Peerless Tom Malone, Kilfarboy

[Sduddy]

I was lucky enough to get a copy of Kilfarboy: a history of a West Clare parish in a second hand bookshop the other day – the book was published sometime in the early 1970s. The author is Seosamh MacMathuna: http://oac.ie/site/content/kilfarboy-hi ... are-parish. One chapter is entitled “Peerless Tom Malone”, and, reading about Tom Malone (1857-1919), I think he deserves to be included among Clare People: https://www.clarelibrary.ie/eolas/cocla ... ople.htm#m.
There is an entry on him in the Dictionary of Irish Biography: https://www.dib.ie/biography/malone-thomas-a5424.
See also this piece by singersong: https://singersongblog.me/2020/02/20/pe ... -champion/
See also this article by “Celt” published in An Camán in May 1933: http://www.limerickcity.ie/media/An%20C ... %20n20.pdf. A note at the end says, “This series of sketches of the careers of some Irish Athletes of Renown appeared many years ago in a Dublin periodical and were revised on the strength of later authentick publication, and now re-appear for the first time”
Plus, I see that there’s a book, Peerless Tom Malone, by Kieran Sheedy (86 pages), published 2000 by Bauroe Publications.

“Peerless Tom Malone” is the title of a poem written in his honour by Seosamh MacMathuna:

We talk with pride of the men who died
Our native land to free,
Of the men who for the goal they sought
In the Cause of Liberty

Now let us sing and our voices ring
Of a man who was one of our own
A man who brought fame to Miltown’s name
The Peerless Tom Malone

Reared in this town he brought renown
Where’er athletes are praised
Across the world our flag unfurled
By his proud hand was raised
In distant Melbourne, where the hot suns burn
He fought and won alone
All records he broke, and honours took
The Peerless Tom Malone

There are names today where’er you stray
As fireside lore they know
MacSweeny, Brugha and Barry too
Who gave back blow for blow
But when they fete a great athlete
Who showed them brawn and bone
They jump to their feet, for the man never beat
The Peerless Tom Malone

A flash in the pan by those who ran
Who jumped, who raced, who slung,
Twas no such thing, for still we have men
With Marathon honours hung
Morony and Murray, McMahon and Flynn
To name but a few of our own
They have blazoned the track, and led the pack
Like Peerless Tom Malone

May we long have athletes that dare such feats
And bring honour to our native town
On field or track we ne’er did lack
Good men and brave ones too
In war or sport they proved their worth
And always held their own
They fought and lost nor count the cost
Like the Peerless Tom Malone

May we live again with men like them
From Barr na Sraide to Bohar na Breena
From Tom Daniel’s ray to the shores of Malbay
From Rineen’s black Hills to Terry’s old mills
May we all be one in the years to come
To work for the town and our own
To stick to our guns till the fight is won
Like The Peerless Tom Malone