Patrick O’Connell Exhibition: the man who saved FC Barcelona
TU Dublin Library Services is delighted to host the Patrick O’Connell exhibition. The exhibition is currently on display in Park House Grangegorman Library. The exhibition is open to TU Dublin staff and students and members of the public.
Patrick O'Connell was born at 11 Jones Terrace, now the entrance to Hill 16 at Croke Park.
He was a man of firsts - the first Irishman to captain Manchester United football club, the first man to lead Real Betis to their first Spanish Football Championship and a member of the Irish team who won their first ever international football tournament.
From 1935 to 1940, Patrick O'Connell was manager of F.C. Barcelona; he is attributed with saving the club from financial ruin by taking his team on the tour of salvation to Mexico, raising enough monies to keep the club alive during the Spanish Civil War.
Here is a man whose life transcended the Easter Rising, World War I, The Spanish Civil War and World War II.... one of the greatest stories in Irish sporting history. Yet very few people know about Patrick O’Connell’s story.
If you would like more information on visiting the exhibition contact Park House Grangegorman on +35312206092 or email library.gg@tudublin.ie