By Niall Gartland

ON Monday morning, the sad news filtered through that legendary Monaghan footballer Eugene ‘Nudie’ Hughes had passed away after a battle with cancer.

‘Nudie’ won three All-Stars and three Ulster Championships during a star-studded Monaghan career that stretched from the late seventies right through to the early nineties.

That’s without mentioning his club exploits – he won 10 county titles with Castleblayney Faughs as well as two historic provincial successes in 1986 and 1991. To put it simply, he was and is a legend.

He drew the respect of opponents the length and breadth of the county for his skill, passion and leadership on the field of play, and former Tyrone footballer Noel McGinn, a close personal friend, makes no bones about it – for him, he was Monaghan’s finest ever footballer.

“Ourselves and Monaghan had a great rivalry through the eighties. We faced each other reasonably often. That was a great Monaghan team but they were a great Monaghan team because of the players they had – none more so than ‘Nudie’.

“I would go as far as to say that ‘Nudie’ was the best Monaghan footballer I ever saw. He was tough as nails – a really good competitor but also a brilliant footballer. There were no 50/50 balls with Nudie. He was full of guile and full of craft, he was class.”

Since hanging up the boots, ‘Nudie’, who was blessed with an infectious personality, busied himself as a radio commentator when he wasn’t travelling the country as a salesman. McGinn, who works for Tyrone GAA digital fanzine TeamTalkMagLive, recalls a memorable moment at the outset of an interview held remotely during Covid.

“’Nudie’ became a very good friend after he finished playing football. He was a great lad and great company. We had him on one night on a Zoom call during Covid. He appeared on screen and he was sitting there with his All-Star trophies and he said “I just wanted Noel to see what they look like!”

McGinn concluded by praising ‘Nudie’s’ attitude in the face of illness, and expressed his pride that he could call the Monaghan icon a friend.

“I’m proud to say I became a very good friend of his since we quit football, and during the illness he was very frank, reflecting on his life and how it had affected him.

“He still kept himself busy, organising golf competitions and things like that, and that was the type of him. It’s maybe wild to say of something who’s just passed away that they were full of life, but he really was. He was great craic, a great footballer and a great person.”