THE OLD man sat at the bar and, as many old men do, looked comfortable and content sipping a creamy pint of Guinness. Finnegan's busy pub on Carlow's Potato Market was crowded, many punters having made their way down from a big match in Dr Cullen Park.

'Did you play the football yourself?' I asked the old man who I knew to be a strong O'Hanrahan's supporter.

'I did, I kicked a bit with the Blues' he revealed, then asked if I would be able to track down the match report of the 1947 Dr Cullen Park Senior Football Tournament final in which he helped his beloved Blues beat old rivals Ballymurphy.

Roused to interest by a man who played club football in Carlow during the halcyon days of the 40s, an era when the county won their lone Leinster senior title, I began to dig deeper.

Having heard of the goalkeeping agility of 'Pim' Quinlan, the defensive prowess of ' Peenie' Whelan, the mid-field exploits of Jim Morris and Luke Kelly, the old man then recalled with relish the attacking flair of Jimma Rea and 'Drakes' Walker, musing that Carlow were unlucky that 'Drakes', a fellow Blues clubman, missed out on '44 due to a hand injury.

'Carlow probably would have beaten Kerry if 'Drakes' was there' I ventured to which the old man, taking a sip from his pint, replied, 'I'd be thinking that'.

The old man then revealed that he was 'far from the madding crowds' of Athy and Croke Park in 1944 and didn't even know his county had won the Leinster title for months after.

The reason? He was serving with the RAF as the second World War grind to a conclusion and told a few colourful stories about his time guarding Japenese prisoners of war while stationed in Singapore.

Our conversation then returned to our own green fields. 'What class of a footballer were you yourself?' I queried.

With a glint in his eye and raising his two hands high in pursuit of an imaginary ball the old man stated: 'I'd have been what they call a purist'. His listener had visions of a Mick O'Connell type figure soaring into the air high to caress a sky ball into his possession via the silken fingers of one-hand before, toe-to-hand, weaving his way up field with elegant grace up.

A couple of days after that conversation the old man and myself again found ourselves at the bar in Finnegan's when who should come in but Vinny Harvey of Eire Og fame.

'Jim here tells me he was a purist' I enthusiastically relayed to the 'Harve' who immediately gave a little cough.

'A what?' he asked. 'A purist? A pugilist more like!'

The old man laughed, proud one now knows that his football exploits were remembered more for their teak tough, no holes barred traits than any fancy-dan fluff.

'He'd take your sacred life!' old-timer Mick Moore told me recently. ' Football was tough then, Ballymurphy and Kilbride had tough teams, Tinryland too, the townies had to be able to mind themselves!'

The old man was one such townie and having been a champion boxer in the Army one suspects his lightening fists may have been employed in Bagenalstown, Tullow and Dr Cullen Park too!

And one connection is remembered to this day. No, not because the old man floored an opponent with his fist but because that fist propelled the ball to the net in the exciting closing stages of the 1949 County Senior football championship final. The old man was playing in the famed blue and white hoops of Tinryland that year and his goal proved the winner.

'How come you were playing with Tinryland?' I asked to be met with an intriguing answer.

'Times were hard back then, money scarce, you'd have to put food on the table and sure Tinryland were a country club, no shortage of farmers, they were good for the bag of potatoes!'

Though he recalled that goal and that SFC medal with great satisfaction, the old man spoke with even greater fondness of the 1947 Dr Cullen Park Tournament final victory, a day he played a noble part in O'Hanrahan's triumph

Winning with the Blues was special and when the club fell on lean times the old man was among those who kept the O'Hanrahan's going. When the O'Hanrahan's returned to the top in 1999, beating town rivals Eire Og for good measure, the old man was as happy as Larry, even if this particular 'Larry' wound up with a 'war wound' from the celebratory trip home!

The old man was taking a trip of a different nature last Tuesday as flanked by a guard of honour from the Blues and Tinryland he was brought to his final resting place in St Mary's Cemetery.

That old man was Jim Holden of JKL Avenue, 85 years young. Jim was a fine singer and his party piece, Shanadoah rang round the Cathedral as his coffin was bourne shoulder high to commence his final journey.

Extending our deepest sympathy to Jim's heartbroken family and friends we leave you with the words of Shanadoah and the belief that when St Peter asked Jim what 'what class of a footballer he was?' he was told 'a purist!'