Karl Mullen
Karl Mullen was born on the 26th November 1926 at Courtown Harbour, Co Wexford. The family moved to Dublin and lived on Home Farm Road in Drumcondra.
In his own words Karl entered the stately portals of Belvedere College S.J. as World War 2 was breaking out in 1939. He completed his secondary education there leaving in 1944. Karl described wartime living as tough enough during the Emergency as it was called in Ireland. While according to Karl we were never hungry, there were food shortages and rationing.
Initially Rugby was just a pastime but Rugby was to become so much of his future life. His early rugby experiences included cycling to Cabra for practices and matches and sometimes playing on the principal school pitch behind Croke Park’s Cusack Stand. The ground at Jones’s road is no longer used as the school agreed to Croke Park’s request to swop the space to the GAA for a ground in nearby Distillery Road.
Karl’s early rugby career was at prop and he became a hooker when Paddy Belton. brother of wartime international Jack Belton, got injured and Karl moved to the middle of the scrum beginning the rugby career of K.D. Mullen. Karl was never on a winning School’s cup side in Belvedere but in his final year in 1944 Belvedere reached the final of the senior cup losing to Castleknock College captained by Ray Carroll. Carroll along with Karl was a member of the Irish side in the first postwar international against France in 1947.
Having completed his education in Belvedere in 1944 Karl enrolled in the Royal College of Surgeons in St Stephen’s Green and began his medical career.
Karl’s first experience of international rugby was against a New Zealand army side in 1945 captained by Charlie Sexton. The NZ side beat Ulster 10-9 and then drew 10-10 with Leinster. As the NZ side had previously beaten England, Wales and France twice, the performances of the Irish provinces were exceptional.
In late December 1945 Karl was first picked for Ireland against the British Army. Karl was one of two teenagers on the Irish side. The legendary Jack Kyle being the other. They became friends for life. The team included four other Old Belvederians, Kevin Quinn at centre, Brendan Quinn [ no relation] on the wing, Des Thorpe at scrum half and Jack Belton joining Karl in the front row.
The following season the number of Old Belvederians on the Irish side increased to 6 with Gerry Quinn playing in the so called victory international against England which saw Ireland lose 14- 6. Indeed Ireland lost all internationals that season but in 1947 beat England 22-0 a winning margin that stood for many years before being eclipsed.
The period 1948 to 1951 was one of the most successful periods in Irish Rugby. Ireland won 3 five nations championships, including the Grand Slam in 1948 and 2 Triple Crowns.
Karl talked about the personalities and the characters he played with who were forever etched in his memory. He described Tom Clifford as larger than life and whose rendering of the “One -eyed Reilly” on the Lions tour of New Zealand in 1950 made it to the top of the hit parade.
Cifford had a legendary appetite and as in those days there were no air flights the trip was by boat from Liverpool across the Atlantic, down the Panama canal, along the Pacific with the chef on the P+O liner emerging from his kitchen to request Clifford’s autograph on the menu. Clifford had eaten every item of the 23 items on the menu.
When Tom Clifford returned to Limerick as he had a noted addiction to brass bands, the corporation had a brass band on every street to greet the returning hero. The tour of New Zealand was in Karl’s own words a tremendous experience. That tour in 1950 was the first to take place after WW11, the last to travel by boat and the first to wear red.
The tour lasted nearly 6 months and he was completely in charge. No interference from officialdom. Karl was sole selector, although he co-opted the legendary Welsh centre Bleddyn Williams to assist. The trip may have lasted nearly 6 months but despite there being players from 4 countries, all was harmonious, no rows or arguments. It was, in short, a happy ship and they were known as “The Singing Lions” as that is what they did throughout the whole tour. In all they played 30 games on that tour including 4 tests in New Zealand and 2 in Australia. They drew one and lost 3 of the tests in NZ but won both in Australia.
Looking back on the Irish colleagues Karl was associated with he mentions Jack Kyle, as the best, most instinctively skilful back. Sheer genius. He praises the backrow of Jim McCarthy, Des O’Brien [Old Belvedere) and Bill McKay. as the backrow of all the virtues. Then there was also Jack Daly from Cobh. Brilliant. Daly who was a parachutist during the war was according to Karl definitely the best front row forward he ever played with. In Karl’s words Daly could have played in any position. He was as tough as nails. Daly it was who scored the try that won the match against Wales in Ravenhill in 1948 to secure Ireland’s first ever Grand Slam.
Karl won two Leinster Senior Cups with Old Belvedere in 1951 and 1952 before he retired in 1952 with 25 caps when he was only 25 and went on to enjoy a distinguished medical career. He was a fellow of the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists and he worked in Dublin’s Mount Carmel Hospital for over 40 years before retiring in 2002.
When he ended his Rugby playing days he continued to be involved in the game serving as Chairman of the Irish Selectors and as President of the Leinster Branch IRFU in 1963/64 and of Old Belvedere in 1973/4.
Karl Mullen and his wife Doreen were described as “people gatherers” and they had 8 children-Louise [decd], Anna, Niamh, Mary and Gaye, Karl jnr, Paul and Marc. One of his grandchildren is the Olympic Show jumper Cian O Connor and another the former model Pippa O Connor – Ormond.
Karl was one of 8 players from the 1948 Grand Slam winning team who lived to witness Ireland winning only its second Grand Slam when dramatically beating Wales 17/15 in Cardiff on 21st March 2009-61 years later.
He died just 5 weeks afterwards on 27th April. He was 82 and had been predeceased by Doreen.
At his funeral it was said that Karl had delivered enough babies in his life to fill Lansdowne Road. Ironically, one of those babies he had delivered was Fiona Coughlan the captain of the first and so far only women’s Grand Slam winning team in 2013.
“We had great days Jack we had great days” Karl had said on his death bed to his great friend Jack Kyle who gave a beautiful eulogy at his funeral. How right he was.
