Legendary in boxing and bookmaking circles, Barney Eastwood – who sadly passed away on Monday at the age of 87 – won an All-Ireland MFC medal with Tyrone in 1948.

He was 16 years of age when he scored four points from his left half-forward spot in that year’s final win over Dublin and, in a statement issued following his death, his family said he considered that to be one of his most cherished achievements.

The Cookstown native scored 2-3 in that year’s 5-7 to 2-3 Ulster MFC final success over Monaghan.

"That was an extremely good team that could have got better if it had to have stayed together," he recalled in an interview with Hogan Stand magazine back in 1994.

"Unfortunately that was as well as we did at Minor level in my time as some of the players were overage the following year as often happens with good squads."

In later life, ‘BJ’ became a household name in Ireland and beyond due to his management of WBA world featherweight champion Barry McGuigan’s boxing career.

His passion for gaelic football never dimmed and he was a regular in Croke Park on All-Ireland SFC final day.

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