The Irish influence on Hockey

When I first heard the term as an 11 year old I thought it sounded so cool. I think it was my older brother who said it. We were watching a wild, wild brawl erupt between the Boston Bruins and the New York Rangers at Madison Square Garden — on the ice, along the boards, up the glass and it appeared some of the ‘gentlemanly’ fans in the Garden were trying to participate in it as well.

“It’s a full scale Donnybrook”, said my brother as he took vicarious enjoyment at seeing NYR defenseman, Jim Nielsen, railing on Boston’s Derek Sanderson. I am sure using ‘full scale’ to modify the word Donnybrook is redundant anyways.

I believe the term came from Donnybrook, Dublin or the Donnybrook Fair …and it must have been some fair to have the name synonymous with any wild scale brawl.

And the Irish have so many names that conjure up images and define people if not their role. In hockey if you are a brawler- you may be a Hooligan! And if you are a Shanahan……you probably run the Leafs …..and if you are a Quinn you probably have run most teams in the league.

But I wonder what it must have been like living in Ireland on some crescent. You had the Shenanigans one side playing tricks on everyone in your household and on the other the Hooligans on the front lawn fighting –only to combine and cross the street for a fight with the Donnybrooks. And at the house in the corner the Mulligans probably watched this all occurring from their front porch saying

‘Can we see this again?’