2 weeks Ago By Martin Healy
Pat Spillane has delivered a sombre and moving tribute to Gaelic football icon Mick O’Dwyer after his passing on Thursday.The former Kerry star and manager died at the age of 88 but left an incredible legacy in the GAA and beyond across the country.Having won 12 All-Ireland titles with the Kingdom as a player and then a manager, he was also celebrated in the likes of Kildare and Laois for his later career achievements.
Pat Spillane has delivered a sombre and moving tribute to Gaelic football icon Mick O’Dwyer. Pic: Ray McManus/SportsfileSpillane had been one of the key men in the ‘Golden Years’ Kerry team in the 1970s and ’80s that came within a whisker of winning five-in-a-row in 1982.Speaking on the Indo Sport podcast, Spillane revealed that he had been bed-side in hospital with the Kerry icon during the final hours before his passing.
With tears streaming down his face, the 69-year-old discussed the incredible role O’Dwyer played in his life following the death of his father.Pat Spillane has hailed Mick O’Dwyer as a ‘father figure’ in his life. Pic: RTÉPat Spillane on Mick O’Dwyer‘I held his hand for those 15 minutes and I thanked him for everything he did for me as a footballer and a person,’ a tearful Spillane explained.
‘Just a great man. Special, special.‘I worshipped the ground that Micko stood on [.
..] My father died at eight years of age and Micko, for a lot of my life, was the father figure I never had.
’As a player, Spillane believes that the late O’Dwyer was the force that allowed him to become a successful inter-county footballer.Kerry captain Tommy Doyle celebrates with manager Mick O’Dwyer after the final whistle in the All-Ireland Senior Football Championship in 1986. Pic: Ray McManus/Sportsfile‘The thing about me as a footballer, I wasn’t blessed with the skills of the Cliffords’ and Maurice Fitzgerald’s or the [Colm Cooper]’s,’ he continued.
‘They had more skill in their little toe than I had in my entire body. But Micko saw something in me.‘I was raw, I was eager and I gave 100 per cent.
Has a final flop finally finished off Mayo? ‘He filled me full of belief and full of confidence and let me off. In the 15 brilliant years I soldiered with him, not a bad word ever crossed between myself and Micko.’.
