JOE Kerley’s death last weekend marked the end of an era in Limerick Junior Soccer.
For anyone of a certain vintage, Joe Kerley was the face of Star Rovers. He coached hundreds of kids in St. Mary’s Park and left behind a rich legacy.
The reaction to his death speaks volumes to the gratitude and respect felt across the city for the man.
Some people remember Joe mainly as a coach, but those of us a few years older were blessed to have witnessed one of the most skilled players ever to grace the local leagues.
He topped the voting in 2003 when the Limerick public were asked to pick a “Team of the Millennium 1900-2000” but he would just shrug that off. He was an unassuming man who never looked for anything for himself.
Quiet spoken, yet always able to get his message across, he played his part in developing a conveyor belt of some of the best talent in the city during a golden era for his beloved Star Rovers.
He not only instilled his footballing skills but also showed a generation of lads that football, while always competitive, was also to be enjoyed and that win lose or draw, you were respectful to your opponents.
Joe’s passing leaves a big void in his family and in the Parish, but his life was one worth celebrating.
The late Joe Kerley is survived by his loving sisters Nuala, Kathleen, Theresa, Peggy and Angela, brothers Michael and Raymond, aunts Precious and Geraldine, uncle Fergus, nephews, nieces, relatives and friends.
Funeral arrangements for the late Joe Kerley are as follows. Reposing at Cross’s Funeral Home, Gerald Griffin Street, today, Monday, August 22 from 5.00pm to 7.00pm.
Removal from his residence on Tuesday arriving for Requiem Mass at 11am in St. Mary’s Church, Athlunkard Street, with funeral afterwards to Mount St. Lawrence (extension) Cemetery.
Ar Dheis Dé go raibh a anam.
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