Derrycoosh looks forward to prospect of a wayne and colleen visit

ENGLAND and Manchester United star Wayne Rooney has strong connections with the village of Derrycoosh, Islandeady, through his wife, Colleen. Colleen’s paternal great grandfather was Tom McLoughlin. Born in Derrycoosh in 1892, he was one of a long line of male McLoughlins who went to England to make a living from the 1800s onwards.

The Connaught Telegraph caught up with Marty McLoughlin from Derrycoosh and one of his daughters, Mairead, who were only too happy to fill us in on the Colleen connection with their family.

While on a visit to the Garston area of Liverpool last year for the funeral of Colleen’s grandfather, another Tom McLoughlin, Marty and Tom met lots of McLoughlin cousins as well, of course, as Colleen and Wayne. Explained Marty: “They (McLoughlins) had great welcome for us. Colleen told us she had been home a few years earlier with her father, Tony, and mother, Collette. They walked the former McLoughlin lands in Derrycoosh and visited the Key West pub.”

The funeral which Marty and Mairead attended was that of Tommy McLoughlin, whom Colleen was very fond of and always referred to as ‘Granda’. Tommy and his wife, Dolly, ran the well-known King Street Vaults pub in Garston, Liverpool, a friendly pub, which was very much part of the local community for decades. Tommy and Dolly celebrated their golden wedding anniversary in 2007. One of their sons, Tony, is Colleen’s father.

Colleen, was there, of course, for her grandparents ‘Golden Day’, wearing, as a correspondent for the local community paper, Garston News puts it, ‘the same warm smile as the rest of her family’.

Tommy and Dolly were pillars of the local community. For many years they provided facilities for family functions and on many occasions helped to raise money for local charities. Tommy, who worked in the construction trade initially, was a useful footballer. He founded a boxing club in which his sons, Tony and Brian, fought, and his pub darts teams over the years were renowned for their prowess, winning many honours and trophies.

Despite their connections to one of the world’s finest footballers, the McLoughlins are very down to earth and unassuming. “You’d swear they never left Derrycoosh,” says Marty. “They’re as Derrycoosh as I am, that was born, bred and stayed there. Their love for the old home place is palpable.”

One of the things that Marty noted during his funeral visit to Garston last year was the fact his McLoughlin cousins don’t have a trace of an English accent despite their lengthy presence in England. “They’re as Irish now as the generations that preceded them,” Marty stated.

Colleen has assured her Derrycoosh cousins she would like to return some day to her ancestral village for a visit, bringing her family with her for a visit.

Wayne Rooney kicking a ball in a local field or drinking a pint in the Key West. Now wouldn’t that be some prospect.