The FAI Cup down through the pages

THERE were plenty of household names, old friends, familiar faces and League of Ireland veterans in the Aviva Stadium the other night for the launch of a new book about the FAI Cup.

Among them was the ageless Al Finucane and the eternally youthful Mick Leech, as well as Theo Dunne, Johnny Fullam, Damien Richardson, Pat Byrne and, celebrating his 89th birthday, that grand old man of the Irish game, Jack Kelly.

But, remarkably, even Jack was not the most senior football citizen on the premises, that honour going to Leo Ward, at age 92 the oldest living holder of an FAI Cup medal.