Paddy Conroy was proud son of Gorey
THE LATE Paddy Conroy had two sporting passions in his life: hurling and greyhounds. The north of the county lost another one of its best-known faces when the popular Gorey town man passed away on Tuesday of last week.
Paddy was a former Chairman of Naomh Eanna GAA club, and also filled the same role at the helm of the Gorey District Bord na nOg committee from 1975 to 1982, before he was succeeded by Patsy Morris of Liam Mellows.
One of Paddy’s two sons, Virgil, represented Wexford in the Leinster Minor hurling championship campaign of 1979, while he served as a selector himself with various teams at both club and inter-county level.
Paddy was especially proud of the achievements of his grandson, Eoin Conroy, who played on the first Wexford Senior hurling team to beat Cork in championship hurling for 50 years in 2016.
A county Minor in 2012, Eoin won three successive Leinster Under-21 medals from 2013 to 2015, captaining the team to victory over Kilkenny in the latter year and also playing in two losing All-Ireland finals, against Clare and Limerick respectively.
Eoin played 14 Senior inter-county games between 2014 and 2017, and he was left half-back on the Naomh Eanna side when the county title was won for the first time in 2018 – a very proud day for the late Paddy, who soldiered on the sidelines and in the boardroom with the Gorey club in more lean times after their formation in 1970.
Sympathy is extended to Paddy’s wife Eileen, sons Virgil and Michael, grandson Eoin, his three grand-daughters and four surviving sisters on their sad loss.
Ar dheis Dé go raibh a anam dílis.
The death of legendary Cork ex-footballer and multiple All-Ireland winning ladies’ boss Eamonn Ryan on Thursday also evoked deep sadness in Wexford.
Jim, one of the deceased’s six children, is a long-standing member of the teaching staff in St. Peter’s College, and an active member of Glynn-Barntown GAA club along with his family.
A grandchild of the deceased, Richard Ryan, represented the Wexford Minor footballers in the Leinster championship in 2016.
Eamonn played for Cork against Meath in the All-Ireland Senior football final of
1967, and he was a revered father figure for the county’s ladies’ team after guiding them to an incredible ten All-Irelands and nine National Leagues in the eleven campaigns played from 2005 to 2015.
Ar dheis Dé go raibh a anam dílis.