Wicklow players lay it bare

When he was lying in a hospital bed 12 months ago undergoing a heavy dose of chemotherapy and listening to a tale about a man who had died from the same type leukaemia he had, John McGrath cracked.

Maybe he wouldn’t beat it. Maybe life was over.

His days playing football for Wicklow were a distant thought.

But he togged out this year and was one of the leading lights on a side struggling to come to terms with the loss of Mick O’Dwyer.

And last Saturday night in Germaine’s of Baltinglass he gave thanks to all those who helped him find the light amid all the darkness surrounding him.

Not in the usual way though. John shed his clothing at an event he and his partner Carol called ‘Wicklow Get Their Kit Off’ to raise funds for St Burkitt’s Leukaemia Ward in St James Hospital in Dublin where he was treated.

In a bid to give something back to the staff and the facilities that helped nurse him back to health, John roped five of his county colleagues into performing the full monty in front of a packed house. These well-built, bronzed and fearless warriors, Tony Hannon, Daragh O’Sullivan, Austin O’Malley, Niall Gaffney, John Flynn and McGrath himself, took to the stage at the end of a wonderful night to the cheers of a feverish audience of salivating women and according to McGrath it couldn’t have went any better.

“It went very well, it all ran so smoothly, I’m very happy with it,” he said.

“We had a few dry runs earlier in the night because it was the first time all six of us were together. We had rehearsed with four and five of us but never six because everyone is so scattered across the county but it was brilliant how well it went.”

To the sounds of Tom Jones bellowing out You can leave your hat on the Garden County men slowly began to gyrate and move in sublime synchronised movement that sent the heaving crowd almost wild with desire.

“Tony Hannon was very good at the stripping,” laughed John.

On a serious note John was keen to express his deepest gratitude to all those who supported him, not only at the fundraising event but also during the course of his illness.

“I want to thank not only everyone who came on the night but the people of Baltinglass and Wicklow for their support for me, Carol and my family over the last year or more,” he said sincerely.