‘A sad day but it’s also one to celebrate a great man’
Family, friends and fans of Moss Keane turned out in their hundreds for the funeral Mass of the former Munster, Ireland and Lions rugby player at St Michael’s Church in Portarlington, Co Laois.
While his status as one of the great characters of Irish rugby was duly recalled, it was also an occasion when mourners were offered an insight into other, less known aspects of his life — particularly of Moss as a family man with a great sense of fun as well as a love of golf and his native Kerry, particularly his home village of Currow. In the words of his eldest daughter, Sarah, he was “just the humblest, gorgeous soul”.
Moss, 62, a former Department of Agriculture official who was capped 51 times for Ireland, died last Tuesday after a long battle with bowel cancer.
At the start of the requiem Mass, local parish priest and chief celebrant, Fr Tom Dooley quoted a description of the legendary second-row by his friend and sportswriter Con Houlihan as “a man of few airs and many graces”.
“For those graces today, we now give many thanks,” said Fr Dooley.
He said Moss’s courage and strength on the field of play were legendary. However, his most courageous battle had been against cancer: “We are grateful for the joy, the pleasure and the excitement he brought to the lives of all who know and loved him.”
In front of his coffin was a framed black and white photo of Moss playing for Ireland which was used as the front cover of his autobiography, “Rucks, Mauls and Gaelic Football”. The oak coffin itself was draped with the GAA and rugby jerseys best associated with the legendary sportsman — UCC, Kerry, Lansdowne, Munster and Ireland.
Chief mourners were his widow Anne; his daughters Sarah and Anne Marie; grand-daughter Ellie and brothers Brian and Matt.
President Mary McAleese was represented by her aide-de-camp, Cmdt Murt Larkin and the Taoiseach, Brian Cowen was represented by his aide-de-camp, Cmdt Michael Treacy. The president’s husband Martin McAleese a close friend of Moss since they shared a flat in Ranelagh in their youth, read a reflection.
Among former rugby internationals present were Willie John McBride, Michael Kiernan, Ollie Campbell, Tony Ward, Ciarán Fitzgerald, Hugo McNeill, Philip Matthews and Donal and Dick Spring. Other former rugby stars included Paul Wallace, Philip Danaher, Phil Orr, Terry Kennedy, John O’Driscoll, Colm Tucker and Mick Galwey as well as past Kerry footballers, brothers Brendan and Paudie Lynch.
Others in attendance included former RTÉ rugby commentator Jim Sherwin; local Fine Gael TD Charles Flanagan; Listowel writer Billy Keane who ghosted Moss’s autobiography and Brian and Una Mangan, parents of Stuart Mangan, the late rugby player who suffered a spinal injury.
In a brief eulogy, Sarah Keane confirmed the outside world’s view of her father as a gentle giant. “He showed us time and time again the power of belief and the importance of dreaming in achieving,” she said describing his fabled strength in his final days.
In a tribute to his eldest brother, Brian Keane recalled in detail the various stages of his life including how “Mossie” weighed in at 14lb at birth. “Not a bad start,” he said to laughter.
He also described the pleasure which his family took in the honour of him being capped for Ireland in rugby, a sport he only took up in 1971 after the lifting by the GAA of its ban on the playing of foreign sports.
His brother also said Moss had achieved considerable success ever before his rugby days as a GAA player for under-age Kerry teams and UCC in the Sigerson Cup.
To round applause Brian and Fr Dooley both quoted the closing lines of his autobiography which act as Moss’s own fitting epitaph.
“I’m not one that thinks of how I’d like to be remembered or shite like that. I’ve had many great days and I’ve been lucky in life. I played rugby 51 times for Ireland and made lasting friendships out of the game. What I achieved was certainly against the odds but sport can throw these things up — that’s the beauty of it.
“I’d like to think that success never went to my head and that if someone, somewhere, was asked they might say ‘Moss Keane? Ah, sure, he did his best’. He did his best. That would do me nicely.”
Speaking outside the church, Mick Galwey, who also comes from the same corner of north Kerry, said: “It’s a sad day but it’s also one to celebrate a great man. He was my hero growing up in Currow who became a great friend in later life. To have worn the same jersey as Moss for Munster and Ireland makes me very proud. Were it not for Moss I wouldn’t have played rugby.”
Moss’s coffin was later brought to the nearby St Michael’s Cemetery in Portarlington for burial.
* The Munster team will wear armbands as a mark of respect during their Heineken Cup group match against London Irish in the Madejski Stadium tomorrow.
