From Dundalk Democrat, 2003.
Former Dundalk goalkeeper, Christy Barron, retired from his job in England last month and is looking forward to a few trips ‘back home’ now that he has some spare time on his hands, reports Gerry Prendergast.
Career in England
Christy, who worked in Backhouses Butchers, in Clanbrassil Street, moved to England in 1970. He continued working in the meat trade and later took a course of study and successfully passed his examinations to become a meat inspector; a career which he pursued right up until his retirement last month. His wife, May, also retired at the same time.They reside in the Midlands in Mansfield.
Special gift
The affable Dubliner kept goal for seven seasons at Oriel Park where he won a League championship medal and became a firm favourite with the Dundalk fans. “I really can’t believe the people of Dundalk still remember me,” said a shocked Christy when I phoned him on Tuesday. His workmates arranged a grand surprise for him on his last day at work. Unknown to Christy, they had been in discussions with Dundalk FC in an effort to buy him a goalkeeper’s jersey. This arrived by courier on that very morning and came complete with his name embroidered on it and with the compliments of the directors of the club. “I was very emotional when I was presented with the jersey and words couldn’t explain how I felt. The lads went to an awful lot of bother for me and I thank them and Dundalk Football Club for their wonderful gesture.”
Great affection
Christy said that Dundalk was still special to him as he lived in the town for six years and had a great affection for the people of the town. “I lived in Newtownbalregan and have some wonderful memories of my time in the town. I made many friends there that to this very day I remember well.”
Fond memories
He retains very fond memories of his footballing days and still has his scrapbooks covering his career with Drumcondra, Shelbourne and Dundalk. He never discarded one single press cutting whether good or bad. There are many memories of his days with Dundalk, but the most documented is probably the European Cup match away against FC Zurich which the Lilywhites won 2-1 and resulted in them entering the history books. “We won the League in 1962-63 by one point and that was very special to me. We had a terrific team then, captained by my old pal, John Murphy,” Christy said. “We actually won the League title without kicking a ball. Our season had finished and we were waiting on a midweek result to see if we we won the title. The game ended in a draw and we were the champions. I remember vividly the late Colm Bellew calling to my digs at Oliver Plunkett Park on a Wednesday night at around 9.30 telling me we were League of Ireland champions. Myself and Colm were dancing on the street with sheer joy; it is a moment that will stay with me forever. Although we were beaten 3-0 in the first leg of the European Cup by Zurich, we travelled to Switzerland and became the first Irish side to win a European Cup game away from home. We beat them 2-1 and after the game the Irish Ambassador to Switzerland came in to the dressingroom and congratulated us on doing Ireland proud. It was an unbelievable experience.”
Lourdes, not Zurich
Christy recalled going to Zurich with the squad and humoursly told of how the trip should have been to another destination. “One of our directors, Mr. Kennedy, was walking with the aid of a stick, while our trainer, Gerry McCourt, suffered with pains. Added to that, our centre-half Timmy Lyons had a broken arm, while, of course, the legendary Jimmy Hasty had only one arm. The joke at the time was that the people in Switzerland thought we should have being flying to Lourdes instead of Zurich when they saw us getting off the plane,” laughed Christy. “But it was a special night for us all. We played some terrific football in pouring rain and I was proud to be part of that great team.”
Standing ovation – in Waterford
Christy added that the following Sunday was another day he will never forget. “We were playing Waterford in Kilcohan Park and when we ran onto the pitch, the home crowd gave us a standing ovation that must have lasted a full four minutes; it was a fantastic gesture by the Waterford fans.” Christy joined Dundalk at the beginning of the 1959-60 season from Drumcondra and played in 36 out of a total of 39 games that season when the Lilywhites finished fifth in the championship.
Ever-present
The following season, he played in every game, before winning his first title in 1962-63 when he played in all 18 League games. Dundalk won the League by one point from Waterford and Drumcondra to qualify for Europe for the first time in the club’s history. In 1964, he was the first ever winner of the Dundalk Supporters’ Player of the Year Award. Christy was a regular between the posts up until 1966-67, his final season at Oriel Park, when Alan Fox was player-manager. He was replaced by Kevin Blount, but made one League appearance as Dundalk ran away with the title race, winning the championship by a massive seven points from Bohemians and Sligo. Overall, he made over 250 appearances for Dundalk in his seven seasons at Oriel and is still fondly remembered by the older followers of the Carrick Road side.
Five handicapper
He still enjoys the very best of health and is a keen and energetic golfer, currently playing off five. Goodness knows how he might improve on this now he has the time in which to work at it! Christy admitted that he only watches football nowadays from the comfort of his own home. “I still love the game, but a lot of change has taken place over the years. The players now are super fit, but at the same time they seem to pick up injuries at an alarming rate,” he said. “Another thing is the money. They are earning telephone numbers now, but when we played it was for the love of the game. We did earn a few bob, of course, but it didn’t matter. To play for a club like Dundalk was all that counted when I played the game.”
