LorcĂĄn Branagan, 26, tragically passed away in Sydney last month after an accident, and was laid to rest in St. Johnâs Church Ballymaghery, Hilltown on Friday.
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It was the second time tragedy had struck the Branagan family after LorcĂĄnâs brother PeĂĄrce died suddenly from a cardiac incident in 2018.
A talented dual GAA player for local club Clonduff, teammates of LorcĂĄnâs were present in the church alongside his family, while GAA President Jarlath Burns was also in attendance.
Ross Carr, who won two All-Ireland titles with Down and is a prominent member of the Clonduff club, addressed the funeral and described LorcĂĄn as having lived a âbig, brave, beautiful lifeâ.
âLorcĂĄn lived a big, brave, beautiful life filled with love,â he told mourners.
âThatâs all of us can hope and strive for.
âHow would you describe LorcĂĄn? A former teacher described him as a model student and the finest young lad he had taught in his 35 years of teaching.
âThere were many ways you could describe LorcĂĄn and yet the one that sums him up for me came from our former team manager, Adrian Cush, who simply said LorcĂĄn was the type of lad who as a father youâd just love to have come to your door to ask your daughter out.
âBut youâd hate to see him walking towards you to mark him on a pitch.
âLorcĂĄnâs tragic passing will change us, we canât help that. But as a club we will be there for LorcĂĄnâs family and each other.â
Parish priest Fr Charles Byrne said Lorcan was held in âhigh esteemâ by all who knew him, and that news of his death had devastated the local community.
âThe news of Lorcanâs tragic death on 24 March has brought devastating shock and grief to you, the Branagan family, his family circle, his friends and to our local community here in Clonduff and his friends too in Australia.
âHe was held in very high esteem by all who knew him.
âMany glowing tributes were paid about Lorcan over the past couple of weeks, and all of these speak to us about the very special young person that Lorcan was.
âWe all know Larkin had a great love for Gaelic football.