Grandsons of Offaly and Kerry rivals from 1982 All Ireland final start school in same class!

by Kevin O'Neill

In the famous 1982 All Ireland senior football final, Offaly GAA hero Pádraig Dunne went into battle against Kerry legend Jack O'Shea in the middle of the field.

But today, over four decades on, the former rivals find themselves on the same side as their two grandsons, Caolán Dunne and Donnacha Ó Nuáin, have started their educational journey in the very same class!

Both young boys recently started junior infants at Scoil Uí Riada in Kilcock, county Kildare.

Their educational pairing has brought back memories of one of gaelic football's most titanic battles, as their grandfathers graced Croke Park on the historic day when Offaly foiled Kerry's bid for five All Ireland titles in a row.

The Faithful County won the match in dramatic fashion when substitute Séamus Darby scored a late winning goal into the Hill 16 end, giving Offaly the narrowest of victories to atone for a seven-point loss to the Kingdom in the previous year's final (in which Jack O'Shea scored a goal).

Caolán Dunne is Pádraig Dunne's grandson and his mother, Cliódhna, is originally from Athlone. His father is Conor Dunne (Pádraig's son), and Pádraig, of course, represented his local Gracefield club in Portarlington.

Donnacha Ó Nuáin (Jack O'Shea's grandson) is a son of Eddie and Orla Ó Nuáin.

Speaking to the Offaly Independent, Scoil Uí Riada principal Elaine Ní Loirgneáin said: "We are delighted to have both boys with us and hopefully they will enjoy plenty of sporting success of their own here in Scoil Uí Riada.

"The 1982 final is one of the most famous All Ireland finals of all-time, so to have the boys together in junior infants is a lovely coincidence."

Scoil Uí Riada is an all-Irish co-educational primary school established in 1985 that aims to promote the Irish language and its associated culture within the school and in the general public at large.