A disgrace

[Smarty]

I went into a shop today and glanced at the irish examiner.On the front captioned "two sporting greats" we have a pic of Mohomad Ali and Pa McGrath.For christs sake who publishes this rubbish?how could you possibly compare a man who many would argue as the greatest sportsman ever with a guy who doesnt come even close to being the greatest in his sport.Ok he was a great full back or whatever.To have guy like this under the same caption as Ali is a disgrace.

Westside.

Oh Westie, ye of little faith.

For me personally Ali and Mcgrath represent different eras in sport.

Ali's fights were usually a magical treat from my childhood and early teens. The big build up with Ali on the news being really confident then the treat of being allowed to stay up late and watch the fight on the one television in the house with my dad, live from Madison Square Gardens at 3 or 4 in the morning, then talking about it the next day at school.
Now we have flat screen TV's in every room in the house, 24 hr TV, SKY charges you throught the nose for a live fight, but it just is'nt really the same is it? My dad has sadly passed on, that magical era has gone and no boxer since has really come close to the charisma of Ali.

McGrath on the other hand represents the team that took little o'l Ireland to the quarter finals of the World Cup in 1990, I know you don't follow soccer but you must recall the euphoria that swept the nation at the time.
Chants of ooh aah Paul Mcgrath were on every ones lips, and Paul even though he played a back position he seemed to be everywhere on the pitch stopping the opposition going forward at all times.
After we qualified it really bucked up the nation and we felt that , Yeah were not quite that backward country and we can appear with pride on the world stage.

Sadly Paul turned to the drink and fucked his life and his familys life up.

Westie although I can see your point that Paul is not in the same league as Ali, all I can say is go easy on the lad.

[Westsidex]

Oh Westie, ye of little faith.

For me personally Ali and Mcgrath represent different eras in sport.

Ali's fights were usually a magical treat from my childhood and early teens. The big build up with Ali on the news being really confident then the treat of being allowed to stay up late and watch the fight on the one television in the house with my dad, live from Madison Square Gardens at 3 or 4 in the morning, then talking about it the next day at school.
Now we have flat screen TV's in every room in the house, 24 hr TV, SKY charges you throught the nose for a live fight, but it just is'nt really the same is it? My dad has sadly passed on, that magical era has gone and no boxer since has really come close to the charisma of Ali.

McGrath on the other hand represents the team that took little o'l Ireland to the quarter finals of the World Cup in 1990, I know you don't follow soccer but you must recall the euphoria that swept the nation at the time.
Chants of ooh aah Paul Mcgrath were on every ones lips, and Paul even though he played a back position he seemed to be everywhere on the pitch stopping the opposition going forward at all times.
After we qualified it really bucked up the nation and we felt that , Yeah were not quite that backward country and we can appear with pride on the world stage.

Sadly Paul turned to the drink and fucked his life and his familys life up.

Westie although I can see your point that Paul is not in the same league as Ali, all I can say is go easy on the lad.

Im not being hard on him at all.He was great full back but thats about it.I remember the euphoria of being in the World cup and i can illustrate my point further with the world cup.

Ireland got to the quarter finals without winning a game by full time.If my memory serves me right we got through on penalties and draws.Again im open to correction here.

Now comparing McGrath with Ali would be like comparing Jacks world cup squad with the 1970 Brazillian world cup winners.There wouldnt be any comparison at all.

Westside.

[Quarterpoundher]

Anyone who saw Paul McGrath in action against Holland in the world cup when he appeared to everywhere at once would attest to his being a true Irish sporting great as he was just incredible that night and still sends a shiver down my back thinking about it just as Ali beating the big bear so bad that he simply refused to get up from his corner stool while Ali was as fresh as a daisy sends a shiver also. Those are the only two sportsmen that can do that when I think about those two events so for me both are sporting greats as to me a great sportsman is someone who can have that effect and not on how many things they have won. Ali won all he could possibly win in his sport and Paul Mcgrath did not win a whole lot terms of titles but both did incredible things.

McGrath pretty much sacrificed his future playing days in that match as we all know his knee problems and Ali sacrificed his mental health in pushing himself to the limit so both left a lot of themselves to their sports and both pay a price even today.

Would the current players for Ireland do the same? ffs one of them won't even put on the jersey. We'll never see the like of McGrath again.

[thehighwayman]

It wasn't right for the newspaper to compare Paul McGrath with Mohammed Ali. Their both greats but at different levels. It's like comparing a great player from the premiership to a great player of a non league side. Mohammed Ali is one of the greats if not the greatest of sport. Paul McGrath is a great of Irish football. Not world football or sport but only to Irish football fans he's a great. He played with Man Utd and Aston Villa. But theres hundreds of footballers you would put ahead of him. Even in an Irish context Liam Brady, Roy Keane, Packie Bonner etc would be considered like Paul McGrath. Yet their knowhere near Mohammed Ali. Why does Paul McGrath get special mention. Theres loads of other Irish athletes who achieved more like Eamonn Coughlan, Sonia O'Sullivan, Barry McGuigan, Steve Collins, Bernard Dunne, Stephen Roche, Padraig Harrington etc. But no one should be compared in the same breath to Mohammed Ali. This journalist was biased writing from a blinkered Irish point of view.

[carlos marvado]

Would the current players for Ireland do the same? ffs one of them won't even put on the jersey. We'll never see the like of McGrath again.

Ahh yes, 1988-1994 the glory years of Irish Association Football......the McGrath/McCarthy duo in the back, and just on the off chance that anybody should make it passed them, Packie Bonner between the posts. That trio saved more goals than Jesus saved souls.

[Quarterpoundher]

Ahh yes, 1988-1994 the glory years of Irish Association Football......the McGrath/McCarthy duo in the back, and just on the off chance that anybody should make it passed them, Packie Bonner between the posts. That trio saved more goals than Jesus saved souls.

I know it was not pretty to watch but less face it we were all glad to see McCarthy take the legs from under anyone thinking of heading anywhere near the vicinity of Bonner's end of the pitch.

[westcorklad]

It wasn't right for the newspaper to compare Paul McGrath with Mohammed Ali. Their both greats but at different levels. It's like comparing a great player from the premiership to a great player of a non league side. Mohammed Ali is one of the greats if not the greatest of sport. Paul McGrath is a great of Irish football. Not world football or sport but only to Irish football fans he's a great. He played with Man Utd and Aston Villa. But theres hundreds of footballers you would put ahead of him. Even in an Irish context Liam Brady, Roy Keane, Packie Bonner etc would be considered like Paul McGrath. Yet their knowhere near Mohammed Ali. Why does Paul McGrath get special mention. Theres loads of other Irish athletes who achieved more like Eamonn Coughlan, Sonia O'Sullivan, Barry McGuigan, Steve Collins, Bernard Dunne, Stephen Roche, Padraig Harrington etc. But no one should be compared in the same breath to Mohammed Ali. This journalist was biased writing from a blinkered Irish point of view.

You could also have mentioned John Treacy Ken Doherty Ruby Walsh Sean Kelly Johnjo O Neill and others but I agree with the point that youre making.
In terms of world sport possibly only Pele Maradona and Tiger Woods come anywhere near Alis stature.

[Westsidex]

McGrath pretty much sacrificed his future playing days in that match as we all know his knee problems and Ali sacrificed his mental health in pushing himself to the limit so both left a lot of themselves to their sports and both pay a price even today.

Ali wouldnt have used stuff like knee problems to continue on.Proof of this was when he was beaten by Fraiser.Ali hadnt boxed for a few years and had a perfect excuse to use for being beaten by Fraiser but he didnt use it and instead admitted to being beaten by a better man on the day and came back later on and beat Fraizer.In fact its that very same mentality that seperates legends of sport with good sportsmen.The same mentality that allows Ali to live so couragously with Parkinson disease,the same mentality that allowed Armstrong to beat cancer and win the Tour.McGrath doesnt have this,neither did Tyson.This is what seperates legends from good.there is a world of a difference .In fact i think if Ali hadnt boxed he would have being a legend at something.Its just written all over the man from top to bottom and each time i read something or see something about him,it makes me even more amazed at him and im not amazed easily.

Westside.

[Westsidex]

Why does Paul McGrath get special mention. .

he just happened to be hanging around.The caption should have said an Irish football great meets a sporting legend.

Westside.

[Westsidex]

You could also have mentioned John Treacy Ken Doherty Ruby Walsh Sean Kelly Johnjo O Neill and others but I agree with the point that youre making.
In terms of world sport possibly only Pele Maradona and Tiger Woods come anywhere near Alis stature.

Maradona was a great football player but couldnt compare to Pele.Maradona was just like Tyson.If things were going great for him ,he was the great guy but if things started going against him he had to turn to shit tactics.Off the pitch he couldnt control his head.While i wouldnt put McGrath in the same category as Maradona,Maradona was no Pele.In fact Best was way better than Maradona.I would say the best footballers ever were Pele,George Best and Stanley Mattehews.

Tiger Woods is a great golfing legend i guess but not alot can happen to you in golf bar a bird shitting on your head.What im saying is boxing,cycling etc are harder sports as far as mentality and physicality goes than golf.Golf is purely techniqcal.I know ill get stick from golfers over that but it just doesnt take as much out of the body as some sports do.What im getting at is ali and Armstron were not only legends but legends in very very difficult sports as well.

awaiting the swinging of golf clubs,
Westside.