Athlone Town legends gather to remember Eugene ‘Pooch’ Davis

On Monday afternoon, less than a fortnight after the funeral of renowned former Athlone Town goalscorer Eugene 'Pooch' Davis, some of his former teammates gathered to share their memories of his time at Athlone.

A lunchtime game of 'walking football' at Willow Park FC featured two of Davis's ex-Athlone Town colleagues, Pauric Nicholson and Dennis Clarke.

Another renowned Athlone Town's goalscorer who played with Davis, Jonathan Minnock, also attended the gathering on Monday, as did ex-player Harry McCue who chairs the recently-established Irish Professional Footballers' Benevolent Association.

Davis was part of Athlone's glory years in both the mid-70s and early 80s, playing against AC Milan in 1975 and going on to score 23 goals in the 1980/81 season when the club won the league title for the first time.

Pauric Nicholson clearly recalled the evening, around 1974, when he found out that Davis would be signing for Athlone from Shamrock Rovers.

"We went to play Shamrock Rovers in Dublin, on a Monday evening. I was sitting there with John Minnock in a hotel, and he said to me, 'do you see those two young guys over there - they're two very good players from Rovers'.

"The two players were Terry Daly and Eugene Davis. Jackie Quinn was our manager at the time, and Jackie was about to sign them.

"Rovers beat us 3-0 that night, and they were such a powerful team that they were able to let (Daly and Davis) go. To be honest, those two players played a massive part in Athlone's transformation from being a struggling team.

"We started to get better. There was more speed in our team. We had two very good wingers, John Minnock on one side and Terry Daly on the other. Amby Fogarty came in as manager, and we went on to finish as runners-up in the league, and nearly won the league.

"It transformed the town," said Pauric. "We'd be going to Dublin on a Sunday to play a match. John Minnock would call for me, we'd be walking across the town, and people would be coming out of their houses saying, 'the best of luck today, lads'.

"The atmosphere in the town was electric, and the crowds in St Mel's had trebled," Pauric added.

"Eugene Davis himself was a fantastic player. He was a natural, clinical finisher in and around the goal, but he had a great work ethic.

"We could be playing in Cork or Dundalk, and we'd be under pressure, and he would drop back from a striking role into midfield and be putting in tackles."

Pauric was unable to attend 'Pooch' Davis's funeral, because he was out of the country at the time, but he organised the get-together on Monday as a way of helping to mark his passing.

"He was one of Athlone's best-ever players, there's no question about it," he stated.

John Minnock, who was himself known for his goalscoring prowess, remarked on Davis's ability as a finisher.

"He was a good player. He could get goals from anywhere," said John.

Like Davis, Harry McCue joined Athlone Town from Shamrock Rovers, albeit a bit later, in 1979.

He said Davis wasn't always the most athletic-looking player, but his effectiveness was such that it didn't matter.

"He was a big lad, Pooch. The 'burly butcher' we used to call him, because he was a butcher in Dún Laoghaire," said Harry.

"Turlough (O'Connor) used to be on to him about his diet, but then he started scoring so many goals that Turlough just said, forget about that - just keep at it!

"You would never get the ball off Pooch. When he got the ball, he would turn (the defender) and you just always knew that he was going to score."

After spending 20 years working with the FAI, McCue retired last year and is now centrally involved in the new The Irish Professional Footballers' Benevolent Association (IPFBA), which has been established to provide support to the families of ex-players who require full-time care.

Dennis Clarke started playing for Athlone in 1977 or '78, and has many fond memories of Eugene Davis also.

"He was the top striker in the league at that time. He was a very good player, and a nice fella - a funny guy who liked a bit of a joke and having the craic.

"He was always in good humour. That's the way I remember him," said Dennis.

"Those were the best of times, to be honest with you. We were a good side, and we were winning more than we were losing, which makes it more enjoyable as well!"