New book to give inside track on Westmeath’s Leinster success

A new book being launched this Thursday night will give readers the inside story on Westmeath’s Leinster senior championship winning campaign in 2004.

The author of the memoir ‘The Making of Memories’ is Ballinafid native Mick Duffy, who was the team coordinator during the late Páidí Ó Sé’s unforgettable two-year tenure as Westmeath football manager.

Father of three Mick was one of the founders of the Westmeath Supporters Group and it was in his capacity as secretary of the group that he was among the first people to meet the Kerry great following his appointment as manager in October 2003.

Speaking ahead of the book launch in the Annebrook House Hotel this Thursday, November 9, Mick admitted that it came as a shock when Ó Sé asked him to be the team coordinator in his new set-up - a vital role that enabled the new manager and his team focus on football matters.

Although team coordinators are commonplace in inter-county setups these days, Mick is fairly sure that he was one of the first in the country.

“It was a fancy name Páidí put on it, but actually it was me doing all the dirty work! The logistics: organising buses and hotels, organising medicals for players, dealing with the management team. It was a broad role. No matter what little thing came up, you dealt with it. It took the pressure off Páidí," said Mick.

“I had to crack the whip sometimes to get everyone in place.”

Although it was tough at times juggling his work and family commitments with his demanding new role, Mick says those three years as team coordinator (two working alongside Ó Sé and a year with his successor Tomás Ó Flatharta) were the most memorable of his life and provided rich material for his book.

“They were great times. There was plenty to tell. It’s the inside story. I was possibly the only one who could write the book. I had all the little nuts and bolts. There were happy times, there were a few sad times. It is all part and parcel of the team effort.”

Mick says he was determined to give an accurate account, from his point of view, of what was a golden age in Westmeath GAA history.

“It’s the truth. What I am telling is the truth, but there is nothing nasty in it. There would have been little bits of gripes and falling outs, which I have mentioned in the book. There is no point in writing it unless you tell the truth.”

‘The Making of Memories’ does not solely focus on Mick’s time with Westmeath team. The opening chapters deal with his childhood in Ballinafid. One of the first revelations in the highly entertaining book is that the team that made Mick fall in love with Gaelic football were Meath’s All-Ireland winners in 1967.

“My interest in football came from there and I was hooked. It is unusual for me to be a Meath fan. I’ll be lynched for that for a start (laughs). I still watch out for their results and always admired their determination and fight.”

Mick, who played football for Multyfarnham and hurling for Crookedwood, also writes about his family life with wife Assumpta and daughters Claire, Ruth and Michelle, as well as the standout memories from his 28 years with Toal Insurance (now Aeon) and his current gardening business.

He says he decided to write the book for his grandchildren. Even if you are not a fan of football, there is plenty in the book to keep readers entertained, he says.

“I just sat down on the first of January and I started writing. It just flowed out of me. I didn’t have refer to scrapbooks or records. It just flowed out of my head. It was the same as being involved in it again," said Mick.

“I enjoyed doing it and I am glad I did it,” he added.