Jim Bennett
A tribute to a gentle man.
Seamus Clinton, 3 June 1942 – 26 November 2021
Seamus Clinton was born on the 3 June 1942. He was a family man, a farmer, a cricket man, a person of great integrity, and a gentleman. In the early years of his cricketing career, along with his brother, Joe, he played for Balrothery, and in 1969, he was one of the people who founded The Hills CC at a meeting in the Holmpatrick Hotel. From that day until he was incapacitated by his recent illness, he always wanted to help The Hills in any way that he could. He was captain when The Hills played St John Bosco CC in the Civil Service ground in The Hills’ first game in Leinster League cricket. He faced the first ball that was bowled in The Vineyard when The Hills played Knockbrack’s Second 11.
Seamus held many offices in The Hills, not because he was interested in status, but because he wanted to contribute to the club that he loved. He served as Treasurer for many years and kept meticulous accounts in a small notebook. He was Team Secretary from 1974 until 2012, with a few short breaks during this period, and he was such a respected figure in Leinster cricket that he was able to make fixtures with all the other clubs without too much difficulty or disagreement. Re-fixes were the bane of his life, and during the summer months, it sometimes became necessary to hide the phone bill because of the number of calls that he had to make to get the last few games played. He was Chairperson of The Hills CC in 1986, and more recently, as President of The Hills CC, he was a wonderful ambassador for the club.
Seamus did not confine his administrative activities to The Hills. He was a member of the Junior Branch Committee of the Leinster Cricket Union for years, and he also served as Treasurer of the Fingal League. Until the Fingal League ceased to function in 2012, Seamus Clinton was its President, and his role on this committee gave him opportunities to reminisce with many legendary Fingal cricket people. Seamus’s recall of events, especially the early years of The Hills, was phenomenal, and this characteristic was wonderfully in evidence at the events which were held to celebrate The Hills 50th Anniversary and the tribute to the Fingal League.
As a farmer, Seamus was in a position to give seasonal work to many of the younger Hills’ players, and the extra pocket money was very much appreciated by the players and their parents. Productivity tended not to be great on Mondays during the cricket season as each Hills’ game had to be analysed in detail.
As a person, Seamus was always interested in everybody’s well-being. Any phone call from him commenced with enquiries about family members before there was any conversation on the main purpose of the call, and indeed at times, the only purpose of the call was to see how everybody was doing. He was not given to showing his feelings, but in a crisis, he was always a tower of strength, none more so than when Olivia, his daughter, was killed in an accident.
Seamus’s family meant everything to him. Margaret and Seamus were wonderful hosts, and nobody ever left their house at Strifeland without having had tea, a sandwich, some cake, and lots of conversation. He was very proud of his children and grandchildren and was a constant source of support for them.
Seamus was a man of great faith who lived his life in accordance with those values. He was a person who saw the good in everyone, whether that was in business, in social contexts or on the cricket field. To his beloved wife, Margaret, his son, Derek, his daughters, Marguerite and Caroline, his treasured grandchildren, his relatives, and friends, we extend our deepest sympathies. The cricket community of The Hills, Fingal and Leinster is bereft .
Ar dheis Dé, go raibh a anam dílis.
