VERY SAD: Great sorrow as popular Tipperary GAA referee passes away suddenly

There was great sadness in Kilruane MacDonaghs and North Tipperary as a whole last week with the news of the passing of gael and former referee Dan Darcy.

Dan gave 34 years’ service as a referee. He began his refereeing career in 1989 and took charge of games in all grades in venues all over the county.

He was a great servant of Coiste na Óg and Cumann na mBunscol in particular, and had his own unique style of refereeing. He had the ideal temperament for a referee, known as being cool and calm and was seldom ruffled no matter how volatile the situation was in a game.

He had a very successful seventeen-year playing career with Kilruane MacDonaghs. In 1970, Dan won his first medal when he was on the U13 team that won the club’s inaugural title in this championship. He collected his last medal in 1995 when the Junior ‘A’ team claimed the North title.

Dan was a prolific scorer as a juvenile and continued in the same vein in the higher grades. Among the medals he won were North & County intermediate (H), junior (H), U21 (F), U14 (H) as well as North U21 (H), minor (H), U16 (H) and U13 (H). Dan captained the 1973 U14 hurling team to North and County honours, and he scored the winning goal in the 1978 North intermediate final against Templederry.

As a mark of respect, the Tricolour in MacDonagh Park flew at half-mast. Dan’s coffin was draped in the MacDonaghs colours, and club members, along with his referee colleagues formed a guard of honour at his funeral.

He is survived by his wife Joan, sons Christopher, Daniel and Conal, daughter-in-law Michelle, grandson Mark, sister Mary, brothers Billy, Paddy, Jack, Ben, Ned, Tom, Francis, Declan and extended family.