Monsignor Gerard McSorley, a native of Eskra in County Tyrone and a former Tyrone minor footballer, has died at the age of 98.

He was the oldest and longest-serving priest in the Diocese of Clogher, having been ordained in 1954.

Born in Newtownsaville on 29 May 1929, Monsignor McSorley studied at the Pontifical Irish College and Lateran University in Rome. He was ordained on 8 May 1954 at the Lateran Archbasilica by Archbishop Luigi Traglia.

Before ordination, he was part of the Tyrone minor team that won the Ulster title in 1946, losing to Dublin in the All-Ireland semi-final. That Tyrone minor side included players who went on to win the All-Ireland senior title in 1947.

Monsignor McSorley served in a number of parishes in the Diocese of Clogher and was Prior of St Patrick's Purgatory, Lough Derg, for ten years.

Bishop Larry Duffy of Clogher paid tribute, noting that Monsignor McSorley's time in Rome gave him a broad view of the Church and enabled him to encourage the reception of the Second Vatican Council. The bishop also highlighted his work at Lough Derg, where he oversaw changes to physical facilities and the orientation of the pilgrimage experience while preserving the spiritual tradition.

Monsignor McSorley died on Tuesday. Funeral arrangements have not been announced.