Former Dunsany GFC chairman remembered in Croke Park tribute

Liam Ferguson played on Dublin team in 1961 All-Ireland Senior Hurling Final

Former Dunsany Gaelic Football Club chairman and Dublin hurler Liam Ferguson, who died on 21st May last, was remembered in a tribute at the Leinster Senior Hurling Final between Dublin and Galway in Croke Park on Saturday.

A veteran Dublin hurler who later became an integral part of Dunsany GFC, Liam, along with his late brother, Des, of Kells, was a member of that powerhouse of Dublin GAA, St Vincent’s of Marino, and together they were on the Dublin side that played against Tipperary in the 1961 All-Ireland Senior Hurling Final, the last time Dublin were in a senior hurling decider.

Moving to live in Killeen, he became chairman of Dunsany GFC in the 1990s at a crucial time in the club’s development as it negotiated a long-term lease on its grounds, leading to the opening of its current redeveloped facilities in 2000.

A modest and unassuming man, Liam never sought recognition for his many achievements, which included numerous club and provincial titles with St Vincent’s. He had a deep passion for the GAA in both codes, hurling and football, and an enduring love for club and county.

“To have a love of both Dublin and Meath at the same time could not have been an easy task for any man,” his son Liam said as symbols of his life were being brought to the altar at his funeral Mass in Dunsany.

“But he carried it with the fairness and equanimity for which he was so well-known.”

Those symbols included his sky blue jersey from that 1961 All-Ireland, and a photograph of the Dublin team, as well as a Dunsany jersey.

After moving to live in Dunsany following marriage in 1973 to Clare woman Margaret O’Donnell, whom he had met in Dublin some 60 years ago, Liam threw in his lot with the local club, only around a decade in existence at the time and finalists in a county junior football championship of 1972. He played with the club for a few years in the mid-1970s, before later becoming involved as an under-age coach as his own family began playing.

In recent years, he often said how grateful he was to live long enough to see the day that Dunsany won their county championship in 2024, after numerous attempts since 1972.

He maintained his involvement with both clubs through their golf classics and golf societies, and in taking up that natural pursuit for retired hurlers, he was a member of Royal Tara Golf Club, enjoying many successes on the golf course.

Mourning his loss, St Vincent’s described Liam as “a distinguished player - especially of hurling - member and supporter of the club and besides winning several county titles he also played (with his brother Des) wing back on the Dublin team that lost the 1961 All-Ireland Hurling Final to Tipperary by a point - an outcome he has always deeply regretted.

“Despite his subsequent move to Dunsany, Liam and Margaret regularly travelled to Parnell Park and numerous venues throughout the country to support our pursuit of Leinster and All Ireland honours,” the club continued. “Liam’s retention of a deep grá for St Vincents never subsided. Whether on or off the pitch Liam will always be fondly remembered as the proverbial “gentleman” living a life defined by a quiet integrity, humility, steely inner strength and generosity.”

Dunsany Gaelic Football Club paid tribute to a man whose work as chairman was instrumental in providing the grounds and clubhouse facilities that are today’s Pairc na nGael.

“During his term as chairman from 1991 to 1997, Liam was the driving force in securing the grounds on a 100-year lease, allowing for the development of the pitch and provision of proper dressing room and clubhouse facilities,” the club stated. “Without certainty on the lease of the lands, no development would have been possible, and Liam spearheaded the drive for the grounds, a great legacy to his time with the club that is today being enjoyed by his grandchildren and many more.”

Liam coached many under-age teams in Dunsany and during his chairmanship, the first under-age title came to the club, as well as Jimmy McGuinness’s 1996 All-Ireland senior football medal, a first for a Dunsany clubman.

A graduate of St Joseph’s CBS in Fairview, the famous ‘Joeys’, Liam had a long and successful career of 40 years in service to the State as Chief Laboratory Technologist in the National Veterinary Research Laboratory in Abbottstown, Dublin, having received a Fellowship from the Institute of Medical Laboratory Technology in 1970. A colleague in Abbottstown described him as an encouraging and inspiring leader who consistently prioritised the wellbeing, learning, and advancement of his colleagues.

At his funeral Mass, Liam was remembered as a man who never had a bad word to say about anyone, who lived life with a smile of contentment, marked out by humility, serenity, acceptance, and a deep gratitude for the small moments that make up “the beautiful tapestry of life”.

His late parents, Liam and Sarah Ferguson, moved from Co Down to Dublin, and he was predeceased by his brothers Terence, Brian and Des, and sisters, Maureen and Sally. He is survived by his wife, Margaret; daughter, Aileen, Dunsany; sons Neil, Galway, Liam, Blackrock, Dundalk, Co Louth, and Emmet, Dunsany; son-in-law, Eric; daughters-in-law, Kathryn, Bronagh and Evelyn; grandchildren, Luke, Quinn, Tara, Sarah-Rose, Fionn, Bobby and Liam; sisters, Deirdre Morgan, Dunshaughlin, and Rita Rowe, Dublin; and extended family.

Fr Bernard Callanan, Adm, St Joseph’s Redemptorists, Dundalk, celebrated his funeral Mass in the Church of the Assumption, Dunsany, assisted by Fr Martin Halpin, PP.

Burial followed in the adjoining cemetery on a glorious sunny day amidst birdsong, as Dublin registered a scorching victory over Kilkenny in the Leinster hurling championship at Parnell Park, a first on home soil since 1941.