Gooch’s greatness transcends all codes

OUR country is renowned for its love of all sports. I was at Aintree in Liverpool this week to catch a day’s horse racing and the week that’s in it, I have to pay tribute to Colm Cooper. The Gooch (right) was quite simply a brilliant player. He was one of those stars who married substance with style. In hurling, DJ Carey was another of those rare players who the crowd just adored. The fact he was never booked added to the story.

Cooper, too, was all about the ball. Nothing else mattered. I’ve seen great players down the years, players who had all the skills. To me, what made the Gooch stand out was his vision. He could see everything around him. He had that confidence on the ball to lob a pass or a score, to make the game look so easy.

One of Offaly’s favourite sons Shane Lowry, who is over in Augusta this week, told me a story about playing in the Irish Open in Killarney a couple of years back. As he teed off on one of the holes, who should he spot in the crowd as he went to pick up his tee, but the Gooch. Shane is such a fan that his first instinct was to try and break through the crowd and go get his autograph. That’s how much he admires him. Then he imagined what the reaction from his playing partners would be if he made a beeline for a spectator. So he just gave him a nod and kept going.

That’s the sort of effect the Gooch has. You saw it in the reaction of Brian O’Driscoll and Ronan O’Gara in paying tribute to him. A truly phenomenal player. I wish him the very best.