“I remember this interview as the Well beat Bective in division 2a in Donnybrook. “John McNamara Any Craic Magazine.”

Picture Munster V All Blacks 1978 John was unfortunate to miss out through injury.

John Daly was a late developer but he appeared many times for Munster.
Q. What are your memories of your early rugby career?
A. I attended Pres primary and secondary and got a good grounding in the game but was not selected for the Junior or Senior team as I was very small up to sixteen.! shot up in height aged Sixteen and was selected for Sundays Well seniors at seventeen, by eighteen I was a regular on the Well Seniors and played senior cup against Garryowen in 1974.
Q. When did you get your first senior break?
A. Sundays Well were not strong at the time but I broke into the Munster squad in 1976 unfortunately I broke my leg one month before the All Blacks game in 1978. One year later I played against Connacht replacing Colm Tucker in the backrow, Jim Crotty of UCC replaced Jimmy Bowen on the wing.
Q. What were the highlights of your playing career?
A. I remember the aftermath of the Connacht game as I had a great night out in Galway with London Irish player Les White. The next day I went to visit the McGann family in Monivea, family friends of my father. My personal highlight was beating Cork Con in the 1980 charity cup final. The celebrations after that game were outstanding with Liam Mackessy the proprieter of the Vineyard wheeling in Champagne to the Well dressing room followed by more champagne from Sundays Wells Bill Keating. We continued to Timos bar on the coal Quay and as the song goes it was back to the clubhouse we went, until the very late hours. In 1980 I played against a touring Romanian side been beaten 32-9 but was up set to discover my opposite number Cheika had been killed when we toured Romania the following year. I faced a big career decision and decided to move to Dublin and joined Bective Rangers playing Gala under lights just after my final Accountancy exams.
Q. Who was your most difficult opponent?
A. I highly rated Noel McCarthy of St Marys and Connacht, also Shay Deering of Garryowen and St Marys was a class act. I loved playing with Declan Shalloe in Bective, down south the Sundays Well flanker factory of internationals Pat O’Hara and Jim Buckley as well as serum half Paddy McNamee all inspired me.
Q. Have you been involved in the game since you stopped playing?
A. In Bective, I have coached every team up to Seconds and managed every team up to Firsts. I have been Sundays Well representative
on the division 2 clubs Ail since 1995.