A younger generation filled the pews in the
front rows of the church just to the right of the coffined remains of a school
pal of 50 years ago. They were the
nephews and nieces of P.J. Hyland, all members of the extended Hyland family of
whom P.J., as the only brother to four sisters, was the father figure. It was a role which might not have seemed all
that suited to a man who in public was quiet and reserved, almost to the point
of shyness, but who bloomed in the company of family and friends. And he had many friends, for P.J. Hyland was
a man for whom friendship was an important part of passage through life. His friends were the friends of a lifetime,
many gained in youthful school days and those privileged to share his friendship
were the lucky ones.
He was a kind and thoughtful friend, proof of
which was evident in his concern for another school pal whom he encouraged to
be part of a Christian Brothers school class reunion organised a few years
ago. P.J. went out of his way to ensure
that his friend would share in the celebrations, even if for whatever reason he
was initially reluctant to do so. His
thoughtfulness on that occasion touched me and showed another side to the P.J
whom I had known since our own school days.
The Hyland family goes back several
generations in Athy and as I stood at the graveside I marvelled at the happy
coincidence which found the Murray, Prendergast, McElwee and the Hyland family
graves located in close proximity to each other in St. Michael's cemetery. But then it was no coincidence for the four
families were all related by marriage at a time when the cemetery caretaker was
P.J.'s grandfather, Peter Hyland, who in April 1942 was granted the unusual
gift of a free burial site in St. Michael's by his employers, the then Urban
District Council. The gift followed his
retirement some years previously after 44 years service as cemetery caretaker
and on choosing his own burial site he evidently arranged for the Murray,
McElwee and the Prendergast families to lie close at hand. On Peter's retirement the position of
cemetery caretaker was filled by his son Thomas, who was P.J.'s father.
P.J. Hyland was a year older than myself but
we shared classrooms in the local Christian Brothers schools up as far as first
year in the secondary school. Like many
others in those days P.J. left school as soon as he was legally entitled to do
so and started work with McMahons who were then doing contract work in Minch
Nortons. He subsequently spent many
years in the Wallboard factory and I was living in Dublin when the factory
closed down and P.J.'s photograph appeared in the national newspapers with the
story of the closure of Athy's largest factory.
He would later join his brother-in-law Wag O'Keeffe in managing the Jet
service station at Blackparks, a position from which he retired a few years
ago. A longtime member of the C.Y.M.S.,
he was its Chairman in the latter years of its occupancy of the former Social
Club premises which were an adjunct to the old Comrades Hall in St. John's
Lane. He remained the C.Y.M.S. Chairman
during and after the Society's move to Mount St. Marys. He tried over several years to revive the
fortunes of the once active C.Y.M.S. but in the end the society had to close
its doors. It was a sad occasion for
those who remembered the heady days of the C.Y.M.S. stretching back to its
original premises at Stanhope St. P.J.
was very disappointed by the demise of the C.Y.M.S. but still hoped that at
some future date its revival would be possible. It was not to be in P.J.'s lifetime.
One of the great, if not the greatest love of
his life, was Gaelic football. I
remember P.J. as a very stylish centre fielder, whose leap for the high
dropping ball was marvellous to behold.
He had the grace and majesty which one usually associated with the
legendary Kerry footballer Mick O'Connell.
Graceful in movement his unhurried style is forever etched in my
memory. He was a good club player who
plied his football skills for a long time in the interests of the club with
which his name will always be associated.
Athy Gaelic Football Club founded way back in October 1887 has had many
great supporters over the years but few have matched the intensity of P.J.'s
feelings for the club whose efforts on the field have not been matched with
many great successes over the years.
How P.J. would like to have lived through the
late 1930's and early 1940's when the sporting prowess of Athy Gaelic Football
Club was in its ascendancy. It was then
that great footballers such as George Comerford, Paul Matthews, Tommy Mulhall
and Barney Dunne, to name just four of the lynchpins of that time, plied their
footballing skills. Athy Gaelic football
was an important part of P.J.'s life both as a player and a supporter and
inevitably because of the club's lack of
success it was an attachment which did not bring too many occasions for
celebrations. No great success marked
P.J.'s years on the Athy senior team but he basked in the reflective glory of
Athy's last championship final win achieved during the 1987 season.
In the Hyland household at Leinster Street
marriages in recent years gave Round Towers and Rheban a foothold where
previously the only team recognised was Athy.
P.J. liked to “rattle the cages” of the Round Towers and Rheban
allegiances of his nephew-in-laws, forever probing, forever questioning the
relative merits of footballers from the respective clubs. Gaelic football was his great interest and
with his passing Athy Gaelic Football Club has lost one of its keenest and
longest serving supporters.
Another sportsman of a different generation,
this time a man whose successes in greyhound racing made him a legend in his
lifetime, also passed away. Paddy McEvoy
was 89 years of age when he died and during his active sporting life he
achieved some remarkable records. Paddy
was the subject of an Eye on the Past about five years ago when a double
feature, Nos. 432 and 433 was required
to document the successes of the man who on his retirement in 1993 as manager
of Wimbledon Stadium was described as “one of greyhound racings greatest
trainers.” It was a tribute richly
deserved for Athy-born Paddy had trained the winner of the English greyhound
Derby not just once, but three times, a record unrivalled to this day. It was a wonderful gesture for those
associated with greyhound racing in this area to provide a guard of honour as
Paddy's remains were brought from Rigney's Funeral Home to the church on Monday
evening. In the same way the members of
Athy Gaelic Football Club provided a guard of honour for P.J. Hyland, an honour
which highlighted the contribution of both men to their respective sports.
Jim Flood of Fontstown died a few days
earlier, again like Paddy McEvoy at a good age, which in Jim's case was 92
years. I had the pleasure of talking to
and interviewing Jim a few years ago at the time when he was just 87 years old
and I remarked what an extraordinary memory he had of people and of past
events. Jim, who was born the year before
the Great War, was an extremely active man and I last saw him walking the
Dublin road at Fontstown a few weeks ago as I drove to the capital city. He lived to see the enormous increase in
traffic which passed his house at Fontstown each day and drew comparisons with
his school days of the 1920's, when as he related it, there was only one car on
the road. It belonged to Captain Hone
who drove down to Kilmead every Thursday to pay his workmen.
I was privileged to have had the opportunity
of meeting and interviewing Jim Flood and Paddy McEvoy, both of whom shared
their stories and their experiences with me.
The privilege of sharing school
days and a friendship with P.J. Hyland is one I will treasure.
May the good Lord be kind to P.J., Paddy and
Jim.
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