One of Dympna Greene and Claire Gavin’s most prized possessions is the All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship medal won by their grandfather, Mick Flanagan, in 1914.
The sisters were given the medal by their mother, Vera.
“We knew since we were very small that our grandfather had been part of the All-Ireland-winning team, as our mother always talked about it and talked about Amby Power,” according to Dympna, who resides in Ennis.
Vera passed away in 1997. “Our mother passed the medals onto us and it wasn’t until Clare won the All-Ireland in 1995 that we realised what these meant to our mother,” added Claire, who lives in Ballynacally.
Both are adamant they will pass their grandfather’s medal collection onto their children
Last week, Clooney-Quin GAA hosted a cultural weekend and while chairman, John Earls, was making preparations for the event, he managed to locate the medal won by Mick Flanagan.
“We were looking for team captain Amby Power’s medal and as all of his family are abroad, we were unable to locate it. I was telling this to Pius O’Loughlin, who told me about Mick Flanagan. My neighbour in Rathclooney is John Flanagan, a relative of Mick’s, and he put me in touch with the man’s grand-daughters, which led to us unearthing this medal,” explained John, adding that “we had three from the parish on that team”.
“Mick Flanagan was born in Ballybroghaun but moved to Durra House, near Spancilhil,” he said.
A native of Ennis, Colin McGann has been editor of The Clare Champion since August 2020. Former editor of The Clare People, he is a journalism and communications graduate of Dublin Institute of Technology.