A BLEAK part of North Kerry even in the best of weather, the Cashen seemed unremittingly dark on Thursday night as gardaí kept a grim vigil by the body of John McManus in the cold and wet.

Sparsely populated and exposed, one of the most striking features of the landscape is the extensive growth of rushes in the coastal mudflats. It was into this vegetation that the body of John McManus came to rest alone and far from his loved ones.

Ballyduff was immediately plunged into a state of shock as news spread on Thursday night. Nobody knew who the dead man was at that point although there was some speculation that the body may have been that of the missing Fermoy native. However, it was not until Friday and the formal identification of Mr McManus that his fate began to come into stark focus.

Why Ballyduff ? That was the question many pondered on Friday — how a small North Kerry community could become the focus of a murder investigation arising from a violent incident in Cork city that appeared to have no relation to the Cashen area.

Prayers were offered for Mr McManus and his family as the thoughts of all in Ballyduff came to bear on their plight during the weekend's Masses and communal gatherings; a community now aligned with a bereaved family under the worst of circumstance. While the shock dissipates somewhat this week, few will forget the bleak events of November 2008 in Ballyhorgan as a corner of ground that is passed each day by locals takes on a dark appearance in perpetuity.

- DÓNAL NOLAN