Shay Brennan, the former Manchester United and Waterford FC player (and manager) was honoured on Wednesday last at the new headquarters of the FAI in Abbotstown, as indeed was his good friend John Giles.
Alcoves at the new state-of-the-art building in Dublin 14 are being dedicated to past Irish greats. Since the official opening of the offices, the caps, medals and various memorabilia belonging to Liam Whelan, the Busby Babe who lost his life in the Munich Air Disaster in 1958 have been on display, and now the brilliant Dubliner has been joined in the Hall of Fame by Shay and John.
The ceremony was short and very well conducted, but nevertheless the unveiling of the Shay Brennan’s cabinet was emotional to say the least. His wife Liz performed the pleasant task in the company of the couple’s two daughters. Nobby Stiles, Shay’s great friend and brother-in-law of John Giles, spoke on behalf of Liz and the Brennan family.
“Shay was a one-off and he will never be forgotten by all of us who had the honour of knowing him. When the air disaster killed so many of the Manchester United players, Bobby Charlton took Shay and myself under his wing. It was Shay who called me ‘Happy’ and it was me who called him ‘Bomber’.
“I was always a grumpy old begger and Shay was not the fastest player ever to play football so the names came out of a joke. I adored Shay and I still miss him to this day. I am absolutely thrilled that the FAI have honoured him in this fitting manner, and I congratulate them on doing so. I loved going to Tramore to meet up with the ‘Bomber’ and it is great to see Liz and his family here today.”
John Giles
John Giles played 60 games for the Republic of Ireland from 1960 to 1979 and was also player-manager of the
team for most of the 1970s. After his playing days at Manchester United and Leeds United he became player-manager of West Brom. He was needless to say delighted to be placed beside Shay Brennan at Abbotstown.
“Shay Brennan in my view never really got the appreciation that he deserved as a player. He made things look very easy and that is the sign of a wonderful player. I am privileged to be here today in the company of his family and friends. As for myself it is nice to be appreciated as having played some little part in the history if the Irish team. I enjoyed and managing and playing for Ireland. It is the greatest honour any player can receive, to be selected to play for your country,” said a very happy and relaxed Giles.
John Delaney
John Delaney, the CEO of the FAI was a proud man on Wednesday last. His father Joe, the former chairman of Waterford FC and his mother Joan were present as their son addressed the invited gathering.
“Shay Brennan was a special person to me and my family. He lived for some years in our home and to have someone of his stature staying in the house was wonderful.
“An Irish international and a European Cup medal winner with Manchester United, he was the first English-born player to play for Ireland and he captained the team on five occasions during his 19 appearances. He came into the Manchester United team following the Munich crash and scored two goals in his first game. He came to Waterford and proved himself to be a fine player and indeed manager of the Blues.
“When we moved out here to Abbotstown it was always my intention to honour great players of the past and now we have Shay Brennan here with John Giles and Liam Whelan, and that makes me very proud indeed,” said John.
Yes indeed, last Wednesday was a special day and for those of us who were lucky enough to have known Shay, it is indeed heart-warming to see the ‘Bomber’ taking his rightful place in the Hall of Fame at the FAI.
