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THE STORY OF a Tipperary boxer that helped found one of South America’s most famous football teams is one that you might not know.
It’s the amazing story of Paddy McCarthy and is set to be told in a four-part documentary that will be broadcast on Tipp Mid West Radio beginning on Wednesday.
McCarthy left his hometown of Cashel, Tipperary at the age of 29 in the year 1900 to travel to Argentina.
Five years later he was instrumental in setting up Boca Juniors, the Buenos Aires club that was the launchpad for Diego Maradona and is part of one of football’s greatest rivalries.
This happened by way of his day job, as a teacher.
While working as a PE teacher in a local school, he is said to have introduced three young Buenos Aires friends to football.
The friends, so the story goes, we so hooked on the game that they founded the club from a park bench in the La Boca area of Buenos Aires.
McCarthy was central to the early days of the club and was given the honour of refereeing the first ever match between Boca Juniors and local rivals River Plate.
A game that has since become known as the Superclásico.
It’s speculated by some, including in the documentary, that Boca Juniors’ famous blue and gold kit is a homage to the colours of McCarthy’s home county of Tipperary.
The more readily accepted theory, however, is that the colours came from a Swedish flag on a ship that was docked in Buenos Aires port around 1907, when the colours were adopted.
As well as his influence on Argentinian football, the documentary by Tom Hurley also looks at McCarthy’s life in the country which also saw him compete in what’s considered to be the country’s first ever professional boxing match.
Research from Hurley has also uncovered new information and documents relating to McCarthy including photographs of him with President of Argentina, the Duke of Kent and the Prince of Wales when they visited Buenos Aires in 1931.
His later life remains more of a mystery and it’s believed he died in 1963 at the age of 92.
The Cashel Pioneer by Tom Hurley will be aired over four Wednesdays at 11.05am on Tipp Mid West Radio beginning on 19 April. It will also be streamed on tippmidwestradio.com
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I remember the irish media had me giving every white haired man the beady eye before he was caught
i watched a programme on him and his gang! whitey killed anyone who he suspected on being an informer, he always preached about loyalty! He was himself an informer for the FBI.
Seems like a nice old guy. Can’t imagine him doing anything he’s being accused of.
Champion & Hero
@ lump
If your into the sort of person who imports drugs , sells them , kills people, intimidates , extorts business owners and is giving the heads up by the FBI I can understand how he is a hero to you
coming from a person who spent considerable years in the states he is a embarrassment to the Irish community just ask anyone in the wood side/sunny side end of queens NY they will tell you he is a w****r
Pleading the 5th
He was a FBI rat I wonder if they told him keep that shut
Correction by fagan
You actually have to take the stand before you plead the 5 th
All else I said I stand by
The FBI claimed he was a rat. Very easy to do and he on the run. They made it up
@ Liam
Ffs son the dogs in the street knows the connection between him& the Feds
After all the defence witnesses were slammed by the prosecution last week.
Ah woodside, is Sean Og’s still there.
@ James
Home 10 years now couldn’t tell ya
To be honest all I can remember is the 7 train lol
@ James
Do remember 5 am going for a fry in the stop in down from dillons pub before the block burned down
Had the Morrison but jaysus we built that city in our droves during the 90′s
Awful headline, he doesn’t have to testify, that’s absolutely his right under American law, and it can’t be used against him.
Obviously juries do hold it against the accused, and the media tend to do the same, as they have done nothing this case.
It’s not an awful headline, what the hell are you on about you plank, everyone knows you don’t have to take the stand when you are an accused, that’s not just confined to American law.. It’s a valid headline given what bugler is accused of so don’t let on you know more about law than other folk cause you haven’t a clue
Embarrassment to the Irish ! Our politicians do that for us, we don’t need a yank to do it for us.
Moral dilemma; he cannot accept to be seen as a rat, yet he misses out on immunity!
Probably important to point out the Jeremiah O’Sullivan was not just any US Attorney – but the US Attorney General & Head of Strikeforce
Got what he deserves. Sk**.
I have had an opportunity living there and meeting allot of folks of his time, South Boston is an amazing place with the shamrock in pride but the silence in Southy was because of this man in a very dangerous times with gangs on every side of it and funny they say the Robin Hood of Southy weird
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