The Cork Business and Shipping League reaches a milestone

**A face** · 06/05/2003, 11:27 PM

The Cork Business and Shipping League reaches a milestone

The Cork Business and Shipping League is this year celebrating the 50th anniversary of its affiliation to the MFA as a fully fledged junior league.

The League, still affectionately referred

to as the 'shipping league', has provided junior football for teams representing their places of work for half a century.

The foundations of the present League were laid way back in the late forties when a number of companies engaged in trading through the Port of Cork (hence the use of shipping in the title) organised a knock-out competition to run between February and April.

Like the present day Inter-House they were allowed dual registration by the MFA. The League was granted full junior status in the 1952/53 season. Eight teams competed in the first league championship which was won by Cork Harbour Commissioners. The League trophy donated by Cork Steam packet Company is still in use today.

From humble beginnings the league has grown and in its modern form has thirty teams and three divisions. A total of eight trophies are competed for each year. While in the early days the membership of the league was dominated by shipping companies and traditional industries, such as Ford's, Denny's and Dunlop's, today teams representing the computer and pharmaceutical companies are more common.

In fact the change in the membership down through the decades has reflected the broad trends in the economic life of the Cork region. Over the years as companies prominence waned their team's departure from the league often predicted the eventual fate of the company in Cork.

Thankfully the opposite was also true and as major multinational companies such as Pfizers, Novartis, Janssen, Motorola and EMC arrived in Cork so also did their team arrive in the shipping league.

Comparisons are never wise but always sought. The League compares well in football terms as our teams have always acquitted themselves well in the MFA and FAI junior cups. Also the League's Oscar Traynor Cup teams have had considerable success through the years even reaching the semi-final in the 1967/68 season.

Perhaps the best commendation of the league is that it is fondly remembered by all those who have been involved in it as players, administrators or referees.

The League is currently engaged in a year long celebration under the theme of '50 Years of Football at Work'. The centre piece is the celebration dinner to be held in the Rochestown Park Hotel on May 16th. The guest speaker at the dinner will be Pat Crerand. When history recalls United's illustrious past the name of one Paddy Crerand will be to the fore. The Charlton, Crerand, Law and Best era is now synonymous with the rebuilt team of Sir Matt Busby after the tragedy of the Munich air disaster when so many prospective superstars perished. He was involved with Manchester United's European Cup winning campaign in 1968 and is still involved right up to the present day.

He is an eloquent and humorous speaker on all things football and having rubbed shoulders with many of the game's larger than life characters he has many tall tales to tell. All in all it should prove a thoroughly entertaining night for any person interested in the beautiful game. A commemorative booklet is also being released at a cost of 5 euro. This contains a look back over the 50 years of the league in both pictures and stories. A limited number of tickets for the celebration dinner are available as are copies of the booklet.

Interested parties should contact Peter Harrington on 4542560.

www.a2zsoccer.com

**pete** · 07/05/2003, 9:54 AM

Originally posted by A face
The guest speaker at the dinner will be Pat Crerand. When history recalls United's illustrious past the name of one Paddy Crerand will be to the fore.

Can't be many people who go to these dinners than haven't heard Crerands tales yet?