About

A warm welcome message from: El President

Est. 2001

I would like to extend the warmest of welcomes to the Jock Paddy Rugby Club website.

20 years (& several kilos) ago I travelled to Glasgow airport to meet up with Malcolm Mason, Matt McGrandles, John Crowley & Martin Kenny. We were due to travel to Youghal (Martin’s home town) to have a few beers & maybe watch some rugby on TV.

This was my 2nd trip as Martin & I had a ‘scouting mission’ a year earlier. I mention this because returning to Youghal was, as the song goes, ‘a sort of homecoming’.

I was now meeting people, Tadhg, Stephen, Coran – who would welcome me ‘home’. Add that to people who treated me like family; Ted, Linda, Julie &…God rest them Ger (always Mrs K. to me) & Maureen, legendary landlady of The Nook.

The following year the Irish lads travelled to Stirling, we added to our numbers & things became informally formal. We now had an Irish Captain (Martin) & a Scottish Captain (forever ‘my Captain’ 😉) John. Soon Ted would become our inaugural El Presidente. We now had a trophy & a wooden spoon. Members would be paired with a ‘buddy’ and charged with keeping each other refreshed & safe.

As the years passed themes were added, Star Wars, spoons, ducks…I won’t bother trying to explain, but if you were there you’ll understand.

As for understanding, anyone who has never joined us will never truly ‘get it’. Twenty years with friends, drinking, screaming at the TV, laughing like eejits, winning bets, losing bets, putting memories back together hours (& years) after they happened, and toasting absent friends:
Here’s to them.
Here’s to us.
Here’s to whatever happens next.

George Crisp
El Presidente
2021/22