Historic All-Ireland medal to go under the hammer
Laura Keys AN original All-Ireland medal from Kilkenny's first-ever hurling victory in 1914 and a rare Leinster football medal from Kilkenny's last title win in 1911 are among a valuable cache of sporting memorabilia which will be auctioned at a collectors' sale in two weeks.
Castlecomer-based Mealy's Auctioneers is hosting the auction of rare artefacts from Irish sporting history, which includes GAA, rugby, football, gold and other unique mementoes.
The collection, which comprises 800 lots, is expected to generate intense interest from local and national collectors keen to get their hands on a piece of genuine Irish sporting history.
"There's something for everybody in this collection," auctioneer George Mealy told the Kilkenny People ahead of the sale.
"There's collectors items from 100 euro up to 20,000 euro, so if anyone wants something badly enough, I've no doubt they'll get it.
"This collection represents a great record of GAA history - one of Ireland's most important historical institutions."
One of the most valuable single lots in the auction is the 1904 medal, which is expected to reach between 12,500 euro and 17,500 euro on the day.
The medal was presented to Jack Hoyne of Tullaroan, the parish which represented Kilkenny in the All-Ireland competition that year.
In the early stages of the GAA competition, each county was represented by the club which won the local title.
The infamous match took place against Cork (St Finbar's) in Carrick-on-Suir on June 24, 1904 with Kilkenny winning by a point - 1-9 to 1-8.
Last year, a football medal of the same year sold for 7000 euro, but Mr Mealy said he expected the hurling medal to go even higher, because it was such an important artefact of Kilkenny's GAA history
"It's a very unique item and it would be the Holy Grail for any collector from Kilkenny," he said.
Another rare item in the sale is a Gaelic football medal awarded to Kilkenny in 1911 when the county won its third and most recent All-Ireland football title.
After winning the title in 1888 - the competition's inaugural year - Kilkenny went on to win two more titles - the last in 1911 - and have not won one since.
The medal is expected to fetch between 600 euro and 800 euro in the auction.
An All-Ireland hurling final programme from a 1913 match between Kilkenny (Mooncoin) and Tipperary (Toomevara) at Croke Park is also expected to do well at auction, with a reserve price of between 2,500 euro and 3,000 euro.
The first-edition, eight-page book is not in mint condition, but is considered to be a highly-sought-after collector's item anyway.
Kilkenny won the match on the day, with a 2-4 to 1-2 win over Tipp, making them only the second team in GAA history to claim three titles in a row.
Another valuable item which may excite collectors is a ticket to the "Bloody Sunday" football match between Tipperary and Dublin at Croke Park in 1920.
Described as "excessively rare", this ticket is a reminder of the day which saw British soldiers fire into the crowd, killing 12 people and wounding 60 others.
Reports from the day described the bloodshed as the "scene of a holocaust" in which "Michael Hogan, one of the Tipperary backs, lay mortally wounded, while within seconds, a dozen spectators were dead or dying. This was 'Bloody Sunday'".
Conservatively valued between 5,000 euro and 8,000 euro, the ticket has the potential to fetch far more, with another ticket from the same match previously selling for 30,000 euro.
Descendents of international soccer legend Shay Brennan (Waterford) have offered up a huge selection of Brennan's personal items, including his international cap, jerseys, a watch given to him by George Best, the boots he wore in the 1968 European Cup Final and many more.
Items in this collection range from 100 euro to 5,000 euro.
There are many other medals on the auctioneer's bill, including a host of gold and silver hurling medals from the 1960s awarded to Kilkenny and Bennesttsbridge (3,500 - 5,000 euro), an All-Ireland hurling medal won by Tipperary in 1916 (2,500 - 3,500) and a Croke Cup medal won by Kerry in 1913 (4000 - 5000 euro).
There will be a public viewing of the collection next Thursday, May 8 from 9.30am to 5.30pm at Mealy's Auction Rooms, Castlecomer, Co. Kilkenny.
Further viewing and the final sale will take place in the Tara Towers Hotel, Merrion Road, Dublin 4 on Tuesday, May 13 at 10.30am sharp.
For more information on the collection, log on to www.mealys.com or contact 056 4441229.
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