Miah Dennehy: Cork soccer fans in mourning at passing of Leeside legend

THE great Miah Dennehy, one of Cork’s favourite sons, a football legend in his native city passed away on Friday at the Mercy University Hospital after a long illness.

He was immortalised in Cork after his record-breaking FAI Cup final hat-trick in 1972 a feat which resulted in his contribution to Hibs’ first League Championship victory being almost forgotten – he was on fire in the play-off against Shamrock Rovers at Dalymount in May 1971 when his two goals contribution ensured that the title was returning to Cork after a 20-year lapse.

The magical two weeks in April 1972 have never been forgotten by Munster soccer fans. They still talk about the last league game of the season – a virtual decider between Miah’s defending champions Cork Hibs and their great rivals Waterford played in front of 26,000 electrified fans shoehorned into Flower Lodge to witness a nail-biting climax that flowed one way then the other. Hibs grabbed a controversial early lead through Lawson.

Smelling blood, they went for the jugular and were rewarded when Wiggington scored again. Hibs needed a win to force a play-off and with Waterford reduced to 10 men from the 35th minute the odds were stacked in their favour. However, in a climax that bordered on the outrageous Waterford scored three times in the final 11 minutes to steal Hibs title.

To add to the sense of theatre they were destined for an encore a week later. Sunday, April 23, became forever known as ‘Miah’s Day’. A scrappy game compared to the dynamic league tie, it was Miah who illuminated it 30 minutes from time when he pounced on a Bacuzzi pass before shooting past Peter Thomas.

Five minutes later he scored again flicking a Herrick delivery over the head of Thomas to the net. Then seven minutes from time he entered the record books, calmly side-footing a Marsden pass to the net to complete his historic hat-trick.

Miah a working-class kid who grew up in Gurranabraher was captivated by sport but never imagined for a second that it would bless him with a career or earn him a privileged place among the likes of heroes of his Donie Leahy, Paul O’Donovan and Austin Noonan as local legends. 

Making history in a Cup final, eight happy years in England, 11 caps for his country - none of it was the stuff of childhood dreams.

NATURAL TALENT:

He loved hurling and Gaelic football and was a star with St Vincent’s. He was unknown as a junior soccer player while playing with his uncle Mikey Dennehy’s teams Wolf Tones and North Villa in the local league.

One fateful day his life was changed forever after he went to watch Cork Hibs reserves against UCC. Hibs were shorthanded and a pair of boots was found for Miah who filled in on the right wing. To say that he did well would be an understatement and Hibs manager Amby Fogarty was amazed by Miah’s blinding speed and raw talent. He was registered immediately and made his league debut against Sligo over two months later.

My memory involuntarily conjured up memories of him in his earliest days in the Cork Hibs jersey at Flower Lodge. I remember him from those days because he was a rookie, a local lad trying to make a breakthrough into a forward line that contained great crowd favourites Dave Wiggington, Carl Davenport and Donie Wallace.

There also were other imports Tommy Henderson and John Lawson as well as the talented Terry Young.  The impatient fans had more appreciation for the cross-channel lads and made things difficult for Miah, who after making his debut the previous season against Sligo, only played a handful of games.

The boo boys didn’t appear to trouble him as much as they affected others before him. Miah was excited at the prospect of a new career and was confident he could prove he belonged to the League. 

It wasn’t until January 1970 that more use was made of  him and eventually Hibs fans woke up to realize that a great home-grown talent was blossoming before their eyes. 

He was already an Irish international when he left to pursue a career in English football. While with Hibs his impressive cup performances earned him his first two caps against Ecuador and Chile.

Four years after his debut they bid him farewell when Dave McKay paid £20,00o to bring him to Notts Forrest. He spent two full seasons at Forest making 41 appearances earning £50-60 per week, enough for a nice little house and a car.

MAVERICK:

Miah was a bit of a rogue and, rather than forego the honour of lining out on the All-Ireland XI which played Brazil in 1973, he concealed the fact that he had a broken toe and came off the bench with a spring in his step to defy the pain barrier. 

He added his third cap when coming on as a sub on the team beaten 1-0 in the World Cup by Russia in Moscow.

Further honours were added against France, Norway and Poland with the latter two providing Miah with his first international goals. When new Forrest manager Brian Clough sold him to Walsall the Irish selectors did not forget him and added two further caps to his collection, the last coming as a substitute for Mark Lawrenson against Poland in 1977. Performance-wise wise he could have done better but he was happy in himself as he moved on to continue his English odyssey with Bristol Rovers, Cardiff and Trowbridge Town. After over 200 appearances in the English League Miah, aged 31, returned home to captain Cork Utd in the League of Ireland.

While across the channel, unknown to his English clubs, Miah played Gaelic games on Sundays. 

Saturday was for the English League, Sunday for hurling and Football and its customary socialising in the Irish Centres. His favourite story is of the time he concocted a family crisis so that Clough would give him permission to travel home where St Vincent's were facing a huge championship match. Then there was the time he won a British interprovincial title for Warwickshire, beating a London team in the final that had Tony Grealish among its number.

After the expulsion of Cork United in ’82 he lived the life of a journeyman and assisted Thurles Town, Waterford, Limerick, Drogheda and Newcastle West. He lived for the game and when his professional career was spent he resumed where it all began, back in junior soccer.

He was addicted to the game and was 51 when he lined out as player-manager for his local team Village United in the AUL.

There was much delight when in November 2006 a delighted Miah was honoured with the Cork Soccer Legend Award at a packed rocking Heineken Hospitality Suite. A few months later in March, he was a guest of the FAI when Ireland played Wales in the first-ever soccer match staged in Croke Park.

He loved those occasions but there wouldn’t be many more as, in August of 2007, he was viciously assaulted outside a local pub. He had no memory of the attack or of the weeks he spent in a coma in the Cork Regional Hospital, just the long months in the National Rehabilitation Centre in Dublin, learning how to speak again. That he survived at all was a little miracle in itself.

His pensionable years became difficult when his freedom was restricted after being visited by the onset of Alzheimer's. Like many stars of his golden era, he shared the long and slow final chapter, disappearing from public view as Alzheimer's tightened its grip.  

He will always be remembered as the first player to score a hat-trick in an FAI Cup final. And, as he said himself: ‘None of the three were penalty kicks...’ 

Deepest sympathy to his wife Caroline and children Kristian and Chelsea.