Davy Tweed, former Irish international, dies in road accident

Snickers Man

The Irish Times is reporting that Davy Tweed who played for Ballymena, Ulster and Ireland as a lock in the 1990s, has died following a motorcycle accident in Antrim.

Tweed had to wait until he was 35 years old to earn his first cap. He is believed to have been the oldest ever debutant in the Irish team. He was a tough man mountain of an Ulster forward, once described by Neil Francis as one of the few genuinely hard men he had encountered in Irish rugby. Newspaper articles preferred the euphemism "uncompromising".

He was tried several times for underage sex offences, cleared on a couple of occasions before finally being convicted and jailed. However, that conviction was later quashed and he was not retried, having already spent some time in prison.

His political affiliations showed what a remarkable institution the Irish Rugby team continues to be; he was a hard-headed Ulster Orangeman who represented Paisley's Democratic Unionist Party in Ballymena Council before defecting to the even more hardline Traditional Unionist Voice. He was also prominent some years ago in demonstrations in Ballymena that sought to prevent members of the Catholic minority in the town from attending Sunday Mass, as part of a protest against the Parades Commission's rulings preventing Orange Order marches from parading through Catholic areas where they were decidedly unwelcome.

None of which prevented him lining out in green under the tricolour, standing up for Amhrán na bhFiann (at least in Dublin) and playing his heart out for the Irish cause. Truly there are strange bedfellows in an Irish pack!

A complex character indeed.

RIP.

https://www.irishtimes.com/sport/rugby/ireland-rugby-international-david-tweed-dies-in-motorbike-crash-1.4714035

Fr Tod Umptious

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/2058215477/davy-tweed-former-irish-international-dies-in-road-accident

I know it's a long time ago and in the amateur era (well at the trail end of it) but has anyone with such a strong set of views as regards the situation in NI played for Ireland since ?

I'm guessing not, because things are more normal up there and also because of professionalism.

The people playing the game now are so single minded in their focus on playing at that level that things like politics and religion are not even on their radar.

Atlantic Dawn

I see comments closed on The Journal for the story.

Teferi

Of all the people that ever lived, Davy Tweed was certainly one of them.

Larbre34

I'm not trolling one bit when I say, no loss.

A dreadful bigot and a domestic abuser, prior to any child abuse charges. Although his child abuse convictions were quoshed, it was on a point of law and not an evidential matter pertaining to the substance of the case. The matter of a retrial was still pending.

A vile individual.

jmayo

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118091008#Comment_118091008

Wasn't he involved in one of the protests like the Holy Cross School protest ?

Looking at his beliefs and the likes of his targeting the family of a 15 year old catholic lad beaten to death in Ballymena, he was the type of character that made the North the mess it was.

Yeah he was "uncompromising" alright. 🙄

Roxxers

karma

StevenToast

Tweed and neil francis....

I didnt think there could be a bigger pr1ck than francis....

Losty Dublin

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118090924#Comment_118090924

Not shocking given how many trolls live under that bridge.

tayto lover

Wasn’t he a convicted child abuser? If so it’s no loss.

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118093569#Comment_118093569

He was, spent several years in prison for it, had conviction overturned on some technicality and wasn't retried because of the time he'd served. Had various other run-ins with the law for other things.

Paul Smeenus

Oh well never mind somehow we'll soldier on through

Ash.J.Williams

His daughter has broken her silence and expressed her joy at his death , he was scum.