They're not yet organising Irish language classes and ceilidhe in the local
gospel hall, but the DUP in Co Tyrone are certainly shattering stereotypes.
Step forward council candidate Denver Thompson, the first Dup-er with a GAA
background. Until now an 'interesting past' in DUP terms meant a few days
at Her Majesty's pleasure following an over-exuberant protest.
Thompson's distinction is to have played for the Thomas Clarke Gaelic
Football Club from 1980-82. He even won an intermediate league medal. He's
standing in the Blackwater ward for Dungannon Borough Council.
His election is by no means assured. Every vote will count and he wonders
if his sporting record may even secure him Catholic transfers. He grew up
in Moygashel, a staunchly Protestant village where the GAA was hardly
popular.
Catholic lads with whom he played soccer got him interested. "It wasn't to
make any grand political statement, I just loved sport.
"I was a big strapping fellow - 6 ft and 15 stone. I wasn't bad at football
and one of the friends suggested Gaelic and I said, 'I'm game for that'."
He didn't socialise much in GAA clubs but "would have a few pints after the
match with the boys".
He didn't know the club was named after a 1916 leader: "I hadn't a clue who
Thomas Clarke was, he could have been the man on the moon." Everybody was
friendly and he experienced no sectarianism.
At the time, he didn't think about rule 21 (now gone) which caused unionist
ire by barring security force members. Allowing soccer and rugby at Croke
Park was "the right thing to do". It will "make the GAA a lot of money and
should have been done years ago".
Thompson (47) joined the DUP last year, impressed with its record on
"bread-and-butter issues". He works as a security guard in a local
supermarket where Catholic work-mates joke that he'll be on this year's GAA
All-Star team.
He's not an avid GAA follower nowadays but watches if Tyrone's playing: "I
like to see them doing well. It's my county after all".
