Hundreds pay tribute to former Irish coach

NOEL O'REILLY'S FUNERAL:THE WORLD needed more people like Noel O'Reilly, the chief celebrant at his funeral Mass in Dublin said yesterday.

Fr Joseph O'Reilly said the former football coach had been a rare person who was "prepared to go that extra mile to bring laughter, joy, music and inspiration into our lives. . . If you made friends with Noel you were his friend for life. If he gave you his hand in friendship it was a hand you could trust for life."

O'Reilly, one of the most influential and best-loved coaches in Irish soccer, died after a short illness last week, aged 60. The large St Francis Xavier church on Gardiner Street, where his funeral took place, was packed.

Fr O'Reilly, who was unrelated to the deceased, told of how his namesake had grown up on nearby Great Charles Street and had worked in the 1970s in St Joseph's School for the Blind on Grace Park Road.

"He made a great impression on the boys there and hardly a week went by when he wasn't heading off with a group to a football match."

The former Republic of Ireland manager Brian Kerr, who worked with O'Reilly at St Patrick's Athletic and on Ireland underage and senior teams, paid a warm tribute.

He said O'Reilly had "an incredible ability to relate to people, from all over the world - from Japan, Iceland, Romania, even Donegal. He spoke to people in a language no one else understood - Noelish. It was a mixture of Béarla, Gaeilge, nods and signs, and generally he always came back with all the drinks without having paid for any of them."

O'Reilly had been a "great Christian" - if being Christian meant being "generous, open, honest, trusting, sincere, joyful. Noel was every one of those," said Kerr.

"He was a brilliant teacher, a wonderful coach. A masterful coach. He was with winning teams. He used to say to the team at finals, 'Are we right, lads? This is what we're here for.' He brought teams to win finals and then you'd have to drag him kicking and screaming into the pictures."

Kerr added: "He was an abhorrer of falseness. He was loyal and believed in people. He was fair, very fair."

O'Reilly's brother Shay thanked those who had offered support, in particular the FAI, Belvedere FC and family friend Tom O'Connor.

Having been invited to give "a big round of applause" the congregation rose to their feet for a long, standing ovation.

The Mass opened with one of O'Reilly's favourite songs, Tabhair Dom do Lámh, and closed with another, The Parting Glass.

Chief mourners were his partner, Rose McAllorum; brothers, Shay and Kieran; and sisters, Monica and Deirdre.

Also present were the former Ireland goalkeeper Packie Bonner; the former Ireland manager Eoin Hand; the former FAI chief executive Bernard O'Byrne; the FAI CEO John Delaney; the Bohemians manager Pat Fenlon; the Derry City manager Stephen Kenny; and many members of St Patrick's Athletic and Belvedere FC.