Bucks niteclub in Dundrum was our spot in the late 90s/early 00s. It was the parish next door but buses would be travel from an hour away to bring crowds. They came from Limerick, Nenagh, Charleville and Carrick. I can remember Paul Curran (Tipp hurler) getting a clipping from a neighbour of @peddlerscross. As was mentioned earlier, it was all about fights and not the niteclub. I only came on as it was winding down but lads older than me could write a book on it with stories. A lad from Pallas brought a chainsaw in one night to sort a fued.
The fights started to die down in the 00s. More lads went to college and became less parochial. Also the influx of eastern Europeans taught a lot of Irish lads about real fighting. A hardy polish lad dressed in all white and fuelled by straight vodka could easily put away 3/4 Irish lads full of fat frogs and Budweiser
Definitely the numbers going to college has taken a lot of the sting out of things. Before lads would be able to stew on something all week and know that theyâd get a go at whoever put in or out on them on the next Saturday night. Now fellas might be away for weeks at a time so the heat goes out of situations. Bar the lads on a trigger who will react straight away.
I donât know how someone wasnât killed in Newcastle West when I was going there. Youâd see some misfortune laying unconscious on the ground outside Whispers Nightclub all the time back then
Thereâs less fighting because young lads donât get as messy drunk as before for a few different reasons. It does however seem that when fights happen they are more brutal.
I remember being in Newcastle west the last night of the 2 euro drinks.
A lad I know was about to get knocked into next week outside a chipper when a current member of the Limerick hurling panel dived across and tackled my friend out of the way.
I still remember the wind up.
I think I was at the very last Tuesday night
Madness in ballybunion too. Iâd no I.D. It was complete carnage.
I dunno. I saw a car get driven into a crowd of lads one night. While another night I saw a fella stand on a lads chest and bate him with a broken scaffolding bar.
There are a lot of factors for it dying off in the country compared to what it was - mainly socio economic I would have thought - young people are far more educated, less parochial and have a bit more freedom of expression these days compared to 30 or 40 years ago. The small village/town mentality is far less prevalent these days too as work, ability to travel, other options to socialise etc became far more accessible.
A big thing is the demise of the rural nightclub. Lads wouldnât be congregating in the same numbers on neutral ground. Thereâs never half the amount of fighting on nights out in Limerick compared to NCW & Montys
Itâs like anything. Back in the day there was probably too much drinking being done by young people but now they are never out.
Like thereâs very little âthirsty Thursdaysâ or âMonday clubsâ these days as young people prefer to spend their money on a Tommy Hilfiger jacket or pair of runners.
Same experience as that. Young lads donât get let in many places in Limerick, but when they go further afield they lose the run of themselves altogether. Youâd see more Limerix of that vintage arrested in Lahinch and Kilkee than would ever be in Henry St
A crowd from Loughrea were under serious pressure in New Inn one night as rival parishes combined for a short term merger. They retreated to the bus but had trouble keeping the orks at bay. They eventually gave up waiting for the bus driver and drove it back themselves. They left the bus at the town sign and walked the rest of the way in. The driver couldnât explain why he didnât drive it all the way in.
