Mourners told of '6ft 7in gap' left behind

STATE FUNERAL OF JIM STYNES:JIM STYNES, the Dubliner who became a football legend in Australia, has left a "6ft 7in gap" in the lives of those who knew him, mourners at his funeral in Melbourne were told yesterday.

Stynes died last week aged 45, three years after being diagnosed with cancer.

He was given a state funeral, attended by family, friends, sporting colleagues and Australian politicians.

Australian prime minister Julia Gillard, who is at a summit in South Korea, was represented by Melbourne-based Labor minister Simon Crean.

As well as the 1,200 mourners in St Paul’s Anglican cathedral, police estimated there were about 16,000 people watching the funeral on a screen in the nearby Federation Square.

The funeral was also carried on four television channels.

Although Stynes was raised a Catholic, he and his wife Sam planned an ecumenical funeral.

The service was led by Dr Ray Cleary, dean of St Paul’s. The head of Catholic Social Services in Melbourne, Fr Joe Caddy, Baptist minister Paul Burnham and Anglican archbishop Philip Freier also took part in the service.

The coffin was draped in an Australian flag and adorned with white roses and ferns, while a photo montage played on large screens as mourners entered the cathedral. Sam Stynes said her husband was a loving man who put her and their children, Matisse and Tiernan, first.

“I am hoping that if I click my heels together three times, I will wake up and this is just a bad dream,” she said. “Not the case.”

“Jim wanted me to speak today. I would not wish to avoid that responsibility. We have all been influenced by Jim; his gentleness and his passion for life.”

Stynes’s brother Brian choked back tears as he spoke.

“Jim was the organiser of our family and our neighbourhood friends. If there was something going on, Jimmy would always be found in the middle with his unflagging energy and his remarkable ability to include everyone. We all wanted to be with Jim.”

He said many people had been touched by Jim during his “wonderful but too short life”.

“He leaves a 6ft 7in gap in our lives that will always be empty but I take some comfort that he will forever be in our hearts as we are forever in his.

“He was an inspiration to us all and we could not have a better son, brother and uncle. I tried following in his footsteps but they were always too big. I will miss you, my brother and my best friend,” he said.

Garry Lyon, who played at the Melbourne Demons alongside Stynes, recalled a brilliant footballer who was always ready for a laugh. “Big Jim would have loved this. He thrived on a big crowd,” Lyon said.

Stynes was also praised for his work with troubled young people through the Reach Foundation.

Paul Currie, who co-founded Reach with Stynes, spoke of a man who “learnt how to build a youth organisation by bringing people together with varying skills and a common drive to make a difference”. Stynes played 264 games for the Demons (244 of which were consecutive – a league record) and became the only foreign player to win the Brownlow Medal, which is awarded annually to the Australian Football League’s “best and fairest” player.

He also represented Australia against Ireland in the international rules series, including playing against his brother Brian. For his youth and charity work, as well as his contribution to Australian Rules football, Stynes was awarded an Order of Australia medal in 2007.

It is understood his ashes are to return to Ireland to be spread over the Dublin mountains.