Remembering the great Ray Prendergast - a true giant among Mayo men

by John Melvin

HIS passing at the age of 42 left a county in morning. A man whose love for life and passion for Gaelic football made him what he was. A giant among men.

Ray Prendergast was part of a family that had football coursing through their veins, three of the brothers - Paddy, Murt and Ray - leaving their indelible mark on Gaelic football, each in their own way contributing to the folklore that built up over their years.

And Ray became a huge part of that folklore in Castlebar where he and his wife, Joyce, ran the premises which became a mecca for GAA supporters in particular, an emporium of mixed cultures from around Castlebar and beyond long before other cultures arrived on our shores.

His life may have been relatively short but Ray packed a lot into it and also bore his illness with great fortitude, but then fortitude was part and parcel of what made up Ray’s character as a man and a footballer.

He had a great passion for life and even greater passion for Gaelic football (although they will tell you at Castlebar Rugby Club, where he did a stint, that he had prospects in that game for sure, but Gaelic football was always going to the place where he belonged).

He loved people, loved the craic, and it was in his famed pub in Castle Street, in the heart of Castlebar, that he found a platform for his wit and wisdom and where music could, on occasions, be heard at the top of Main Street having found its way from Castle Street where voices and glasses were raised to celebrate life itself.

Ray embraced life and enjoyed the banter with the diverse people who came to his pub.

He loved company, and, above all, loved his Gaelic football and sport in general.

His good friend for many years and fellow publican in the town of Castlebar, Mick Byrne, described Ray as 'very witty' and 'good company', the real Auld Stock, and that is some compliment from Auld Stock himself.

Bemoaning the decline of great characters that brought such life to the pubs around town, Mick said Ray was one of those who left so many in stitches with his stories and his banter.

“He was good company and good company to be with.

“A very witty man who loved company and people loved his company in response,” said Mick, who agreed he might have enjoyed too much of Ray’s company at times.

Mick explained that Ray had come to town with the intention of buying the Erris Hotel but fate had it he would drop into Prendergast’s, which was then owned by Harry Jennings. Whatever happened in that visit resulted in Ray acquiring the premises.

It became the pre and post meeting places for the big Gaelic games at MacHale Park but it had also been a regular meeting place for some of the great characters of the town of Castlebar and Ray himself had become one of those.

It was also a place where the famous 'I refuse to report' article was hatched after Mayo were hammered by Galway, The Connaught Telegraph scribe at the time, Sean Rice, standing by his decision to run with a headline which shook the GAA public.

Not sure Ray would have appreciated that one, but then again, I think he would describe it as pure genius.

Added Mick: “There were over 70 pubs in Castlebar when Ray took over in the mid '60s.

“He may not have had legendary status at that stage but it soon followed as he built up a very good business with the support of his wife, Joyce.”

Ray may have been in the shadow of his better known brother, Paddy, who became the most famous as a member of the Mayo team of '50 and '51, with whom he won back-to-back senior All-Irelands, but it didn’t deter Ray leaving his own indelible mark on his football career.

Comparisons of the two would not be fair as both played in different eras, but they were often compared, Paddy being part of a unique group who put those two All-Ireland wins together on the trot.

Ray, on the other hand, came on the scene at a time when Mayo football was undergoing what we might call a recession today in political terms.

Ballintubber was his home club, where he won county junior and intermediate honours, but later he would emerge as a key player for Castlebar Mitchels, a club he won two county senior titles with, and, of course, Mayo, where his reputation grew as an outstanding full-back having made 64 appearances for Mayo at senior level.

Unlike his more venerated brother Paddy, Ray never got to claim a Celtic Cross, although he did win a Connacht medal in 1969 when they beat Galway in a replay.

Amazingly, Mayo were not to win another Connacht title until 1981 as the county experienced a barren spell, although Ray did play in the 1972 final which Mayo lost to Roscommon.

He did, of course, win a National League medal with Mayo in 1970 in what was a star-studded team which had men such as Joe Corcoran, Willie McGee, John Morley, Joe Langan and Johnny Carey, to name but a few.

Ray came to Mayo in the decade that followed that of the all-conquering Fifties. And those who watched him rake the skies at full-back judged him not on how he won the ball, but how Paddy might have won it a decade and a half before. Yet in his own right, Ray was an excellent full-back.

In fact, the argument has been well debated on many a high stool over the last few decades and the prevailing view is that not many full-backs have quite reached the standard that Ray set when he was playing, but, in fairness, a few have come close but Ray had made the No. 3 jersey a personal possession by right.

From colleagues and others who have a deep knowledge, and most importantly, a good memory of GAA history, the prevailing view was that while Ray was not as stylish as his older brother Paddy, he was dependable and very strong and confident under the high ball.

I’m at something of a disadvantage writing about Ray as a footballer as I didn’t see him in action and knew him for a short period on the social scene before his untimely death, but a close colleague who reported on games involving both Paddy and Ray put it very well when we spoke recently as he explained the key differences between the two.

The difference between the brothers was that Paddy could leap cat-like straight from the ground to win possession while Ray, on the other hand, even though taller, needed a run to reach as high. It was to his credit that comparisons with his brother did not dent Ray’s football skills.

His performances were never less than spirited and steadfast. And when he did have an off-day no one was more determined to ensure his mistakes were not repeated.

A fair assessment from the feedback I have received before putting it in print.

Ray did try a stint at managing Mayo but stepped down after a year. Many more tried but failed as Mayo went into decline before the spirits of the county were lifted with the arrival of Liam O’Neill on the scene as a new era dawned.

Others followed O’Neill and others will follow the current manager, Kevin McStay, but I doubt if we will ever meet again not many like Ray Prendergast who will enrich our lives as much as the Castle Street publican cum footballer did, a man who is still talked about as being among the greats in so many facets of his life and a man whose name is more than likely to come up when people talk about the best full-backs that played for Mayo.

What a pity Ray wasn’t around to see Mayo, perhaps not win an All-Ireland at senior level, but restore pride in the jersey, that same pride which Ray and so many other like him displayed.

No doubt, Joyce, Philip and family will raise a glass to a husband, father and grandfather who started it all back in the '60s when the name went over the pub in Castle Street, Castlebar - PRENDERGAST'S.