Tributes were paid yesterday to the Cork footballer Mick McCarthy, who was one of two people killed in a two-car collision outside Cork late on Wednesday night.
Mr McCarthy, from Skibbereen, was killed when the car in which he was a passenger collided with another at Inchera in Little Island, on the newly opened East Cork Parkway, near Dunkettle.
The driver of the car, Mr Jack Pat Collins, a native of Skibbereen, also died, while a third man, Mr Dan O'Brien, was in a comfortable condition yesterday in Cork University Hospital.
The three were returning from a coursing meeting at Clonmel when the accident happened.
Mr McCarthy (33) played senior football for Cork from 1987 to 1993, winning All-Ireland medals in 1989 and 1990 and captaining the side in their 1993 All-Ireland defeat by Derry.
He also won a Cork County Championship medal with his club, O'Donovan Rossa, in 1992 and later captained them when they won the All-Ireland Club Championship in 1993.
His former Cork coach, Mr Billy Morgan, said Mr McCarthy had made a significant contribution to Cork football in the late 1980s and early 1990s.
"I first met Mick when I was in New York and he played for Leitrim, and when I got involved with Cork, he was one of the players I brought on to the panel.
"He played in the 1988 final, but it was the following year he really made an impact. He came on as a sub in the final against Mayo and scored a couple of great points that swung the game.
"He started the 1990 All-Ireland final against Meath and again got some excellent scores before he had to go off injured. He really was an excellent footballer and one of the most popular fellows on the team," he said.
The current Cork coach, Mr Larry Tompkins, a teammate of Mr McCarthy throughout the late 1980s and early 1990s, also paid tribute to the Skibbereen player.
"It's a devasting blow. He was a character, respected to the full not alone in his own area but throughout the country. I was lucky to have played with him because he was an outstanding footballer," Mr Tompkins said.
The former O'Donovan Rossa chairman, Mr Noel Kearney, said the club and town were stunned by the tragic loss. "We knew Mick McCarthy as probably one of the greatest footballers the area has produced," he said.
Mr McCarthy is survived by his wife, Helen, and their two-year-old son, Stephen. The other victim, Mr Collins, was single and was well known in racing circles.