Weeshie's Picks
A King in a Kingdom of Kings: Dick Fitzgerald and Kerry Football
Price: €18.00
As well as the life story of Gaelic football pioneer and independence fighter, Killarney-born Dick Fitzgerald (1882 1930), this book includes, in facsimile, his 1914 classic How to Play Gaelic Football, the first-ever GAA instruction manual. Dick Fitzgerald, one of Gaelic football's most legendary players in a kingdom of legendary players, had an extraordinary sporting career, winning four Kerry county championships, three Croke Cups (as captain) and five senior All-Ireland medals. All this as well as coaching, refereeing and administrative roles for the GAA at club, county, province and national level in a career disrupted by lengthy imprisonment after the 1916 Rising and subsequent flying column activities. Elected local councillor for Sinn Féin before the War of Independence Dick Fitzgerald sided with fellow-Frongoch detainee Michael Collins after the Treaty of 1921 and served for ten years as Cumann na nGaedheal member on Killarney UDC. He died tragically after a fall on the Friday of All-Ireland weekend 1930, aged forty-eight. The grief-struck Kerry team won their ninth senior title that weekend, returning to Killarney to bury their king the following day. Killarney's Fitzgerald Stadium is an enduring monument to a great Kerry sportsman and patriot; King in a Kingdom of Kings is a record of his life and achievements for lovers of Gaelic games in Kerry and throughout the world.
Tom Looney is canon and parish priest of Dingle, Ceann Trá and Lispole in County Kerry. A native of Killarney, he was an officer and player for Dr Croke's. After his ordination in 1969 he was emigrant chaplain in Wembley and played for London Desmonds. He served six years in the Cork mission to Peru, sixteen years in Tralee and Kilmoyley/Ardfert, four years in Tuosist parish in the Beara Peninsula, and eight years in Kilcummin.
