Justin McCarthy (hurler)
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| Justin McCarthy | ||
| Personal information | ||
|---|---|---|
| Sport | Hurling | |
| Irish Name | Justin Mac Carthaigh | |
| Full name | Justin McCarthy | |
| Place of birth | Passage West , County Cork | |
| Club information | ||
| Club | Passage | |
| Position | Midfield | |
| Club(s)* | ||
| Club | Years | Apps (scores) |
| Passage | 1960s-1970s | |
| Inter-County | ||
| County | Cork | |
| Position | Midfield | |
| Inter-County(ies)** | ||
| County | Years | Apps (scores) |
| Cork | 1964-1974 | 28 |
| Senior Inter-County Titles | ||
| Munster Titles | 3 | |
| All-Ireland | 1 | |
|
* club appearances and scores |
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Justin McCarthy (born 1945 in Passage West, County Cork) is a retired Irish hurling manager and former player. He played hurling with his local club Passage and with the Cork senior inter-county team in the 1960s and 1970s. McCarthy served as manager of the Waterford senior inter-county team from 2001 until 2008. He was, after Brian Cody, the longest serving manager of any team in the senior championship, however, unlike his Kilkenny counterpart he did not have as much success.
As a player McCarthy was involved with the Cork team of the late 1960s. In a senior inter-county career that lasted from 1964 until 1974 he won one All-Ireland titles, three Munster titles, two National Hurling League titles and three Railway Cup titles.
Over the last four decades McCarthy has had some success as a manager with many different teams. In the 1970s he coached Antrim to an All-Ireland title at intermediate level before capturing back-to-back National Hurling League titles with Clare. The 1980s saw McCarthy coach his own native Cork to two Munster titles and an All-Ireland triumph in the centenary year of the Gaelic Athletic Association. While in charge of the Waterford senior hurling team from 2001 to 2008 he guided the team to three Munster titles and one National Hurling League title. Waterford, in spite of being regarded as one of the top three teams in the country, failed to reach an All-Ireland final under McCarthy.
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[edit] Early life
Justin McCarthy was born in Passage West, County Cork in 1945. From an early age he showed a huge interest in the game of hurling. McCarthy’s hurling genes came from his mother’s side of the family. Her brothers had played with the Yong Ireland’s club in Boston and won the North American championship in 1934. When Bord na nÓg was formed in Cork in the 1950s McCarthy took part in the under-14, under-15 and under-16 competitions. He first wore the red jersey of Cork in 1955 when a game was organised against a group of young Kilkenny boys.
[edit] Playing career
[edit] Club
McCarthy played his club hurling with his local club Passage. He enjoyed some minor success with the club. He had the opportunity to move to a more prominent city club in the 1960's but choose to stay with his native Passage even though they would not be the most successful of hurling clubs.
[edit] Inter-county
McCarthy first came to prominence on the inter-county scene as a member of the Cork minor hurling team. He had little success at this level, however, in 1964 McCarthy played with the Cork under-21, intermediate and senior hurling teams. Success was slow in coming but the big breakthrough for Cork and McCarthy came in 1966. That year he won a Munster title with the under-21 team before later collecting an All-Ireland medal in this grade following a victory in a replay against Wexford.
By this stage McCarthy was also a well-established member of the Cork senior team. The early 1960s were a bleak period for Cork’s senior hurling team, however, in 1966 McCarthy was at midfield when ‘the Rebels’ defeated Limerick to capture their first Munster title in a decade. This victory allowed Cork to advance directly to the All-Ireland final where Kilkenny provided the opposition. It was the first meeting of these two great rivals since 1947 and ‘the Cats’ were installed as the favourites. In spite of this Cork scored a hat-trick of goals and McCarthy won his first and only senior All-Ireland medal. McCarthy’s performances at midfield throughout the championship set him apart, and he was honoured with the prestigious Texaco Hurler of the Year award. At 21 he was the youngest person ever to receive the award, a record which stood until it was broken by McCarthy’s fellow countymen Pat McDonnell and Brian Corcoran.
Three years later in 1969 McCarthy began the year with a National Hurling League victory over Wexford. This was quickly followed by a second Munster title following a comprehensive victory over reigning provincial champions Tipperary. Once again this victory in Munster paved the way for an All-Ireland final meeting with Kilkenny. On the week of the game, however, McCarthy was involved in a horrific motorbike accident and he broke his leg in three places. In the short-term this meant that he had to watch the entire championship decider from a wheelchair on the sideline. Cork lost the game after leading ‘the Cats’ coming into the last quarter. In the long-term McCarthy’s injury meant that he also missed out on Cork’s championship campaign in 1970, the year which saw the team capture further National League, Munster and All-Ireland honours. McCarthy returned to the Cork set-up in 1972. That year he collected a third Munster title as Cork demolished Clare in the provincial decider. Another comprehensive victory over London in the All-Ireland semi-final allowed Cork to advance to the championship decider where, once again, Kilkenny provided the opposition. With time running out Cork were cruising to victory and lead ‘the Cats’ by eight points. However, a Kilkenny fight-back saw the team draw level with Cork and score seven further points without reply to capture a 3-24 to 5-11 victory. Cork lost their provincial crown in 1973, however, in 1974 the team bounced back with McCarthy capturing a second National League medal. Success in the championship was not so easy and Cork were defeated by Waterford in the opening round of the provincial championship. Following this defeat McCarthy retired from inter-county hurling.
[edit] Early managerial career
Over the last four decades McCarthy has been interested in managing various teams at various levels. He first became involved in coaching in the early 1970s when he was recuperating following his motorcycle accident. During his time out from the playing McCarthy coached the Antrim hurlers to their first-ever All-Ireland title, an intermediate one, in 1970.
Not long after his retirement from playing McCarthy became fully involved in the management side of hurling. In 1975 he trained Cork for the first time, guiding them to a Munster final victory over Limerick. Following the team’s defeat to Galway in the All-Ireland semi-final McCarthy fell out of favour with the County Board and left before he was pushed.
In late 1976 McCarthy became the new manager of the Clare senior hurlers, a decision which came as a surprise to many people in Cork. As manager he brought the Clare hurlers back-to-back National League title in 1977 and 1978 with victories over Kilkenny on both occasions. McCarthy also came extremely close to orchestrating the side’s breakthrough in Munster and into the All-Ireland series as well, however, Clare were defeated by Cork in back-to-back Munster Finals in 1977 and 1978. McCarthy remained with the Clare hurlers until their exit from the championship in June of 1980.
Four years later in 1984 McCarthy was back as coach with the Cork senior hurling team. Together they guided the team to a third consecutive Munster title following an exciting victory over Tipperary in the provincial decider. The All-Ireland final, played at Semple Stadium to mark the centenary year of the Gaelic Athletic Association, saw Cork take on Offaly for the first time in hurling history. McCarthy’s side had a comfortable ten point victory over Offaly to secure the title. In 1985 McCarthy and O’Brien guided Cork to another Munster victory, however, ‘the Rebels’ were later defeated by Galway in the All-Ireland semi-final. This defeat saw McCarthy falling out of favour once again with the powers that be in Cork and a new management team was installed in 1986.
Another challenge beckoned in 1990 when McCarthy took charhe of the Tipperary side Cashel King Cormac’s. It had been fifty years since the side had reached the final of the Tipperary County Championship, however, in his first year in charge McCarthy steered them towards the final which they eventually lost by one point. The following year they won the county championship before claiming the Munster club title before the end of the year. McCarthy’s side almost reached the All-Ireland club final, however, they were beaten by eventual winners Kiltormer of Galway at the semi-final stage after playing two replays to decide the winner.. McCarthy remained with Cashel until 1995.
[edit] Managing Waterford
McCarthy remained out of the limelight for several years before returning to inter-county management. He succeeded his former team-mate Gerald McCarthy as manager of the Waterford senior hurlers in late 2001. Gerald McCarthy had come close to making a breakthrough with the Deise during his five seasons in charge, however, the Waterford County Board now turned to his namesake and fellow county-man.
[edit] 2002: First Munster title
McCarthy’s very first championship game in charge posed quite a challenge. Waterford were drawn to play McCarthy’s native county of Cork in the Munster semi-final. It was a tough assignment for the new manager, however, Waterford came through it to win by a single point. With his first victory behind him McCarthy’s team subsequently lined out against reigning Munster and All-Ireland champions Tipperary in the provincial final. The game was in the balance for much of the seventy minutes with both sides being level six times in all. The last quarter saw Waterford assert themselves and they went on to win the game on a score line of 2-23 to 3-12. It was Waterford’s first Munster title since 1963 and McCarthy was lauded as a hero. Waterford’s next game was an All-Ireland semi-final meeting with Clare. Clare were defeated in the first-round of the provincial championship, however, the reached the penultimate stage of the All-Ireland series via the qualifiers. Waterford were expected to win, however, victory went to the men from the West.
[edit] 2003: A mixed season
In 2003 McCarthy’s side set out to retain their provincial title. Once again the team swept through Munster and reached the provincial final where Cork provided the opposition. At half-time Waterford looked on course to capture a second consecutive Munster title, however, Cork fought back in the second-half to snatch a 3-16 to 3-12 victory. McCarthy’s team were down but not out, however, there next outing in the All-Ireland qualifiers system ended in defeat.
[edit] 2004: Second Munster title
In 2004 McCarthy’s side marched to a third consecutive Munster final appearance following defeat in the National Hurling League final. Once again Cork provided the opposition and Waterford were out to avenge the previous year’s defeat. McCarthy’s side got off to the worst possible start when Cork scored a soft goal after just three minutes. The Deise settled down quickly after that and got right back into the game. The result was still in the balance up until the final second, however, McCarthy’s men won on a score line of 3-16 to 1-21. The game itself is considered one of the greatest of all-time. Waterford’s next outing was an All-Ireland semi-final meeting with Kilkenny. ‘The Cats’ were not as spectacular as they had been in previous seasons, however, McCarthy’s side were defeated by 3-12 to 0-18.
[edit] 2005: Another mixed season
In 2005 Waterford faced Cork in the Munster championship for the fourth season in-a-row. Once again McCarthy’s team conceded an early goal, however, the result was much tighter at the end. Cork won the day on a score line of 2-17 to 2-15 and confined Waterford to the qualifiers. McCarthy’s side came through the qualifiers system successfully, however, the random draw for the All-Ireland quarter-finals meant that Waterford had to play Cork for a second time. The game was less exciting than previous meetings with Cork winning by five points.
[edit] 2006: A lost opportunity
In 2006 McCarthy’s side fell to Tipperary in the Munster semi-final. The qualifiers proved a happy hunting ground for Waterford as they won every one of their games in the round robin and topped the group. The men from the Deise later gained refenge on Tipp in the All-Ireland quarter-final before lining out against Cork in the All-Ireland semi-final. Once again the game proved to be an exciting and close affair with neither side gaining any huge lead. Cork lead with just seconds remaining in the game when Donal Óg Cusack, Cork’s goalkeeper, saved a ‘65’ from going over the bar. The sliothar was subsequently cleared and Cork won the game by just a single point. After the game McCarthy came in for some criticism, however, the players insisted that he was the men to lead them again for another season.
[edit] 2007: League and Munster success
The players’ faith in McCarthy was rewarded early in 2007 when he lead them to a National League title. The victory over Kilkenny was all the sweeter as it was Waterford’s first league success since 1963. The subsequent Munster championship saw Waterford take on Cork once again. Cork were severely depleted due to the suspension of some of their key players, however, the game turned out to be another classic between the greatest hurling rivals of the decade. The score line of 5-15 to 3-18 tells its own story with McCarthy’s men capturing the victory. The Munster final saw the Decies paired against Limerick. It was the teams’ first meeting in the provincial decider since 1958. Justin's men showed their class in the final quarter and won b y 8 points in the end thanks to a cracking display by Dan the Man Shanahan. Waterford captured their third Munster titles in 6 years under Mc Carthy. McCarthy’s men later faced Cork for the second time, however, the game ended in a draw after a controversial free. Waterford won the replay setting up a second meeting with Limerick. Waterford has to play a third high profile game in two weeks and this showed on the day when Limerick caught them on the hop and won a place in the All Ireland final. Most people believed that Waterford were unfairly treated by the system and they should have got a least two weeks to prepaare for the semi final after playing two tough games against Cork. McCarthy’s men had failed at the All-Ireland semi-final stage. Once again there was some criticisim of the manager, however, the players indicated that they wished McCarthy to stay on for another year. Dan Shanahan and John Mullane spoke out and publicly said that he was the only man they wanted for the job and Once again their request was granted.
[edit] 2008: Resignation
In 2008 expectations were huge that Waterford would retain their Munster title and challenge for the All-Ireland once again. After a disappointing National League campaign and a nine point loss to Clare in the first round of the championship a players meeting was held, where it was indicated that some of team no longer wanted McCarthy in charge. From that another meeting with the County Board was held where McCarthy resigned as manager. McCarthy had a successful reign over Waterford and most will remember all the great games that he was involved in but will also remember the fact that Waterford never reached an All-Ireland final under him.
| Awards | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Jimmy Doyle (Tipperary) |
Texaco Hurler of the Year 1966 |
Succeeded by Ollie Walsh (Kilkenny) |
| Sporting positions | ||
| Preceded by ' |
Clare Senior Hurling Manager 1976-1980 |
Succeeded by ' |
| Preceded by Johnny Clifford |
Cork Senior Hurling Manager (jointly with Fr. Michael O'Brien) 1984-1985 |
Succeeded by Johnny Clifford |
| Preceded by Gerald McCarthy |
Waterford Senior Hurling Manager 2001-2008 |
Succeeded by Davy FitzGerald |
| Achievements | ||
| Preceded by Pat Henderson (Kilkenny) |
All-Ireland Senior Hurling Final winning manager (jointly with Fr. Michael O'Brien) 1984 |
Succeeded by Dermot Healy (Offaly) |
[edit] Teams
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