Ó Dufaigh died in a road traffic accident in the late hours of Saturday after captaining his county to the Ulster U20 Final via a win over Donegal U20s.

Monaghan GAA has opened a book of condolence for the young man and extended their symptahies to the player’s family.

“Monaghan GAA are deeply saddened with the tragic passing of Brendan Óg Ó Dufaigh, captain of the Monaghan U20 team, following a traffic accident last night.

“We extend our heartfelt sympathy to Brendan Óg’s family, his father Brendan, his mother Esther and his sisters Claire and Áine and to his friends, his teammates and his club Monaghan Harps. Our thoughts and prayers are with his family at this very difficult time.”

The county board have also detailed the funeral arrangements for anyone wishing to pay their respects.

Many took to social media to pay tribute to the Drumlin County’s young half-back prospect.

The Monaghan U20 captain’s club, Monaghan Harps GAA, laid a reef by their gates in honour of their player.

Our club is devastated at the news of the untimely death of our senior player and county U-20 captain Brendan Óg Ó Dufaigh. Our thoughts are with his family and friends at this very sad time. All club activity has been postponed until further notice. pic.twitter.com/GUCZLeI9WA

— Monaghan Harps GAA (@MonaghanHarps) July 17, 2021

Inter-county accounts quote tweeted the post that included this photo and extended condolences to the young Monaghan star’s family and friends.

Those who did not quote tweet the above post tweeted separately to express their condolences.

Monaghan senior football boss Seamus ‘Banty’ McEnaney was emotional when speaking about the tragedy after his side’s Ulster semi-final win over Armagh in Newry.

"This man had a huge future in Monaghan football…"@MonaghanGAA manager Seamus McEnaney pays tribute to Brendán Óg Duffy after the Farney County's win over Armagh. pic.twitter.com/wIkJiTv7zk

— Sky Sports GAA (@SkySportsGAA) July 17, 2021

Banty managed Brendán Óg when they were both involved in the minor setup for the county.

“For me, personally, it was very difficult because I managed this young fella and he was my captain in the minor team and, you know, only those that have been in a manager’s position with a captain understands the trust that is there, the loyalty there, the love that is there,” Banty said.

Other inter-county figures such as senior captain Ryan Wylie and chairperson of Roscommon GAA Brian Carroll offered their sympathies to those affected by Ó Dufaigh’s untimely death.

The news spread beyond the GAA community with many established figures in other sports and walks of life hearing of the tragedy.

Ronan O’Gara is among those who offered condolences outside of GAA.

Sean McCaffrey commentated on the Monaghan – Donegal Ulster U20 semi-final on the night and praised Ó Dufaigh’s leadership throughout.

In a tweet, he said that he spent 20 minutes after the game talking to the young captain.

I was honoured to commentate on @monaghangaa U20 win over @officialdonegal and how they were lead by their captain Brendan Og Duffy. 20 mins were spent chatting to him in the carpark afterwards.The buzz and excitement unreal. Now it is impossible to take it in. pic.twitter.com/dTF0RgvU7p

— Sean Mc Caffrey (@Smccaffreyradio) July 17, 2021

“Now, it is impossible to take in,” concluded McCaffrey.

The post GAA: Tributes Pour In Online For Brendan Óg Ó Dufaigh appeared first on SportsNewsIreland.

The nation has been blessed with talent at the pivotal at number 10 position. Perhaps the best place to start is Grand Slam winning sides. Ireland has only ever produced three ‘Slam’ winners, underlining just how difficult a feat it is.

JACK KYLE

Jackie Kyle led Ireland to a first-ever crown in 1948 and starred in all four matches. Ireland had heroes aplenty including Karl Mullen and Mick O’Flanagan, but it was the former Belfast Academy student who was widely hailed as the mastermind behind a truly historic campaign. Kyle was an off-the-cuff player who could turn a game in the blink of an eye with flashes of outrageous skill. One example of this was a stunning solo try against France in Ravenhill, Belfast in 1953. He made 48 appearances for Ireland scoring seven tries. He also represented the British & Irish Lions on six occasions. In total Kyle won three Five nations Championships in 1948, 1949, and 1951.

RONAN O’GARA

Ronan O’Gara won a Grand Slam in 2009 and is the highest ever scorer in Six Nations history with 557 points. The current head coach of La Rochelle in the French Top 14, O’Gara is fondly remembered for that famous drop goal that secured a second Grand Irish Slam in Cardiff against Wales.

O’Gara bagged several match-winning drop goals for Ireland and is the fourth-highest scorer in test rugby history.
He won his first international cap for Ireland against Scotland on 19 February 2000 during the 2000 Six Nations Championship. In all, he won 128 Irish caps and announced his retirement from rugby on 18 May 2013.

JOHNNY SEXTON 

Johnny Sexton was voted World Rugby Player of the year in 2018, and also added a famous drop goal to the list of Ireland’s favourite sporting moments. The Leinster fly-half became the 106th player to captain Ireland in the 2019 Rugby World Cup Pool A Group match, at the Kobe Misaki Stadium in Japan.

Sexton is a born leader who constantly puts his body on the line for the team and is blessed with the killer instinct that all great fly-half possess. Never was this more evident than in

2018 when Ireland was trailing France in Paris, as the clock ticked towards the red. Showing nerves of steel Sexton attempted an all-or-nothing match-winning attempt from near the halfway line. It sailed over and propelled Ireland to a hat-trick of Grand Slam titles.

On 24 November 2009, Sexton was controversially selected ahead of Ronan O’Gara in Ireland’s autumn international against world cup champions South Africa at Croke Park.

It proved to be an inspired decision as he kicked all of Ireland’s 15 points. It was revealed that Sexton had played out Ireland’s pulsating 15–10 victory with a broken hand. Sexton truly is Captain Courageous and will be central to Ireland’s prospects in the post Joe Schmidt era.

WHO GETS THE NOD?

In a glittering list, O’Gara gets the nod by virtue of his astonishing numbers, but Johnny Sexton has no retirement plans just yet and is closing in on fast on his former coaches impressive targets.

More Rugby News

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