Ger Canning: Farewell to everyone’s friend, Mícheál Ó Muircheartaigh

The country has lost one of the greatest communicators we have been so fortunate to know and love

RTÉ commentator Micheál Ó Muircheartaigh, Picture: Brendan Moran/Sportsfile

July 24, 1994, was a red-letter day in the annals of Leitrim football. They beat Mayo in Dr Hyde Park to record their first Connacht title win since 1927. Mícheál Ó Muircheartaigh was there to bring his audience the gripping and absorbing excitement on RTÉ radio. I was there to cover the match for highlights on The Sunday Game — the 'live' TV coverage, as we know it now, didn't begin until the following year.

Mícheál met me with his usual greeting “will we go across?”. That was the signal to walk around the back of the goal and head for the dressing rooms, then located on the Athlone Rd side of the ground, in order to get our player interviews.