Victims of former sports coach Bill Kenneally walked out of Waterford Circuit Criminal Court yesterday as their abuser's counsel, Michael Counihan, SC, read out a statement of apology.
His victims, now all grown men, recalled in their statements to the court the sense of fear they had felt for many years after the assaults by a man who told them they would not be believed if they reported what he had done.
Jason Clancy said he was “no longer afraid” now his voice was “being heard after a long and painful journey”.
“I am no longer going to cower down like that frightened little boy as I am a proud man with nothing to be ashamed of,” he said in the statement. “I want to acknowledge the boys that I think of so often who have been too afraid or too ashamed to come forward and expose Bill Kenneally for whom he really is.”
“I hope the maximum sentence is imposed on Bill Kenneally so he can reflect on all the damage he caused purely to satisfy his own sexual needs.”
Another victim, Barry Murphy, said in his statement that the “most frightening memory that keeps coming back to my mind is one of being handcuffed and bound naked and being interfered with and then with another boy having to tie Mr Kenneally to the bed and being forced to masturbate him – this is the one image of the man I can never erase.”
‘Some closure’
Kevin Keating, also abused by Kenneally, said he spent a long time looking over his shoulder after the abuse as he feared “my attacker would be waiting for me in his car to take me away”.
Colin Power, another of those abused by the coach, said he hoped the end of the case would bring “some closure”.
Another person abused by Kenneally, referred to as Victim X, said the feeling of fear had “never left me since” as he was scared he might meet his abuser on the street or of his family learning what had happened to him.
“This man took away my innocence and my confidence growing up as a teenager,” he said.
