Steelers country extends to pub in Ireland
By Brad BumstedTRIBUNE-REVIEWSaturday, August 12, 2006
NORTH BELFAST, Northern Ireland - There's a wee bit of Steelers mania in this northern Irish city scarred by decades of violence.
Decorated with black and gold memorabilia, the Pittsburgh Bar and Restaurant sits deep in the Ardoyne, a heavily Catholic electoral ward on the front line of the conflict known locally as the "troubles."
Tension lingers between nationalists who tend to be Catholic and unionists who are predominately Protestant. But here in Northern Ireland, which is part of the United Kingdom, all is well in this pub, where the theme is over-the-top Steelers.
A "Men of Steel" poster greets patrons as they enter. Glass-enclosed turf from Three Rivers Stadium in the shape of a shamrock adorns a wall facing the bar and a replica of the Lombardi Trophy for the Steelers' Super Bowl XL victory sits behind it, with a Steelers' banner flying overhead. The pub's general manager, Sean Murphy, proudly holds a football signed by Steelers owner Dan Rooney.
On trips to Ireland, Rooney became friends with Father Myles Kavanagh, a well-known Belfast priest who heads the Flax Trust, the development trust that owns the Pittsburgh Bar.
Responding to inquiries via e-mail, Rooney said Kavanagh has visited Pittsburgh to see the Steelers play and has attended Steelers road games. Kavanagh and his assistant, Sister Mary Turley, came up with the idea of the Pittsburgh bar theme, Rooney said.
Rooney, a co-founder of the American Ireland Fund, said he has visited the bar a few times, and has provided "Steelers stuff."
The bar features a "Dan Rooney Lounge," which is used for special events, Murphy said.
Murphy never has been to Pittsburgh and doesn't know a lot about American football. Still, the night of the Steelers' Super Bowl victory in February was special at the Pittsburgh Bar. Murphy got a big-screen TV for the event.
"We were all here. We had a party here that night," said pub patron Tommy Duffin, 45, an electrical contractor. "This place was just packed. It was half-six (6:30) in the morning when we left."
Brad Bumsted can be reached at bbumsted@tribweb.com or (717) 787-1405
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