Roughly 10 years earlier, Paul McGrath played the shirt off his back in the Giants Stadium, New Jersey as the Republic of Ireland defeated Italy 1-0 in their 1994 World Cup group opener.
McGrath's humbleness made you like him even more. Here he was, the great man, who left an indelible imprint on two World Cups, one of the greatest central defenders that ever breathed air, thanking me profusely like a grateful schoolchild for praising his work. In that brief instant, I was immediately struck by McGrath's shyness. “Did you think so? Really? Thank you so much,” he said bashfully. I conveyed this compliment to the great man in person. McGrath came across well in the programme: likeable, vulnerable and honest. We were in the toilets in the media area of the old Lansdowne Road stadium some time in the early ‘Noughties'.Ī documentary about the life and times of the former Republic of Ireland defender just happened to be screened earlier that week where he talked about his career and perennial battle with alcohol.
IT'S not often you get to meet legends of the game.
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