Seán Óg Ó hAilpín
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| Seán Óg Ó hAilpín | ||
| Personal information | ||
|---|---|---|
| Sport | Hurling | |
| Full name | Seán Óg Ó hAilpín | |
| Date of birth | May 22, 1977 | |
| Place of birth | Rotuma , Fiji | |
| Nickname(s) | Ogie | |
| Club information | ||
| Club | Na Piarsaigh | |
| Position | Left wing-back | |
| Inter-County | ||
| County | Cork | |
| Position | Left wing-back | |
| Inter-County(ies)** | ||
| County | Years | Apps (scores) |
| Cork | 1996- | 37 (0-3) |
| Senior Inter-County Titles | ||
| Munster Titles | 5 Hurling 1 Football |
|
| All-Ireland | 3 | |
| All Stars | 3 | |
|
* club appearances and scores |
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Seán Óg Ó hAilpín, (born 22 May 1977 in Rotuma, Fiji) is an Irish sportsperson. He plays hurling with his local club Na Piarsaigh and with the Cork senior inter-county team. He plays in the left wing-back position on both teams. Ó hAiplín is widely regarded as one of Cork's greatest players and is one of the most well-known faces in Irish sport.
In a senior inter-county career that has lasted since 1996 Ó hAilpín has won three All-Ireland titles, five Munster titles, one National Hurling League title and one Railway Cup title. As a former Gaelic footballer he has also won both Munster and National Football League honours.
He has also been the recipient of many awards and honours off the field. Since 2000 Ó hAilpín has won three All-Star awards. In 2005 his hurling prowess earned him the three most prestigious personal awards in the game – the Vodafone, Texaco and Gaelic Players’ Association Hurler of the Year Awards. That same year he was also presented with the RTÉ Sports Person of the Year award. Ó hAilpín was the only amateur sportsperson on the award’s shortlist.
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[edit] Early life
Seán Óg Ó hAilpín was born on the island of Rotuma, 400 miles north of the main Fiji islands in May 1977. He was the first of six children born to Seán Ó hAilpín who is a native of County Fermanagh in Ireland, and his wife, Emilie, a native of Rotuma. He was the only child of the family to be born on his mother's native island, as the family later moved to Australia. From an early age he showed great accomplishment at various sports, particularly rugby league in Sydney where the family lived. The Ó hAilpín family moved from Australia to Cork in Ireland in 1988. They rented a house in the city before moving permanently to Blarney. Seán Óg was educated locally at the North Mon school where he won Croke Cup and Harty Cup medals. He graduated from Dublin City University in 1999 with a BSc. in Finance Computing and Entrepreneurship (Airgeadas, Ríomhaireachet agus Fiontraíocht).
In January 2007 Ó hAilpín and his two younger brothers, Setanta and Aisake, were the subject of a documentary on Radio Telefís Éireann. Seán Óg also has a third younger brother named Teu.
Commentator Mícheál Ó Muircheartaigh famously described Ó hAilpín during a match: "...his father's from Fermanagh, his mother's from Fiji, neither a hurling stronghold."
[edit] Career
[edit] Club
It was in Ireland that Ó hAilpín discovered the Irish games of hurling and Gaelic football, and he quickly became a member of Na Piarsaigh GAA Club. It was at Na Piarsaigh that his skills at Gaelic games became apparent and he subsequently won two Cork County Championship titles with the club.
[edit] Minor & Under-21
Ó hAilpín's hurling prowess brought him to the attentions of the Cork inter-county selectors and he was soon picked for the minor team. He was central to Cork winning the All-Ireland title at in 1995, the teams first minor title since 1985. Following this victory at minor level Ó hAilpín soon made the Cork under-21 team. In 1997 he won another All-Ireland medal. In 1998 Seán Óg won a second consecutive All-Ireland medal with the under-21 side. His team-mates on those teams - Donal Óg Cusack, Wayne Sherlock and Diarmuid O'Sullivan - would all go on to form the backbone of the senior team over the next decade.
[edit] Senior
By this stage Ó hAilpín was also a member of the senior inter-county team. He won his first, and to date his only, National Hurling League title in 1998. In 1999 he became a dual star, a player of both hurling and Gaelic football at senior level. He was a central part of the senior hurling team that defeated Kilkenny by a single point to win the All-Ireland in 1999. Two weeks after that Ó hAilpín played in the final of the All-Ireland Football Championship, however, Cork were defeated on that occasion by Meath.
In 2000 Ó hAilpín won a second consecutive Munster hurling title, however, his side were defeated by Offaly in the All-Ireland semi-final. A car crash in 2001 almost ended Ó hAilpín's career as his kneecap was severed, however, he overcame this difficulty and fought his way back to fitness in a short period of time. While his hurling career should have gone from strength to strength, Cork's fortunes took a remarkable downturn, culminating in a players strike in 2002. Ó hAilpín supported the players fully when the entire hurling panel withdrew their services in December 2002 demanding better conditions. Eventually the players demands were met and normal service resumed on the Cork hurling team. In 2003 Cork were back. Ó hAilpín won his third munster Championship medal before going on to play Kilkenny in the All-Ireland final. In spite of losing that day Seán Óg and his brother Setanta were honoured with All-Star Awards.
In 2004 Cork lost the Munster final, however, they qualified for the All-Ireland final via the "back-door system". Once again their opponents were Kilkenny, however, this time Cork overturned the result of the previous year and Ó hAilpín captured a second All-Ireland winners medal. Cork were on form again in 2005 with Ó hAilpín, as captain of the side, capturing his fourth provincial Munster medal, before going on to defeat Galway in the final to win his third All-Ireland medal. Despite being born in Fiji, Ó hAilpín is a fluent speaker of the Irish Language. He was lauded for his acceptance speech following the final against Galway as it was delivered exclusively in Irish. Following the conclusion of the championship Seán Óg joined his brother, Setanta, a former hurler and currently a player in the Australian Football League with Carlton, for some off-season training. It was thought that he may join his brothers at the Australian club, however unlike his younger brothers, his age was a factor against this.
In 2006 expectations were high amongst Cork supporters that the team could win a third successive All-Ireland title. These expectations were heightened when the team won the Munster Senior Hurling Championship, with Ó hAilpín capturing his fifth provincial medal. However Cork were subsequently defeated by Kilkenny and were denied the three-in-a-row.
For the 2007 championship season he and 2 other Cork players (Diarmuid O'Sullivan and Dónal Óg Cusack) were suspended for one match due to incidents before their first round game with Clare. As a result he missed the thrilling Munster semi-final clash with Waterford which Cork lost 3-18 to 5-15. Cork went on to meet Waterford again in the semi final of the all-Ireland championship and lost again, this time after a reply, ending Seán's 2007 season with Cork.
[edit] International Rules
In 2004 Ó hAilpín was to earn his first call up to the Irish International Rules squad. Ó hAilpín started both tests getting on the score sheet with a behind in the first test as Ireland ran out series winners. 2005 was to see Ó hAilpín again selected as part of the squad to travel to Australia. He was selected to play in both tests as Ireland were defeated.
| Awards | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by J. J. Delaney (Kilkenny) |
Vodafone Hurler of the Year 2004 |
Succeeded by Jerry O'Connor (Cork) |
| Gaelic Players' Association Hurler of the Year 2004 |
Succeeded by John Gardiner (Cork) |
|
| Texaco Hurler of the Year 2004 |
Succeeded by Jerry O'Connor (Cork) |
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| Sporting positions | ||
| Preceded by Ben O'Connor |
Cork Senior Hurling Captain 2005 |
Succeeded by Pat Mulcahy |
| Preceded by Ben O'Connor (Cork) |
All-Ireland Senior Hurling Final winning captain 2005 |
Succeeded by Jackie Tyrrell (Kilkenny) |
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[edit] Teams
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