“One of the legends and true gentlemen of Irish greyhound sport” remembered

Late Tony Fahy, Portumna An Appreciation

“One of the legends and true gentlemen of Irish greyhound sport”.

Tony Fahy was born on August 16th 1936, at Dominic Street Portumna. His parents Michael and Matilda, a tailor and dressmaker respectively, never could have predicted the impact he would one day have on greyhound racing. Michael had a few greyhounds as Tony was growing up, but that never seemed like a potential career. Instead, when Tony left school, he went to work with Leo Hynes at Connacht Wools and qualified as a wool grader. He then spent a few years in Birmingham with his siblings Tilda and Michael, working on the buses.

On returning to Ireland, he went to work with the Post and Telegraph (P&T). He was a hard worker and became the foreman responsible for the Portumna District. But in the background, Tony, and his brother Michael developed a love of greyhounds and racing. In 1956, Tony alongside his brother, started training his own dogs and showed an aptitude for good selections. He had a natural way with the dogs, showing an easy connection with the animals. Even though Tony was working full-time, they had considerable success with many race winners thoughout Ireland. Steadily, the two Fahys gained a reputation as men who knew how to train a greyhound.

The first triumph was Redwood Mac who won a lot of sprints. There followed a string of successes; Portumna Bouncer, Portumna Wonder and Portumna Lady broke sprint records at Longford, Shelbourne and Celtic Park. Despite working long days, Tony would always find time to bring his dogs to tracks around the country, becoming a regular at Galway, Longford, Mullingar, Shelbourne Park, Harold’s Cross and even Celtic Park.

Due to continued successes on the track, Tony retired from the P&T in 1974 and became a full-time trainer. At the time it was a daring decision but local businessman Con Hynes came on board and though he didn’t know it then, Tony was shortly to become part of racing history. Although he subsequently trained thousands of winners from graders and open class, to track record breakers and feature event winners, Tony will always be associated with the legendary greyhound Peruvian Style.

Between September 1975 and November 1976, Peruvian Style was unbeatable. He equalled Westpark Mustard's European record of 20 successes in a row. Had he won 21, he would have set a European record but that was not to be. However, he still broke numerous track records, becoming one of the greatest greyhounds to ever race, all under Tony’s careful tutelage.

Incredibly, Peruvian Style began his career with another trainer. But the dog was sold after being eliminated from the Puppy Derby at Harold's Cross. As Tony recalled, "He was showing blistering early pace but he got eliminated in the semi-finals and I bought him". Peruvian Style raced his way through an amazing run of victories, landing among others the Tipperary Cup at Thurles, the Waterford Glass at Waterford, the Shelbourne Leger, and Callanan Cup at Harold’s Cross.

Tony’s training career is littered with other stars including Portumna Wonder, Splendid Silver, Loum Lord, Miss Leader, Leaders Best, Resilient Rebel, Pass Machine, Concorde Swift, Concorde Direct, amongst others. Velvet Rocket was the striking winner of the 1994 Champion Stakes and the Consolation Derby. No wonder that Tony received many awards from within the greyhound industry. Two awards took pride of place, his 1976 ‘Texaco Sports Star Award’ and his ‘Hall of Fame’ honour.

But though he was devoted to his dogs, Tony’s friends and family were equally important. Always on the road, Tony was infamous for clocking up the miles for racing. A side effect of travelling the length and breadth of the country, was that virtually everyone in the sport knew him and never had a bad word to say about the Portumna native.

A true original, he never married but always had company. As well as his brother, he worked closely with his nephew Tony Jnr, who is now stipendiary steward, and sister Geraldine grew up at his side. He also played a big part in his nieces and nephews’ lives. The Goslings, Touhy and Fahy clans have great memories of times with Tony in Dominic Street and Gortaha. His culinary prowess was especially appreciated. He cooked fantastic dinners where nobody left the house hungry, and even those who weren’t hungry when they arrived were tempted into eating their fill. Tony loved having his extended family around him and was always up to devilment. He brought them all over Ireland and even brought one lucky family member to Boston. Sadly, it was Boston in County Clare.

In later years, Tony’s health was in decline but he never complained. He just got on with every day. He was a man of few words, but when he did speak, he really meant it. His ritual was three days a week to Unit 7 in Merlin Park. He never missed a day up until recently. It didn’t matter how bad he felt, he would say “You have to keep going.”

He never lost his passion and interest for greyhound racing, horse racing and the GAA. His mind was as always sharp as a razor, and he’d miss nothing on form guides. If someone was filling them out, he’d often pull them up on regulation questions, asking “Are you sure you’re right there?”

Greyhound Racing called this quiet, unassuming man “one of the legends and true gentlemen of Irish greyhound sport.” When Galway track recently celebrated 90 years, Tony sat for an interview with Galway’s own George McDonagh. Despite health issues, Tony sprang to life chatting about bygone days. His love for the sport, his local track in Galway, and of course the people in the sport, really shone through. This was a love very much reciprocated.

Tony was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2006. The Irish Greyhound Review reported: “You can judge the popularity of a man by the reception he receives when he's called upon to accept an award. The response to Tony Fahy was quite electric as he stepped forward to accept the Hall of Fame Award at the Keadeen Hotel.”

The final words on Tony must go to Greyhound Racing Ireland: “A legend of the sport and the loveliest man you could meet. He has made great friends and can truly be described as one of nature's true gentlemen. All of us in the sport will miss him terribly.” No doubt his family will be missing him too but the legacy of his work and the love he shared with those around him, will live on for a long time to come.”

Elizabeth Garner

Jim Hynes