A hugely talented underage footballer, John lined out at centre-field on the Maeth team which contested the 1977 All-Ireland MFC decider. By that stage he was a regular on the Gaeil Colmcille championship team and but for a bad leg break would undoubtedly have played at senior level for the county. A man of great strength, John's sons have also represented Meath at underage and are presently heavily involved with their local Kilmainham club. John served as a selector for the Kells parish club. As a young man, he had a huge interest in greyhound breeding and rearing, and in his later years, he enjoyed going horse racing with many trips to Ascot and Cheltenham. In 1996 the family owned dog Tina Marina won the Irish Greyhound Derby and huge celebrations followed. The 54-year-old was also well-known as the proprietor of the popular Round Tower establishment in Kells.