“Eddie was a real Rugby gentleman who served Rochdale and Lancashire faithfully for many years.
Eddie played for Rochdale as a scrum-half, when the ball was put in straight!! From that club, he twice played for Lancashire in the 1958-59 season, against Cheshire and Durham. On retiring, he became a County Selector and later Team Secretary during the early eighties. This was when Lancashire won the County Championship against both North Midlands and Gloucestershire, with Internationals Beaumont, Cotton, Neary and Slemen amongst others. His administrative and man-management skills led him to be a popular Team Secretary of the North team which beat the All Blacks at Otley during the same period.
One of his lasting legacies to the Game was writing the Lancashire County RFU Centenary History in 1981. He rightly became President of the County in the 1991-92 season when they appropriately beat Cornwall in the final.
The Deasey dynasty have been great stalwarts of Club and County with his elder brother Hughie playing for Rochdale and serving on the County Disciplinary Committee. He was a regular Lancashire supporter once he had retired. Eddie’s son Michael also served on the Rochdale committee and became a referee with the Manchester & District Society.
The Red Rose County has many happy memories of a dedicated Lancastrian and sends our sympathy to his wife Barbara and his sons Michael and John.”
Words by Peter Hughes BEM
Please note Funeral to be held on Wednesday 3rd April 2024 at 12:00noon at St Vincent’s RC Church, Norden, Rochdale OL12 7QL, followed by a Committal at 1:20pm at Rochdale Crematorium, Bury Road, Rochdale OL11 4DG. Family flowers only please.