‘AND BRIAN KERR is in tears.’
So revealed George Hamilton as the pair commentated on St Patrick’s Athletic’s FAI Cup final win in 2014.
That triumph at Aviva Stadium ended a 53-year famine in the competition, and the historic victory came a season after the Saints also won the League of Ireland Premier Division.
And yet, despite the success, those tears of joy also belied a feeling of pain at the sense of drift.
That is why Kerr felt compelled to act in the winter of 2014, and in early 2015, prior to the new season.
It may not be a widely known story but he was the instigator for a dozen or so volunteers to arrange for a leaflet drop to try and promote the first game of the season.
The man who guided the club to two league titles as manager in the 1990s, oversaw historic success for Ireland’s underage teams before becoming senior boss, went door-to-door around Inchicore in his old club jumper trying let some of the locals know what was on their doorstep.
Of course they knew, most just didn’t care.
In September 2014, Bohemians visited in one of the final league games and 931 people turned up.
A week later, for the FAI Cup semi-final against Finn Harps, the gate double to 1,851.
Paltry in comparison to this season.
The main stand in Inchicore sold out three days ago for tomorrow’s visit of Cork City, while as of this morning just 300 remained elsewhere in the ground.
Another milestone was reached last week when 3,537 attended the 7-0 win over UCD – a night where 15-year-old striker Mason Meila become the club’s youngest ever scorer in a competitive fixture.
The attendance meant a total of 51,443 fans passed through the turnstiles on Emmett Road in 2023.
When Bohs beat Pat’s at Richmond Park on 10 March, 5,002 people were there. That came on the back of Pat’s losing 5-0 in Dundalk and 2-1 against Sligo Rovers.
A credible draw away to Shamrock Rovers followed and yet, despite going four games without a win, just shy of 3,500 still turned up for UCD at home on 31 March.
Their highest attendance in 2014, the season they were reigning champions, was an estimated 3,200.
The momentum hasn’t depended on results this term, even if eight wins from 12 gives them the best home record in the division.
A run of three defeats on the spin in April culminated in manager Tim Clancy losing his job. The result that sealed his fate was another home defeat to Sligo Rovers.
And while the atmosphere had turned sour, it was only because enough people were there to care, 4,265.
That insulation from a fickle reliance on what’s happening on the pitch is what must be at the heart of any culture change for the League of Ireland.
To truly be able to capitalise on the growth success and glory will not sustain a shift in attitudes.
The St Pat’s revival points to that, and across the country in the Premier Divison attendances are up 23% on last year.
In the same year that Kerr rallied his troops with that leaflet drop, the FAI commissioned a report on the future of the League of Ireland.
It was a consultation process led by Declan Conroy, a former speech writer for the association’s chief executive, John Delaney, and who it later emerged also charged the FAI €13,750 a month plus VAT, to help organise their Euro 2020 bid.
This report had input from 200 people from various strands of the Irish game.
One of the key passages that stood out then, and still does now, was as follows. “‘Occasions’ are now where fans want to be, rather than games. One recurring theme from many contributors is that for many clubs there are insufficient games where the occasion truly matters a lot – where something important is really at stake.
“While the ‘hype’ is present at the start of season in good supply, the evidence would suggest that many of the season’s matches are considered less attractive as events or occasions other than by only very loyal supporters and season ticket holders.
“Unless and until the end of season games produce tension and/or matches with a special resonance, such as key local derbies, big cup games, winning European places, promotion and relegation at stake, the attractiveness value is perceived to be limited.
“With a very competitive entertainment and leisure market in Ireland, the event needs to expand beyond just a match.”
That missed the point spectacularly.
It is not about creating an event, relying on gimmicks, vacuous taglines or sporadic fanfare.
What drives any sport – even allowing for the initial spike after Covid-19 – is a sense of belonging, the feeling of routine. The development of League of Ireland underage structures has also played a major role in this, although it is certainly a metric that requires further examination.
Going to the match is part of your life and things are arranged around it.
It’s why yesterday’s report by the Dublin Inquirer, and support within it from local councillors for a redeveloped Richmond Park, is beginning to feel more like a necessity to maintain change rather than act as a catalyst to try and inspire it.
“For many clubs there are insufficient games where the occasion truly matters a lot – where something important is really at stake,” that Conroy report stated eight years ago.
Of course. That is probably the feeling the majority of fans can resonate with most of all, as they see so often see seasons filled with optimism disintegrate in front of them.
But they come back week after week because their loyalty is entrenched in the mundane, everyday aspects. There is comfort in the constant.
Pat’s are second in the table and fans heading to Richmond Park tomorrow will hope that they can stay on the coattails of Shamrock Rovers.
Coincidentally, the man in the away dugout will be Liam Buckley, who guided St Pat’s to that league and cup in ’13 and ’14.
Few get to savour those tears of joy at the end of a season.
It’s the many moments in between that keep everyone coming back.
