A fallen hero: David Walsh

                                                               David Walsh

David Walsh, the sports writer, was one of my hero’s as I admired his journalistic tenacity and talent when he went after another sports hero and American icon that defined a decade or more, Lance Armstrong. He did not stop there. David looked closer to home in Ireland for yet another sporting hero, the cyclist Stephen Roche, and went after him in the year 2000 with the same zeal. David nailed Lance to the wall and rightly so but did not quite pull it off with Stephen. Overall it looked like David had slain Goliath and was mooching around for a more local victory but just not of the same high profile or pedigree. David was now the super hero himself by virtue of going after other imposters. There is always in anyones life a peak, whether it is in age or accomplishments, and the high point of David’s Walsh career was a man called Lance Armstrong. He has now fallen a lot further than Lance ever did or may ever do. This is in regard to David’s behaviour in defending the former Irish Times journalist Tom Humphries. 

                                                         Tom Humphries

Humphries went after a thirteen year child to groom her for his own sexual

gratification. He had sent her 16,000 texts in a three month period alone during that grooming and finally sexually assaulted her several times in his apartment. He was only found out when he handed his phone to his daughter to be donated to charity. He took out the sim card not realising his texts were still locked into the phone. His daughter read them and they were so graphic in nature that she handed the phone to her mother. At that moment Humphries wife not only knew that her marriage was over but the man that she was married to she had never known at all. She went to the police. That was 2010.

By 2012 David Walsh was and still is Humphries most ardent public supporter and tried to enlist a few more in that support. He asked another journalist, Paul Howard, to set up a sports magazine just for the benefit of Humphries. Paul turned him down. In a 2012 radio interview he repeatedly called Humphries a fine man. That opinion has not changed since. At least now we know what the definition of a fine man is by David’s standard when it comes to a man like Humphries where even Lance Armstrong or Stephen Roche cannot hold a candle to him. 

                                                           Donal Cusack

By 2017 David was back in court trumpeting again that Humphries, who is awaiting sentencing, was a great guy along with another fellow trumpeter, Donal Cusack. This character referencing is to try and make sure that Humphries does not get his three hots and a cot in a cell measuring 8 X4 where he belongs. Even in prison there is a moral code when it comes to child molesters. They rank at the bottom. Prisoners locked up inside have shown a more understanding of the problem than those outside underlining the rage that many of them have felt got them locked up in the first place. It must be remembered that Humphries only pleaded guilty just before the trial still looking like a rat in a trap still trying to find a way out.

Donal, a former all Ireland Cork GAA player, said, in defending his character reference about Humphries, was that he was helping a man in a dark place but failed to provide the same help to the child who had been raped with the same quality of empathy. She was no doubt in a more darker place and may never fully recover. David talked about the good volunteer work that Humphries did for the GAA sports company without considering that it was this very method he used to groom and finally assault a vulnerable child. The girl wanted to play camogie for her local GAA club and Humphries was the helpful coach.

Walsh said he could not abandon a friend. With a friend like Humphries then these two clowns have all the enemies they want who were once friends by defending him. Did Walsh and Cusack comfort his victim by their actions? No, they just made her sick to her stomach. 

The only lesson I have to remember is to beware of falling statues as they may hit you on the way down.

Barry Clifford