Each of these men are charismatic in their own way...
10. Simon Geoghegan
Among Irish rugby fans of a certain age, those who began following them in the 90s and were a touch disorientated when Ireland started winning regularly in the early 2000's, there remains a reverence for Simon Geoghegan. It is a reverence that, in many cases, exceeds that accorded to the gilded talents of the golden generation, with their high society fashionableness and their bulging social media presence.
Geoghegan was Ireland's main draw in early 1990s, a blond winger with an electric turn of pace and a hunger for scoring tries.
He had a different kind of charisma to Willie John or Moss Keane. He was a player adored by young fans in particular in thrall to the sight of guys sliding in in the corner.
That try in Twickenham in 1994 remains his signature moment, a beacon of light amid the darkness of what was an appallingly grim decade for Irish rugby - a try which remains the 'earliest rugby memory' for a number of current Irish players.
Unfortunately at that time, the Irish team followed a policy of not passing him the ball.
According to Irish rugby lore, he didn't get a single pass in an attacking position during the 1992 Five Nations, a tournament which has to rank, amid admittedly ferocious competition, as Ireland's worst ever showing in the winter championship. Not quite remembering the 1992 Five Nations, I can't confirm whether this is true for sure, though anyone who saw how Ireland played in that era wouldn't have too much trouble believing it.
The fact that he was a great player on a bad team gives him an air of tragic romance and an obscurantist charm that eludes Brian O'Driscoll and Rob Kearney.
9. Tommy Walsh
Kilkenny hurling never really did charisma (at least until DJ Carey came along) and Brian Cody has done his absolute best to try and de-mystify their success and drain them any of charisma in post match interviews over the last fifteen years.
But with success that protracted, iconic figures were always going to emerge. While Henry Shefflin is the brightest star in the firmament, Walsh idolatry is a bit less mainstream but no less intense among the hardcore. There was a particularly frenzied roar from the Kilkenny crowd whenever Tommy Walsh plucked a ball out of the sky.
People got a buzz out of his combative yet stylish play. The word 'swashbuckling' could have been invented to described him. His reputation for a being a bit of a scallywag in the rest of the country heightened the affection with which he was regarded by Kilkenny supporters. Even his critics have tended to be infatuated with his style of play.
Like many charismatic players, he is often known solely by his first name.
8. Paul McGrath
The most loved man in the history of Irish sport if not the entire world. No one can speak highly enough of McGrath. People compete to utter superlatives about the man.Even people who tangled with him during his career such as Alex Ferguson now have nothing but good things to say about him. This is partly because he was a great people. But it is also a tribute to his overwhelming soundness through all his trials.
There is one cardinal rule in Irish life. Forget anything Pele or Maradona or Messi has done. If anyone asks you, the two greatest performances of all time were Paul McGrath against Italy in 1994 and Roy Keane in Turin in 1999. Even if you hadn’t seen either game, and you have your suspicions that at least one of the performances (the latter) has been over-hyped and is now just a short-hand media cliche, you must insist that these two displays are unmatched by anything else in football.
7. Ger Loughnane
Loughnane's pitchside interview at half-time during the 1995 All-Ireland hurling final is etched on the memory of most of those who saw it. After a brisk discussion on how the first half went, Marty asked him if Clare would win, Ger fixed his interviewer with a stare, summoned up every ounce of conviction in him and pronounced 'We're going to do it'. They couldn't lose after that.
Another story from that special year comes in Denis Walsh's 'Hurling: The Revolution Years'.
After Clare were spanked in the League Final by Nicky Brennan's Kilkenny, inexperienced corner backs Michael O'Halloran and Frank Lohan sat cowering and shaken in the corner, expecting a blast off their manager after being taken to the cleaners by Denis Byrne and DJ Carey.
Loughnane briefly critiqued the performance, said they'd a lot to work on, but said nothing to the two boys. Relieved but a touch perplexed they got up to leave afterwards before Loughnane called out to them.
Ye two, forget about it. That will never happen to ye again
Two months later, the Clare full-back line would concede a total of 0-1 from play in the Munster Final.
6. Jimmy Barry Murphy
One of the most accomplished men in the history of the GAA, Jimmy was also one of the coolest GAA players at a time when GAA and coolness were not exactly synonymous. He was a stylish ball player and as a Cork dual player, he naturally won bucket loads of medals in the 70s and 80s, mainly in hurling.
He has that Michael Collins quality of looking, to 21st century eyes, more modern than all his contemporaries, with their unfashionable hairstyles and agricultural style of play. Jimmy had that sang froid which set him apart from all that.
A la Paul McGrath, it has helped that his general brilliance is match by his niceness. In JBM we trust.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ze8TTOYInhc
5. Paul O'Connell
The latest in a long line of charismatic Irish second row forwards, O'Connell is a worthy addition to that noble lineage. Joe Schmidt used the Maori term 'Mana' to describe O'Connell's presence - meaning 'control, status and spiritual power'. Bundled together, these three qualities equal charisma.
All nervous supporters needed on big days following Ireland or Munster was the director to show a close up of O'Connell and folk would soon realise we were in good hands.
'Mana' indeed.
4. Moss Keane
A true great and part of the 1982 Triple Crown winning team, and the much ignored 1974 Five Nations championship winning team.
Whenever there’s an after-dinner story to be told about Irish rugby, Mossie’s name is never far away. Indeed, even if the witticism in question was uttered by another rugby player, at some point down the line it will invariably be attributed to Moss.
Classic of the genre: Leinster out-half in the 70s, Mick Quinn, and his Munster counterpart Tony Ward were part of a crowd drinking in the Lansdowne club bar (the perfect scene for a Mossie anecdote); Moss was there too. Keane shouted in Wardy’s ear that he was “the best out- half he ever played with.” Quinn overheard this and cornered Mossie near the toilets, jokingly prodding him ““So your man up there is the best out-half you ever played with?” Moss replied “Not at all Quinny, you are by far, it’s just that I have to play with the little b****cks for Munster.”
And another courtesy of legendary New Zealand lock Andy Haden.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xyRZE-WGrfA
3. Roy Keane
When the definitive account of the last 150 years of Irish history is written, there will only be five figures worth talking about. All were loved and hated in equal measure.
They are, in chronological order, Charles Stewart Parnell, Michael Collins, Eamon De Valera, Charlie Haughey and Roy Keane.
It's only a matter of time before a Faculty of Roy Studies is opened at UCC where people can examine Roy's impact on Irish society. Visiting lecturers will no doubt include Eamon Dunphy, Roddy Doyle and Frank Gillespie.
2. Willie John McBride
Nowadays, he spends most of his time telling jokes about the difference between amateur rugby and professional rugby at after dinner events (most of which seem to be organised by Will Carling. Bumface has cornered the market) and delivering the odd voiceover for Sky Sports before a big tour.
While the jokes aren't exactly cutting edge, Willie John's comic timing remains pretty decent. When speaking about his debut for Ireland in 1962, he off-handedly remarked that 'I think the previous fella died or something', a clever little variation on the old theme of it being harder to get dropped from the Irish team than be selected in those years.
Willie is yet more proof of the maxim that second row is the most charismatic position in rugby. This is possibly because a disproportionate amount of them are made captain.
1. Anthony Daly
Even the most cynical, diffident and cosmopolitan of hipsters would get goosepimples listening to one of Anthony Daly's rallying speeches. Even beret wearing pacifists brandishing placards at Shannon airport would follow him into battle after a quick pep talk from the man himself.
Hell, even Americano sipping, lentil scoffing scarf wearers who've successfully scraped the last bit of cowdung from their fingernails and become rootless citizens of the world, would soon rediscover their long lost tribal side after hearing a blast of Dalo on platform.
However, Daly is not just about speechifying. As evidenced from interviews, he has a quick-wittedness, a frankness and a zest about him which is infectious. Derrick Lynch caught a snatch of conversation from his recent book launch which is pure Daly.
Quote from Dalo tonight speaking to Loughnane: "As Collins said to Dev, you'll always be my General". #Clare #GAA #legends
— Derrick Lynch (@lynch_derrick) November 20, 2014
The strangest aspect of Daly's time as Dublin hurling manager is that many dual players in the city opted not to play hurling. I still can't understand it. I know the footballers were probably the better bet as far as racking up medals was concerned but... Dalo, like.
How were they able to resist a call to arms from that man?
