Ormonde, Michael
August 16, 2012
County mourns unexpected death of 'Ducky' Ormonde
He would have graced any team - club or county - in any era. That's how good Lismore's Michael 'Ducky' Ormonde was in his hurling hey day, and as the county at large is still trying to come to terms with the unexpectedness of his death the many tributes that have poured in from literally every quarter have been as generous as they have been ever so richly deserved.
"Ducky", as he was known the length and breath of our county and beyond, was just weeks short of his 60th birthday, and was in the proverbial picture of health when fate delivered him and his family the most cruel of blows.
Without warning of any kind he was taken ill while using his exercise bicycle in his own home last Wednesday night, and tragically the seizure he suffered proved to be fatal literally within minutes of him suffering it. In veritable jig time the life had been drained out of the most charismatic, the most gentlemanly, and the most kind and caring human being you would ever want to meet or to know.
When news of his unexpected and indeed his untimely death eked out it was received with a painstaking sense of shock bordering on disbelief. Nowhere was that shock and disbelief more palpable than in his home town where he was such a respected and revered figure.
Despite all of his years of involvement with the Waterford senior team on which he was a deadly lethal forward, all of the major honours - championship and league - eluded him.
So too did his dream of featuring on a winning Lismore team in a senior county final, although with his brothers Richie and Billy he did win county intermediate championship honours in 1969.
He also won Sargent Cup and Keaneland Cup tournament honours, but strangely enough his only other championship winning medal was as a member of the Tourin team that won the county junior football final in 1971 with victory over Ferrybank.
His funeral Mass last Sunday was attended by an overflow congregation, and the Lismore club certainly did him proud as his cortege, draped in the black and amber colours, wended its way afterwards to St. Carthage's cemetery where he was finally laid to rest.
Among the vast concourse were many former and present county hurling colleagues, while Lismore club members bedecked in the official club gear lined the route.
A beautiful graveside oration was delivered by former Munster Council chairman and of course fellow Lismore clubman Jimmy O'Gorman. He described Ducky as one of the great Waterford players of his time, and a man who would have commanded an automatic place on any team, club or county, in the country in his prime.
The former provincial chairman also recalled some of the titanic duels Ducky had with several of the great defenders of that time including Cork's John Horgan and Limerick's Jim O'Brien.
It is difficult to come to terms with his untimely death, and now more than ever I will value the years and decades of friendship that I enjoyed with him.
They came no finer and no more honourable than Michael "Ducky" Ormonde, and to his wife Margaret, his daughter Enda, his sons Michael, Martin and Sean, his brothers Richie and Billy, and all of his many other relatives and countless friends the heartfelt sympathy of both the column and columnist is extended.
Courtesy of the Waterford News and Star, August 14th, 2012.
Widespread shock at sudden death of Lismore hurling great Michael 'Ducky' Ormonde
News of the sudden and untimely death last week of hurling great Michael 'Ducky' Ormonde caused widespread shock and sadness in his native Lismore. The news also reverberated throughout GAA circles in county Waterford and further afield.
Widely acclaimed as the 'Henry Shefflin' of Waterford for his prowess on the hurling field in the 1970s, Michael was known in his hometown as a larger than life character, a great supporter of his local community and a man totally committed to his local GAA club. He managed his own successful meat distribution business, which he built up from a modest start to give employment to a lot of people in the town. That he maintained a viable business in a sector that saw major competition from supermarkets offering cut price meat in recent years was testament to the reputation that Michael had established with the clients he serviced and his willingness to work hard, travelling for over 40 years a route that took him to West Cork and Killarney.
Michael had been working on the day he died, at the age of 60, on Wednesday of last week. He passed away at his home at Townspark East.
The Sporting Field
It will be his skills on the sporting field, however, for which he will be best known. Michael began his sporting career at an early age and made his mark on the Tourin team that had junior football championship success in 1971. He played hurling at minor and U21 level for Waterford and was drafted into the senior team while still a teenager. He went on to play for his county for a decade, earning a reputation as a formidable scoring forward. While those were not very successful years for the county, Michael's feats on the field won him many plaudits as well as fans. He went on to become a mentor and senior hurling manager with his local club, Lismore. He had a love of all sports beyond Gaelic games.
"As a club player he had few equals at both club and intercounty level and his contribution to the club as administrator and coach was immense," former Munster Council chairman and Lismore GAA Club official Jimmy O'Gorman said this week. He said the whole community was in shock at the sudden passing of the club stalwart. "Lismore GAA Club suffered its greatest loss when news broke of his death," Jimmy O'Gorman said. He delivered a graveside oration at the funeral on Sunday when club members formed a guard of honour.
Gave So Much
The massive attendance at the obsequies incorporated a substantial GAA presence, which included county members and others countrywide who came to pay their respects to a man who'd given so much to his club and county. In doing so, he was following in a proud family tradition which began with his parents Michael and Delia and which he continued along with his brothers Richie and Billy, who also played for their club and county. Michael's own sons, Michael, Martin and Sean, in turn all played at underage level with the club, making theirs a truly dedicated and staunch GAA family.
Michael is mourned by his wife Margaret and daughter Enda, both well known in drama circles in the region, sons Michael, Martin and Sean, granddaughter Eilis, son-in-law Paul, brothers Richie and Billy, sisters-in-law, brothers-in-law, aunts, uncle, cousins, nephews, nieces, relatives and many, many friends. His remains were brought to St Carthage's Church in Lismore on Sunday morning at 10.45 before requiem Mass at 11am. The family requested that, in lieu of flowers, mourners give donations to St Carthage's House, Lismore.
A post on Board.ie following his death sums up the man who'd given so much to his community and native county. It said, simply: "I'm sorry to hear this very sad news. Teak tough on the field, gentleman off the field."
Courtesy of The Avondhu, August 16th, 2012.
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