Search on to find locals who shared pints with All Blacks in rural Cork pub

Lyon's Bar closed last year but that hasn't stopped quest to uncover story behind an iconic picture that hung in Ceciltown pub

Lyon's bar in Cecilstown, located between Mallow and Kanturk in north Cork, had a visit in the 1970s from the All Blacks. Picture: Paul Gallagher / C103's Cork Today Show

A Cork man is appealing to the public for help as he looks to uncover how a rugby team from New Zealand came to be photographed at a rural pub in Ceciltown.

Historical pursuits rarely begin behind the counter of a bar, but for Paul Gallagher, that’s exactly where it started. His goal is to put names to faces on an old photograph that hung in Lyon's Bar in Ceciltown.

The identity of some in the photo remains a mystery, but one factor is certain, the photo includes New Zealand’s famous All Black team from the 1970s having a pint in the Cork bar. 

Like most stories that begin in the pub, the details have blurred and the tale itself has been romanticised.

For many, it depicts the All Blacks team of 1978, who after a few pints poured by the owner, Ms Annie Lyons, were scuppered by a hangover that cost them the match against Munster.

However, Mr Gallagher was quick to put the brakes on this incredible story, by pointing out that one of the more recognisable All Blacks in the shot, Sid Going, retired in 1977. 

Speaking to Patricia Messinger on C103's Cork Today Show, Mr Gallagher, who is the PRO of Castlemagner GAA, said the photo dates back to 1974.

We never had the names of the individuals that were in the photograph, with the exception of one or two.

"Obviously, Mrs Lyons is pictured in the photograph on the right-hand side, behind the bar,” Mr Gallagher said.

From his own research, Mr Gallagher has ascertained, that the photo was taken after the All Blacks went out shooting pheasants at Lohort Castle.

He has managed to pin a number of names to faces and even went on the radio in New Zealand, in a bid to track down the members of the team he didn’t know. 

Mr Gallagher has confirmed the names of Bruce Robertson, Tane Norton, Ian Kirkpatrick, Laurie Knight, Sid and Ken Going of the All Blacks and Tom Hennessey, who would have been local.

Lyon’s bar itself has now closed, which is a sign of the times, according to Mr Gallagher. But for him, this makes the job of tracking down this piece of history all the more important.

“It is just trying to piece together the last two names now, I would love to get them, and hopefully, I will,” he added.