Puck set for fair play

IT’S a ritual almost as old as Puck Fair itself - the capture of a male mountain goat that will become King Puck and preside over three days and nights of shenanigans in Killorglin.

This year’s long-horned specimen was yesterday described as an “extremely lively lad” by chief goat-catcher Frank Joy, who is also his caretaker until the annual three-day fair gets underway next week.

Coloured white and speckled in black here and there, the king-to-be is aged six-and-a-half years, with a three-foot horn span.

His home patch is the foothills of Seefin mountain, near Glenbeigh, on the Ring of Kerry.

Frank led a raiding party of eight men who eventually succeeded in cornering the goat after a two-hour operation.

“Sometimes goats can be very hard to catch, but this fellow jumped out onto a rock in the River Caragh and we then got around him,” said Frank, who has been entrusted with the capture for the past 14 years.

“I’m keeping him in a shed and feeding him with grass and leaves and will leave him out into a field to graze after a few days.

“He’s already being treated like a king.

“The whole idea is to give him time to get accustomed to people.

“Goats can become quite tame fairly quickly and will eat out of your hand once they get to trust you,” he added.

Frank said he was happy to help keep alive a unique heritage, the origins of which were lost in the mists of time.

“Where in the world would you find anyone catching a goat to crown him a king?” he mused.

Puck Fair starts next Tuesday with the horse fair being the main business, before the ceremonial ‘coronation’ of the goat by 12-year-old Fair Queen Clodagh O’Shea.

Following a parade through Killorglin, the cage containing the goat will be hoisted onto a 50ft platform overlooking the town square, where he will remain for three days and nights.