Debenhams workers sign jersey for supporters museum
By Hayden Moore
A JERSEY signed by former Debenhams workers, who spent 406 days on the picket line in a redundancy dispute, is making its way to a supporters museum in Estadio Benito Vilmarín, home to Spanish football club Real Betis.
Tallaght man Fergus Dowd, through the Patrick O’Connell Memorial Fund, has been enlisting famous faces from the world of arts and sport to show their support in solidarity with the Debenhams workers since they were let go last year.
Debenhams workers Pauline Brunell, Carol Quinn, Marie Leonard with Rovers CEO Denis Donohue
Dowd is no stranger to building a solidarity campaign, having fought to instil proper memorials and recognition for “the man who saved Barcelona FC”, Patrick O’Connell, through a similar campaign.
O’Connell was born into a working class family in Dublin in the 1880s, becoming a labourer in Boland’s Mill in his teenage years before signing for Sheffield Wednesday FC.
He became the first Irishman to captain Manchester United after he signed for the club in the 1914-15 season and later made a name for himself as somewhat of a supremo in management.
In 1935, O’Connell managed Real Betis to the La Liga title – the only time in the club’s history.
The following season, O’Connell cemented his place in the history books as a cult hero when he helped reinvigorate Barcelona, a club on the brink of collapse as a result of the Spanish Civil War.
O’Connell brought Barcelona on a tour of the United States and Mexico, boosting the club’s profile and taking in enough money to clear the Catalan club’s debt.
But somewhere down the line, O’Connell was forgotten about and was buried in a paupers grave in London – with no headstone or recognition for the undeniable impact he had on football.
“Patrick died and was buried in a paupers grave in London, so Fergus set up the fund to try get a tombstone for him,” Cllr Kieran Mahon tells The Echo.
“He built a solidarity campaign around that at the time, with Johan Cruyff, Messi and the likes signing shirts to raise money.
“Through that, Fergus made these connections all around the world with people and supporters groups in clubs.”
Dowd built a massive campaign, the Patrick O’Connell Memorial Fund, that ultimately resulted in a bust of “Don Patricio”, as he was known, being placed in the Real Betis supporters museum.
When the Debenhams workers went on strike, seeking a fair redundancy package, Dowd reached out to his connections in Real Betis.
He told the supporters about what was happening to workers in Dublin, where their beloved hero O’Connell was originally from and they contributed to the campaign, sharing their message.
Former footballers Alan Thompson and Joe Corrigan, musicians The Proclaimers and Deacon Blue and actor Maxine Peake all sent messages of support.
A Celtic jersey was donated by Tallaght man Brendan Owens, founder of The Paul McStay Celtic Supporters Club, with a football being donated by Shamrock Rovers FC.
As a thank you, the Debenhams workers signed the items and they were presented in Tallaght Stadium before being sent all the way to Seville in Spain – where Real Betis is based.
“The theme in all of this is that football is a working class game, it’s a sport of solidarity that builds a community around it,” Cllr Mahon continues.
“These are working class people on the picket line.
“All of these people have come together to tell the Debenhams workers that ‘we understand your situation’.
“Sport and music is a communal shared experience, which ties into the lived experience of going to work or being on a picket line.
“It is very much so something that Patrick O’Connell would have understood – which I think is why Fergus was keen to do something.”
Meanwhile, the Debenhams workers voted to accept a revised €3 million training fund to bring an end to a long drawn out 406-day dispute on May 20.
That campaign has ended but the workers are building towards bringing about positive legislative change to ensure that workers are protected in the industry going forward and recommendations from the Duffy/Cahill Report are implemented.
