Tiobraid Árann Abú - United Sports Panel 1959-2009 in conjunction with Bulmers Ltd Golden Jubilee Presentation of the Annerville Awards to the 2008 Tipperary Sports Stars 1 in Hotel Minella, Clonmel on Saturday, 31st January, 2009 United Sports Panel 2009: Back Row (left to right) Eamonn Wynne, Johnny O’Loughlin, Dave Hallinan, Seamus McCarthy, David Clancy, Liam Ó Donnchú; Front Row (left to right) Jimmy Cooney, Seamus King, James Holohan, Ken Conway, Richie Blanche. 2 Foreword When a number of sports enthusiasts got together in 1959, little did they realise that they were starting something that would stand the test of time and be still a force 50 years later. Led by Sean Barlow and the late Sean Lyons the United Sports Panel was formed. They felt the time was right to have an Award Scheme in the county to honour amateur sports stars in their chosen sports annually. In fact, one should note that these were the first such awards in the country. As well as honouring Tipperary’s outstanding amateur sportspersons the United Sports Panel had another aim, as expressed by the second chairman, the late Tom Halpin, when he presented the awards in 1964. He expressed the hope ‘that functions such as these, which brought the stars of various sports together, would help to promote unity in sport.’ Like all innovations, it was not without its teething problems. Finding ways to finance it and getting venues were just two of them. In the early days businesses in Clonmel were canvassed to sponsor the trophies. This problem was eliminated for the 1964 awards when Messrs Showerings Ltd. came on board as the main sponsors and the awards became known as the Cidona Awards, recently changed to the Annerville Awards. This sponsorship continues to this day and is greatly appreciated by the panel, as are the many individuals and clubs who take out Honorary Membership of the United Sports Panel annually. From small beginnings the scheme grew in stature. The committee consists of eleven persons. While some might accuse it of being Clonmel-based, the objective was always to co-opt persons from other parts of the county whenever vacancies arose thus ensuring all sport-stars came under the microscope. It is also to the credit of the committee that the so-called minority sports were not forgotten and were honoured many times. In fact, as you will read later, forty sports have been honoured over the fifty years. How does the system work? Requests are made in the local newspapers, sporting bodies, clubs and through individuals seeking potential award winners, and nominations are received. Our committee is comprised of persons with a wide knowledge of sport. They meet on four occasions to conduct what are called refresher courses. Each presentation and its merits are scrutinised in minute detail. For a sport to be nominated it must get at least 6 votes from the panel of 11 members. Any number of sports can be selected if they achieve the required number of votes. A similar criteria is in place to select the team or individual in each discipline. Like all events where there is an adjudication system in place their deliberations might not always meet with the approval of all members of the sporting public. Rest assured that final decisions are made with great diligence. One would have to say that this is the main reason why this award scheme is so successful and is 3 much appreciated by the recipients. To mark this historic year each recipient tonight will receive an appropriately inscribed award. This celebration would not be complete without a compilation of the history of these awards and we are indebted to our secretary, Seamus King, who took on this painstaking task. The fruits of his endeavours can be found within this booklet. I would like to use this opportunity to thank all the members, who have served on the panel since 1959. As you will see later in this booklet, many have served for many years, and two of the current panel, Jimmy Cooney and Johnny O’Loughlin, have been members since 1976, a tribute to their great dedication and commitment. I should also like to congratulate the stars we are honouring to-night and all the stars of the past fifty years, who received awards. They provide a roll call of the cream of Tipperary sport over half a century. All surviving members of the United Sports Panel and inaugural winners have been invited to the function. Let’s hope the present committee and future panellists will continue to honour many more Tipperary stars of the future. James Holohan, Chairman of United Sports Panel. 1998 Presentation: Sports Executive Award, Seamus McCarthy, Gaelic Football, Declan Browne, Knocknagow Award, Sean Cleary, Hurling, Tommy Dunne. 4 1999 United Sports Panel: back row, left to right: Johnny O’Loughlin, Michael Guinan, Sean Barlow, John Quirke, Jimmy Cooney, Liam Delahunty, Eamonn Wynne; front row, left to right: Davy Hallinan, Sean Lyons, Vera Hewitt (Mayor of Clonmel), Paddy Doyle (Chairman), Johnny Ryan. Annerville Awards Aidan Murphy, Managing Director, Bulmers Ltd., Main Sponsors 1964-2009 Sport plays an integral part in the lives of Irish people and is the lifeblood of many throughout the communities in which we live. The association between Bulmers and the Annerville Awards dates back as far as 1964 and is an association of which Bulmers is especially proud. The Awards were established to recognise the wealth of sporting talent being produced in Co. Tipperary with every passing generation, and they are now recognised as the ultimate sporting accolade achievable in the region. Bulmers Ltd is wholly committed to its involvement in the awards, which is indicative of the huge pride Bulmers has in Tipperary – the home of Bulmers for over seventy years, having been established by William Magner in 1935. Ireland is facing into challenging times and Bulmers strongly believes that sport plays a crucial role in providing direction and increasing morale for people of all ages and ability. Clubs and sporting associations need huge support to survive but regardless of financial support, local sport could not survive if it were not for the countless number of hours that dedicated people are putting in behind the scenes. At Bulmers, we hope that the Annerville Awards go some way towards thanking our local sporting heroes for the indispensable work they do and to also say thank you for the no-less important part played by trainers, parents, families and supporters alike. Brendan McGuiness, former MD of Bulmers, reflects on the Annerville Awards sponsorship; “Bulmers was always proud to be involved with these prestigious awards and our association stretches back to the 1960s. The sponsorship of the Annerville Awards is as important to Bulmers at a local level as the Magners League is at a 5 national level, as the Awards represent the grass-roots and foundations of our country’s rich sporting heritage.” Bulmers has played its own part in the development of Irish sport for many years, most notably with its involvement with the Golfing Union of Ireland on the historic All Ireland Cups and Shields and with our sponsorship of the hugely successful Magners League. Each of these competitions is firmly established and represents the highest of standards in both amateur and professional competitions alike. They are a wonderful reflection of the calibre and dedication of sports people from all over the country and a further demonstration of Bulmers’ true commitment to sport in Ireland. This year is a major landmark in Tipperary’s sporting history as the United Sports Panel celebrates its 50th anniversary. The United Sports Panel has played a key role in sport in Tipperary and its real value has been the ability to highlight the importance of sport, honouring those who participate at every level. On behalf of everyone at Bulmers, congratuations on 50 years of fantastic work - and here’s to the next 50! 2004 Sports Stars: back row, left to right: Declan Browne, Jeff Hanrahan, Brian Barry, Denis Fogarty, Jackie Meagher; middle row, left to right: Harry Mulhaire, Joe Irwin, Una O’Dwyer, Richard Power, Ailish Redmond, Linda Kennedy, Aoife Casey; front row, left to right: Denis Dunne (Mayor of Clonmel), Brendan McGuinness (MD Bulmer’s), John Kelly, Eamonn Wynne (United Sports Panel), Sean Healy, Billy Kane. 6 History of United Sports Panel 1959-2009 When the original members of the United Sports Panel first met they had, in fact, no name. They assembled in the Slievenamon Hotel, Parnell Street on Saturday, December 12, 1959. When they met a week later to pick their Stars it was unanimously decided on the proposition of Sean Barlow, seconded by Eddie O’Neill, to adopt the name United Sports Panel.’ At their second meeting the panel elected the Sports Stars for 1959 by secret ballot. In the early years the trophies were presented by various business premises in the county but with the introduction of the much-appreciated sponsorship of Messrs Showerings (Ireland) Limited came the introduction of the Cidona Awards. First of Its Kind The Panel was the first of its kind to be formed outside Dublin. The members of the first panel were Sean Cleary (chairman), Sean Lyons (organising secretary), Sean Barlow, Bill Hyland, Christy Mulcahy, Eddie O’Neill, Bill O’Brien, Paddy Cummins, Ken Hogan, Tom Halpin and Ted Dillon. The presentation of the first awards was made at the Tipperary County Basketball Board’s ceili in St. Patrick’s Hall, Clonmel on Sunday, January 17, 1960. The recipients were presented in apparent random order. The sports honoured were Camogie, Soccer, Table Tennis, Sports Executive, Athletics, Cycling, Hurling, Boxing, Basketball and Gaelic Football.