A PALPABLE silence descended on the village of Cushendall in north Antrim on Wednesday morning as Ruairi Og’s favourite son John McKillop was laid to rest in the grounds of St Mary’s Church on Chapel Road.
Under grey skies, a tearful rendition of 'The Green Glens of Antrim' was sung at his graveside by the Glens Choir, while Ruairi Og member Philip Campbell later read a poem he wrote some years ago about “Wee John”, as he was affectionately known.
There was standing room only inside St Mary’s Church while hundreds of mourners spilled out onto the church grounds as parish priest Fr Whiteford told the congregation how hurling became John’s “passion in life” at the age of 10.
“John really enjoyed life,” said Fr Whiteford, who was assisted at the requiem mass by missionary priest and Dunloy native Fr PJ McCamphill.
“He loved and watched a lot of sport and was actually a good pool player. But, of course, people knew his great passion in life was hurling.
“John, I understand, is in every Ruairi Og championship-winning photograph since 1981 – all 14 of them – and the Ruairi Og club and its members were very good to him.
“John was non-verbal and it was in Rathmoyle Centre in Ballycastle - a place he attended, until recent times and absolutely loved going to - where he learned sign language to help him communicate, although I’m led to understand if he was displeased about something he didn’t need sign language.”
Heartfelt tributes from every part of Ireland were paid to the famous Ruairi Og clubman, who was born with Down Syndrome.
On Christmas Day last year, he suffered a seizure and his health deteriorated rapidly. Cared for by his sisters Maureen and Amelia and brothers Dion, Seamus and Eamon, he celebrated his 60th birthday on February 4.
Fr Whiteford added: “On Sunday morning, John died peacefully surrounded by his family in the same room he was born in 60 years ago.”
As John’s remains left the church to be buried in a nearby plot, members of the local hurling club lined either side of the path – an emotional salute to one of their own.
“Today was more a celebration of a remarkable man,” said Ruairi Og hurler Neil McManus.
“John was an exception. A true one-off. He will be sorely missed by his family and our community at large but he will remain the beating heart of Ruairi Óg Cushendall.
“Shane McNaughton summed him up perfectly when he remarked that 'John made a better fist of the cards he was dealt than anyone I’ve known'.
“His send off was a tribute to the contribution he made to our club and the hurling community during his 60 years. I’ll miss him, we’ll miss him - but let me tell you, no-one will forget 'wee John' in a hurry.”
In an in-depth interview in The Irish News in June, former Antrim hurler and celebrated Allstar Terence McNaughton spoke movingly about their enduring friendship that began when they attended the same school as kids for a brief time.
“I probably felt comfortable with John because I didn’t have to communicate,” McNaughton explained.
“We probably communicated by sitting and eating lunch together. John didn’t make me feel uncomfortable when other people did.
“It’s maybe as simple as that. Communication was uncomfortable for me, but I never felt challenged in John’s company. I was comfortable in his presence.
“It wasn’t a friendship where we went out and pucked about together or climbed trees. That wasn’t the kind of friendship we had. I don’t know how to explain it; it was having that familiar face in those horrible surroundings.”
Up until John got sick, the pair would play pool every Friday night in McNaughton’s pub in the village.
On the pub’s gable wall, a massive painting of ‘Wee John’ greets every visitor to Cushendall – an image that was originally captured on camera by Irish News and freelance photographer Seamus Loughran during the pre-match parade ahead of the 2015 county championship final between Ruairi Ogs and Ballycastle.
Fittingly, the two clubs do battle in the senior championship this Saturday in Cushendall (7pm).
Earlier this year, the club named their new Strength and Conditioning Gym after John McKillop.
"I think he’ll be remembered for always," McNaughton said. "Maybe someday somebody will ask: ‘Why is that called the John McKillop S&C gym?’ And somebody will explain why.
“People will talk about John McKillop. Neil [McManus] will talk about him. My sons Shane and Christy will talk about him."
