TRIBUTES HAVE been pouring in for young man from Fermoy, Co Cork, who died in London last Friday, just over a year after he was paralysed from the neck down as a result of a spinal injury he received while playing rugby.
UCC graduate Stuart Mangan (25) suffered the catastrophic injury on April 5th last year. Since the incident, local people in his home town of Fermoy and rugby players in both Ireland and Britain have rallied to raise funds for his care.
He was living in a modified flat in London with the assistance of his parents, Brian and Una, and 24-hour carers. He was taken to hospital in London last Thursday after he contracted pneumonia, and he died on Friday evening.
Fr PJ O’Driscoll from Fermoy parish said everyone was devastated by the tragic loss of such a gifted young man.
“It will be very difficult for the parish because of the amount of support the parish has given to the Mangan family. It will be devastating. The Mangan family and Stuart himself were very involved in the parish in many different ways through sport and in parish life.” Parish priest Fr Aquin Casey said Stuart would be fondly remembered by locals as a person who “made the most of his life.”
He was pleased that Stuart managed to make a trip home to Fermoy just three months ago.
Brian Mangan has thanked everyone who had fundraised for the family over the last year. He said his son showed “incredible courage to turn his life around”.
Stuart had completed five years of university studies, graduating with a law degree from UCC and a master’s in European business from ESC Paris, before he was hired to work on the trading floor of BNP Paribas in London.
In 2007 Stuart joined Hammersmith and Fulham Rugby Club, where his brother Barry also played. On the day of the accident, Stuart’s third vertebrae went over his fourth and he immediately lost all movement and breathing. A team-mate kept him alive with mouth-to-mouth resuscitation until the arrival of the paramedics.
He was taken to intensive care at Charing Cross Hospital, London. After four days he was transferred to Royal National Orthopaedic Hospital in Stanmore, London, for specialist spinal injury care. He spent three weeks in intensive care before being transferred to the spinal injury rehabilitation unit.
A special trust was set up and thousands of euro were raised for his care. He had recently begun to use voice recognition software enabling him to use a computer.
On April 5th, Stuart insisted on going with his parents to the London rugby pitch where he was injured to mark the first anniversary of the accident.
In an interview with The Irish Times earlier this year, he spoke of his determination to get back to work using his languages.
He said he could not spend his life regretting what had happened and that in spite of his injury, he still loved rugby and watched every match he could on television.
“It wasn’t anybody else’s fault; it wasn’t like someone did anything to me. I just went in, I just hit it and whatever way my head went, it just cracked. I absolutely loved the camaraderie of rugby and just the thrill I got from it. I just loved it; I loved it when you played with someone who was good, just scoring tries – I just loved it.
“When I was in hospital, they would ask do I ever get down, and I’d say, ‘Of course I get down when I think, for eff’s sake, why did it happen to me?’ – and then you’d cry for a bit and . . . but it only lasts about 20 minutes and then I’m back.”
Stuart is survived by his parents, Brian and Una, and his brothers Keith, John and Barry. Funeral arrangements are being finalised.