Ashling Murphy’s boyfriend has paid a heartfelt tribute to his ‘soulmate’ on the first anniversary of her death.

In a post shared by the Ashling Murphy Memorial Fund, Ryan Casey said “there isn’t a single second that goes by where my heart doesn’t ache for you”.

23-year-old Ashling was attacked and killed while out for a run along a busy canal in Tullamore, this day last year.

Her death sent shockwaves through the country and her family and friends will remember her at a special mass in Mountbolus, County Offaly this evening.

Ryan penned this tribute to Ashling last night:

“Time can move at a pace which can be impossible to comprehend but one thing [that is] for sure is no matter how fast time may pass, there isn’t a single second that goes by where my heart doesn’t ache for you,” he wrote.

“There’s a saying that goes, ‘You don’t know what you have until you lose it’ – but the reality is, we both knew exactly what we had, exactly what we wanted; it’s just we never thought we’d lose it.

“You are the one who has made me the person I am today; the only reason I get out of bed every morning, the only reason I got through graduation, the only reason I’ve continued on and started my working career.

“Everything I have done and everything that I do is completely for you. I Love and miss you so much Ash.

“Forever my soulmate.”

A memorial to Ashling Murphy in Kinsale, Cork. Image: John Allen / Alamy

Donations have been pouring into the Ashling Murphy memorial fund since it was established earlier this week.

The funds will go towards causes that were close to Ashling’s heart and “represent the many interests she had in her 23 years”.

The main objective of the fund is to enhance and develop traditional Irish arts, culture and heritage for young people.

You can donate to the fund here.