Death of former Offaly footballer and renowned trainer

THE death has taken place of a former Offaly footballer and a renowned trainer of teams.

Kilcormac man Jimmy Dunne died before Christmas and will be buried in Kilcormac on Wednesday after Requiem Mass in the local Church.

From Broughal, Jimmy was very well known in his work life as a long time physical education teacher in St Brendan's Community School in Birr and in GAA circles as a former Offaly footballer while his exploits as a trainer won him local fame and admiration.

He is also one of a very elite group of Offaly men with All-Ireland club senior football medals, winning one on a star studded Thomond College team in 1978 while he was the physical trainer as Offaly won the National Hurling League in 1991. He also trained Offaly senior footballers, under Pat Fitzgerald in the early 1990s.

A nice, friendly man, he was a passionate football man but made a huge contribution to Kilcomac-Killoughey's big hurling breakthrough in the early 2010s – with Danny Owens as manager, Jimmy was the physical trainer and a selector as K-K won their first Senior Hurling Championship in 2012 and went onto complete a hat-trick in 2013 and 2014. He was the trainer as they won the Leinster club title in 2012 and went onto reach the All-Ireland final in 2013, losing to St Thomas of Galway.

He is also remembered with great fondness in Rhode. He was the physical trainer as Rhode ended a long 23 year famine by winning the 1998 Senior Football Championship, beating Edenderry in the final. Offaly football hero and new Rhode GAA chairman Eugene Mulligan was the manager with Johnny Mooney and Martin Kerrigan selectors.

That was a hugely important win for Rhode and again Dunne's input was significant. Rhode had a traumatic enough few years after that as they couldn't get the better of a powerful Edenderry for a few years, suffering a couple of devastating final defeats to them as well as one to Clara in 2003 and by the time they won their next title in 2004, Stephen Darby was at the helm – that sparked the most sustained, consistent run of dominance in Offaly football.

While football was his main game, his driving passion in sport, he was very important to K-K's great run from 2012 to 2014. The management package of him, manager Danny Owens and selector Tommy Bracken worked very well at that time. They all brought different attributes and personalties to the table, offering different aspects to players and it all helped to create a winning combination that could not be stopped in Offaly for three years and almost led to the ultimate and All-Ireland glory.

The dismissal of Killian Leonard and Damien Kilmartin in the second half were big factors as K-K lost narrowly, 1-11 to 1-9 to St Thomas in the 2013 All-Ireland final but an even bigger one was the absence of Dan Currams through injury. Currams had broken a bone in a challenge game in Kilkenny the week before the final and playing the game came in for some criticism afterwards but Jimmy Dunne defended that decision – noting that they had played a challenge game the week before every game that year, then tapering off to get ready for action and this had worked very well for them.

While K-K is now very much a hurling club, there was a strong tradition of football in Kilcormac for decades. Kilcormac had reached the Offaly Senior Football Championship final in 1986, losing to Ferbane, the year before their 1987 amalgamation with Kilcormac – that was the start of Ferbane's great five in a row run.

Jimmy Dunne was wing forward as Kilcormac lost heavily, 1-16 to 0-5 in that final: Brendan Clarke was the Kilcormac manager that year but opted out for the final as he couldn't face his native Ferbane. Jimmy was in the tailend of his career at that stage and hurling quickly gained ascendancy after the 1987 amalgamation.

Jimmy had gravitated towards football from a young age. His father Michael was from Little Isdland in Daingean and his early death when Jimmy was just nine months of age had a profound impact on his early years. He really became immersed in football as a secondary school boarder in St Finian's in Mullingar. St Finian's was a powerful football nursery in the 1970s and while Jimmy stated later that he would have liked to have played more hurling, the principal there, Fr Duignan “wouldn't allow a hurl in the gates”.

He had a great time playing football in school, retaining great memories of battles with famed strongholds such as St Mel's Longford; Gormanstown; and Carmelite of Moate.

He was a good forward and won Offaly Minor Football Championship medals with Na Piarsaigh (then the underage club for Kilcormac and Killoughey) in 1973 and 1975 – he missed the drawn final in 1975 with Walsh Island as he was in London and played with Thomas McCurtain's on that day over there but he was back for the replay and played an important part as they won. He won an U-21 football medal with them in 1976, as they beat a talented Walsh Island side in the final. That earned him the captaincy of the Offaly U-21 football side in 1977 and he played in the first round but then went to Chicago and was there as Offaly won the Leinster title.

He played minor, U-21 and senior football for Offaly. His one senior championship appearance was in an easy win over Wicklow in 1977 but he was gone to America for a notorious defeat to Wexford in their next game – a result that almost scuppered Eugene McGee's reign as manager before it got motoring. He played seven National Football League games with Offaly from 1977 to 1979 and was on the panel as they won the Leinster title in 1980 but he didn't feature that year.

He had the opportunity of staying on the panel after that but he wasn't getting games and opted out. Offaly won a famous All-Ireland in 1982 and he admitted that he regretted not hanging in there.

His exploits with Thomond College are part of his legacy. He was one of the early batch of PE students in the Limerick college, attending there from the mid 1970s. Before that, Irish people wishing to become PE teachers had to go to Strawberry Hills in London and Thomond College soon had an exceptional football team. Third level colleges could compete in the provincial and All-Ireland club championships at that time – Kevin Kilmurray, who also died recently, won medals with UCD in the 1970s – and Thomond College defeated Nemo Rangers and St John's of Antrim to win the Munster and All-Ireland club titles in 1977-1978. Jimmy was wing forward on a team that included Kerry heroes, Pat and Mick Spillane and Galway's Brian Talty.

He was the captain when Kilcormac won the Centenary Cup in football in 1984 and after his playing career ended, he became a prolific trainer of teams.

In his work in St Brendan's Community School in Birr, he played an important role in the early development of many fantastic Offaly hurlers. While he was not involved much in the great teams that won Leinster and All-Ireland colleges titles in the 1980s, he was an exceptional PE teacher and helped instil a lot of fitness fundamentals in an outstanding crop of young players.

Offaly 1981 All-Ireland hurling winning captain, Padraig Horan was also a teacher in the school and when he became Offaly manager in 1991 and 1992, he brought Jimmy on board as his trainer – it was a very transitional period for Offaly hurling but they did leave their mark as the National Hurling League was won for the first and only time in 1991, beating Wexford in the final in Croke Park.

Rhode in 1998 was his first really big exposure to training club football teams and he also trained Gracefield and Doon senior footballers, along with several others at various grades. He brought Doon to a senior football semi-final in the 2000s, where they ran Rhode close and he regarded that as one of his best training achievements.

Predeceased by his parents Annie and Michael, baby sister Mary Rose-Anne, Auntie Mary and Uncle Malachy Lynam, he is survived by his loving, devoted wife and best friend Mary, daughter Emma, his sons Owen, Brian and Cormac and daugthers in law Jen and Aisling.

Reposing at Boyd’s funeral home, Birr Co Offaly ( R42 YF75) on Tuesday December 27th from 4pm until 7pm. Funeral Mass at the Church of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Kilcormac on Wednesday December 28th at 11am followed by burial in St Joseph’s Cemetery, Kilcormac.