We then drifted into discussing how many strands of the national story are found in McGrath’s own tale. I am sure he has a sense of it, but he means so much to so many people for so many reasons.” And probably has no idea of how important he is to people. “That is the thing about Paul McGrath, it’s part of why he is so loved: he is so shy, quietly-spoken and self-effacing, and the absolute fact that he doesn’t know how good he was. We all just thought, ‘This is Paul McGrath, he’s ours and he’s part of our team.’ We almost have a sense of ownership of these people. “It’s necessary for us to know that for Paul McGrath to bring us so much joy and to save our asses so many times, he suffered so much. “When you think back, when he describes in the book when they are recording the songs for Italia 90 an USA 94, he looks so happy singing along, but he reveals he needed five pints to get to the point he was comfortable joining in to sing with the lads.
It is a sad book but there’s triumph in it too. The nadir points he reached are described so viscerally and so completely, and with such absolute honesty. The things he says in it: he was so raw and so honest. “It always stayed with me”, says Donal of the book.
The context was discussion around one of Donal’s picks as his favourite pieces of sportswriting: Paul McGrath’s autobiography, Back from the Brink, which details his story – and his alcoholism – with a remarkable and sad candour. And for a limited time, you can get €5 off an annual membership by using the promo code BTL. Donal Ryan is the latest guest on our sportswriting podcast, Behind the Lines. To get access to the full interview along with the 89-episode series archive, subscribe at.
That weighty question was considered on the latest episode of Behind the Lines with one of Ireland’s best writers, Donal Ryan. ACKNOWLEDGING THAT WE often freight our sportspeople’s lives with too much symbolism and meaning while doing exactly that, we ask: which Irish sportsperson best embodies the national story?
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