Drink and disorder in a beautiful Sydney suburb

THE SYDNEY beachside suburb of Coogee entered the minds of Irish people with brutal force last week through the violent death there of Dubliner Gearóid Walsh (23), writes PÁDRAIG COLLINS, in Sydney

In August last year Corkman David Keohane (30) was viciously assaulted just up the street from where Walsh was attacked. He was flown back to Ireland while still in a coma, from which he emerged on St Patrick’s Day.

Tobias Simmons (28) has been charged with the manslaughter of Walsh, and Thomas Isaako (20) has been charged with the attempted murder of Keohane.

Coogee, with its long beach and four sea pools, is beautiful. Irish singer Luka Bloom has eulogised it twice in songs. In Salt Water, he sings “Where ocean waves meet the Coogee stone, my skin tingles in its southern home”. In I Love The World I’m In, he sings “They’re rowing out from Coogee, there’s yoga by the shore, there’s five-a-side on the oval grass, could you ask for more?”

Bondi has a reputation of being so Irish it’s called County Bondi, but three beaches south, the much smaller Coogee is increasingly popular with Irish and British backpackers. The focal point for much backpacker activity is the beachfront Coogee Bay Hotel (CBH).

In recent years Coogee has gained a reputation as a violent suburb, where alcohol-related fights are common. Recent figures show CBH has the second highest assault rate of any pub in New South Wales.

Local mayor Bruce Notley-Smith says: "Anyone who lives in Coogee will know and have experienced the ongoing anti-social behaviour and some of the violence that goes on down there." Gary Seeley (26) from Co Armagh lived in Coogee when he first arrived in Sydney. "I lived five minutes' walk from the Coogee Bay Hotel," he told The Irish Times.

“There are lots of Irish, English, Swedish, Canadians and others in the various backpacker hostels there, and they all go to the same pubs and clubs.” He says during the day the CBH beer garden “is a fantastic place”, but this changes after dark. “You never felt welcome [at night],” he says.

“Coogee’s reputation is now preceding it. It is a dangerous spot for backpackers. You would think twice before heading on a night out there.”

Billy Cantwell, editor of the Sydney-based Irish Echo newspaper, says there are longstanding problems in the suburb. “The head of trauma at the local Prince of Wales hospital told me he wishes Irish backpackers were issued with crash helmets when they arrived in Australia. He said you always hear Irish accents in the accident and emergency department on a Saturday night.”

Cantwell says there is no link between the Walsh and Keohane cases. “We’ve had two incidents involving Irish nationals in the space of 12 months, but we have to differentiate one from the other. The Keohane case was a vicious assault. The Walsh case looks more like what his mother intimated it was — a dreadful accident. His brother did the right thing, what any friend should do, he told him to walk away. But, unfortunately, he didn’t.”

A culture of drinking to excess seems to be the root cause of much of the behaviour seen in Coogee.

“Many Irish backpackers are away from home for the first time and are cutting loose. In some ways it is no different from what they’d be doing in Ireland, but there is no closing time restraint here. It’s a 24-hour party. You are out late, partying, drinking and, in some cases, drugs are taken,” says Cantwell.

“If you put yourself in those circumstances, the risk is heightened that you’ll get involved in some kind of fight. It puts you in a vulnerable situation. It’s a combination of a hangover from the Celtic Tiger years and Sydney’s hedonistic lifestyle. You can drink all night – and some people do.”

Increased drunkenness among young Irish people has been noted by many, says Cantwell.

“A musician friend of mine plays in backpacker bars and has seen changes in Irish backpacker behaviour in recent years. He tells me, ‘Your countrymen are out of control’. He says both Irish men and Irish women are absolutely full to the gills at shows he plays.”

Despite his concerns, Cantwell says Coogee and its surrounds are still a good place for backpackers. “I would say Sydney beaches are not unsafe for Irish nationals. I don’t think the Irish are being targeted in any way,” he said.

Det Supt Shayne Woolbank, head of Sydney’s Eastern Beaches police command, backs this up. He says that while there are “a large number of Irish backpackers in Coogee” there was “no racial element” involved in the fight that led to Gearóid Walsh’s death.