Former Offaly GAA referee to sell huge collection of sporting memorabilia for charity close to his heart
Clara man has gathered fantastic sporting collection over several decades
Catch Buckley, a long time resident in Clara but a native of Ballycumber, will sell-auction some prized sporting items in Gallen Community School, Ferbane on Friday, August 7 – a time has not been finalised yet but the collection will be available for viewing for a few hours before the formal sale takes place.
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 has developed a huge sporting collection of books, programmes, newspaper cuttings, scrap books, pictures and much more.
He began to collect when he was in his formative years in Ballycumber, cutting out newspaper articles and placing them in scrap books. While the GAA is his great sporting love and dominates his collection, it also includes several great items from rugby and soccer. It has Irish international programmes in both codes and a variety of ones from big English soccer games, including FA Cup finals – he remains a big Liverpool fan himself and has plenty of stuff relating to them and Manchester United, whom his late son John followed, among many others.
Some of his books and programmes are rare and will be eagerly sought by people on the collectors' circuit. 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.
He has books relating to all 32 counties in Ireland – he has had a particular interest in Kerry football and has a great affinity with that county. Other counties feature prominently, others less so, but a great treasure chest of memorabilia will be on sale in Ferbane on August 7.
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.
Secondly, the sale will benefit a charity very close to his heart, Offaly Dochas. He is 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.
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 jerseys will also be up for grabs for the day and Gallen Community School will be well worth visiting for people with an interest in sport.