Roy Keane’s Dog – Triggs

In the immediate aftermath of the Saipan affair Roy Keane was photographed and filmed walking his golden labrador, Triggs, near Keane’s home in Cheshire. Indeed it is such an abiding image that Triggs gained her own degree of notoriety.

During the media blizzard that descended upon the Keane family home poor Triggs had missed out on her exercise walks. An hour after arriving home from Saipan, and at the suggestion of his wife, Keane decided to take Triggs out for a walk, “Come on girl, we’re going for a walk” and so Keane and Triggs emerged into the media scrum outside his home in the leafy Cheshire suburb.

The image of Triggs bouncing playfully alongside Keane as he strode out stoney-faced, as though in defiance of the opprobrium being heaped on him by the pro-McCarthy camp, is one that anyone old enough to remember the Saipan episode will recall forever.

Rumours of Triggs’ Demise in 2010 Greatly Exaggerated

In 2010 rumours emerged that the golden Labrador Triggs had passed away. These may have had their origin in the fact that Keane’s pet had been diagnosed with a cancerous tumour during that year.

With appropriate canine treatment Triggs managed to live on for a further two years.

Keane Confirms the Death of Triggs in 2012

During his annual trip to Ireland to support the Irish Guide Dogs for the Blind charity it emerged that one of the most famous dogs in the World of sport had indeed succumbed to the tumour that she had contracted in 2010. At a press conference in early May 2012 Keane revealed that 13 year old Triggs had passed way. These were his comments at the press conference as reported by Mary Hannigan of the Irish Times:

Triggs – The Autobiography of Roy Keane’s Dog

Triggs may be gone but she won’t be forgotten – and not just because of those media images from the Summer of 2002. “Triggs – The Autobiography of Roy Keane’s Dog” was released in June 2012. Paul Howard, the man behind Ross O’Carroll-Kelly, is penning the warts-and-all autobiography that will reveal the innermost thoughts of Keane’s canine companion as they shared the roller-coaster ride that has been the Corkman’s life over the past ten years.

NOTE: Unless stated otherwise all quotations are from:
Keane: The Autobiography; Roy Keane with Eamon Dunphy (2002); Michael Joseph Ltd

Thanks to the Irish Times for the kind permission to reproduce the above from reporter Mary Hannigan’s piece in the newspaper on Friday 4th May 2012.

Roy Keane – Flawed Character

Back to Saipan Affair Table of Contents – Irish Football

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