‘Who’s running the zoo here?’ asks Teddy McCarthy after being denied entry to Croke Park
By Stephen Barry
He would have been the first and maybe the last man to be honoured in the same year's hurling and football jubilee teams, but Teddy McCarthy didn’t make in inside the entrance to Croke Park yesterday.
A heated argument between the 1990 dual All-Ireland winner and a member of the match-day staff lead to McCarthy hitting the road back to Cork long before the football final had even thrown-in.
Speaking to SportsJoe.ie, McCarthy recounted how he was directed to three entrances with his ticket before losing his temper, saying “they were treating me like I was some bowzy in a nightclub.”
“They sent me in three different directions and finally sent me back to the first guy,” said McCarthy. “I asked ‘Who's in charge here?’ and there was obviously something in my tone of voice. Things got a bit heated and they told me to come back in an hour.
“We each had a word and then the head of security came down to talk to me through the glass. I grabbed the ticket off him and yer man got irked by that.”
Continued McCarthy, “I went back down the road towards Cork and stopped along the way to watch the game.
“Seán Kelly and a few more rang me to tell me to come back in, everything had been sorted, but I was past the point of no return at that stage. It was quarter-to-twelve in the morning and they were treating me like I was some bowzy in a nightclub.”
McCarthy achieved legendary status in a fortnight in 1990 by winning both Liam MacCarthy and Sam Maguire with Cork.
He added that he won’t lose sleep over the argument, which led to manager of the 1990 team Billy Morgan standing in for McCarthy during the on-pitch introductions.
“I won't lose any sleep over it but it was a bit annoying. I had a ticket and a luncheon ticket, what did they want me to do?
“Let's be honest, I got irked. I was very annoyed. I asked, ‘Who's running the zoo here?’
“I was there two weeks ago for the hurling final and I had no trouble getting in.”
