The death has taken place of legendary Cork hurling coach Canon Bertie Troy, the man who led the Rebels to that famous 3-in-a-row of All-Ireland titles in 1976/77/78. Canon Bertie was parish priest of Midleton from 1991 until retirement in 2005. He had previously served in England, Carrigtwohill, Ballycotton and Kanturk. Bertie also served and with huge distinction his other love, Cork hurling. And it is no coincidence that, following a long spell in the doldrums, Cork's hurling renaissance coincided with the involvement of Canon Bertie as coach. This revival included six provincial and four All-Ireland minor titles from 1966 to 71, four Munster and four All-Ireland under 21 crowns in a row between 68 and 71 and of course, that glorious 3-in-a-row, not to mention five Munster senior titles. People look back on that Cork team of the late 70s as one of the greatest ever, playing clean, non stop, all action hurling, be it from the hand or ground and in a style dictated by their famous coach, a brand of hurling continued by recent Rebel coaches like Jimmy Barry Murphy, a young sporting student of Canon Troy in the early 70s. Bertie Troy hailed from what is now the great hurling stronghold of Newtownshandrum and nobody took greater pleasure in Newtown's recent All-Ireland success than the great priest, who rarely missed one of their games. Canon Bertie was a member of the St. Colmans College, Fermoy team which gained their first Dr. Harty Cup crown in 1948. Later on he returned to teach in the famous hurling nursery for 21 years. He was President of the Midleton club at the time of his death. Canon Bertie Troy's legacy to Cork hurling is up there with Ring, Lynch and the very best of the Rebel immortals. Tweet

Most Read Stories