Eoin Kelly (Tipperary hurler)

Eoin Kelly (born 6 January 1982 in Mullinahone, County Tipperary, Ireland) is an Irish hurler who plays as a forward for inter-county side Tipperary. He is the current captain and is his county's top championship scorer of all-time.

Kelly started his hurling career with his local club Mullinahone. He made his inter-county debut with Tipperary as a member of the minor team in 1997. He progressed up along the under-age ranks, however, All-Ireland honours at minor or under-21 levels eluded him. Kelly made his senior debut in 2000 and became a starting XV regular the following year. He gained his first senior honours that year, winning a hurling treble of National League, Munster and All-Ireland honours. Having initially began his senior career as a substitute goalkeeper, Kelly quickly established himself as one of the most prolific scorers in the game, winning back-to-back Vodafone Young Hurler of the Year awards in 2001 and 2002. After almost a decade in the hurling wilderness Tipperary bounced back in the latter part of the 2000s, with Kelly adding further All-Ireland, Munster and National League honours to his collection.

Biography

Eoin Kelly was born in Mullinahone on the Tipperary-Kilkenny border in 1982. He was educated at the local national school and later attended Scoil Ruain in Killenaule. Kelly later attended Kilkenny's famed hurling academy, St. Kieran's College. It was here that his talent first came to the fore on the hurling field. In 1999 he was a key member of the college hurling team that captured the Leinster title. Kelly later lined out in the All-Ireland final, however, St. Flannan's College of Ennis won the game by 2-15 to 2-10. In 2000 he added a second Leinster colleges' title to his collection as St. Kieran's retained the provincial title. A second consecutive All-Ireland showdown with St. Flannan's soon followed. At the second time of asking St. Kieran's defeated the Clare side by 1-10 to 0-9 and Kelly collected a coveted All-Ireland winners' medal.^[2] A measure of the success rate at St. Kieran’s is the fact that during Kelly’s tenure there he only ever lost one hurling game.

Following the completion of his Leaving Certificate, Kelly attended the Limerick Institute of Technology (LIT) where he joined the college hurling team. In 2005 he was captain of a Davy FitzGerald side that reached the final of the Fitzgibbon Cup. A local derby took place as the University of Limerick provided the opposition, however, LIT won the game by 2-13 to 3-4. Kelly picked up a coveted Fitzgibbon Cup title as well as having the honour of collecting the cup.^[3]

Kelly graduated from LIT in 2006 and currently works as an engineer. His brother Paul also played with Tipperary.

Playing career

Club

Kelly plays with his club hurling with his native Mullinahone and has enjoyed some success. In 2002 he lined out in his first county senior championship final with county kingpins Thurles Sarsfield's providing the opposition. Kelly's side led by six points coming into the last quarter, however, Thurles Sarsfield's battled back to secure a 0-14 apiece draw. The replay a week later was a much more conclusive affair. Kelly scored a remarkable 2-7 to give Mullinahone a 2-10 to 1-11 victory and a very first county title. Kelly also picked up the Man of the Match award.^[4]

Since 2002 Mullinahone have failed to reach the summit of club hurling in Tipperary.

He also plays football with the club. He won a Tipperary Intermediate Football Championship with them in 2011.

Minor & under-21

Due to his prowess at hurling Kelly was quickly selected for inter-county duty. Like the legendary hurler Jimmy Doyle, he made his minor debut for Tipperary as a goalkeeper at the age of fifteen. In a progressive move by the selectors Kelly was later moved from the number one position to a more natural place in the full-forward line. He collected a Munster winners' medal in 1997 following a 2-13 to 1-13 defeat of Clare.^[5] Kelly's side, however, were later defeated by Galway in the All-Ireland semi-final.

Tipperary failed to retain their provincial crown the following year, however, in 1999 Kelly added a second Munster minor title to his collection as Clare were defeated once again. Tipp progressed to the All-Ireland final where old rivals Galway provided the opposition. A 0-13 to 0-10 score line resulted in defeat for Kelly's side.

In his final year in the minor grade in 2000 Tipperary exited the championship at a very early stage.

By this stage Kelly was also a key fixture on the Tipperary under-21 hurling team. He was still only seventeen years-old when he came on as a substitute against Clare to claim his first Munster winners' medal in that grade in 1999. Tipp were later defeated in the All-Ireland semi-final.

The next three seasons saw Limerick dominate the under-21 series at provincial and All-Ireland level. In 2003 Tipperary made the breakthrough and Kelly secured a second Munster title following a 2-14 to 0-17 defeat of Cork after extra-time. Once again Tipp failed to capitalise on this and were defeated in the subsequent All-Ireland semi-final.

Senior

By this stage Kelly was already a regular fixture on the Tipperary senior hurling team. He made his debut in the All-Ireland quarter-final in 2000 on a day when he doubled as sub-goalie and sub-forward. Tipp had already been defeated by Cork in the Munster final and were now embarking on the ‘back-door’ route to the All-Ireland final. Galway provided the opposition on that occasion, however, Tipp were defeated on a score line of 1-14 to 0-15. That game marked Kelly out as a star for the future and he has played a key role for Tipp since then.

2001 proved to be one of the best years for Kelly as a hurler. He was a key member of the team when Tipp won the National Hurling League title that year following a 1-19 to 0-17 defeat of old rivals Clare. It was Kelly’s first silverware at senior level. Later that summer Tipp qualified for the Munster final where Limerick provided the opposition. A 2-16 to 1-17 victory gave Kelly his first Munster title.^[6] A subsequent draw and replay win over Wexford set up an All-Ireland final showdown with Galway. Mark O'Leary played the game of his life and scored two goals to give Tipperary a reasonably comfortable cushion, just enough to withstand a Galway comeback. Fergal Healy hit the post twice, however, his goal, Galway’s second, cut the deficit to one point with just nine minutes left in the game. Tipp outscored Galway during that period to secure a 2-18 to 2-15 victory, giving Kelly a coveted All-Ireland winners' medal.^[7] Tipperary also had the remarkable record of going through both the league and championship without a single defeat. Following the game Kelly was presented with his first All-Star award as well as being named Vodafone Young Hurler of the Year.

In 2002 Tipperary reached their third consecutive Munster final, however, on this occasion they were both provincial and All-Ireland champions. Waterford were the opponents on that day and, in spite of history being against the Deise, they bridged a 39-year gap and clinched their first Munster title since 1963. Tipp, however, still had the chance to defend their All-Ireland title. They defeated Antrim in the All-Ireland quarter-final, however, Kelly’s side were defeated by eventual champions Kilkenny in the penultimate stage of the championship. In spite of surrendering their status as champions, Kelly was presented with a second All-Star award. He also retained the Young Hurler of the Year title.

Tipperary's hurling fortunes went into decline after this. The team exited the provincial championship at an early stage in 2003, however, they still reached the All-Ireland semi-final where they were trounced by Kilkenny. Kelly, however, was later presented with a third All-Star award. In 2004 Tipp crashed out of the Munster championship at an early stage once again and were later defeated by Cork in the qualifiers.

In 2005 Tipp were back and reached the Munster final for the first time since 2002. Cork, the All-Ireland champions, provided the opposition on that occasion; however, it was the Leesiders that emerged victorious by 1-21 to 1-16.^[8] Tipp were later eliminated from the championship by old rivals and subsequent All-Ireland finalists Galway.^[9] Once again Kelly was included on the All-Star team.

In 2006 Babs Keating returned as manager of the team and Kelly emerged as one of the best and most prolific scorers in the modern game. He scored a remarkable 2-23 in Tipperary's two opening games against Limerick and Waterford.^[10][11] His tally of 2-9 in the second game equalled the total scored by the entire Waterford team and landed him a place on the top ten list of all-time scoring greats. These early scoring exploits meant that Tipp qualified for the Munster final once again. Cork travelled to Semple Stadium as All-Ireland champions and, once again, they retained their title by 2-14 to 1-14.^[12] Tipp were later knocked out of the championship by Waterford in the All-Ireland quarter-final,^[13] however, Kelly went on to collect his fifth All-Star award in six seasons.

In 2007 Kelly endured a frustrating season. A draw in Tipp’s opening game with Limerick resulted in him being dropped from the starting fifteen along with long-time goalkeeper Brendan Cummins. Tipp, still without the services of Kelly, later lost to Wexford in the All-Ireland quarter-final and Babs Keating was replaced by Liam Sheedy as manager for 2008.^[14] Kelly and Cummins were welcomed back onto the team with the former being named as vice-captain.^[15] Tipp began well by winning the Waterford Crystal League. The men from the Premier County later remained undefeated in the National League before meeting Galway in the final. In an exciting game Tipp emerged victorious by 3-18 to 3-16 and Kelly collected the cup as captain.^[16] It was his second National League winners' medal. In the subsequent Munster semi-final against Cork Kelly scored a crucial goal that gave Tipp a 1-19 to 1-13 victory.^[17] It was Tipp’s first championship victory over Cork in Cork since 1923. The victory also allowed Tipp to advance to the Munster final where they defeated a resurgent Clare team by 2-21 to 0-19.^[18] Kelly raised the Munster cup as captain in the absence of panel captain Paul Ormonde and collected a second Munster title. Tipperary were subsequently defeated in a tense All-Ireland semi-final by Waterford on a scoreline of 1-20 to 1-18.^[19]

At the start of 2009 Tipperary were regarded as the main challengers to Kilkenny’s assault on the four-in-a-row of All-Ireland championship titles. Both sides lined out against each other in the final of the National League. Tipperary stormed into a decisive lead as they took the game by the scruff of the; however, ‘the Cats’ clawed their way back into the game. At the end of normal time both sides were level. A period of extra-time followed, however, in spite of a 2-26 to 4-17 defeat, Kelly's side were widely lauded for their performance.^[20] The subsequent championship campaign saw Tipp reach the Munster final for a second consecutive year. Kelly's side raced into a decisive lead at the interval, however, the Decies fought back to narrow the deficit and maybe cause an upset. In the end Tipp won the game by 4-14 to 2-16.^[21] It was Kelly's third Munster winners’ medal. After a six-week lay-off and a facile semi-final win over Limerick, Tipp qualified for an All-Ireland final meeting with Kilkenny. For much of the match it looked as if Kelly's would pull off a shock and deny 'the Cats' a record-equaling four-in-a-row. Two quick goals in the space of a minute, one from a penalty by Henry Shefflin, sealed a 2-22 to 0-23 victory and defeat for Tipperary.^[22]

In 2010 Kelly was named as captain of the team as Tipperary were regarded as being the second best team in the country once again. Their first championship assignment was a clash with Cork in Páirc Uí Chaoimh. While Tipp were the favourites going into the game Cork ambushed Kelly's side with a 3-15 to 0-14 defeat. The qualifiers beckoned and, after victories over Wexford, Offaly, Galway and Waterford, Tipperary reached a second consecutive All-Ireland final. Kilkenny, a team chasing an unprecedented fifth successive championship, provided the opposition and a great game was expected. Tipperary got off to a great start as Kilkenny's star forward Henry Shefflin had to leave the field with an injury. A hat-trick of goals by Lar Corbett and a fourth by Noel McGrath, together win seven points from frees by Kelly, denied Kilkenny's drive-for-five and secured a remarkable 4-17 to 1-18 victory.^[23] It was Kelly's second All-Ireland winners' medal while he also had the honour of being the first player from south Tipperary to lift the Liam McCarthy Cup.

Provincial

Kelly has also lined out with Munster in the inter-provincial Railway Cup competition. He first played for his province in 2001 as Munster defeated Connacht to take the title. Kelly was a regular in the Munster forward line in 2002, 2003 and 2004; however, his side were defeated on all three occasions. In 2005 elly collected his second Railway Cup medal as Munster defeated Leinster in the final. Munster were defeated in the first-round again in 2006, however, Kelly collected a third Railway Cup title in 2007. The final against Connacht was the first hurling game to be played under floodlights at Croke Park.

Honours

Mullinahone

• Tipperary Senior Club Hurling Championship:
  • Winner (1): 2002
• Tipperery Intermediate Football Championship:
  • Winner (1): 2011

Tipperary

• All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship:
  • Winner (2): 2001, 2010
  • Runner-up (2): 2009 2011
• Munster Senior Hurling Championship:
  • Winner (4): 2001, 2008, 2009 2011
  • Runner-up (4): 2000, 2002, 2005, 2006
• National Hurling League:
  • Winner (2): 2001, 2008
  • Runner-up (3): 2000, 2003, 2009
• Munster Under-21 Hurling Championship:
  • Winner (2): 1999, 2003
  • Runner-up (2): 2001, 2002
• Munster Minor Hurling Championship:
  • Winner (2): 1997, 1999

Munster

• Railway Cup:
  • Winner (1): 2001
  • Runner-up (3): 2003, 2004, 2006 (c)

Limerick Institute of Technology

• Fitzgibbon Cup
  • Winner (1): 2005 (c)

References

External links

• Tipperary Player Profiles
• Profile on Hurlingstats.com

Teams