PROGRAMME PLUS – VOLUME 1, NUMBER 6, JULY 1 st , 2016 Welcome, collectors, to the sixth edition of ‘Programme Plus’, and apologies at the outset for the one-week delay in publication which arose due to work commitments. This little offering is put together on a voluntary basis so there will be occasions when the ‘real work’ has to come first I’m afraid. The fact that the last Friday in June fell early, on the 24 th , didn’t help the situation, but it’s a case of ‘better late than never’ I hope, and everything should be back on an even keel for the next edition which is due to be completed on July 29 th . Some subscribers have informed me that certain collectors are of the opinion that the content of the bulletin is too negative in parts, particularly with regard to the programme reviews. I was disappointed to hear this, but not in the least bit surprised that the collectors in question didn’t have the common courtesy to inform me directly. Neither is it a shock to note that none of the people concerned have contributed in any way to this venture since it was launched at the start of the year. Programme collecting is no different than any other walk of life, with certain people always on hand to knock the efforts of others without volunteering anything of note themselves. Personally, I would prefer to be honest in a review rather than patting every programme editor on the back without casting a critical eye over what they have produced. As for the feeling that bad reviews might alienate those responsible, well, why not consider the alternative? It might in fact have the opposite impact and spur them on to making a bigger effort. With that rant over, let’s get into the real reason why we are all here and take a closer look at some items of interest that came into our hands since the last edition. PROGRAMME OF THE MONTH: One dubious claim to fame from my shortlived playing career was that I shared a field with Davy Fitzgerald. It happened in 1985 when Davy’s Sixmilebridge were hosted by Faythe Harriers in the All-Ireland Féile na nGael competition in Wexford. We were at opposite ends of that field given that I was in the full-back line but, for the record, he was well able to shout back in those dim and distant days too! Our group that year also included Young Ireland’s of Kilkenny and the man mountain that was Pat O’Neill at the age of 14. Suffice to say that there was an exclusion zone operating around ‘Nailer’ and we didn’t have anybody brave enough or foolish enough to intrude. The Féile left everyone with a store of memories though, and fast forward to 1998 and 1999 when it visited Wexford again and I was P.R.O. of the organising committee. In the lead-up I did a lot of background work researching and in some cases correcting aspects of the roll of honour, and I’m glad to note that my work has been used as a template for all Féile na nGael programmes ever since. All of the above is by way of providing some background information to my selection of this year’s impressive brochure-size 156-page souvenir as programme of the month. I haven’t been a member of Faythe Harriers since 1986 (Sarsfields, football-only, is my club), but nonetheless the recent Féile had special resonance around these parts because the Harriers won the Division 1 hurling crown for the first time, only the second Wexford club to do so after Oulart-The Ballagh in 2001. I know aspects of the Féile have been diluted in recent years, but it’s still the benchmark under-age competition and a great achievement to win it. The main final was in Leahy Park, Cashel, on the Sunday at 11 a.m. but unfortunately I couldn’t make it due to a pressing work engagement after lunch. The programme collector in me had to secure a copy though, and I wasn’t willing to rely on someone else to bring me one back. A scan of the remaining final fixtures revealed that no fewer than nine games were taking place in Carriganore, the magnificent W.I.T. centre of excellence, with the first also at 11 a.m. That was ideal for me, just 40 minutes from my doorstep, so a quick in and out visit was planned. I ventured down on a very wet morning, and there was initial concern as there wasn’t a programme to be found. I positioned myself near the helpdesk and was relieved to overhear a conversation to the effect that a ‘girl with programmes will be here in five minutes’. That’s how it panned out and, after making my purchases, I immediately headed for home again delighted with myself. I didn’t even witness one stroke of a ball in any of the finals, but that didn’t matter as I had secured the programme. If I relayed that story to a non-collector, the response would surely be: ‘are you mad, making a round trip of nearly an hour and a half just to buy a programme?’ I think all of us with the collector’s instinct will relate to it though; it’s not the first, and won’t be the last, time for me to go out of my way to get something, that’s for sure. Anyway, to the programme itself, starting with the very colourful and well-designed cover featuring the Féile na nGael logo along with the crests of host counties Tipperary and Waterford plus the four provinces and the GAA, camogie and handball equivalent. Given the quality of the production, which retailed for €5, I wasn’t surprised to see it was edited by Ed Donnelly who has a track record for excellence in this field. Of particular interest was page 15 which featured a selection of Féile na nGael programme covers over the years; nine in all, from the first in 1971 to 1975, 1979, 1983, 1986, 1998 (one of my own efforts), 2002, 2013 and 2014. The 156 pages were jam-packed with all of the relevant information one would expect: fixtures, potted histories of the competing clubs, panel lists, rolls of honour and the like. I note a printing credit for Cube on the back page advert; given that I stated in a previous issue that I’m not a great fan of the fonts they use in the Munster programmes, let me state that on the contrary they chose wisely in this instance and came up with a bright, jazzy and overall high-quality production. Perhaps the programme for the Féile Peil na nOg held later in the month was worthy of this award too, but I haven’t seen it so far. And as it’s purely a personal choice, this fine Féile na nGael offering get s my vote. COLLECTOR’S ITEMS: What exactly constitutes a collector’s item? Like all aspects of our hobby, that may be specific to the collector in question. Something of precious sentimental value to one collector may mean nothing to another. That came to mind during the week when I was successful in an eBay auction for the four-page programme for the Martin Bergin Benefit games in 1967. To most collectors this programme would be worthless, simply listing the teams for two games played in Wexford Park: an O’Byrne Cup football game between Wexford and Dublin, and a Senior hurling tournament tie featuring the host county and Kilkenny. However, it had special significance for me because the games were played as a fundraiser for the family of Martin ‘Forky’ Bergin who died while representing my own club, Sarsfields. He was just 29 at the time, the father of three children under the age of three with another on the way. His death came in freak circumstances after an incident three minutes from the end of a Senior football championship game against Wexford District, an amalgam of local Junior clubs, in Wexford Park on Sunday, July 9 th , 1967. After tussling for possession with an opponent, both fell to the ground which was as hard as rock owing to a long spell of fine weather. ‘Forky’ was removed unconscious from the field and conveyed to the County Hospital where an emergency operation was performed soon after his admission, but he never regained consciousness and died at 7.10 a.m. on the following Tuesday. His funeral was one of the biggest ever seen in Wexford town, a fact made clear in three photographs published in the Sarsfields club history which I brought out in 2010. I had never seen the programme for his benefit games before though, so the €30.50 it cost me was next to nothing as far as I was concerned. The seller provided a first-class service too, with payment made via PayPal on Monday, and the programme arriving Tuesday morning. For the record, 5,166 people attended those benefit games on August 13 th , and I am now delighted to have embellished my collection. That’s a precious item to me that will probably be of no such importance to the rest of you. Then again, some programmes may be regarded as generic collector’s items of interest to everybody. That usually depends on the circumstances behind the game in question or the result itself.