In May 1963, my older brother Sean was born.  In another extract from the forthcoming biography on Ned Power “My Father: A Hurling Revolutionary”, here’s an insight into how hurling matches marked some of the more monumental events in his life.

My grandmother, it must be said, idolised my father.  To her, he was as perfect a son-in-law as you could get:  he was handsome, charming, diligent, hard-working, healthy, he had a reputable steady occupation and fine standing in the community and he wasn’t a drinker.  She readily forgave any of dad’s transgressions and would plead with my mother to do likewise, if and when the occasion called for it.

That evening, Julia had a very anxious wait.  She had her hands full looking after a little toddler and her daughter was in hospital hoping to give birth again.  The hours ticked by.  Ned’s game was at seven, which means it would be over at eight, which means that, failing incident, her son-in-law would be home no later than half past nine or ten o’clock.

As ten o’clock came and went, my grandmother began to feel certain that Dad must have visited the hospital.  The sooner he was back from there, the greater the likelihood was that everything had gone smoothly.  At eleven o’clock, my father’s Ford Anglia pulled up on the street outside.  Granny rushed to the door, opened it and stood there awaiting some news from my father.  He was calmly removing hurleys and gear from the boot.

“Well?” she finally said.  “Is there any news?”

My father looked startled for a moment.

“What?  Oh yes… We got beaten!  And I broke my best hurley off Mackey McKenna.”

“No, no… What about Gretta?  Did you hear any news about Gretta and the baby?”

My father, nonplussed and with complete confidence in a successful birth and in everyone being in good health just said something like:  “I’m sure it’s fine.  Sure, we’ll give the hospital a ring there.”

He rang the hospital and was informed that everything was fine, that he was now the proud father of a baby boy and that both mother and child were doing well.  He looked to my grandmother and said:  “There you are – a baby boy.  They’re both grand.”

“My Father: A Hurling Revolutionary, the life and times of Ned Power” is out on paperback at the end of November 2009.  Click here for further information, pre-order and excerpt.