Sadness at death of Carlow legend Dan Carbery
The late Dan Carbery
CARLOW town lost one of its legendary personalities with the death last Wednesday, 1 October, of Dan Carbery, ‘Glencarrig’, Green Road. Dan passed away peacefully at the age of 86 at St Luke’s Hospital, Kilkenny, following an illness.
A sporting hero, successful businessman, community activist and dedicated family man, nobody knew more about his native place than Dan Carbery.
Born on 6 August 1939, he was raised in Pembroke Road, Carlow, son of Dan and Kathleen (née Governey) Carbery, the eldest boy in a family of 13 children. Educated at Carlow CBS, Dan completed his secondary schooling at Castleknock College, Dublin.
He was studying to be a quantity surveyor in Bolton Street College, Dublin, when the death of his father in July of 1958 forced him to abandon his studies and return to Carlow to take over the running of the family construction company, D&J Carbery. He was also forced to give up a highly promising athletics career which saw him win a gold medal as a 16-year-old at the World Student Games of 1956 in Lisbon.
It was Dan’s participation in the famous ‘Morton Mile’ at Dublin’s Santry Stadium on 6 August 1958 – his 19th birthday – that firmly established his name in Irish sporting consciousness. Rated the greatest mile ever run, the first five athletes in that race broke the 1,500 metres world record, led home by the great Australian runner Herb Elliott, whose time of 3.54.5 shaved some two and a half seconds off the existing record. It was a sensational evening at Santry before a huge attendance of 25,000 spectators, worked into a frenzy as athletics history unfolded in front of their eyes.
Running in the colours of Dublin club Crusaders, Dan ran a highly creditable 4 minutes 14 seconds, setting an Irish Junior (under-19) record for the distance.
Dan returned to Carlow a sporting hero. Being the unassuming man he was, he was never boastful about that achievement or of any other highlights in a notable career.
Having to quit athletics at an early age, Dan turned to rugby as his second sporting love. He played with Bective Rangers in Dublin but spent the greater part of a distinguished rugby career in the black and amber of County Carlow Football Club at Oak Park.
Playing at full back or on the wing, Dan won Provincial Towns Cup medals with Carlow in 1957, 1961 and 1965. He was also a fine place kicker. After his playing career, Dan was a long-time rugby referee.
He later coached Éire Óg, the Carlow GAA senior football champions, to a first Leinster club final in 1980 against Walterstown of Meath, a game the Carlow side lost narrowly. He also mentored the Carlow senior football team and the St Andrew’s senior footballers from Bagenalstown.
Dan enjoyed a life-long friendship with Irish legendary athlete Ronnie Delany, winner of the 1,500 metres gold medal at the 1956 Summer Olympics in Melbourne.
Down the years, Dan met up with Delany for lunch in Carlow or Dublin, when the company would also include Derek McClean, another member of Crusaders AC, who represented Ireland at 1,500 metres in both the Rome and Tokyo Olympics of 1960 and 1964.
Delany finished third in the 1958 Morton Mile in a time of 3.57.5. He and McClean both survive Dan.
Dan took great delight in those meetings in which these three former athletes relived those halcyon days of Irish athletics, led at the time by the irrepressible Billy Morton from Clonliffe Harriers, after whom the Morton Stadium was named.
Dan took the greatest pride in all things Carlow.
In his young days he was a dedicated member of the local boy scout troop; he was a keen swimmer and long-time member of Carlow Golf Club.
He served as president of Carlow Chamber of Commerce and won the Hall of Fame statuette for his sporting achievements in the 2007 County Carlow Sports Star Awards scheme, having served for many years on the selection committee for those awards.
He was a member of the Old Carlow Society (OCS) and its successor Carlow Historical and Archaeological Society (CHAS).
Dan also had a long, if largely unknown, involvement with the Carlow chapter of St Vincent de Paul.
In his working life, Dan Carbery successfully carried on the work of his late father as head of D&J Carbery. Carbery’s of Carlow was a major local employer and responsible for the building of many schools, churches and buildings throughout Co Carlow and further afield. Theirs is a proud building legacy.
Dan reposed in Healy’s Funeral Home, Pollerton Castle on Thursday afternoon and evening, with his remains being removed on Friday morning to the Cathedral of the Assumption, where he worshipped all his life.
Members of County Carlow Football Club formed a guard of honour as the cortège entered College Street.
Dan’s cousin, Fr Adrian Carbery, PE CC Kildare, celebrated Dan’s funeral Mass, during which he paid a heartfelt tribute to his cousin, while there was also a wonderful tribute to her dad from Dan’s daughter Fiona.
At the start of Mass, two significant symbols of Dan’s life were brought forward: a family photograph and his sports training top.
Dan was married to Attracta O’Carroll from Dublin, who survives him along with their children Fiona, Deirdre, Dan, Brendan, Kevin and Ronan; they were bereaved by the death of their daughter Muireann in Blackrock, Cork city in June 2022.
He is survived by his brothers Michael, Des, Maurice, Brian and Eugene, sisters Kay, Frances, Mary and Clare, his 19 grandchildren and extended family. Dan was predeceased by his brother Fr Brendan and sisters Pauline and Madeline.
Following Mass, Dan was laid to rest in the Carbery family plot at St Mary’s Cemetery.
