Eddie O'Connor (hurler)

Edward "Eddie" O’Connor (born 1965) is an Irish retired hurler. His league and championship career with the Kilkenny senior team spanned eight seasons from 1991 to 1998.^[1]

Born in Glenmore, County Kilkenny, O'Connor first played competitive hurling at juvenile and underage levels with the Glenmore club before eventually joining the club's senior team. The highlight of O'Connor's three-decade long club career was the winning of an All-Ireland medal in 1991. He also won one Leinster medal and five county senior championship medals.

O'Connor made his debut on the inter-county scene at the age of seventeen when he was selected for the Kilkenny minor team. He enjoyed one championship season with the minor team, however, he enjoyed little success. O'Connor subsequently joined the Kilkenny under-21 team, winning an All-Ireland medal in 1984. His progression to the senior team was slow, however, he eventually made his debut during the 1991 championship. Over the course of the next eight years, O'Connor won back-to-back All-Ireland medals in 1992 and 1993. He also won three successive Leinster medals and one National Hurling League medal. He was dropped from the Kilkenny team during the 1998 league. O'Connor was joined on the Kilkenny team by his brother, Willie O'Connor, who won three All-Ireland medals and captained the team to the 2000 All-Ireland title.

Early life

Eddie O’Connor was born in Glenmore on the Kilkenny-Wexford border in 1964. He was educated locally and showed great skill as a youngster at the game of hurling. In time he would become a key player on the Kilkenny senior hurling team of the 1990s.

Playing career

O'connor club

O’Connor people played a club of hurling with his local Glenmore club. The club had just been promoted to senior grade when O’Connor, and his brother Willie, came to prominence. They both had much success with their club, winning five county titles in 1987, 1990, 1992, 1995 and 1999. O’Connor’s second county title was subsequently converted into both Leinster and All-Ireland club titles.

Inter-county

O’Connor first came to prominence on the inter-county scene as a member of the Kilkenny minor hurling team. He had little success at this grade and he later moved onto the county under-21 team. At this level he won a Leinster title in 1984 before collecting an All-Ireland medal following a defeat of Tipperary. O’Connor won a second Leinster medal with the under-21 hurlers in 1985, however, Tipp gained revenge for the previous year by defeating Kilkenny in the final.

O’Connor later joined the Kilkenny senior team, however, success was slow in coming. He won his first Leinster title in 1991 and subsequently played in his first senior All-Ireland final. Unfortunately for O’Connor, Kilkenny were defeated by Tipperary on that occasion. The following year he won a second provincial medal. In a second consecutive All-Ireland final appearance Kilkenny were victorious over Cork and O’Connor captured his first senior All-Ireland medal. In 1993 O’Connor was appointed captain of the county senior side. That year he led his men to a third consecutive Leinster title before leading the team out in Croke Park for a third All-Ireland final appearance. Galway provided the opposition on that occasion, however, O’Connor’s side were victorious by five points and he collected his second All-Ireland medal. He was later presented with an All-Star award. Kilkenny lost their provincial crown in 1994, however, in 1995 O’Connor won a National Hurling League medal.

His Life Now

He has trained several teams since his Kilkenny hurling days including De La Salle and currently Geraldine O' Hanrahan's. He now lives in Mullinavat, Kilkenny along with his wife Mary and children Claire,James and Patrick.

Career statistics

References

Teams