Gerald McCarthy
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| Gerald McCarthy | ||
| Personal information | ||
|---|---|---|
| Sport | Hurling | |
| Irish Name | Gearóid Mac Carthaigh | |
| Full name | Gerald McCarthy | |
| Place of birth | Cork , Ireland | |
| Club information | ||
| Club | St. Finbarr's | |
| Position | Midfield | |
| Inter-County | ||
| County | Cork | |
| Position | Midfield | |
| Inter-County(ies)** | ||
| County | Years | Apps (scores) |
| Cork | 1965-1979 | |
| Senior Inter-County Titles | ||
| Munster Titles | 9 | |
| All-Ireland | 5 | |
| All Stars | 1 | |
|
* club appearances and scores |
||
Gerald McCarthy (born September, 1945) is an Irish hurling manager and former player, currently manager of the Cork senior inter-county team. He played hurling with his local club St. Finbarr's and with the Cork senior inter-county team from 1965 until 1979. McCarthy is regarded as one of Cork's greatest-ever players.
As a player McCarthy mostly played around the centre of the field or in the half-forward line. In s senior inter-county career that lasted for fourteen years he won five All-Ireland titles, nine Munster titles, three National Hurling League titles and five Railway Cup titles.
As a manager McCarthy has had some moderate success. He took charge of Waterford between 1997 and 2001 and succeeded in getting the team to a Munster final appearance and an All-Ireland semi-final appearance. McCarthy, however, failed to make the big breakthrough with the Déise. In 2007 he took charge of Cork, however, his first season in charge was dogged by the suspension of key players.
There were three striking aspects to McCarthy’s hurling. Firstly he almost never ran with the ball but believed in rapid delivery. The second was that he was very poor on his left hand side and was brilliant at being able to manoeuvre onto his right. The third was his party trick which he did at will. He would catch a flying ball on his hurley without touching it with his hand and rapidly hit it. He had no equal in any county at this skill.
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[edit] Early & private life
Gerald McCarthy was born in Cork in 1945. He was educated locally and quickly showed a natural talent for hurling. McCarthy has lived and worked in Cork all his life. He is a trophy-maker by trade.
On 27 June 2006 McCarthy was named as having availed of the Bogus Non-Resident Account Amnesty set up by the Irish Revenue. The settlement amounted to €420,000. [1]
[edit] Playing career
[edit] Club
McCarthy played his club hurling with the famous St. Finbarr's club in Cork, a club where he had much success. In 1964 St. Finbarr's made it all the way to the Cork County Final, however, they lost out to Glen Rovers in what was Christy Ring's last appearance in a county final. McCarthy didn't have to wait long for his first county championship medal, because in 1965 St. Finbarr's were back in the final and won. The side later went on to win the Munster club hurling title. Three years later in 1968 he claimed his second county championship medal. It would be 1974 before McCarthy won his third county championship medal with St. Finbarr's. This county victory paved the way for a second Munster club title and a first All-Ireland club title at the start of 1975. Two years later he won his fourth county title as well as another Munster club hurling title, before winning a second All-Ireland club hurling title with ‘the Barrs’ at the start of 1978.
[edit] Inter-county
McCarthy first came to prominence on the inter-county scene in the early 1960s as a member of the Cork minor hurling team. He had little success in this grade but later joined the county under-21 team where he captained the team to 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, captained by McCarthy, defeated Waterford in the provincial final giving him his first Munster title. Cork later lined out as underdogs against Kilkenny in the championship decider. McCarthy played a key role in the game and 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 and 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 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. Two years later in 1974 he won his third 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 as captain 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. McCarthy retired from inter-county hurling following that defeat.
[edit] Provincial
McCarthy also lined out with Munster in the Railway Cup inter-provincial competition. He won five Railway Cup titles in all in 1968, 1969, 1970 as captain, 1976 and 1978.
[edit] Early managerial career
| Gerald McCarthy | |||
| Inter County Management | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| County | Years | ||
| Cork Waterford |
2006-Present 1996-2001 |
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| Achievements | |||
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| Cork Waterford |
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Following his retirement as a player McCarthy didn't remain too far away from hurling for long. In 1980 he was appointed coach of the St. Finbarr's senior hurling team, a side with which he would have much success. In his very first year in charge he brought them County Championship and Munster club hurling honours. In 1981 he built on and repeated this success by claiming a second consecutive county title with his side. In 1982 McCarthy was back with the Cork senior hurling side, this time as their trainer. They won a Munster championship title under his regime, however, they lost the All-Ireland final to Kilkenny. McCarthy resigned from the management team after this, in protest over his lack of input into the team selection. He completed the year by coaching St. Finbarr's to a third consecutive county championship.
McCarthy remained at St. Finbarr's as coach until 1986, winning a fourth county championship title in the meantime. In 1990 he returned to the Cork senior hurling side as co-manager and trainer. With Canon Michael O'Brien he brought Munster and All-Ireland honours to Cork against all the odds. Cork repeated their provincial success in 1992, however, they lost to Kilkenny in the All-Ireland final. In 1993 Cork started well under McCarthy by winning the National Hurling League, however, the side were beaten in the Munster Championship. With that the management team resigned and it was expected that McCarthy would be appointed full manager of the side. An obscure rule regarding the selection committee the managerial position went to Johnny Clifford instead.
In 2006 he was back coaching at St. Finbarr's, this time it was the senior camogie side with whom he won the county championship.
[edit] Managing Waterford
McCarthy remained out of inter-county management for several years before returning as manager of the Waterford senior hurlers in late 1996. At the time Waterford were not a major force in the hurling world, however, by the time he left Waterford had come to be regarded as a major threat in the provincial championship.
[edit] 1997: A difficult first season
In his first year in charge McCarthy introduced a new regime immediately. He cut players and the training regime became harder than ever before. McCarthy's aim was to make progress in the National Hurling League in his first year in charge. His plan for his second year in charge included provincial success while an All-Ireland title would be claimed in the third year. This was an ambitious plan for a county that hadn't had any sort of inter-county success since 1963. In the end it proved too ambitious. Little progress was made by Waterford in the National League and the team crashed out of the provincial championship at an early stage.
[edit] 1998: League and Munster final appearances
In his second year in charge McCarthy's Waterford made steady progress in the National League. They reached the final in May of that year, however, the team was beaten by Cork, McCarthy's native-county. The provincial championship saw the men from the Déise reach the Munster final for the first time in almost a decade. History weighed against the team as they hadn't won a provincial title for thirty-five years. The game between Clare and Waterford ended in a draw, however, Clare remained favourites to win on the second occasion. The replay was a tense affair with Brian Lohan and Michael White were shown red cards after a melee. Clare won the game, however, Waterford still had a chance to win the All-Ireland title via the 'back-door' system. McCarthy's side defeated Galway in the All-Ireland quarter-final, however, Kilkenny emerged victorious in the All-Ireland semi-final on a score line of 1-11 to 1-10.
[edit] 1999: A downturn in fortunes
1999 saw Waterford open their championship campaign with a victory over Limerick. The subsequent Munster semi-final saw McCarthy's men take on Cork. Few people gave Cork a chance against the beaten All-Ireland semi-finalists of 1998, however, a six-point victory for 'the Rebel's ended Waterford's involvement in the championship for another year.
[edit] 2000: Waterford in the doldrums
In 2000 championship hurling began and ended on the same day for Waterford. In the Munster quarter-final Tipperary unceremoniously dumped the Decies out of the competition.
[edit] 2001: Last season in charge
In 2001 success with Waterford seemed as far away as ever for McCarthy. Another defeat in the early stages of the Munster championship brought thecurtain down on McCarthy's tenure as manager of the team.
[edit] Managing Cork
After five years away from the inter-county managerial scene McCarthy returned in late 2006 as John Allen's successor as manager of the Cork senior inter-county team. His appointment wa stinged with controversy as Ger Cunningham, a selector under Allen and the favourite for the job, was not even approached about taking the job.
[edit] 2007: A difficult first season
McCarthy's new look Cork side got off to a good start when they reached the semi-final stages of the National Hurling League. Their opponents that day, you also went on to win the game, were McCarthy's old Waterford team. Clare provided the opposition in Cork's opening game in the Munster championship, however, controversy reigned on the day. Both teams emerged from the tunnel at the same time, something unusual for a hurling match. A huge melee erupted under the stand as players from both teams became involved. Cork won that game, however, Seán Óg Ó hAilpín, Diarmuid O'Sullivan and Dónal Óg Cusack were suspended for the subsequent game against Waterford. In spite of losing three of their most influential players McCarthy's side put the Waterford team to the pin of their collar. In a thrilling game the Decies emerged victorious by a single score. Cork later reached the All-Ireland quarter-final via the qualifier system where Waterford provided the opposition. In the dying minutes of the game it looked as if Cork would triumph over their great rivals, however, a controversial free was awarded to Waterford and the game ended in a draw. The replay took place the following week, however, this time Waterford made no mistake and ended Cork's championship run. It was the first time since 2003 that Cork had ended a championship without any silverware.
[edit] 2008: Players strike
The appointment of Teddy Holland as manager of the Cork senior football team in October 2007 saw the players withdraw their services. The players from the county's senior hurling team withdrew their services in sympathy. The strike continued until February 2008, which resulted in McCarthy's side withdrawing from the Waterford Crystal Cup as well as postponing their opening National Hurling League games against Kilkenny and Waterford. Cork were later forced to forfeit their league points after failing to fulfill these fixtures.
| Achievements | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Willie O'Neill (Wexford) |
All-Ireland Under-21 Hurling Final winning captain 1966 |
Succeeded by P.J. Ryan (Tipperary) |
| Preceded by Jimmy Doyle (Tipperary) |
All-Ireland Senior Hurling Final winning captain 1966 |
Succeeded by Jim Treacy (Kilkenny) |
| Preceded by Len Gaynor (Tipperary) |
Interprovincial Hurling Final winning captain 1970 |
Succeeded by Tony Doran (Wexford) |
| Sporting positions | ||
| Preceded by Peter Doolan |
Cork Senior Hurling Captain 1966 |
Succeeded by Richie Browne |
| Preceded by John Horgan |
Cork Senior Hurling Captain 1975 |
Succeeded by Ray Cummins |
| Preceded by Fr. Bertie Troy |
Cork Senior Hurling Manager 1980-1982 |
Succeeded by Johnny Clifford |
| Preceded by Tony Mansfield |
Waterford Senior Hurling Manager 1996-2001 |
Succeeded by Justin McCarthy |
| Preceded by John Allen |
Cork Senior Hurling Manager 2006 – present |
Incumbent |
[edit] Managerial stats
[edit] Stats
| Team | From | To | Championship Record | National League Record | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| P | W | D | L | Win % | P | W | D | L | Win % | ||||
| Cork | November 8, 2006 | Present | 7 | 3 | 1 | 3 | 42.86 | 12 | 9 | 0 | 3 | 75.00% | |
[edit] Teams
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[edit] Footnotes
[edit] References
- Brendan Fullam, Captains of the Ash, (Wolfhound Press, 2004).
