Charlie McCarthy (hurler)
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| Charlie McCarthy | ||
| Personal information | ||
|---|---|---|
| Sport | Hurling | |
| Irish Name | Cathal Mac Carthaigh | |
| Full name | Charlie McCarthy | |
| Place of birth | Cork , Ireland | |
| Club information | ||
| Club | St. Finbarr's | |
| Position | Forward | |
| Inter-County | ||
| County | Cork | |
| Position | Corner-forward | |
| Inter-County(ies)** | ||
| County | Years | Apps (scores) |
| Cork | 1965-1980 | 45 (27-151) |
| Senior Inter-County Titles | ||
| Munster Titles | 9 | |
| All-Ireland | 5 | |
| All Stars | 3 | |
|
* club appearances and scores |
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Charlie McCarthy (born 1946) is a former Irish sportsperson. He played hurling with his local club St. Finbarr's and with the Cork senior inter-county team from 1965 until 1980. He is regarded as one of Cork's greatest-ever players.
McCarthy's status as one of Cork's all-time greats is self-evident. In a senior inter-county hurling career that lasted for fifteen years he won five All-Ireland titles, nine Munster titles, four National Hurling League titles and one Railway Cup title. His tally of 27 goals and 151 points from 45 championship games marks him out as one of the top ten scorers of all-time.
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[edit] Early life
Charlie McCarthy was born in Cork in 1946. He was educated locally at Sullivan's Quay Christian Brothers school and quickly showed a natural talent for hurling.
[edit] Playing career
[edit] Club
McCarthy played his club hurling with the famous St. Finbarr's club in Cork. He first tasted success in 1965 when he won his first senior county title. This was later converted into a Munster club title as Cork continued to dominate the new competition. McCarthy captured two more county titles in 1968 and 1974. The latter win was later converted into a second Munster title. On St. Patricks Day, 1975, McCarthy captured an All-Ireland club title following a defeat of the Fenians side from Kilkenny. Two years later in 1977 he captured a fourth county hurling title as captain of the side. Once again ‘the Barr’s’ later captured both Munster and All-Ireland club hurling titles. 1980 saw McCarthy add a fifth county title to his collection as well as a fourth Munster club title. 'The Barr's' went on to complete a hat-trick of county victories in 1981 and 1982.
[edit] Inter-county
McCarthy first came to prominence on the inter-county scene as a member of the Cork minor hurling team in the early 1960s. He won a Munster title in the is grade in 1964 before later collecting an All-Ireland medal. McCarthy later joined the county under-21 team where he won a set of Munster and All-Ireland honours in 1966.
By this stage McCarthy had already joined the Cork senior hurling team. He made his debut in 1965, however, Cork were trounced by Tipperary in the Munster final. All this changed in 1966 when a young Cork team defeated Waterford in the provincial final giving McCarthy his first Munster title. Cork later lined out as underdogs against Kilkenny in the championship decider. McCarthy played a key role in the game, scoring a point from a ground shot. Cork went on to win the game by five points giving the county a first All-Ireland title since 1954 and giving McCarthy his first All-Ireland medal. More success followed with the inter-county hurlers in 1969 when McCarthy claimed a National Hurling League title. He later won a second Munster title before lining out in a second All-Ireand final appearance. Once again it was Kilkenny who provided the opposition, however, this time it was the Leinstermen who turned the tables on Cork. Cork were leading coming into the final stages of the game but it was Kilkenny who scored five unanswered points in the last seven minutes to seal the victory. In 1970 Cork were back and McCarthy captured a second consecutive National League title as well as a third Munster title. For the second year in-a-row Cork qualified for the All-Ireland final where Wexford provided the opposition. The first 80-minute final turned out to be a score-fest with a record 64-point score line. Cork's Eddie O'Brien scored a hat-trick while McCarthy also chipped in with a goal. The final score of 6-21 to 5-10 gave Cork the victory and gave McCarthy a second All-Ireland medal.
By now McCarthy was one of the best players on what would become one of the most oustanding teams of the decade. In 1972 he won his third National Hurling League medal with Cork before claiming his fourth provincial championship title. Old rivals Kilkenny provided the opposition in the only 80-minute All-Ireland final between the two sides. The game turned out to be one of the modern classics. Cork were leading by eight points coming into the final stages, however, Kilkenny fought back and won the game by seven points. There was some consolation in the fact that McCarthy claimed his very first All-Star award. Two years later in 1974 he won his fourth National League title in six years, however, Cork were still beaten in the early stages of the championship. In 1975 McCarthy won a fourth Munster title following a comprehensive defeat of Limerick. Cork, however, were later surprisingly beaten by Galway in the All-Ireland semi-final who went on to be trounced by Kilkenny in the All-Ireland final. In 1976 MCcarthy captured a sixth Munster title, a victory which allowed Cork advance directly to the All-Ireland final. In a repeat of 1970 Wexford provided the opposition and got off to a dream start by scoring 2-2 to no score in the first eight minutes. Cork fought back with Jimmy Barry-Murphy, Ray Cummins and Pat Moylan scoring the winning points to seal the victory and to give McCarthy a third All-Ireland medal. The following year he won a seventh Munster title following a thrilling victory over Clare. Once again Cork lined out in an All-Ireland final against Wexford. The game was just as exciting as the previous year's with Seánie O'Leary scoring the goal that gave Cork the lead. 'The Rebels' went on to win the game on a score line of 1-17 to 3-8 and McCarthy collected his fourth All-Ireland title. In 1978 the prospect of completing a first three-in-a-row since the 1950s loomed large for Cork. McCarthy, who was captain of the team for the year, captured an eighth Munster medal as Cork defeated Clare in a close and tense game. Age-old rivals Kilkenny provided the opposition in the championship decider, however, their great team of the 1970s was now in decline. The game ebbed and flowed for much of the seventy minutes with no side breaking away. With thirteen minutes left Jimmy Barry-Murphy scored the goal that clinched the game for Cork. It was fitting that McCarthy scored the final point of the game. That day he led Cork to a third consecutive championship title as well as collecting a fifth winners' medal. In 1979 he won a fifth consecutive Munster title, his ninth in all; however, a fourth All-Ireland medal in a row proved beyond even this great team as Cork were beaten in the All-Ireland semi-final by Galway. Following defeat in the 1980 Munster final, McCarthy retired from inter-county hurling.
[edit] Provincial
McCarthy also lined out with Munster in the Railway Cup inter-provincial competition. He was captain of the team in 1978 when a defeat of Connacht in the final gave him his sole Railway Cup medal.
| Sporting positions | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Martin O'Doherty |
Cork Senior Hurling Captain 1978 |
Succeeded by John Horgan |
| Preceded by Johnny Clifford |
Cork Senior Hurling Manager 1988-1989 |
Succeeded by Con Roche |
| Achievements | ||
| Preceded by Tony Doran (Leinster) |
Interprovincial Hurling Final winning captain 1978 |
Succeeded by Phil 'Fan' Larkin (Leinster) |
| Preceded by Martin O'Doherty (Cork) |
All-Ireland Senior Hurling Final winning captain 1978 |
Succeeded by Ger Fennelly (Kilkenny) |
[edit] Teams
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