Antrim hurling stalwart and John Mitchel’s legend Gilly McIlhatton has sadly passed away at the age of 92.
McIlhatton was a devoted club man that dedicated his life to GAA in Antrim, holding a number of different positions within the county.
At club level, McIlhatton held a number of key positions such as Chairman, Secretary (when he was just 18 years old), Treasurer and Senior Manager over a long period of time.
During his playing days, McIlhatton played both football and hurling for John Mitchel’s. He won a Junior and two Intermediate Hurling Championship titles along with a Junior Football Championship.
In between his terms as Hurling Vice-Chairman and then Chairman of Antrim GAA, McIlhatton managed the counties Senior Hurling team, guiding the Saffrons to three All-Ireland ‘B’ titles.
The first came in 1978 when Antrim saw off London in the decider, 1-16 to 3-7, before going on to claim back-to-back titles in 1981 and 1982. London were once again the opposition for both of those encounters.
He dedicated a huge portion of his life developing hurling among the underage teams of Antrim and was also hugely involved in Scór down through the years.
