'A friend and mentor to so many' - Tributes pour in for Jimmy Brohan as funeral details announced 

Blackrock and Cork hurling is in mourning at the passing of the legendary Jimmy Brohan at the age of 88.

An All-Ireland hurling winner with Cork in 1954, Brohan won county Senior Hurling Championship titles with Blackrock in 1956 and 1961. He won six Railway Cup hurling medals with Munster and a county Junior Football Championship with St Michael’s in 1956.

At the time of his death, Brohan was Blackrock’s president.

“It is with great sadness that we announce the passing of our club president Jimmy Brohan,” the club said. “A legend of our club both on and off the pitch and friend and mentor to so many of us.” 

After his retirement, Brohan was a selector on Cork teams that won the All-Ireland in 1976, 1977, 1978 and 1986, when his nephew Tom Cashman captained the side to victory.

A statement from Cork GAA noted how “Jimmy played his part in Páirc Uí Chaoimh and at county grounds around Munster as a steward and stiles.

“His beloved Blackrock honoured him with the naming of The Jimmy Brohan Hurling Alley after him.”

After his retirement, Brohan was a selector on Cork teams that won the All-Ireland in 1976, 1977, 1978 and 1986, when his nephew Tom Cashman captained the side to victory.

'No Better Man'

Blackrock stalwart Roger Ryan, who won a county medal with Brohan in 1961, remembered somebody who was a great man as a much as a great hurler.

“When I came to Cork from Tallow in the 1960s, I was staying in digs on the Old Blackrock Road,” he said, “and the first two people to welcome me to Blackrock were Jimmy Brohan and Ned Cotter, the chairman.

“He was the face of the club. With no disrespect to anyone, himself and John Bennett were two of the greatest ambassadors the club had. If you were at any function with Jimmy, you had to go away into the background because he was so popular. Nobody, friend or foe, ever had a bad word to say about him.

“He was coaching up until a few years ago and there was no better man to be president of the club.

“Right up to the end, in CUH and then Marymount, he would contact me on the morning of a match, regardless of the fixture, to tell me to pass on his best wishes.

“He was the patriarch of the club. Everybody knew him and respected him.” 

 Brohan’s nephew Tom Cashman echoed those views.

“He was first and foremost a family man,” he said, “a fantastic father and grandfather, which was the main thing.

“He was a great character. He didn’t drink or smoke, but that never stopped him having the craic and he was a great singer.

“He was a real gentleman and he’ll be a huge loss, not alone to his family but Blackrock people in general. He was a huge support to everybody.

“He was always Cork, Blackrock, St Michael’s and loved going to matches. Apart from his work on the field and as a selector – which speaks for itself – his family always came first, which is a great sign of a man.” 

Back in 2020, Conor Hurley and Mark Russell from Blackrock Hurling Club conducted an interview with Jimmy Brohan as part of a series of conversations with club greats. They gave The Echo permission to carry the interview.

Jimmy told them he would like to be remembered as “one who tried to be a good clubman and who always gave his best in any position I held in my career.” 

Pressed on what the Blackrock Hurling Club meant to him, the late Mr Brohan said: “An honour to be associated with a successful club with a long tradition of winning and a club that caters for so many people in the parish of Blackrock and beyond.”

Funeral Details

Reposing takes place at the Temple Hill Funeral Home, Boreenmanna Rd, of Jerh. O’Connor Ltd, on Thursday, September 21, from 5pm to 6pm.

Requiem Mass at 11am on Friday in St Michael’s Church, Blackrock. Funeral afterwards to St Michael’s Cemetery, Blackrock.

Family flowers only, donations if desired to Marymount Hospice.