Leitrim has lost one of its greatest ambassadors with passing of Gerry McGovern

I was in Carrick on Shannon last month, the week before Leitrim played Mayo In the Connacht Championship and decided to take a look at the new pitch in Avant Money Pairc Sean McDiarmada. I had heard Gerry McGovern had got a grant of €300,000 for it, so I had to see it.

Pairc Sean is a special place to me not only from my playing days but due to my involvement with the then Chairman of the County Board Gerry McGovern in raising finance to develop the new stand in Pairc Sean in 2006/2007. Gerry asked me had I any ideas about fundraising and, by pure coincidence, I had seen an article on how amateur sports organisations could raise up to €40 million for infrastructure projects and donors would get tax relief on their donations and the county board would get tax back on any PAYE workers' donations. 

When I told Gerry he said, ‘that’s it Eamonn, you are on board as we are not familiar with it’ and so that was how I got involved and so began a great friendship with Gerry.  On the day I visited the pitch, it looked amazing and I phoned Gerry from the pitch to congratulate him on a wonderful job. 

We had a great chat and we always had a story or two to tell. On the phone, he told me he was concerned with the PA system in Pairc Sean and he phoned some contacts and had got a grant of €38,000 to cover the cost and it would be in place for the Mayo match. 

The one thing I learned from Gerry, when you do a job do it right. Here Gerry was in 2025 working away quietly making sure Leitrim got what they needed to keep the GAA ‘hall door painted’.

The late Gerry McGovern and Eamonn Duignan pictured with Leitrim GAA officials and sponsors at the official opening of the McGovern Aughavas Leitrim GAA Centre of Excellence on September 7, 2019. (From left) Martin McCartin (Treasurer), Andy Reidcan (President), Seamus Clarke, Attracta O'Reilly (Secretary), LCC Cllr Enda McGloin, GAA President John Horan, Bernadette & Tony McGovern, Gerry McGovern (Connacht GAA President), Eamonn Duignan (Leitrim Supporters Club Dublin) and Chairman Terence Boyle Picture: Willie Donnellan

Gerry was big into GAA infrastructure and good facilities for both players and supporters. From his lifetime involved in the GAA, he always saw the big picture and was fully aware how top class facilities and in particular the county ground could bring so many people into the county on match days with the added benefit to local businesses. 

Pairc Sean was first developed in the 1960s and required huge investment. Gerry wasn’t satisfied with developing Pairc Sean, he also wanted to develop a centre of excellence in Annaduff at the same time. The Stand was costing €3.2 million and Annaduff another €2 million. 

When you looked at the income of Leitrim Co Board to support this investment, let's just say there was a big gap. 

We did up the presentation and headed to Croke Park looking for funding for both projects. We knew the answer before we went but it didn’t stop Gerry making the presentation and emphasising how Leitrim needed both these investments. Croke Park advised we do one project first and Pairc Sean was the priority. 

Gerry was happy with that and so we set about the fundraising. The two of us made many presentations to Croke Park, which at times frustrated me but I was guided along by Gerry who knew how things worked. He had that ability of bringing everybody along with him. 

Our supporters contributed €950,000, which was matched euro for euro by Croke Park with   another great Leitrim man Dermot Gallagher, Secretary General of the Department of Foreign Affairs, using his influence to secure lotto funding of €700,000. The balance of €600,000 was borrowed at a very favourable fixed interest rate.

Gerry, as Chairman of the county board, had succeeded in upgrading the facilities in Pairc Sean, an incredible achievement with the new stand opened against Galway in the Connacht Championship in  2007. 

No other Chairman would have taken this project on and it is only correct to acknowledge Gerry’s foresight and vision in bringing Leitrim facilities up to modern day standards. When working alongside Gerry there was always fun and slagging and of course we all know what happened with the financial crisis in 2008. 

Our timing was perfect. Gerry claimed ‘I saw the financial crisis coming lad’  and he knew the project had to be completed before it happened. When I met him I always joked ‘what does your crystal ball say at the moment Gerry’ and he would say ‘it is a bit misty at the moment’.

Gerry also was instrumental in getting the ball rolling with Leitrim Centre of Excellence and its existence today would not have happened without the foresight of Gerry McGovern.

He was always involved in the Leitrim Supporters Club since its inception in 1986 (39 years) and he knew  every supporter who supported Leitrim over the years. He knew them all and  if they put their hand in their pocket  he really appreciated their contribution.

I mention these three  projects as I have detailed knowledge of them but I know of Gerry’s huge contribution to Cloone and Leitrim over his lifetime is immense. He was highly respected, not afraid of work and as I said he carried out all his tasks professionally, forensically, with great enthusiasm, with passion and he loved to tell stories and have a bit of fun.

Over many years, the Leitrim Supporters had their launch in Croke Park and the Chairman of the county board would always attend. On the day of one such meeting, I asked Gerry would he bring up a bit of boxty to me. He arrived in Croke Park, opened his bag and gave me several pans of piping hot Boxty wrapped in silver paper. I said to him ‘if only we had a bit of butter’.

Gerry McGovern addresses the crowd at the opening of the McGovern Leitrim GAA Centre of Excellence in September 2019 Picture: Willie Donnellan

Gerry attended a number of Supporters Club nights as President of Connacht Council, an honour he relished as a proud Leitrim man. It wasn’t him wearing the jacket, it was Leitrim and he loved to wear that jacket. He wasn’t the President for the sake of it, he would do whatever he could for Leitrim while he was the President.

Gerry’s beloved Cloone won the Senior Championship in 1980 with Gerry playing at midfield. There was a poem written about the victory ‘I mean Cloone’s lively football team, the finest to be found,That won the County final on Carrick’s spacious ground. The chorus is:

Here’s to the Brennans, Morans and Mulvey; Charles, Conway and Joe McNamee;

Dillon Doherty, Quinn, Timmy Beirne; and McCabe our expert on the free;

McGovern is tall, fast and fit, in midfield he owns the high ball,

And young Paudge McCrann is a fine marksman, And as sound as the oul’ stonewall.

One line in the poem says, ‘the second half was all one way as McGovern ruled midfield’.

When I had to post  Gerry a letter I would always address it ‘Gerry McGovern, Midfield Legend, Cloone, Co Leitrim. He always got the letters. Once a legend always a legend.

To conclude this tribute to Gerry I am going to tell you a true story. In the early eighties I was given an opportunity by Brendan Harvey ( MD of K -Tel Music) to join a new Record Label called Harmac Music. And so I did, it seemed an exciting business for a young guy to get into. Back then every record had a Catalogue Number. In Harmac’s case the first record was Phil Coulter (Peace and Tranquillity) HM1C (Cassette), HM1LP ( LP), and HM1CD (CD). A Country and Western Compilation album was HM2, and Joe Dolan (Always on my Mind) was HM3.

Over the years I was fortunate to meet Joe a number of times and he was my showband hero. A really decent guy who loved a bit of fun. In 2007 Leitrim GAA were building the new sStand in Pairc Sean in Carrick on Shannon and Gerry McGovern who was Chairman of Leitrim Co Board at the time and myself as Chairman of the Fundraising Committee went over to London for the second time that year to try and raise some funds from the Leitrim exiles in London. Leitrim's first trip was in January and the pitch was flooded with the match cancelled.

Our schedule also included our attendance at the Leitrim Peoples Association dinner in the Galtymore in Cricklewood. We stayed in the Crown Moran Hotel Cricklewood. We landed on Friday afternoon and to kill time we went wandering down Cricklewood. We came across a Pakistani Mans shop not too far from the Crown Moran Hotel.

There was a beautiful white suit in the window and I stopped to admire it. Gerry knew nothing about my ‘love of Joe DoIan’. ‘That’s a nice suit’ I said to Gerry. ‘Jesus lad, that would suit you down to the ground’ he said jokingly. ‘Let's have a look’ says I, and in we went. When I asked the Palestinian owner if I could fit it on, poor Gerry nearly fell out of his standing. So in I went and fitted it on and when I reappeared in the shop Gerry was in stitches laughing . ‘All codding aside ‘he said, ‘ it looks class’ and with his encouragement I bought the suit for £120.

As Gerry was looking round the shop he spotted a black jacket, he liked it ,fitted it on and with my encouragement bought the jacket for £70. Buying the suit and the jacket was the easy bit. Arriving home I decided to pick my moment and model the suit. When I walked into the TV room my very young girls thought I was the coolest dad ever. Stephanie gave me a look and declared ‘In the name of God Eamonn’.

I put in a call to Gerry to see how he got on with Kathleen , and he was instructed to bring it back to London as soon as possible . In two months time Leitrim were heading to London for a third time that year to play in the Connacht Championship.

Two months later Gerry was back with the Pakistan owner returning his jacket. He wasn't as nice this time and was in no humour for a sale return. After all, it was two months since it was bought. However, Gerry used all his powers of persuasion and I think he may have mentioned the guy who bought the white suit would be back looking for another one. Gerry got £60 back which was some achievement. I should add, Gerry didn’t ask him for a donation to the Stand in Pairc Sean. It is hard to believe it was eighteen years ago this year.

In my own case, my never worn Joe Dolan white suit is hanging in a safe place in my wardrobe out of view of Stephanie just in case she might dispose of it. It is my only piece of ‘showband memorabilia’ if you could call it that. But now with Gerry’s passing it is much more than a white suit, it is a reminder of a great man, a family man, a GAA man, a Cloone man and a great Leitrim GAA man whose contribution to his home place and county is unmatched. 

Everybody respected him for his friendliness, kindness and good humour while remaining totally professional in everything he did. He was more than just a Cloone midfield legend, he was a special man and a true Leitrim GAA legend. Gerry was the last of those great community volunteers who did everything for free at his own personal cost for the betterment of everybody else and the organisations he was working for. For that reason Leitrim has lost one  of its greatest ever ambassadors.  

I will miss you, my friend , may you rest in peace.

With deepest sympathy to Kathleen, Ciaran, Gavin, Jacinta, his extended family and his many friends.