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Cherie · Yesterday, 06:30 PM

Marie Keane, the mother of Ireland and Manchester United legend Roy Keane, has died.

Ms Keane died "in the tender loving care of the doctors, nurses and staff of St. Anne’s Ward at Marymount University Hospital and Hospice", according to a notice on RIP.ie.

She is predeceased by her husband, Maurice (Mossie), and her brother Pat, and is described as the "beloved mother of Denis, Johnson, Hilary, Roy and Pat".

The "only boss I listen to" was how Roy once described his mother, who, along with his late father Maurice, had a profound effect on shaping the mentality of the young Mayfield man who would turn out to be one of the great players ever to grace the English Premier League.

Despite his tough exterior, he has always had a very close bond with both his parents and has made no secret of his affection and admiration for them.

He shed tears last year talking about his family during an episode of Stick to Football, when he, Ian Wright, Jill Scott, and Gary Neville brought various mementoes from their careers into the studio.

He was said to have been devastated when his father Maurice ‘Mossie’ Keane died at the age of 79.

Maurice had suffered a stroke in 2018 and died in the Heather Care Home on the grounds of the Cork Orthopaedic Hospital in August the following year.

Marie married Mossie at the Church of the Resurrection in Farranree on Cork's northside in 1963, and they moved to Mayfield, where they brought up the future soccer legend and his siblings Denis, Johnson, Hilary, and Pat.

The Keanes have been described as a very close-knit family, with Marie and Mossie said to have been extremely proud of all their children.

When he moved to the UK and played for teams like Nottingham Forest and Man Utd, Roy always made sure his parents had tickets to his games.

Maurice and Marie eventually moved in the 1990s from Mayfield to Rathpeacon, Co Cork, to a house Roy had bought for them.

In his first autobiography, Keane: The Autobiography, Roy Keane referenced some of the ways in which his mother looked after him as a youngster.

“Growing up, I was aware that money was always scarce; for example, we never had a car. Yet to be honest, I was never really short of anything.

“My mother, Marie, and my father were warm, loving parents. My older brothers and my sisters looked out for me. Maybe being the youngest, I was spoilt.

“Rockmount attracted the best young footballers from all over the Cork suburbs, places like the Glen, Knocknaheeny and Blackpool. For me, it meant a seven-mile journey there and back, but it wasn’t a bother.

"My mother was always good for the bus fare. And if I needed a pair of football boots she would miraculously provide them. Maybe not the best brand on the market, but more than adequate for me.”

Visitation at O’Connor Bros Funeral Home at North Gate Bridge takes place on Monday from 6pm, before the requiem mass on Tuesday at 11am in the Church of the Resurrection, Farranree.

The Irish Independent