Some things are bigger than the game itself.
Breaffy defeated Knockmore on Sunday in the Division 1A football League final in Mayo on Sunday, but what stood out the most from the occasion was Aidan O’Shea’s emotional winning speech.
Tragedy befell the Breaffy club earlier in the year when David Gavin, a former Mayo minor, under-21, and senior player for the club passed away after a swimming accident in Canada in July.
Breaffy girl, Faye Lavin, also passed away during a difficult year for the Mayo club, but O’Shea summed up the emotions of the community perfectly with his speech on Sunday.
Some things transcend the game, and let us know that the GAA really is only just a game, but they also remind us just how beautiful the GAA is in the way it knits a community together. We should really cherish the group spirit that it inspires, and the unity, bond and togetherness that it creates between members.
“It was a difficult year for this group, for the club itself. We lost Faye Lavin, and we also lost a club mate, and great friend of our’s, David Gavin,” began a visibly emotional O’Shea.
The club captain went on dedicate the victory to Gavin, and rued the fact that it wasn’t the senior Championship, the ‘Moclair Cup’ that they had brought home for him.
“He represented everything that is good about gaelic football, not just Breaffy, but guys from Knockmore will have played against him as well. He was a great fella, a great footballer and one that we will dearly miss,” continued the 27-year-old.
There’s something truly sweet about the club’s desire to honour their fallen teammate, and you could sense the emotion around the grounds.
An emotional Aidan O'Shea dedicates the @MayoGAA Division 1A title to his @BreaffyGAA clubmate David Gavin today. pic.twitter.com/KIL5yu2iGq
— Mid West Radio (@radiomidwest) October 15, 2017
Fair dues.
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