GAA documentaries

[ballymanabroad]

Over on the 'anfearrua' site they are voting for their favorite GAA book of the year. I had no idea there were this many but here is the voting as of today (Mon 17th Dec).


An illustrated history of GAA Eoghan Corry (1%)

Blessed and Obsessed Martin Breheny (0%)

Book of Donegal GAA facts An tAth Seán Ó Gallchóir (2%)

Croke Park: A History - Tim Carey (0%)

Dr. Eamonn O`Sullivan: A Man Before His Time Weeshie Fogarty (0%)

GAA Confidential Darragh McManus (1%)

Giants of Gaelic Football Seán Óg Ó Ceallacháin (1%)

Great GAA Moments Finbarr McCarthy (1%)

Hogan Stand Annual (4%)

House of Pain Keith Duggan. (5%)

Lá An Phaoraigh Seán Óg de Paor (2%)

My Best Shot Tim Flood (1%)

Our Games Annual DBA (2%)

Rule 42 and all that Sean Kelly (3%)

Season of Sundays (1%)

Kings of September Michael Foley (7%)

Keys to the Kingdom Jack O`Connor (10%)

Princes of Pigskin Joe Ó Muircheartaigh / TJ Flynn (14%)

Ring Tim O`Connor (3%)

Summertime Blues: Dublin`s Epic Journey to a Historic All-Ireland - Roland Tormley (1%)

The Gambler Oisín McConville (39%)

The Throwin Brendan Fullam (1%)

The Ultimate Encyclopedia of Gaelic Football and Hurling Donal Keenan (2%)



I read Paul Rouse's reviews in the Times over the weekend and he basically warned me off Rule 42 and all that by Sean Kelly and Summertime Blues: Dublin`s Epic Journey to a Historic All-Ireland by Roland Tormley but gave favorable reviews to Princes of Pigskin by Joe Ó Muircheartaigh / TJ Flynn and The Gambler (Oisín McConville). We are now in the happy position whereby bookshelves are packed with GAA tomes and the alternative history of the game has been recorded and shared to a wider audience.

It got me to thinking that its time we started making top class documentaries about our national games. You NFL fans will appreciate what I mean. I don't think any other sporting organisation is a proficient at producing documentaries about their obsession. Or indeed as adept at persuading the entertainment industry that there is an appetite for stories involving American Football. Here's a quick list and I am by no means an American Football fan;

Any given sunday
Friday night lights
Jerry Maguire
Forrest Gump
Remember the TItans
The longest yard
The Waterboy
Varsity Blues
Rudy
The one about the bartender who plays for Philadelphia? - Mark Whalberg is in it

There are few stand outs and off the top of my head I can only think of Pat Comer's film following the Galway footballers in 1998 and I unfortunately missed his Tall, Dark and Ó hAilpín which aired this January. Laochra Gael always put a good package together but I usually miss them. I recently watched a profile about Martin Clarke with Carlton that was produced by BBC1NI. It was an excellent potrait of a young man's first year in professional sport but it was bookended by footage of him playing for his club, An Riocht. Without wanting to bite the hand that feeds him he couldn't immediately say which meant more but eventually he admitted that a league win with his friends and family was Mastercard compared to his unbelievable achievements in his rookie AFL season (and the guy's achievement in AFL cannot be overstated. Imagine if Wayne Rooney decided to give up soccerball and joined a struggling Offaly team - or any great force in football now gone to seed - and turned round their season helping them to reach the last eight after just 9 games of GAA under his belt?)

So sports fans, can anybody recommend other GAA related documentaries out there?

[TheManFromFerbane]

There was a show about grass roots GAA there recently, I never caught it but I think it was on TV3? I wonder will they do a dvd?

[Muck Savage]

The Whalberg film was The Replacements. With the US sports there is a bigger market I guess. There was a spate of Baseball ones as well. I think it's because the stop and go nature. I was always surprised that there was never a Soccer film so to speak. The best Soccer ones I've seen were about the Boxing in the streets and stands

Interesting that the gambler got so much of the % in the poll, I can only imagine that there is a large Armagh crew voting. I've read a few of the books on the list and Kings of September stick out by a mile. Now I know I'm a little biased but it's a great read. I'm just after finishing Jack O'Conner's book and it was just OK. Felt that he didn't have a good enough cut at the old guard down there and the crap he put up with. But overall didn't think it was well written. I've been staying away from the Gambler. There's a great selection however.
Best GAA book I've read was "Green Fields" by Tom Humphrey's (I think).

Documentries on GAA, very few as far as I know. The only other one that pops to mind and could fall into this area is the Underdogs (which was crap). Maybe some of us should buy a camcorder and head into the Offaly dressing room next week, might put a bit of belly in the lads to have a camera after them all winter and spring.

[Kevin]

Marky Mark has been in a number of films, but I think the one being referenced above would be entitled "Invincible".

Won't be diving into the others, but agree Kings of September was outstanding as was Tom Humphries book.

Tom Humphries

[Kevin]

The last post was not sent in by Tom Humphries.

Sent before deleting all of another sentence...

[Archangel]

Haven't read many GAA books recently, but just bought the Hoganstand Annual.
Good book, a bit light on insight maybe, but good on photography.