Cooney’s torment 10 years on

Date Published: 03-Jul-2008

TEN years after prematurely and controversially blowing the final whistle on the infamous Clare v Offaly All-Ireland semi-final replay, referee Jimmy Cooney has candidly spoken about the death threats he and his family received in the wake of that ill-fated game.

Speaking on a documentary, entitled ‘Who Fears to Speak of ’98’, which was aired on RTE Radio Sports last Sunday, the Sarsfields man told the heart wrenching story of his own personal trauma upon realising his mistake and also of the torment that was to follow.

“I saw my umpire coming out and he had his hand up with his five fingers out,” recounted Mr. Cooney on Peter Woods’ documentary. “Then I thought to myself, oh Jesus! All the photographers were pushing each other out of the way to get a photograph of me. Sure after that, it was one hullabaloo.”

Mr. Cooney went on to describe sitting in silence in the dressing-room afterwards and, later, the security guards coming in to tell him the Offaly supporters were subsequently staging a protest on
the field – they were digging up the pitch.

“God almighty, this was getting worse by the minute,”recalled the referee. “And you are thinking you are after causing all of this, and this is Croke Park. The umpires told me I didn’t tog in for about two
hours. I don’t remember that.

“I remember my wife coming down from the stands and she was eventually let in, maybe after about an hour. She was crying, of course. I didn’t know what state I was in. You are crying because of what has happened, but you are worrying about what is going to happen.”

After finally togging in, Mr. Cooney remembered being shepherded into a room on his own to prepare a referee’s report. “They gave me as much time as I wanted. I did the referee’s report, put it into a sealed envelope and the offi-cial took it away with them.

“Then, after a while, they asked me what I wanted to, and I said if I got a pint of Guinness at this moment, I wouldn’t take it off my head … So, then, security said ‘we will take you up to the bar and
get you a pint of Guinness, along with the umpires.”

Upon arriving at the crowded bar, though, Mr. Cooney had to be …