One of Gaelic football's greatest ever stars, Enda Colleran, has died at his home in Barna, County Galway. He was 63. Colleran was one of the outstanding members of Galway's famous 'Three-in-a-Row' All-Ireland team, which he captained to victory in 1965 and 1966.
Hailing from Moylough, Colleran's incredible list of GAA honours began when he won a Hogan Cup medal with St Jarlath's College of Tuam. He went on to play at right half-back on the Galway minor team that won the 1960 All-Ireland.
He won the Sigerson Cup with University College Galway in 1961, before going on to become an integral part of the Tribemen's legendary hat-trick of Sam Maguire victories from 1964 to '66.
He also won a National League winner's medal with Galway in 1965 and became only the fourth Galway man to captain a winning Connacht Railway Cup team two years later.
After his playing career, Colleran moved into coaching, becoming a Galway senior football selector and team manager in the 1970s. He was also a highly regarded analyst on RTÉ's 'Sunday Game' programme.
Colleran was selected at right half-back on both the Team of the Century, in 1984, and the Team of the Millennium, in 2000.
The manager of the current Galway team, John O'Mahony, described his Colleran's death as "a great shock and a great loss". O'Mahony added that Colleran had been a legend in Galway's footballing history and was one of the greatest players of his time. "He was a stylish, inspiring footballer who had been looked up to by generations of Galway players and, in particular, by the members of the current team," O'Mahony said.
Former Galway football star Jack Mahon described him as one of the game's truly outstanding gentlemen, whose hallmarks were "his courage, his consistency and his memorable kick-outs, which launched many a Galway match-winning attack."
A statement from GAA President Seán Kelly this morning read: "All in the GAA are saddened at the untimely and early death of a great GAA man and the massive and grievous loss to a great sporting family." Kelly also expressed his condolences on behalf of everybody in the GAA to the family, friends and former team-mates of the Galway great.
Filed by James Boylan
