There was sad news over the weekend with the death of George Wilson, father of Ireland Assistant Coach Gary.

George was a keen cricketer himself with Woodvale and RUC.

He was also a former President of Woodvale, and followed the fortunes of CSNI too.

He and his good friend Roger Bell were instrumental in helping Belfast U14's participate in various Lords Taverners competitions where they enjoyed great success.

"George and I got to know each other well from 2001 when we became involved with the Belfast Under 14's in the Lord's Taverners' Inner Cities Cup at Arundel which continued until 2011," said Roger.

"It gave him great pleasure when Belfast won the tournament twice, and he loved seeing the players we had brought through going on to make their mark in senior cricket.

"We became great friends and I also travelled to England with him on many occasions to watch Gary, who he was rightly so proud of, playing up and down the country for MCC Young Cricketers and then Surrey.

"George was a real character and was always good company, and we had some great times back in the day. George was a real cricket man."

Speaking with the Woodvale website about his love for the Ballygomartin side, George told them:

"Over the years watching Woodvale has brought me many memories and made me realise how lucky I've been to follow the greatest team in the country."

Condolences to Gary and the wider family circle. May he Rest In Peace.