On Hearing A Song For Christy Ring Poem by Francis Duggan

Amazing how a song can stir up memories
And only lately heard a ballad singer sing
A famous song written by Brian McMahon
For Ireland's greatest hurler Christy Ring.

He was known as the Cork and Glen Rovers wizard
And he depicted the spirit of the Glen
And what set Ring apart from all the others
Was that he had in him this great desire to win.

Eighteen Railways cups and eight All Ireland medals
The record of his combined medal tally stand
He played for Cork when he was in his forties
And held his own with the best in Ireland

For the St Nicholas club Christy Ring played Gaelic Football
And at football many better one could name
But he only played because of club devotion
As hurling always was his preferred game.

But 'twas for Gaelic football Christy Ring I will remember
And that incident from the fifties I recall
In Macroom when the St Nicholas team played Millstreet
In a game that ended in an all in brawl.

A brawl that involved both sets of supporters
For Gaelic football 'twas a shameful day
And for the punch up both sides blamed each other
And who is wrong or right who is to say

And on that day Christy Ring met with misfortune
In an incident that few if any saw
And the next morning we read in the sporting headlines
How Ring was suffering from a broken jaw.

Some said a Millstreet fellow king hit Christy
But others seemed to think that wasn't so
That by a famed Cork hurler Ring's jaw had been broken
An old score settled on that day years ago.

And what happened back then to this day still a mystery
Nor is it likely now that we will ever know
When perhaps only two knew the late Christy Ring the victim
And the angry man who landed that fierce blow.

Amazing how a song can stir up memories
And only lately heard a ballad singer sing
A famous song written by Brian McMahon
For Ireland's greatest hurler Christy Ring.