Dónal O'Grady
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| Dónal O'Grady | ||
| Personal information | ||
|---|---|---|
| Sport | Hurling | |
| Irish Name | Dónall Ó Gráda | |
| Full name | Dónal O'Grady | |
| Place of birth | Cork , Ireland | |
| Club information | ||
| Club | St. Finbarr's | |
| Position | Full-back | |
| Inter-County | ||
| County | Cork | |
| Position | Full-back | |
| Inter-County(ies)** | ||
| County | Years | Apps (scores) |
| Cork | 1981-1984 | |
| Senior Inter-County Titles | ||
| Munster Titles | 3 | |
| All-Ireland | 1 | |
|
* club appearances and scores |
||
Dónal O'Grady (born c.1950s in Cork, Ireland) is a retired Irish hurling manager and former player. He played both hurling with his local club St. Finbarr's and with the Cork senior inter-county team in the early 1980s. O'Grady served as manager of the Cork senior hurling team from 2002 until 2004.
Contents |
[edit] Playing career
[edit] Club
O'Grady played his club hurling at a time of great success for the famous St. Finbarr's club in Cork. He won several county titles throughout the 1970s and 1980s. In 1974 O'Grady won a Munster club title before later converting it into an All-Ireland club title. In 1977 he won a second Munster club title before once again claiming a second All-Ireland club title. O'Grady won a third and final Munster club title in 1980.
[edit] Inter-county
By the late 1970s O'Grady joined the Cork senior hurling panel. He captained the team to a second consecutive National Hurling League victory in 1981, before winning his first Munster title in 1982. Unfortunately, O'Grady's side were later defeated by KIlkenny in the All-Ireland final. In 1983 he won a second Munster medal, however, Kilkenny once again accounted for Cork in the All-Ireland final. 1984 was a special year in Irish sport as it was the centenary year of the Gaelic Athletic Association. That year O'Grady won a third provincial medal, before once again qualifying for the All-Ireland final. At the third time of asking Cork were victorious in the final, defeating Offaly, giving O'Grady an All-Ireland medal. He retired from inter-county hurling shortly afterwards.
[edit] Managerial career
In retirement from playing O'Grady has remained strongly involved at club and county level. He first gained managerial experience when he was a selector when Cork won the 1986 Munster and All-Ireland titles. He was appointed manager of the Cork senior hurling team in December 2002. It was a huge challenge for O'Grady, particularly since the inter-county hurlers had gone on strike for better conditions earlier in the year.
[edit] 2003: Munster success but All-Ireland defeat
In his first year in charge in 2003 O'Grady brought some new players onto the team. John Gardiner found a regular place on the team, while Tom Kenny, Ronan Curran and Setanta Ó hAilpín all made their debuts. Success in the National Hurling League was never a priority for O'Grady, however, with a blend of youth and experience his team went on the capture their first Munster title since 2000. An exciting All-Ireland semi-final saw Cork earn a draw with Wexford, however, it was 'the Rebels' who easily won the replay. The subsequent championship decider saw Cork take on Kilkenny, with 'the Cats' earning the favourites tag. The result hung in the balance until the last five minutes when Kilkenny's Martin Comerford scored the winning goal. A 1-14 to 1-11 score line meant that Cork had fallen short.
[edit] 2004: Munster defeat but All-Ireland success
Following their performance in 2003 Cork were regarded as one of the favourites to take the championship title in 2004. Some change to the team saw star forward Setanta Ó hAilpín depart while former star Brian Corcoran made a dramatic comeback. Cork's plan came unstuck in the Munster final when 14-man Waterford defeated O'Grady's side by a single point. This game is regarded as one of the greatest provincial finals ever played. Cork later qualified for the All-Ireland final via the qualifiers and, for the second year in-a-row, Kilkenny provided the opposition. After a poor first-half the sides were evenly matched, however, the final 23 minutes saw Cork score nine points without reply from Kilkenny. O'Grady had led Cork out of the doldrums and to a coveted All-Ireland title.
There was some surprise when O'Grady resigned as manager immediately after the victory. He has maintained his involvement in hurling as a pundit on RTÉ's The Sunday Game and with Irish language channel TG4. It has also been mooted that O'Grady may return to inter-county management at a future date.
| Sporting positions | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Dermot Mac Curtain |
Cork Senior Hurling Captain 1981 |
Succeeded by Jimmy Barry-Murphy |
| Preceded by Bertie Óg Murphy |
Cork Senior Hurling Manager 2002-2004 |
Succeeded by John Allen |
| Achievements | ||
| Preceded by Brian Cody (Kilkenny) |
All-Ireland Senior Hurling Final winning manager 2004 |
Succeeded by John Allen Cork) |
[edit] Teams
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