Details finalised for auction of Offaly man's remarkable collection of sporting memorabilia

THE details have been finalised for the auction of an Offaly man's remarkable and extensive collection of sporting memorabilia.

Catch Buckley will put his prize collection up for auction in Gallen Community School, Ferbane on Friday, August 7. Viewing will take place from 3pm to 6.30pm and Clara man, former All-Ireland final hurling referee, Brian Gavin will conduct the formal auction at 6.30pm.

Proceeds will go to a cause very close to Catch's heart, Offaly Dochas. He is very appreciative of the great care his late son John received from Dochas after being diagnosed with cancer some years ago

Sadly John lost his battle in December 2019 with his death devastating his parents, Catch and Margaret, siblings and a wide circle of friends. John Buckley was a prominent member of Clara GAA Club – a very good goalkeeper, he won senior and junior football medals with them in the 1990s and 2000s.

It was the third time Catch had been left reeling by the death of a beloved John. His first born son had been called John and died very young of meningitis while his brother, John, a regular, reliable umpire with him for decades, passed suddenly in 1999 at just 58 years of age after collapsing while doing umpire for Catch at an O'Byrne Cup game between Dublin and Louth in Parnell Park – John had been an Offaly senior football selector in the early days of Eugene McGee's reign in the late 1970s.

He is delighted to support Dochas stating: “Those people were so, so good to John as was the complete community in Offaly, Clara was outstanding and Esker Hills Golf Club. They done so much for it, we wouldn't have survived without him.”

A special moment during John's illness was a phenomenally successful golf classic in Esker Hills in 2018 with Shane Lowry in attendance, followed by a big function in Clara GAA Centre.

A native of Ballycumber but long time resident in Clara, Catch's collection includes some rare and valuable items, including an old history of Tipperary GAA. A top class intercounty football referee in the 1980s and 1990s, the GAA dominates his collection but there is much more as it also includes a lot of great soccer and rugby items. He has Irish soccer and rugby international programmes dating back to the 1970s, FA Cup final programmes from the 1980s and a lot of very interesting books and items relating to these sports as long with golf – a cherished part of his collection is devoted to local Clara man, Shane Lowry. He is a big Liverpool fan himself and has a lot of stuff relating to them.

He developed a passion for collecting memorabilia at a young age. He has All-Ireland football and hurling final programmes dating back to the early 1970s with some from before that, including the 1954 All-Ireland hurling final when Christy Ring won his eight medal for Cork. He has a huge amount of programmes from other big games, All-Ireland semi-finals, National League and provincial finals and much more.

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He has Our Games, GAA annuals from the 1970s, books and county final programmes from several counties with a particular concentration from Kerry and Mayo. He has fantastic scrap books with some great old pictures and newspaper cuttings and his collection really has to be seen to be believed.

Catch Buckley is very well known in Offaly. He was one of the best referees in Offaly for decades from the 1970s through to the 2010s. Buckley took up refereeing initially in 1974 when asked to take charge of a colleges game by late Offaly GAA secretary and GAA president, John Dowling after the official referee didn't turn up. Encouraged by John Dowling, he began to referee official club games in Offaly the following year and soon became one of the top football referees in Offaly

He took charge of his first big final in 1978 when St Brigid's beat Killeigh in the Junior Football Championship decider and his first senior a year later. He went onto take charge of nine Senior Football Championship finals and is one of a very elite group who have refereed senior deciders in both codes – he refereed the drawn meeting between Birr and Coolderry in 2006 and refereed his final senior football final in 2008.

He has refereed finals in every grade in Offaly except U20 hurling and retired from refereeing in 2011. He was also a high quality inter-county football referee, taking charge of several big fixtures, including All-Ireland minor and U21 football finals, an All-Ireland senior football semi-final, National Football League semi-finals and much more.

His county career stalled and never fully recovered after he refereed the notorious battle of Aughrim between Laois and Wicklow in the Leinster Senior Football Championship in 1986. Laois had won the National Football League earlier and were hot favourites but were shocked by Wicklow. Three Laois and one Wicklow player were sent off but contrary to widely accepted stories, Buckley did not have to leave the Aughrim venue in the boot of the car – he was subjected to abuse and protected by gardai while his car was struck as he left the venue but he wasn't assaulted himself.

He did referee other big games for several years after that but his path to the very top was blocked.

He remained one of the best referees in Offaly until a back injury forced his retirement in 2011 and he has stayed active since as a referees' assessor and helping to recruit and train new officials.

A retired butcher in Clara, Buckley began to collect when he was in his formative years in Ballycumber, cutting out newspaper articles and placing them in scrap books.

He will keep some items that are close to his heart, including programmes of Offaly's biggest games but a lot of great items will be up for grabs. He has programmes from Offaly senior hurling and football finals going back decades, books on a wide range of topics and histories from all over the country.

It has been a lifelong passion for Catch Buckley and while it will be difficult for him to let stuff goes, he has decided now is the time. Firstly he is in his mid 70s and with his sons, Carthage jnr and Garrett not having an interest in his collection, he wants to make sure they find good homes.

He has a press cutting from the 1959 All-Ireland senior hurling final between Waterford and Kilkenny and his collection more or less dates from then – though he has gathered some older stuff.

He is bringing the same passion to organising the sale and benefitting Dochas that he brought to his collection. “I have a feeling this auction will be a success and I will not handle one penny myself. I will form a committee to look after it.”

Various signed county jerseys will also be up for grabs for the day and Gallen Community School will be well worth visiting on Friday, August 7 for people with an interest in sport.