‘Here in the Farney County, Nudie Hughes was and is our king', funeral of GAA star hears

Mr Hughes died on Monday at the age of 67 after a battle with cancer.

The Castleblayney Faughs clubman was Monaghan’s first ever All-Star and belongs to a select group of footballers to win All-Stars both in defence and attack.

The funeral mass took place today at 11am in St Mary’s Church Castleblayney, Co Monaghan, and was followed by burial in the adjoining cemetery.

Bagpipes could be heard during the procession travelling to the church up York Street ahead of the funeral mass, including a guard of honour.

Symbols representing Mr Hughes’ life were brought to the altar by his family, including a football, Castleblayney Faughs and Monaghan jerseys, which “Nudie wore with pride”, and a golf club, a testament to his “great competitive spirit”.

Fr Stephen Duffy, who was Mr Hughes’ friend, described him as a "proud son of Castleblayney”, adding that not only was Mr Hughes a “remarkable person” but also “happened to be a magnificent footballer and sportsman”.

The priest said Mr Hughes “loved the craic, banter and had a great sense of fun” and he was proud of where he came from.

"Nudie would always, throughout his life, have the greatest of love for his roots, York Street, with its people and homes and the entire people of Castleblayney. Always had time for everybody,” he told those gathered in church.

"But this love was not a one-way relationship, because Nudie was loved with the greatest pride for one of its most famous sons. Indeed, no matter where they went in the world, it seemed to be if you were from Castleblayney, it was the Castleblaney trinity of Big Tom McBride, Paddy Cole and Nudie Hughes.

“Both St Mary's Church and St Mary's Park are only 500m apart. St Mary's Park, which Nudie in the green and gold of the Faughs graced for so many years as the icon, the legend, loved by so many. And today, here in St Mary's Church, we give thanks to God for his life,” he added.

Fr Duffy spoke of Mr Hughes’ love of his family, and his upbringing, where he was born into a family of seven boys and seven girls.

“While born Eugene, because a neighbour's child couldn't say Eugene, Nudie is the name he would be known by all over Ireland, and it seems the entire world. I think he's even better known than our new Pope Leo, and it's amazing how far he's known.

“Nudie's resilience, courage and utter positivity in the face of his greatest battle is a lasting legacy for us all, and hopefully a memory for these days.

"Nudie, of course, didn't go on this journey alone, because he couldn't have endured for as long without Teresa. Through Teresa's love every step of the way, along with [his sons] Oisin, Ciaran and Conor, Nudie's sisters and brothers and all his great friends here from Castleblayney, who are up and down the road to him, and all the footballing friends who came from all over Monaghan, all over Ireland to visit him. This gave such a great lift.”

He was also a “great friend” to numerous charities, such as Castleblaney Cancer Society and the Shabra Charity Foundation, as his name and personality “always went a long way in helping those in need with a helping hand, because nobody could say no to Nudie”.

Last year, Mr Hughes was honoured by the Gaelic Players Association with a Lifetime Achievement award.

Fr Duffy said: “That particular week, I had spoken to Nudie on the phone on Wednesday, and he was very ill. I didn't think he'd be strong enough to make it.”

"But in typical Nudie fashion, the thought of Croke Park once again being in the Hogan stand brought him alive as he was once more on the big stage in our stadium of dreams.

“It was a great day to be in the presence of all the great footballing royalty from down through the years, and right at the heart of this was our own Nudie Hughes.

“Here, between the Drumlin Hills of Monaghan in the Farney County, Nudie Hughes was and is our king,” he told the mourners.

Mr Hughes had been living with cancer since being diagnosed in 2018.

His career was crowned by a National League title in 1985, three Ulster SFC medals (in 1979, ’85 and ’88) and three All-Stars: as a corner-back in ’79, then a corner-forward in ’85 and ’88.

He is predeceased by his parents, Patrick and Margaret, and survived by his wife Teresa, and sons Ciaran, Conor, and Oisin.

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