Congratulations have been pouring in for sailing legends Neville and Jean Maguire of Howth, who celebrated their 69th Wedding Anniversary in yesterday’s balmy weather aboard their Seaward 23 motor-cruiser Two Much in Howth Marina. These days, they’re best-known internationally as the parents of Australian-based international sailing superstar Gordon Maguire. But it took Gordon many years of top-level sailing achievement before his sailing record began to match that of his super-talented father, whose very varied sailing experience goes right back to the 1930s when he crewed at a very young age for noted designed and cruiser-racer skipper John B Kearney aboard the famous Mavis.
While still a schoolboy, Neville was a champion helm in the Mermaids, and in 1952 and again in 1954, he won the All-Ireland Helmsmans Championship. A much sought-after helmsman for boats of all sizes, with his own craft he won many inshore and offshore championships in everything from Olympic Finns through Dragons to Shamrock Half Tonners. Throughout all these busy times afloat and ashore (for Neville is also an engineer and model-maker to international standards), Jean has been supportively at his side, and Nevllle in his turn is both very much the family man, and someone who contributes greatly to the community, having been a quietly busy voluntary worker on many projects for Howth Yacht Club over the years.
We join all Irish sailing in heartfelt congratulations to this remarkable couple, who contribute so much to Irish sailing.