Castleisland Blitz: ‘That is the purest form of sport, what it is all about’

Every component of this extraordinary competition was in that grainy Facebook clip. Exhilarating sport with a packed hall, jovially hostile to the Tralee tyro as he stood on the free-throw line. Donaghy finished as top scorer and MVP as St Brendan’s saw off the hometown outfit, 21-19.

It came to mind again last December as we watched Donaghy roll back the years. The bleachers packed to the rafters, a dazzling light show to welcome both teams out, a Men’s Super League clash in the decider, a 52-47 thriller featuring a Ryan Leonard shooting masterclass and Donaghy in the midst of it all.

His knee heavily strapped, his daughter by his side for the post-match celebrations, his heart on full display. That is the thing about this 53-year-long odyssey. They keep coming back.

“There is a lot of work in this. To pull everything together, we’ve a fairly comprehensive programme as well,” says PRO Pat Hartnett.

“What goes on behind the scenes is colossal. It is August when they get after teams to get the full package together. It takes everyone.”

The sheer numbers are staggering. 174 games across five days split between two venues. 140 teams, 1,670 players. 22 sponsors, 24 competitions with ten at national school, four underage and ten at adult level.

It starts on December 26. This year the Premier Men competition consists of Scott Lakers Killarney, Garvey’s Tralee, Energywise Neptune and Limerick Celtics.

St Mary’s, Ballymacelligott Bobcats, Tralee Magic and Gurranabraher Credit Union Brunell are in the Senior Ladies. That is a particularly poignant title, named the Gerdie Murphy Memorial Cup.

Gerard Murphy died unexpectedly in April of this year. The tragedy of it shattered the town. His father’s store, Vicent Murphy’s Sports shop, have sponsored the cup in his honour. Gerdie was a titan of the showpiece.

He attended the first one back in 1970 and contributed since as a player, presenter, timekeeper, sponsor and more.

It was Donal 'Duke' O'Connor who organised the original edition having seen the success of similar ideas in Tralee and Killarney. He knows precisely what it takes to make a dream like this a reality. Gerdie Murphy was a crucial cog in that.

“There is a nice article in the programme about him,” says O’Connor.

“Gerdie was just fantastic. He was fantastic for the ladies’ football club and fantastic for us. He provided medals for the winners and runners-up, he provided everything. Basketball gear, boots, balls.

“Parents went to him for it. I remember one woman who had six sons. She told me they were all playing in the Blitz and they wanted basketball boots and fancy gear for Christmas. She had to have presents for every one of them, ranging in age from 8 to 15.

"So, she went to Gerdie and he put them away for her. She went down every week and paid him off as she could so she could have it all done. The lads got their new gear for Christmas and wore it in the Blitz.”

Everyone matters. Whether it be the determined children driving around ‘The Shoebox’ that is St John’s Hall in search of a spot in a final to be played in front of the Community Centre crowd, future stars like a young Donaghy or current GB national team coach Alan Keane, or the experienced combatants that line out in the Division 4 and 5 contests.

Irish basketball legend Timmy McCarthy heard about the festivities as a player and later participated in it as a commentator and coach. In 1995-95 he led Tralee to a first-ever top flight title. The Blitz paved the way.

“I remember we played Killarney in the National League on a Friday night, a top-of-the-table clash.

“We beat them after three phases of overtime. It started at 8.15pm and finished 12 minutes after midnight. The next day we played them in the Blitz final and beat them comfortably. We’d taken the energy out of them the night before. They were 28 points up in the first half and we recovered.

“See, the Blitz is special because the clock keeps running so as a coach you don’t have much time to make changes or recover. I loved the fans; I thought the atmosphere was brilliant. It felt so exciting from the first second of the first game.

"We ended up Super League champions, which was fantastic for everyone involved in the club. Winning the Blitz was very important for us on that journey.

“It stood us that we beat Killarney in two massive games. We won a trophy which was important. We proved our structures and strategy can win. We could also hang onto the fact we could work in short windows. If we dug ourselves a hole, we could get out of it.”

And yet, it is not simply success that makes it special.

“The blitz brings you right back to community. That’s the purest form of sport, what it is about. We all want to win, I was lucky enough to play and coach with teams that won but the blitz brings you back to that core point, participation, a community coming together.

"From the people who run it to the people who support it to the people who turn up to watch it to the people who play in it, that is all community. Everyone has a part to play.”