Tom Cheasty
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Tom Cheasty (born 1934) is a former Irish sportsperson who played hurling with Waterford in the 1950s and 1960s.
Tom Cheasty was born in Ballyduff, County Waterford in 1934. Brought up on a farm he developed a strong, muscular frame which earned him the nickname of the "iron man" and terrorised opponents in hurling and Gaelic football games. He played at minor level in both sports with Waterford before joining the senior hurling side in 1954. His entrance onto the team was unusual to say the least. While attending a National Hurling League game between Waterford and Kilkenny, the former team were so short of players that the management resorted to searching the crowd for hurlers. Cheasty volunteered his services and his sporting career began. He made his first mark at inter-county level in 1956 when Waterford played Cork in the first round of the Munster Championship. In spite of losing the game Cheasty played well and became a key member of the great Waterford side of the late 1950s.
Cheasty won a Munster Championship medal in 1957, however, the side was defeated in the All-Ireland final. A first round defeat in 1958 made the Waterford hurlers more determined to come back in 1959. They reached the All-Ireland final, playing against Kilkenny, however, a draw was the result. In the replay a few weeks later Cheasty played a vital role in securing the victory by defeating five defenders and scoring two goals. One of Cheasty's bursts of speed promted the commentator Michael O'Hehir to say:
"And Tom Cheasty breaks through with Kilkenny defenders falling around him like dying wasps."
In 1962 Cheasty won an Oireachtas Cup with Waterford and in 1963 won a National Hurling League medal. However, due to his attendance at a function organised by a soccer club Cheasty was in violation of the GAA "ban" on supporting "foreign sports." As such he received a six-month ban from playing and was not allowed to travel to the United States to play New York in the second leg of the National League. He was able to play once again in the All-Ireland final that year, but lost to Kilkenny once again.
Waterford had some great victories over the next few years, however, Cheasty retired from inter-county hurling after breaking his finger in a Munster Championship game against Cork. He had won every honour in the game, including 1 All-Ireland title, 3 Munster titles, a National League medal, 1 Oireachtas medal and 5 Railway Cups with Munster. Following his retirement from inter-county hurling Cheasty's career at club level was only beginning. He won 5 Waterford Senior Hurling Championship medals with Ballyduff-Portlaw, the first in 1970 and the last in 1977 at the age of 43.
