1999 Fitzgibbon Team Pen Pictures.
University of Limerick (1999)

• Stephen O’Hara 4^th year. Destined to follow in the footsteps of a legendary Tulla goalie and have a stadium named after him. An outstanding goalie who never turned (a car around a corner), if you get my drift(nothing to do with a car). An All-Ireland winner before some of us were ever born and then sailed off into the sunset. A legend in his own lifetime. Favourite seaside resort: Lahinch

• Fergal Kenzie 4^th year. Recently got a call up as Limerick sub goalie - following in a rich tradition of UL goalies. Many before have gone on to wear the number 16 and keep benches warm. He’ll carry on a fine tradition. Another of the Monaleen buckfast boys. Favourite Bed and Breakfast: Jail

• Brendan Ryan 3^rd year Can’t sing, can’t play, can’t drink. Like the other woodwork teachers, Brendan got in on the ‘play the league and rest for the championship act’ when he played all UL’s league games and then rested for the championship. Good man Brendan Ryan. Favourite hurler: Cormac Bonnar.

• Mike Healy 4^th year One of the great singers of the squad. May join U2 with Jacko. Will win an All-Ireland with Galway this year. Probably be marking Fordy in the All-Ireland final. Won’t cost much to pay for his drinking though. Favourite cocktail: Blue lagoon washed down with vodka, tia-maria, etc.etc….oh sorry, that’s Quinn

• Niall Fitz 2^nd year Has just began lifting the machines in the weight's room. Is going to be the biggest and baddest full back soon. Still fond of his pints of vodka though. A great club man and loves attending those Clubs and socs meetings where he talks for hours. Favourite movie. Psycho.

• Brian Geary 1^st year: Prefers sex and drink before hurling, even Limerick hurling. Unique in UL hurling. Has great taste in Cognac and cigars. Likes touring West Clare. Will have a long inter-county career lasting 2 years, when he will concentrate on the first love of his life. And guess what that is ? Another buckfaster from Monaleen. Favourite drinking partner: KJQ

• Keenan Mullane 4^th year. The red-headed maestro of the squad. The heart and soul, the social leader, the singer, song-writer, buckfaster, the teller of tales and the raconteur of legend. Mullane has it all. He can also hurl and is a fine corner forward. A corner forward who scored a record breaking 4-2 in a recent game. I could go on forever about the virtues of a true hero but even I can’t bullshit that much. Rock on, rock all, man. Favourite farmyard manoeuvre: Round baling.

• Mike Connolly 3^rd year. Has once again had to deal with a terrible injury. He’ll be back in full fitness in 2000 to lead UL to a long overdue Fitzgibbon. Will soon be part of a great Waterford team. Favourite song; "We shall overcome" (if it is a song).

• John Bugler 2^nd year. Part of the East Clare Mafia, bugs is one of Gers Babes. Although his heart is in Geata Bán, he has been known to grit his teeth for the college. Fond of the cúpla pints but not too many, just a few days at a time. Favourite cartoon character - Bugs Bunny

• Mick Moroney 2^nd year. The Scariff born native, terrorised the forwards of the squad when drafted in for the latter half of the campaign. O’Loughlin felt we needed a bit more steel - when Mick arrived it wasn’t steel we needed but ash, given the amount of hurleys he used and abused. Favourite hobby: breaking and mending hurleys.

• Karl Quinn Post Grad. One of the Gang of four. A great man to write a P45, Karls imagination is a legend, he imagines he is a great, hurler, writer, drinker, and most of all singer. Karl’s age is unknown, but rumour has it that the Clare over 40’s are looking for some older, experienced players next year and that Karl has been approached. Karl was destined for another year of drinking until the Hurling Club took pity on him and rescued him from the floor of the stables, since then his mind has cleared and his contribution to the character of the club is milestone for all drinkers.

            First man ever to graduate from UL and go straight to draw the old age pension.....

            Oh yeah by the way,   His mammy said,, that he has had enough of college and can't come back anymore!

• Enda Flannery 4^th year. Has reached a milestone in his career by making the Clare squad. If only Stack knew what some of us knew would he still be there?? We’ll say nothing. His unique style of play has won him many followers and in the words of Kevin Cashman, who called him a pearl, should be called the King of the Briar cutters. Favourite pastimes: running, running, running…

• Jack Foley 4^th year. Expected to replace Bono as lead singer of U2. Jacko is looking forward to this years Munster Championship where he’ll surely not concede as much to Tony Browne as he did to S. Mc. One of the greatest and most loyal to train and a Cregan favourite. Favourite hurler: Mick Mackey

• Colm Forde 1^st year Got a rude awakening against Joe Rabbitte early in the year. Some believe that Ogonnolloe starlet will never recover. He seems to have totally withdrawn into a mild melancholy of dispirited balsas. Favourite pop Star: Baby Spice

• Marty Phelan 4^th year Leader of the gang of four. Marty has received a mobile phone from the hurling club. In case he gets a belt in a match, or a tooth ache he can ring for help, there and then. An inspirational captain, with revolutionary and spine tingling speeches. Just ask Mullane. Favourite quote: "I think the ball came to us more than we went to it." Sheer poetry Marty…..

• Malachy Travers 2^nd year. Reckoned there was a Clare conspiracy in the club. How paranoid can you get? Don’t we all know the quality of Wexford hurling. He’ll be wing back next year if he stops smoking, drinking, eating and starts having more sex, and stays of TV. Mad Mal is a fully fledged child-star. Favourite TV programme: 2phat

• Conor Earley 2^nd year. TheTubber star would win any bonny baby competition with that elusive smile. A former Clare minor great, (some, unfairly, say a former great) Conor was sad to see Stack leave as he felt that was his chance of getting on the team,…..the whole Clare thing, you know. Favourite TV personality; Smiley Bolger

• Paddy Coman 4^th year. Had to be on the team when Bonnar came. Tipp are Tipp. However, justified his place with a series of over the top, heroic, superhuman, death defying interceptions in the Lodge. Won’t be putting his hand up again when Jacko is around. Favourite hurler in the Tipp full forward line from 1988-1993: Cormac Bonnar.

• Brian O Driscoll 4^th year. An outstanding leader both on the field and as Chairman of the Club. Brian’s no-nonsense, dictatorial qualities brought the club to new levels. Ruled with an iron fist and made sure every one on the club always got a drink and then had enough to drink. Got the priorities right. Yes I’m talking about Brian O Driscoll. The weak link in the gang of four, allegedly. Favourite keepers of the peace in Ireland; The Gardai

• Niall Hayes 3^rd year. One of the few players to have a starring role in the early stages and then head for the periphery. Limerick under 21 hurlers rate him as being too good - they may win if they had him. Has been a father figure for the freshers and I’m sure many will go on and try to emulate him at what he does best, which is, does his best. Favourite team: Limerick u21 hurlers.

• John Mc Elligott 2^nd year. I still can’t figure out why he wasn’t on the starting team. He has all the attributes of a Fitzgibbon hurler. A carbon copy of Daragh O Neill. Big, strong, heavy, slow, skilful, good drinker, smoker. The mind boggles. Another one of Gers babes. Magic McElligott’s favourite Sportsperson is Magic Johnson

• Noel Madden 4^th year (ish). Talked his way onto the squad. Does he do anything else? Famous for his high pitched voice, harassing women and puking, Madden loves buckfast. An accomplished drinker, sorry…. hurler, who has little time for loving or long term relationships. Favourite footballer: Henry Martin.

• Fergal Healy 3^rd year The best hurler in UL and is going to win All-Irelands with Galway when he leaves UL. He is destined to win nothing while in Limerick. However, if the team is built around him next year, the sky’s the limit. But he must be kept away from the vodka, a skill he hasn’t yet mastered. Although he does have the ladies eating out of his (hand) pocket. An accomplished golfer, but stand behind him, just in case. Favourite hurling manager: well….Mattie of course.

• Rory Gantley 3^rd year Goldilocks is a cross between Francie Barret and PJ O’Connell. Must try to go out some night and leave his clothes on. Has taken a break from the inter-county scene to concentrate his efforts on leading Beagh from the wilderness. UL have promised to build a multi-million pound weights room for him. Weights are being specially built in the room as they’ll be too heavy for the cranes, to lift in. Once fell asleep in Charleville. Favourite TV programme: weight watchers.

• Brendan Coleman 4^th year. Part of the so-called gang of four. Through sheer dedication and hard work, has made the Cork Senior hurling panel. Is going to be part of one of the great Cork teams. This year saw the retirement of the legendary yellow starlet - a deep sense of loss was felt throughout the entire college. May come back and do a postgrad - he did want five minutes more hurling…….. Favourite hurler: Ollie Baker.

• JimmyCoogan 3^rd year. Jimmy, the star of last year was, surprisingly left out in the cold. Wouldn’t you love to have seen him striking the ball over the bar with consummate ease (no offence Eoin). Jimmy was a legendary freshers coach and has bestowed on these young hurlers, all the virtues of Kilkenny hurling. Jimmy will win a Fitzgibbon next year. No he’s not going to UCC. Favourite Fitzgibbon captain: Marty Phelan.

• James Butler 3^rd year The second best Limerick Hurler since Mick Mackey, but the most cunning since Cregan, the strongest since McKenna, the most accurate since Kirby, the most flamboyant since Carey……yeah, okay …. I’m locked….but really he is!!!! Has revolutionised the game by becoming the first great inter-county hurler to play the league and take a break for the championship. Favourite Formula one driver: Eddie Irvine. (Butler thinks he’s him).

• Mark Kerins 2^nd year Is looking for a date for next years’ all-stars. We didn’t know he was transferring to Clare, because he won’t get one with Galway. Is a huge fan of Mattie, some say too big, but lets not get into that. Monty is a noted singer and can talk any woman into anything with his deceitful web of explicit words. A renowned physicist. Favourite hurler; Fergal Healy.

• Sean Ryan 3^rd year. Sean is ULs answer to John Travolta. One of the finest dancers ever to grace the Lodge. Seems to be on ecstacy. A renowned freetaker and hurler who sees himself fitting into Loughnanes plans in the new millennium. Another great hurler who will spend four years in UL without winning a Fitzgibbon. Favourite pop group: ABBA

• Eoin Fitzgerald 1^st year. The fresher who took the free of the decade. The most important free in the history of UL hurling. The free that was going to win a Fitzgibbon and give us the confidence to win every Fitzgibbon in the next millennium. This was, you could say the free of the present millennium. He was brave enough to take it. But he missed. Ah well…..next year. Favourite moment of the hurling year: Seeing Gantley miss frees.

• David Forde 4^th year. The Clare man is going have another year being attacked by the conspirators. Will win another All-Ireland this year. But has to take it easy on the booze - can’t be rolling around the floor like he was in rag week. Enjoys Stack’s training sessions. In line for another all-star, at Kerins’ expense. Favourite magazine: TIME (you know…Jimmy Cooney, watches etc…?)

• David Donohue 1^st year. Has had the longest hamstring injury in living memory, and the shortest length of time on a hurling field. Took Bonnar too seriously by pulling down - he was only joking Dave. Has confused us with Shane. Maybe it was Shane who was playing with UL and got sent off on purpose so we’d lose. Maybe its a big Galway conspiracy. You never know. Favourite movie: Twins

• Pat Moroney 1^st year. The Scariff man lost his tooth playing hurling. Want to know what really happened. He got drunk in the Hurlers (2 pints), went to the Lodge, thought he was old enough to get in and had a row with a bouncer, who told him to go home. Then he walked home, fell over a cat and broke his tooth. Favourite hurler: John McElligott.

• Willie Lawless 2^nd year. One of Gers babes. The maddest man in the whole damn squad. Lawless by nature and Lawless by name, Willie was a t the centre of all the scandal throughout the year. He’s done it all and is Mullane’s hero. Willie will be one of UL’s great solo runners - fond of a few pints. Favourite hurler: Noel Madden.

• Michael Kelly 4^th year. Sporty has enjoyed many high points in his college career. His vast knowledge of the intricacies of hurling stem from his childhood days on the beaches and mountains of north Kerry. This experience has made him one of the most sought after thinkers of the game. A man who can see the essence of a genius from the way he holds a pint glass. Yeah, he’s the man all right. When Sporty says, "He has it", you know you’re looking at a genius of the game. Favourite pop star: Sporty Spice.

• Ger Cuningham: Ger thinks that he was asked to join the Senior set up, as physical trainer. Sucker. As a lifeguard, Ger was brought along, just in case anyone ever got into drowning difficulties on Maguires. There were plenty of occasions when his lifeguard skills were nearly required. But it was all about fun, discipline and effort. And Ger…..Simon never said you could resign!!

• Ciaran O’Loughlin: And I quote the man: "Lads I’ve nothing to say except"…..(15 minutes later)…..that’s all I’ve to say….and one more thing…(20 minutes later, some lads falling asleep)……before I finish I just want to say…..(an hour later...nearly everyone asleep)…..I’ve nothing else to tell you except that"…(two hours later….no-one left in the dressing room)…..the following day…. "I’ll let Cormac and Ger say a few words…." (they are out of the country by now).

• Cormac Bonnar. Coach. When they were in a fix the gang of four went for a James Bond type figure. The Viking sailed into UL like a true Irish warrior. His megalomaniac wage demands coupled with his tasty champagne and caviar habit made Charlie look like an angel. We’ll need Ben, they cried, as the last notes fell to the floor. But he was worth the lot and long may his 10 year old stories continue. Who is Bobby Ryan, as one fresher asked?

• John Lenihan Once again John came to the rescue with sponsorship, advice, etc. Also, bailed us out when we forgot the chequebook. Still giving jobs to the boys (although no-one ever saw Rory Gantley actually working this year). Expected to become next college President and manager of the Fitzgibbon.

Back