance.  Spending many hours in his company on a memorable trip to New York in 1987 following Kerrys historic All ireland win is a story for another day.  

When Eamon retired from The Kerryman in 2001 I invited him as guest for two hours on my Radio Kerry Terrace Talk programme. It was one of the great evenings of this long running show. The switch boards lit up like a Christmas tree as listeners from far and wide send their best wishes to one of Kerrys most revered and brilliant journalistic sons. One of the counties greatest ever players Maurice Fitzgerald spoke eloquently and beautiful about Eamon and summed him up in relation to the high regard he had been held by Kerry players through the decades. "Eamon had a great passion for the GAA and that came through very much in his writing and we will be sad to see him go because when you get to know a person like Eamon after a number of years you probably leave down the guard a bit. Some reporters you would not be sure about but Eamon was very fair minded and very fair on Kerry players and I wish him very well in his retirement. He was a man you trusted. I hope he continues to enjoy the game and at least he can sit back and watch it from a different angle. He was in my opinion one of the great GAA reporters of the last few decads and I wish him well".

This then is a brief glimpse of the Eamon Horan I know and love. The man in last weeks photograph is a far cry from the man family and friends loved so much.  Eamon Horan is a legend in sports journalism in Kerry and beyond. For me he is one in a million. He is in many ways a unique character and I mean this in the most praise worthy way possible.  I have seen it, the way he would walk into a room, not a tall man by any means; he would immediately command respect and instantly everyone knew that here was a man whom nobody ever had a bad word to say about.  People would automatically gravitate towards him.  We wish him a speedy recovery back to full health.  And words that John B Keane would reserve for only those who deserve them most are most appropriate in this instance. 'Eamon Horan an Officer and a Gentleman and a judge of good Whisky".

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