Throwback Thursday: Críost Rí's class of 1983 produced the goods in brilliant Hogan Cup final win

LAST week, the journalist Michael McMullan posted an old tweet from the Nemo Rangers Archive Twitter account showing a clip from the 1985 All-Ireland Colleges football final between Coláiste Chríost Rí and Summerhill College Sligo.

Played in mid-May in O’Moore Park Portlaoise, the footage was of a brilliant score from Ger O’Regan. After picking up possession on his own ’45, O’Regan took off on a brilliant mazy solo-run before stepping inside a defender and clipping over a point from just outside the 20-metre line. “That’s the best score of the match, without any question,” said Ger Canning in his RTÉ TV commentary.

O’Regan was well used to that stage by then, having also played in the 1983 All-Ireland final against St Jarlath’s Tuam when he was still only 16.

That 1983 final in Croke Park was the first colleges final to be shown live on TV. The weather was atrocious but some of the football was of the highest quality, especially the kick-passing and fielding in such difficult conditions.

Spearheaded by Padraig Brogan, who scored an iconic goal for Mayo against Dublin in the All-Ireland senior semi-final just two years later, Jarlath’s were favourites for that final.

The Tuam side were reigning champions, having beaten St Fachtna’s Skibereen in the previous year’s final. Críost Rí lost a couple of key players before and during that match to injury but they secured a memorable win.

Ahead by just one point with time almost up, Críost Rí blocked a Jarlath’s shot for an equaliser before brilliantly counter-attacking up the field which culminated in a superb goal from Declan O’Sullivan.

Two of the standout highlights of that match though, were a couple of incredible saves from Jerome O’Mahony. The saves were so good that they were awarded first and third on The Sunday Game ‘Save of the Year’ competition at the end of that season.

Selected ahead of a save from Dublin’s John O’Leary, O’Mahony’s winning stop was of the highest quality. Brogan launched a long ball in from midfield which was flicked on by Mark Butler, who was less than 10 metres from goal.

The ball hopped to O’Mahony’s right but he got down brilliantly to deflect it away. The ball was still alive but O’Mahony got up to dive across his goal and put off the inrushing Gerry Burke, who kicked it wide.

STANDOUT

It was a different time but one of the standout features of the match was the huge crowd in Croke Park on that May afternoon 40 years ago. 

Even from watching grainy footage of the match now, the excitement was electric.

“I would imagine down in Turners Cross this evening, and in places like Ballyphehane, Douglas and the Barrs parish down in the Lough, they’ll be lighting bonfires for these lads,” said Jim Carney in his TV commentary just before Brendan Searls was presented with the Hogan cup.

“And what pride must be felt in the hearts of everyone connected to Nemo Rangers. Of the Nemo side which played in the Cork county championship, no fewer than 14 of them went to Críost Rí.” 

Nine of that Críost Rí team in ’83 were Nemo players while Searls was from the Barrs. Searls was also part of the Cork minor team which reached the All-Ireland final later that year, which they lost to Derry.

Críost Rí had a strong history of producing players for Cork teams back then because they were such a powerhouse at that time. In a 31-year period between 1967-98, the school won 13 Corn Uí Mhuirí (Munster) titles and four All-Irelands. Chríost Rí won the first four All-Ireland finals they played – 1968, 1970, 1983 and 1985 – before losing the 1989 decider to St Pat’s Maghera.

They were the first Munster school to win a Hogan Cup and are still the joint most successful Munster College along with St Brendan’s Killarney.

GOLDEN AGE

Since that golden period for the college, Chríost Rí have only won two more Corn Uí Mhuirí titles. Críost Rí are the last Cork school to win a Corn Uí Mhurí 12 years ago because the competition has been absolutely dominated by Kerry colleges. Since the turn of the millennium, Kerry schools have won 19 of the last 23 titles.

Prior to this season, the Corn Uí Mhuirí finals had been all-Kerry affairs in the previous five years. 

The last time two Cork schools fetched up in a final was back in 1998 when Críost Rí defeated Coláiste an Spioraid Naoimh, Bishopstown.

When Críost Rí won their four All-Irelands, they beat a Cork school in each of those Corn Uí Mhuirí finals. Those days are long gone and, while Kerry have taken a complete grip, at least the 2023 campaign was a positive one for Cork; five of the seven Cork schools in the competition made the last eight. Three of the four groups were won by Clonakilty Community College, Rochestown, and Coláiste an Spioraid Naoimh. Rochestown defeated CSN Bishopstown in the semi-final before losing the final to Brendan’s.

St Brendan’s were beaten in the All-Ireland semi-final by Summerhill College, who now play Omagh CBS in Croke Park on St Patrick’s Day. Reaching the final again prompted McMullan to post that tweet as a reminder of the last time the Sligo school were on this stage 38 years ago.

That day, it was no surprise that Coláiste Chríost Rí defeated Summerhill by three points. Because back then, Críost Rí were the high kings of college football.