Gaffers (11 page)

The change that was sweeping through the national team in the late 1960s and early 1970s was taken even further when Liam became the first manager to have complete control over team selection. A man who had played in England for one of the top teams, he had the respect of the English-based players; a man who had won trophies as a player and manager with Shamrock Rovers, he had the respect of the Irish-based players. It seemed the FAI had found the right man to lead the team in the new era.

EARLY YEARS

Liam Tuohy was born in the East Wall district of Dublin, the second youngest in a family of six boys. He was raised by his mother as his father Gerry died when he was young. As a youngster hurling was his first love, but he soon tired of being asked to play in goals and switched his attention to the bigger round ball, playing football for St Marys.

On leaving school Tuohy drifted a bit, working as a wheel builder at Royal Enfield bikes, and over the next couple of years he did pretty much everything, from delivering groceries to assembling prams, until he signed for Shamrock Rovers at the age of eighteen in 1951. His time at Shamrock Rovers saw him come under the tutelage of the late, great Paddy Coad.

After a season with the Under-21s and another with the second team he made his first-team debut in 1953. ‘Coad’s Colts’, as they were known in those days, were blazing a trail through Irish football at that time, winning the League of Ireland in 1954, 1957 and 1959. They also won the FAI Cup twice in the 1950s: in 1955 and 1956.

In 1954, as a member of the team that had won the League title, Tuohy was starting to attract some attention from England, with both West Bromwich Albion and Aston Villa interested in securing his services. Tuohy, however, opted to remain in
Dublin with Shamrock Rovers. His development continued under Coad, and he subsequently became an important fixture in the successful Rovers team.

It was while he was at Rovers that Tuohy experienced Continental football for the first time when both he and the club made their debut in European competition in 1959. Liam managed to score the first of four goals for Rovers at this level when he scored their second in a 3–2 away defeat against Nice in the European Cup.

When he had a third League of Ireland under his belt Tuohy started to consider his future. Approaching twenty-seven he was at his peak as a footballer, and he fancied another challenge before the end of his career. He was now working for Guinness at the St James’ Gate Brewery and with wife Sheila was the proud father of three children.

After nine part-time years it was time for a change, and that change came in the shape of Newcastle United. The switch to full-time football was always going to be difficult for Tuohy, but in three years with Newcastle he made a total of forty-two appearances and scored nine goals.

IRELAND CAREER

Liam earned the first of his eight caps for Ireland in 1955, whilst still on the books of Shamrock Rovers, starting up front in a 4–1 defeat to Yugoslavia. However it was not until four years later, in 1959, when he was a Newcastle player that he earned his second cap, starting in a 2–0 win over Czechoslovakia. He made a more lasting impression this time, as just twenty-one minutes into the
game Liam became the first man to score in the European Nations Cup (now known as the UEFA European Championship). His history-making goal saw him keep his place for the return game, but this time Liam made less of an impact and was part of a side that lost 4–0. The lack of consistency in the selection process of the teams adopted by the committee meant that it was almost three years before Liam would feature again for Ireland. That game, a 3–2 friendly defeat at home to Austria saw Liam grab his second international goal in four appearances.

The next Ireland game saw Liam return to competitive international football as he started and scored in a 4–2 victory over Iceland, also netting another goal in the return game, a 1–1 draw. Almost seven years after making his debut for his country, Liam now had six caps and four goals to his name, impressive statistics despite the gaps between appearances.

Having left Newcastle to move back to Ireland with Shamrock Rovers, Liam won his seventh cap for Ireland in a 0–0 draw with Austria in 1965. Eleven years after making his debut, he won his last cap in a 2–0 defeat to Belgium.

MANAGEMENT CAREER

It was when Liam returned to Shamrock Rovers in 1963 that he began the journey that would eventually lead to the Ireland manager’s job. He took the reigns at Milltown as a player-coach and helped the club win a League of Ireland/FAI Cup double in his first season. Despite winning the League and Cup double, the manager Seán Thomas had decided to leave the club and the club’s directors handed Liam the chance
to take on the management of the team, although he would remain a player on the club’s books as well. Liam’s job was made easier by the fact that he inherited a very talented squad with players of the calibre of Frank O’Neill and Johnny Fullam who were full Ireland internationals when Liam took over, while youngsters Mick Leech and Paddy Mulligan were soon to become household names in League of Ireland football and as internationalists.

Liam was in his early thirties when he took the player-manager role, and his time with Rovers would last a trophy-laden five years, during which time he led the club to a run of five consecutive FAI Cup Final wins. Despite this success he failed to win the League title during his time in charge.

With his record as a Cup specialist enhanced domestically, Liam got the chance to increase his stock as a player and manager against European opposition. Valencia, Real Zaragoza, Schalke 04, Cardiff, Nice and German powerhouse Bayern Munich were all opponents faced by Rovers during Liam’s time in charge, and the man himself led by example, scoring in draws with Valencia (2–2) and Real Zaragoza (1–1). However, the game against Bayern Munich proved to be a highlight for his Rovers team, when they came close to beating the German superstars: the first leg in Dublin finished 1–1, although with the Germans having the advantage of the away goal, hopes of winning were low. However, despite Bayern racing into an early 2–0 lead in the second leg, Rovers fought back and levelled the tie, with Liam himself scoring the second goal. Sadly heartbreak eventually ensued for Rovers as they conceded a goal close to the end of the match to finish 3–2.

In 1969 Liam’s time with Shamrock Rovers came to an end
and he left the club to become the manager of Dundalk. During a three-year spell, Liam led the Louth side to the Leinster Senior Cup in 1971 and the Shield in 1972 with a 5–0 win over local rivals Drogheda. The low point of his reign came not long into the job, when Liverpool came to town for a Fairs Cup game. With less than a minute on the clock before half-time, Liverpool scored and proceeded to add a further four more goals to their tally to lead 5–0. That score line was doubled by the end of the ninety minutes as Liverpool ran up one of their biggest ever wins.

It was while Liam was manager of Dundalk that he earned the chance to manage the Ireland side and he worked in both roles together before leaving his post with Dundalk. However, the lure of club football was hard to resist and he found himself once again back in familiar territory when in June 1972 he returned to Rovers for a second spell as manager. This was a short-lived reign that ended eighteen months later when Liam resigned in December 1973.

It was during his second spell as manager of Shamrock Rovers in 1972 that Liam met future Ireland manager Brian Kerr, who remembers: ‘I first came across Liam when he was running the schoolboy team for Crumlin United and was involved in youth-team football. I had played Under-17 and Under-18 football with Shelbourne and knew Gerry Moran, who was Liam’s chief scout. I was invited to run the youth team for Shamrock Rovers under Liam. So there I was, this twenty-year-old, and suddenly I was in the inner circle with a former Ireland player, manager and legend of the game. I had become more aware of him later in his career, particularly with Shamrock Rovers.

‘The inner circle consisted of Hughie Fleming and the late Paddy Ambrose. It was amazing and a huge honour and privilege for me to be involved with Liam and the youth team at Rovers. Liam, Paddy and Hughie would talk about potential signings, and because of my knowledge of the junior league they would involve me and ask my opinion. It was a fantastic vote of confidence for me, being so young and in the company of a former Ireland manager.

‘Liam is a football man, and he loves the game. I remember when the Kilcoynes took over at Shamrock Rovers, one of the first things they did was to get rid of the groundsman at Milltown. So when the youth team were playing a game we would have to mark out the pitch ourselves. I’d often come down of a Sunday morning and Liam would have the pitch already marked out for us.

‘His knowledge of the game was amazing and the simplicity in the way he played the game, but I think in the end he was frustrated with the goings on behind the scenes, and he resigned out of frustration.’

Having earned his crust as a manager in the League of Ireland, the chance to manage his country came about in 1971 following the departure of Mick Meagan. At that time Ireland had not won in eighteen games, stretching back five years, so expectations for the team were low. His magic wand did not appear to work straight away, as Liam’s first game in charge, a European Championship qualifier against Austria, saw a weakened Ireland team lose 6–0. Paddy Mulligan of Chelsea was the only English-based player in the first team that day.

Six months later Liam would have the chance to right the wrongs of that defeat. In June 1972, Ireland were invited
to travel to Brazil for the Independence Cup (a tournament intended to celebrate 150 years of Brazilian independence). That tournament saw Ireland grouped with Iran, Ecuador, Chile and Portugal. The first two games were against Iran and Ecuador, and a full strength Ireland side managed to secure morale-boosting victories. Despite defeats in the remaining games in the tournament, Ireland came away with their heads held high and had managed to restore some pride ahead of the 1974 World Cup qualifiers.

Jimmy Holmes, Eoin Hand, Mick Leech and Paddy Mulligan had all travelled over to South America. Eoin Hand remembers his own call-up: ‘I had gone for a walk with Niamh, my daughter, who was two at the time. When we came back there was Liam at the gate talking to my wife. He asked me if I was available for the tour. I remember Giles and Heighway had pulled out. I accepted and then had to make arrangements so I could travel.

‘Nowadays when you travel abroad for an international tournament you usually stay outside the town in a quiet area. However, over in Brazil we stayed in a hotel in the middle of town where there were nightclubs and distractions. I’m not saying we were distracted, though, by any means. There were no TVs in the rooms, so we entertained ourselves with games of cards. But it was the first time I as a player had seen the full-time set-up and the benefit of training every day, and it showed, as we got some laudable results.’

Mick Leech thought the trip was an amazing experience: ‘I can remember chatting to two of the professional players in the squad and saying, “Wouldn’t it be great if we won the group and headed down to Rio?” And they were like, “Jaysus no, Mick.” They couldn’t wait to get home to their families, but for me it
was different. I was not married at the time, but I can see it from their point of view now. It was a long season in England and then to have to travel over to the other side of the world was hard, but I wouldn’t have changed a thing.’

Ireland had some impressive results on the trip, despite missing a lot of key players. Eoin Hand saw it as an opportunity to showcase the talent of the Ireland team: ‘I remember I scored the winner against Ecuador in a 3–2 win, but then managed to get myself sent off in the match against Chile, which we lost 2–1. The referee had denied us a penalty, and I was so annoyed I turned on him. I probably said too much, as he sent me off. After the game I remember Liam was lecturing me on not getting involved with referees and that I should concentrate on getting on with the game.’

The aim of Liam’s reign was to restore some pride to the Ireland team and while the Independence Cup in Brazil saw Ireland learn how to win again, the bread and butter of his job was to fight for qualification for the major European and World Cup tournaments. The qualification for the 1974 World Cup saw Ireland up against France and the USSR. Two defeats to the USSR ensured that Ireland’s wait to qualify for a tournament would continue, although a win over France was a move in the right direction.

For Paddy Mulligan the tournament in Brazil was the perfect preparation for the 1974 World Cup qualifiers: ‘It is a testament to the players and management that we spent three weeks in Brazil and there was not a bad word said by anyone. I had travelled abroad with teams while in England, and the spirit was not the same. We really gelled on that trip, and while we knew when to have fun, we never took it too far.

‘I remember Mick Leech – who along with me was named in the team of the tournament, which was a fantastic achievement for us – turning a whiter shade of pale with the heat in one match and Liam having to take him off. But Mick had a fine tournament, and I was always surprised he never made the move to England. We had no Johnny Giles in that tournament, as he was injured, and it would have been interesting to see how we would have done had he been fit.

‘The Brazil tournament was a great way to build up to the 1974 World Cup qualifiers, and it benefited us a lot. We were unbeaten against France, winning 2–1 in Dublin thanks to a Ray Treacy winning goal and then drawing in Paris thanks to a Mick Martin goal. We also narrowly lost 1–0 to the USSR in Moscow [Ireland was missing Terry Conroy, Steve Heighway and Johnny Giles for that game], but they beat us 2–1 at home. We were unlucky not to qualify, really. But we managed some great results under Liam, especially beating France at Dalymount Park.