'Legend' Earley buried in Newbridge

Former Defence Forces Chief of Staff Dermot Earley was a mighty Irish legend who was loved and revered around the country, his funeral Mass heard today.

Political, religious and sporting leaders packed into the Church of St Conleth, in Newbridge, Co Kildare, to pay their final respects to the soldier and sportsman who died on Wednesday.

Loudspeakers were erected outside to bring the service to more than 1,000 mourners who thronged into the church grounds and lined the adjoining streets for the moving military send-off.

Leading the ceremony, Monsignor Eoin Thynne, Head Chaplain of the Forces, said tears of sorrow had been cried for the loss of a great leader, an outstanding sportsman and a true gentleman.

“Dermot Earley was a good man, in fact he was a great man, but to the people of Roscommon he was a mighty man,” he said.

“Mighty to his family, his friends, the Defence Forces, the Gaelic Athletic Association, mighty to everyone.”

Tributes were paid to Lt Gen. Earley’s distinguished military career, leading UN missions in the Middle East and New York, as well as success on the GAA pitch for his native Roscommon.

He was also remembered as a committed family man.

Lt Gen. Sean McCann, the current Defence Forces chief of staff, described his predecessor as an indomitable force that galvanised Irish troops into believing anything was possible.

Along with countless others, Lt Gen. McCann recalled his former colleague’s warm “vice-like handshake” and engaging eye-contact that endeared him to friends and strangers alike.

The outstanding Gaelic footballer of his generation – having won almost every accolade in the game – he was also an accomplished rugby player, the Mass heard.

Lt Gen McCann revealed that Lt Gen. Earley often lined out for Army rugby teams under the pseudonym Lieutenant Late in the days when GAA players were barred from playing “foreign games”.

“It is difficult to speak calmly or dispassionately on the loss of Dermot Earley,” he said.

“He was our appointed leader and our chosen leader.”

Describing him as one of the most recognised leaders since the foundation of the State, Monsignor Thynne said the Army chief would not be without a football even when on overseas missions.

“In Lebanon or the Golan Heights he would practise regularly by kicking a ball into the air and fielding it,” he said.

“There were Arabs and Christians who didn’t know what to make of him.”

As his coffin was carried from the church, draped in the Irish tricolour with his cap and a ceremonial sword placed atop, sunshine briefly gave way to rain as mourners erupted into spontaneous applause.

Taoiseach Brian Cowen, several Cabinet ministers, Fine Gael leader Enda Kenny, Bishop William Lee of Waterford, retired Bishop of Kildare Jim Moriarty and GAA president Christy Cooney were among those behind the guard of honour.

Former Roscommon GAA players as well as representatives from his adopted Sarsfields club in Kildare also joined chief mourners, his mother Kitty, wife Mary, sons David, Dermot and Conor and daughters Paula, Ann-Marie and Noelle.

The coffin was carried on a traditional military gun carriage, led by Army No 1 band, on a slow march through the town more than one mile to the Newbridge cemetery, to the sound of the traditional bugle calls The Last Post and Reveille.

Lt Gen Earley died aged 62 on Wednesday after a long battle with illness – 10 days after he stepped aside as the country’s most senior army officer.

Defence Minister Tony Killeen said when a big military job needed doing it was Lt Gen Earley that people turned to.

“You couldn’t have got a better man,” he said.

Fine Gael leader Mr Kenny said: “He’s an icon, a legendary man, who done his country proud.”

In a poignant gesture, the Earley family declined an offer by the GAA to postpone the Kildare v Antrim clash as a mark of respect, and son Dermot jnr will line out for his county for the All Ireland qualifier.

The Taoiseach, who honoured the Lt Gen with a Distinguished Service Medal in April, had described him as a true champion of peace.

President McAleese, represented by her aide de camp Col Mick McMahon, said he was an outstanding soldier with a military career marked by exceptional professionalism and dedication.

Born in 1948, Lt Gen Earley joined the Defence Forces as a cadet in 1965.

He was one of the first soldiers to become an Army Ranger and served on a UN mission in the Middle East from 1975 to 1977, Lebanon in 1982/83 and again in 1997 and also with the UN in New York.

He won two All-Stars with Roscommon and narrowly missed out on an All-Ireland medal after his county was beaten by Kerry in the 1980 final.