Greatness that must not be forgotten
The years, and the sport, have moved on but Ray McLoughlin’s ability would have graced any era
The bare statistics of Ray McLoughlin’s career give no picture of his giant contribution to the game. Photo: Getty Images
In the early hours of last Sunday morning Ray McLoughlin passed away, aged 82. He died as he had lived, privately and without fuss. I don’t think the IRFU have hard and fast rules around having a minute’s silence for people, but whatever boxes need ticking the Argentina game came and went without mention of his death, which most of us were unaware of at the time. In true Irish fashion a phone rota was set up by his friends, and by late Sunday it was common knowledge. Ray’s privacy cloaked his achievements and today is a small effort to try and set straight the record.
Last Wednesday morning was wet and windy as the cortege carried Ray to his final resting place. It was the kind of weather that greeted visiting teams to the Sportsground to play Connacht, and a fitting day for the burial of one of the province’s finest sons.
