Ask any Celtic fan who Jock Stein was and you'll probably get bombarded with facts about his great tactical display in Lisbon in 1967. The same can be said for Matt Busby at Manchester United or Bill Shankly at Liverpool. Bloody hell, I'm sure most Derby County fans would shed a tear every time they think of good old Cloughy. So, you would assume Real Betis would hold a special place in their hear
ts for the manager that led them to their one and only La Liga title. Unfortunately the answer is a big resounding "NO". When, in 1935, the "green" team of Seville became the first Andalusian team to lift the national trophy, the name of Patrick O'Connell ahould have become engrained in the folklore. Unfortunately, this was not the case. As I live in Seville, I've casually brought his name up in conversation with Bético (Real Betis fans) friends of mine but hardly anyone has even heard of him. When I went to wikipedia to look up more information on him, his (less successful) time at Barcelona is attributed far more text than that of his time in Seville. Indeed, his one and a half years spent at lowly Ashington FC, at the end of his playing career is is allocated double that of his time at Betis. I found this state of affairs to be quite mind boggling. Not only was he more successful in Seville, (he also managed local rivals Sevilla FC for three seasons) but he spent more than 17 of his 72 years living in Seville. I am in the investigation process of preparing a documentary of his time spent in Seville. I intend to find out why he decided to live here for more time here than anywhere else in his adult life especially considering he had a wife and family back in Ireland. I will also try to understand why he is still an unknown entity after all he has achieved. I will take in his early life as a footballer in Ireland and Britain and also his time as manager of Racing de Santander and Barcelona FC. I will interview members of his family who still live in Britain and also people who knew him in the 1940s and 1950s when he lived in Seville. If you are interested in this project, please contribute as much or as little as you like. Every single person who contributes will be given a credit on the film and anyone who contribute more than €100 will be given a copy of the DVD and poster. To make donations contact the email below
[email protected]
