The Late James Duignan James Duignan who has recently passed away in Melbourne, Australia, was the youngest of six sons and four daughters of the late Patrick and Matilda Duignan of Derawley, Drumlish. Born in 1926, James was educated in Drumlish N.S., and St. Mel's College, Longford. He then joined the staff of St. Loman's Hospital, Mullingar where he worked as a nurse until 1953, before emigrating to London. Two years, later his work took him to Melbourne with a patient and he remained there for thirty years. In 1985 he returned to Ireland and spent one year living in Kilpeddar, Co. Wicklow, however he found it extremely difficult to acclimatise to the damp Irish winter and returned to Melbourne in 1986. Jimmy Duignan, as he was commonly called, was a footballer of some repute. He played his club football in the country with the St. Loman's Club in Mullingar. In 1948, he made his debut with Longford. In 1949 he "declared" for Westmeath and played at midfield on the team which contested their first Leinster Final. He returned to Longford the following year and was a regular on the senior team until his departure to London. He went on to play with the St. Vincent's team which won the London Senior Championship in 1954. Although James spent much of his life living abroad, he still retained a huge affection for his native Longford and visited home on a number of occasions. In particular he liked to meet up with his own footballing friends- Johnny Lynn of the Sportsman's Inn in Edgeworthstown and Ned "The County" Reilly, both of whom he played Gaelic with in his younger years. He also visited his niece, Deirdre Doyle (nee Duignan) now living in Edgeworthstown, who is his last surviving relative in Longford. Remembered for his lively, gregarious manner and his enduring passion for Gaelic football, James is survived by his wife Tess and son Kieran. May he rest in peace. Courtesy of The Longford Leader 22nd July 2005 Tweet

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