RICHIE Donnelly got a phone call from Jody Gormley last year.
Let there be Rock!
His club manager was in the midst of an AC/DC concert in Dublin.
Guitars, drums, lights, noise… Giving it loads was what Jody loved and he lived his life with that heavy-metal positivity.
That’s how the Trillick men will remember him.
“I know he wouldn’t want a sombre piece, or a heavy piece,” says Richie as we discuss the tone of this article.
“Shed light on how he was so positive, the impact he had and how he went about his business in a really positive way. That would be a fair reflection of him.”
News of their mentor’s passing on Monday night left them all devastated in Trillick but as they mourn Jody and pray for his family they give thanks for the time they had with him and that he was one of them.
“He’s had such a massive impact since he’s been home in Trillick,” says Richie, an All-Ireland winner at minor and senior level with Tyrone.
“We had just over two years with him and he transformed football and life for a lot of young men. He’s an irreplaceable loss.”
A former Tyrone midfielder, Jody had a spell as manager of Antrim and won the Hogan Cup with the Abbey CBS. He returned to his roots to take charge of his native Trillick for the 2023 season and guided the club to a senior championship title.
Although he lived in Belfast, where he had played and successfully managed Down club Bredagh, and taught in Newry, Jody had been in constant touch with Richie, his brother Mattie and other Trillick players over many years.
He regularly attended his native club’s games, rarely missed a Tyrone match and was always there with a word of encouragement and advice.
“He was a coach to a lot of us before he was officially involved with us in Trillick because he followed our progress and he’s always been a huge Trillick man,” Richie explained.
“He wanted to make the players better people, he was always focussed on the person and making them a better person. He could see the potential in every player so he saw what they could be, not what they were and he devoted himself to filling that gap. I’m sure he was the same in every team he was with.
“I’ve never come across a manager who put so much time and care into the person. The relationship he built with the entire squad in Trillick is something I’ve never seen before. Anybody could call him at any hour and go for a pint, or a walk, or a coffee and have a good laugh with him. He was unique.”
An All-Ireland U21-winner with Tyrone, Gormley was part of the Red Hand side that narrowly missed out on winning the Sam Maguire in the 1995 All-Ireland final. The father of three suffered a stroke while on a family holiday to Miami during the summer and was on the way to a full recovery when he received news that he had terminal liver cancer.
Despite that hammerblow, he was determined to continue to live his life in a positive manner and he did so right to the end with the support of his wife Deirdre, daughters Aine and Niamh and son James, who was part of the Trillick squad last season.
“It’s all about the family, it’s not about the players or the club,” said Richie.
“The club and community in Trillick are behind them and as a player group we’ll be supporting each other as long as we live.
“How Jody went about life right to the end, to his last days... He was coaching and developing us right to the end over the phone in terms of areas we need to improve.
“He would have called boys or messaged them, he would have spoken to a number of people in the club and players about where we needed to go next and what the team needs to do to develop. He was doing that up until last week so that shows – and that reinforces – the type of man he was.”
After a fruitful career as a midfielder, Jody guided Antrim to success in the Tommy Murphy Cup (the forerunner of the Tailteann Cup) final at Croke Park and he enjoyed fruitful stints in Down and Armagh club football before, fittingly, he returned to his native Trillick St Maccartan’s.
“Don’t get me wrong, he’s one of the biggest competitors I’ve ever met but he wasn’t overly outcome-driven,” Richie explained.
“He set goals for the team but he wanted boys to realise what they represent, who they represent and how good they could be. He had unbelievable belief in us.”
Jody broke the terrible news of his terminal cancer diagnosis to Peter McGinnity and his Trillick management colleagues but he kept it from the players until after the Tyrone county final.
“All we cared about that night was losing a friend,” says Richie.
“It was a big shock but it put football to the back of our minds that night. He’s not a manager to us, he’s like a friend and a brother. He wasn’t your typical manager, there was no hierarchy, he was a like a best friend to all of us.
“For all his excellence as a coach and manager, the best legacy he left with us as a group and as a community is how we go about our lives. How we face challenges and react to them. I never once saw him react to a challenge in a negative way. He nearly welcomed any adversity or a challenge!
“That’ll be his living legacy and I’m very confident there’s a generation of Trillick men who will think of him any time they’re facing challenges and go: ‘What would Jody do here?’
“That goes way beyond coaching knowledge and success on the field. To me that will be his ever-lasting legacy. What he has done and delivered for Trillick on the field has been unbelievable in a sporting context but he’s much more than a coach or a manager.”
Among the many tributes paid to the 53-year-old from friends and former team-mates and players on social media was one of his last posts.
It depicted a cartoon exchange between two people.
“You only live once,” says one.
“Wrong!” replies the other: “You only die once, we live every day.”
Although he loved the GAA and was obsessed with Gaelic Football, there was so much more to him than football.
“He would have relayed that to the group,” says Richie.
“He encouraged boys to live their lives and have experiences that they loved and to spend time together. He pushed that because his big values were about enjoying life and enjoying experiences with people you love and the ones that are close to you.
“Music was a massive pillar for him and every week you were chatting to him he’d been at a gig whether it was a small, intimate one in Belfast or a stadium in Dublin. He rang me from that AC/DC concert. I knew he was a massive AC/DC fan and it was my first time ever listening to them. I think it was the best concert I was ever at!
“He would have taken control of the playlist at the club gym sometime and it was all AC/DC. It was good craic.”
Yes, Let there be Rock!
