The town of Moate was numbed by the sudden death of William Claffey Jnr during last September's Phoenix Park Half Marathon in Dublin. The 28-year-old solicitor collapsed around the 11-mile mark and was assisted by other runners before being attended to by the St. John's Ambulance crew.

William played for Moate All-Whites before his studies and career brought him elsewhere. He had been working and living in Dublin.