The UAFC

sad news from Kilkenny:-
http://www.independent.ie/sport/rugby/i ... 76113.html

Yes, very sorry to hear this. A great player, a lovely man and a real character. Apparently, when he was picked for the Lions tour, which lasted nearly four months in those days, his wife said to him, "Willie, will you be faithful to me for all that time?", to which he replied, "Mary dear, I'm an electrician, not a feckin' prophet!"

Very sad news ..... they didn't make them much tougher than Willie

sad news indeed; he was a great player!!

Sorry to hear this news. Willie famously wasn't fond of training but was just naturally a tight hard nut. I once came across Willie, Moss Keane, Fergus Slattery and if memory serves, our Harry Steel in a bar in Paris having the pints. Thing is it was the night before the game which probably indicated the likelihood of winning...we didn't.

I remember Willie and Wales 2nd row Geoff Wheel being the first men sent off in the 5Nations. Wheel had been trying to rough up Ronnie Hakin who was if not on debut damned close to it. Willie took exception and gave Wheel a good dig in the bake and off the 2 went.

Willie was a superb no8. Never given the sort of recognition that Mervyn Davies had around that time but just as important to Ireland in his own way. I'm not an orange bar steward, so RIP Willie ya legend.

Sad news indeed a seriously tough old style player.

Loved watching Willy controlling the ball at the back of the scrum.
Fond of a half-time ciggy and pioneer of the tactical injury break too.
Legend.

Willie was an absolute legend of Irish rugby.
He was the enforcer of his day. Mossie was a softie compared to him.I think he played all the tests for the Lions in 1977 in NZ, the only Irishman so to do. The Kiwis respected him.

His career endured long enough to take part in winning the Triple Crown in 1982 which sent us all into orgasms of delight. I know that sounds silly to younger fans today but it was 33 years since we had won anything. Such were the celebrations that the team didn't bother to prepare for the French game four weeks later and were hosed.

But that's what it was like in the amateur era and maybe we have lost something. The notion of slipping out of the Shelbourne on Friday night for pints before the match next day is unimaginable today but maybe some of the fun has gone.

Dublin4 wrote:Willie was an absolute legend of Irish rugby.
He was the enforcer of his day. Mossie was a softie compared to him.I think he played all the tests for the Lions in 1977 in NZ, the only Irishman so to do. The Kiwis respected him.

His career endured long enough to take part in winning the Triple Crown in 1982 which sent us all into orgasms of delight. I know that sounds silly to younger fans today but it was 33 years since we had won anything. Such were the celebrations that the team didn't bother to prepare for the French game four weeks later and were hosed.

But that's what it was like in the amateur era and maybe we have lost something. The notion of slipping out of the Shelbourne on Friday night for pints before the match next day is unimaginable today but maybe some of the fun has gone.

My mate John and I left the bank in Derry around 4.30 on the Monday before the French game, said goodbye to our wives and away in my Renault 12 arriving in Paris on the Wednesday with a parcel for a guy living there including 2 bottles of Jameson which were pinned on the Wednesday night.

To cut a long story short, got back on the following Tuesday after a great trip but a crap game. What you didn't mention was that France had lost their 3 games so hope of a GS was high, but they picked every enormous brute in the country like the infamous Imbernon, a genuine thug, and took a leaf out of the Wales 1969 book and spent the first half beating up the poor wee Paddies full of bank and insurance clerks with the odd doctor thrown in to toughen it up.

Willie Duggan was always described in the match programme as "Electrical Contractor", they left out chain-smoker.