A RARE piece of football memorabilia returned to the possession of well-known Knockmore GAA clubman Malachy Kelly recently, in the form of a winners medal from the 1924 Ballina Town championship.
For over 40 years Malachy had been unsure as to the whereabouts of the medal, originally won by his father, Jim, who played on the victorious Commercials team. However, the silverware re-emerged during the Christmas period, though the circumstances of the find were tinged with sadness.
Malachy’s brother, Martin, who resided in Leeds, passed away in late December and among the possessions returned to Malachy was the engraved 1924 medal, in pristine condition.
“It was a sad occasion for us but the re-appearance of the medal was a pleasant surprise and brought back plenty of memories,” said Malachy, the current President of Knockmore GAA club.
“I always wondered what happened to the medal because I remembered it being in our home many years ago and it was something my father was very proud of. Despite its age, it is in excellent condition so Martin obviously took great care of it,” he said.
Jim Kelly, along with fellow Knock-more men Denis Coleman and TJ Hanley, played with the Ballina Commercials when there was no football team in Knockmore but later became one of the founding members of Knockmore GAA club in 1959.
However, interestingly, Malachy, a son in law of Denis Coleman, gained possession of that medal also, only to find that the two items were quite different in appearance - the reason why being unknown.
“That medal was also won with the Commercials in 1924 and is engraved with Denis’ name but it’s very different from my Father’s medal even though the two men played on the same team.
“There’s a fair bit of history and nostalgia attached to the Town football competitions in Ballina so it’s just nice to have something like this by which to remember my father and brother by,” concluded Malachy.
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