Jack Ryall’s long service to rural life
Particularly well-known in farming, horseracing and ploughing championship circles, Mr Ryall gave a lifetime of service to improving rural life.
His farming success, including the production of purebred, Aberdeen-Angus cattle, led to public accolades for his contributions to livestock breeding and judging, and his skill at ploughing led to involvement in the country’s top rural event, the National Ploughing Championships.
He competed for the first time in these championships at Cahir, in 1954, afterwards became a ploughing judge, and, as a National Ploughing Association member, was involved in organising every national championship since 1974.
He helped bring the national event to his native Watergrasshill, in 1974, and again in 1979, during the era when it began to expand into the huge spectacle and attraction that it is today.
His long-time presidency of the Cork East Ploughing Association included the hosting of the national championships at Mogeely, in 2005.
He became the Midleton Agricultural Show chairman in 1963, and held the post for 22 years.
He served as chairman of the Munster Agricultural Society, having first exhibited animals at the Cork Summer Show in 1934.
Mr Ryall was chosen as Cork ‘person of the month’ in June, 2005.
Mr Ryall has been involved with point to point racing since 1939, serving as chairman of the Cork and Waterford Point to Point Association for 18 years — during which some of the household name steeplechasers of Britain and Ireland came up through the point-to-point ranks, and he was a founder member of an injured jockeys’ fund.
