The late, great Mick O'Dwyer.
GAA President Jarlath Burns has extended the sympathies of the Association to the family of the late Kerry hero Mick O’Dwyer who has passed away at the age of 88.
Born in Waterville in 1936, the man synonymous with the moniker ‘Micko’ first played for the Kerry senior football team in 1956 and would go on to have an extraordinary success laden career as a player and later manager – successfully coaching the Kingdom and later Kildare, Laois, Wicklow and Clare.
Initially a defender, he switched to attack with great effect and was regularly among the game’s top marksmen. His success as a player would be eclipsed by the passion and energy that defined his managerial career that make him football’s most successful ever coach and a man who had a central role in the evolution of Gaelic football.
Uachtarán CLG, Jarlath Burns, said: “The passing of the great Mick O’Dwyer marks the loss of not just a Kerry legend but one of the true giants and icons of Gaelic games.
“He was, quite simply, the man with the Midas touch.
“The spell he weaved with that magnificent Kerry team of the 70s and 80s was a magic that was as intoxicating for us in South Armagh as it was in his own beloved South Kerry. The sideline battle of wits that he waged with Kevin Heffernan and Eugene McGee not only defined a generation for GAA fans, but they elevated Gaelic football to a whole new height and popularity.
“Before all of that, he had been an incredible footballer in his own right, playing senior inter-county football for 18 years, winning four All-Irelands and eight national league medals and was Footballer of the Year in 1969.
“His switch from playing retirement in 1974 to an All-Ireland winning manager in 1975 is one of the greatest comeback stories in GAA history, going on to win the Sam Maguire eight times in a golden 11-year period.
“Charismatic, clever and a shrewd judge of character, the provincial success he would enjoy coaching Kildare and Laois and the silverware he landed with Wicklow underscored his genius at getting the best out of players.
“His passion for cars was only outpaced by the grá for Gaelic football that constantly stirred in him and had him coaching local underage teams in Waterville up to the age of 79.
“There will only ever be one Micko, and while his passing is an enormous loss to his close family and great many friends, amongst the wider GAA family his memory will forever be celebrated and remembered, and we will be forever thankful that he was one of our own.
“Go dtuga Dia suaimhneas síoraí dó.”
