BT/0249

Omagh's legacy to football

ON Saturday. August 15. at 3.10pm. Solitude, the home ground of Irish League champions Cliftonville was filled with an air of expectancy, anticipation and excitement because the new football season had just begun.
One week on. the atmosphere was sombre, reflective and numbingly sad.
It was the same around football grounds all over Northern Ireland on Saturday.
The fans on the terraces and stands, normally baiting each other with non complimentary songs, stood silently for one' minute as a mark of respect to the victims of the Omagh bombing.
Players and managers who were set to do battle minutes later bowed their heads as the sport remembered the tragedy that saw 28 people lose their lives and hundreds more injured.
For some of those who were killed, particularly the children, we know now that football was their great love.
You can imagine those innocent wide-eyed and beautiful youngsters chattering away about Michael Owen and David Beckham and dreaming that one day they would play for their favourite teams.
Shamefully those dreams have been taken away.
Even with all that has gone before in Northern Ireland, who could have forseen the most horrific of nightmares that befell Omagh last Saturday?
For football people in the province. August 15, 1998. was supposed to be the beginning or a new campaign with all the energy that comes with it.
That date will now forever be remembered for the saddest of the reasons.
The full extent of the tragedy was not known until football supporters attending games had arrived home that evening.
I was at Solitude where Cliftonville began the defence of their title against Portadown.
There is a history between the supporters of each side - and it 's not the most pleasant one.
It was borne out in some of the chants from the terraces which, not to put too fine a point on it. were disgusting in their sectarian nature.
That, however, is the way football is at times because fans enjoy annoying other fans.
It is part of the game and always will be although, thankfully, that aspect was tempered on Saturday, when Glentoran travelled to Solitude, amid the reflections about Omagh.
Like Portadown, Glentoran supporters would not be classed as having the best relationship with their Cliftonville counterparts.
That, of course, apart from the rivalry which exists between every team, has much to do with the fact the Glens have a largely Protestant support while Reds fans are predominantly Catholic.
Whoever said sport and religion do not mix obviously did not know Northern Ireland.
Perhaps a more apt saying would be: "'Too many Protestants, too many Catholics, not enough Christians."
On Saturday though, as referee Frankie McDonald blew his whistle to begin the minute's silence, everyone stood together as one.
And that was the way all over a country which in recent days has seen an outpouring of grief as never before.
Once the football started on Saturday though it was as the saying goes: "Game on."
It sounds so harsh and meaningless but there was a match to be won and nobody held back in the tackles right from the off.
Mind you. would the football loving people who suffered on August 15 have wanted it any other way?
A young, unassuming but richly talented, midfielder called Paul Leeman was the star of the show scoring an incredible hat-trick for Glentoran as they won 4-2.
Like us all, Paul grew up with hopes and ambitions and he realised one on Saturday by scoring those three goals for his club.
That two of them were just about the best strikes you'll ever see made the dream even better.
He was given a deserved standing ovation from both sets of fans at the end of the game.
The day had finished like it started with people from completely opposite sides of our ridiculous religious divide coming together.
Solitude, and elsewhere in Northern Ireland, was a better place for it on Saturday.

Publisher: BELFAST TELEGRAPH

Ref: BT/0249

Published Date: 24-Aug-98