At successive Annual General meetings down the years, one of the most difficult positions to fill has been that of the club’s board delegate. Whether it was the County Board, City Division or Bord na nÓg, it was not an easy task to get someone to attend a weekly board meeting and to oversee the needs of the club regarding fixtures and any other business relevant to the club.

The Passage club has been lucky to have had some very diligent men represent them at these meetings during the past decades, none more so than Florrie McCarthy who had the distinction of representing Passage at different times at the three aforementioned boards. Indeed, he also created the record of being the only man to serve as a delegate in five successive decades, the 50s, 60s, 70s, 80’s and 90s.

Records show that Florrie was the Passage representative at both the under-15 board (now Rebel Óg, Eastern Division) and the City Division Board in 1958. Only those who acted as board delegates can fully appreciate the difficulties of attending two board meetings per week.

Having spent all his married life living in Cork City, it did not in any way dilute Florrie’s affection for his native club and all those who crossed his path were left in no doubt where his loyalties lay. At any given time, irrespective of which grade Passage were playing in, Florrie could never understand why more players from his club were not wearing the red jersey of Cork. Florrie was so obsessed with getting the right fixtures for Passage teams that it would not be unusual for him to be discussing the next week’s fixtures in the midst of a hectic championship game in Ballinlough.

Florrie never claimed to be a player of any great note but there was one occasion in 1981 when he made an impact on, instead of off, the pitch. Passage junior ‘B’ football team were playing Commercials in a league game at their venue but Passage could only muster fourteen players for the game. Florrie was not prepared to face his fellow delegates at the next City Division meeting, with his club having conceded a walk-over. To avoid such an occurrence, Florrie donned the No. 14 jersey and played the full game in the full forward position. Passage trailed by five points at half time but a great comeback in the second half earned Passage an unlikely draw. Central to that comeback were two goals scored by corner forwards John O’Neill and Daithí Kelly. Florrie always claimed he had created the space to allow his two corner forwards to score those vital goals.

Board meetings, by their very nature, often involved divisive debate with every delegate endeavouring to get the best deal for his own club. It was to his eternal credit that, despite fighting his corner strenuously, Florrie never made an enemy in his role as Passage representative.

Since his untimely passing in 2000, the name of Florrie McCarthy is only spoken of with affection within his beloved Passage club and by all those who encountered him inside and outside the various Cork GAA boards.