Joe Connolly (hurler): Difference between revisions
No edit summary |
No edit summary |
||
| Line 1: | Line 1: | ||
'''Joe Connolly''' (born [[1956]]) is a former [[Republic of Ireland|Irish]] sportsman. He played [[hurling]] with [[Galway GAA|Galway]] in the 1970s and 1980s. |
'''Joe Connolly''' (born [[1956]]) is a former [[Republic of Ireland|Irish]] sportsman. He played [[hurling]] with [[Galway GAA|Galway]] in the 1970s and 1980s. |
||
{{Infobox GAA player |
|||
Joe Connolly was born in Castlegar, [[County Galway]] in 1956. He was, along with his brother [[John Connolly (hurler)|John]], a key member of the [[Galway GAA|Galway]] senior hurling team that won the [[All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship|All-Ireland]] title in [[1980]]. It was Galway's first senior hurling title since [[1923]]. Connolly, however, is best remembered for his speech that day on the steps of the Hogan Stand in [[Croke Park]]. Overcome by emotion Connolly, speaking primarily in [[Irish language|Irish]](he only spoke six english words), spoke of emigrants overseas and of generations of hurlers that had never tasted the glory that he did on that day. He ended his speech with a humorous echo of a speech [[Pope John Paul II]] had made in Galway the previous year - "People of Galway we love you". Connolly's speech has gone down as part of [[Gaelic Athletic Association]] folklore and was even voted one of [[RTÉ]]'s [[Top 20 GAA Moments]] in [[2005]]. 1980 proved to be an exceptional year for Connolly himself. Not only did he win his only All-Ireland title, but he had earlier won the [[All-Ireland Senior Club Hurling Championship]] with Castlegar. He also received an [[GAA All Stars Awards|All Star Award]] and was named as Texaco Hurler of the Year. |
|||
| code= Hurling |
|||
| sport = Hurling |
|||
| image = |
|||
| name = Joe Connolly |
|||
| irish = Seosamh Ó Conghaile |
|||
| fullname = Joe Connolly |
|||
| placeofbirth = [[Castlegar]] |
|||
| countryofbirth = [[County Galway]] |
|||
| dob = |
|||
| height = |
|||
| nickname = |
|||
| county = Galway |
|||
| province = Connacht |
|||
| club = [[Castlegar GAA|Castlegar]] |
|||
| clposition = Forward |
|||
| clubs = |
|||
| clyears = |
|||
| clapps(points) = |
|||
| clcounty = |
|||
| clprovince= |
|||
| clallireland = |
|||
| counties = Galway |
|||
| icposition = Centre-forward |
|||
| icyears = 1976-1983 |
|||
| icapps(points) = |
|||
| icprovince = 0 |
|||
| icallireland = 1 |
|||
| allstars = |
|||
| clupdate = |
|||
| icupdate = |
|||
}} |
|||
'''Joe Connolly''' (born [[1956]]) is former [[Republic of Ireland|Irish]] sportsperson. He played [[hurling]] with his local club [[Castlegar GAA|Castlegar]] and with the [[Galway GAA|Galway]] senior inter-county team in the 1970s and 1980s. |
|||
==Early life== |
|||
Joe Connolly was born in [[Castlegar]], [[County Galway]] in 1956. He was educated at Briarhill [[national school]] and later attended St. Mary’s College in [[Galway]]. Here his hurling skills were developed, however, Connolly faced disappointment in three consecutive Connacht colleges finals. He later attended [[University College Galway]] where he won a [[Fitzgibbon Cup]] medal in [[1977]]. |
|||
==Playing career== |
|||
===Club=== |
|||
Connolly played his club hurling with his local club [[Castlegar GAA|Castlegar]]. He won his first [[Galway Senior Hurling Championship|county title]] in [[1979]], with this victory being later converted into a [[Connacht Senior Club Hurling Championship|Connacht]] club title. Connolly later captained his club to an [[All-Ireland Senior Club Hurling Championship|All-Ireland]] victory over [[Ballycastle GAA|Ballycastle]]. Injury robbed Connolly of another set of county, provincial and All-Ireland club medals in [[1984]] and [[1985]]. |
|||
===Inter-county=== |
|||
Connolly’s inter-county hurling career with [[Galway GAA|Galway]] began in the [[1975]]-[[1976|76]] [[National Hurling League]]. He made his championship debut in 1976, however, Galway were knocked out of the championship by [[Wexford GAA|Wexford]]. Connolly had little success in his first few seasons, however, in [[1979]] he won a National League title. Galway later faced Kilkenny in the All-Ireland final, however, victory went to ‘the Cats’ in one of the least memorable finals of the decade. The following year Connolly was captain of the team as Galway reached a second consecutive All-Ireland final. On that occasion the men from the West defeated [[Limerick GAA|Limerick]] to win their first [[All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship|All-Ireland]] title since [[1923]]. After Connolly accepted the [[Liam McCarthy Cup]] in the Hogan Stand he delivered what has been described as the finest post-match victory speech that [[Croke Park]] has ever heard. Delivered through his native [[Irish language|Irish]], Connolly was clearly overcome with emotion. The following is an excert in English of that famous speech: |
|||
<blockquote>"People of Galway, after fifty-seven years the All-Ireland title is back in Galway…It’s wonderful to be from Galway on a day like today. There are people back in Galway with wonder in their hearts, but also we must remember (Galway) people in England, in America, and round the world and maybe they are crying at this moment…People of Galway, we love you!"</blockquote> |
|||
The final phrase is an echo of [[Pope John Paul II]]’s address to the young people of Ireland the previous year. The celebrations didn’t just end with Connolly’s speech as [[Joe McDonagh]] seized the microphone and lead the crown in a version of the West’s Awake. In [[1981]] Galway reached the All-Ireland final once again, however, the scenes of the previous year were not repeated as [[Offaly GAA|Offaly]] were the victors on that occasion. The following few years proved difficult as Galway were knocked out at the All-Ireland semi-fianl stages in [[1982]] and [[1983]]. Connolly retired from inter-county hurling following a serious knee injury in [[1984]]. |
|||
| Line 13: | Line 63: | ||
{{succession box| |
{{succession box| |
||
after=[[Pádraig Horan]]<br>([[Offaly GAA|Offaly]])| |
after=[[Pádraig Horan]]<br>([[Offaly GAA|Offaly]])| |
||
title=[[All-Ireland Hurling Final]]<br>winning [[Captain (sport)|captain]]| |
title=[[All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship|All-Ireland SEnior Hurling Final]]<br>winning [[Captain (sport)|captain]]| |
||
years=[[All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship 1980|1980]]| |
years=[[All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship 1980|1980]]| |
||
before=[[Ger Fennelly]]<br>([[Kilkenny GAA|Kilkenny]]) |
before=[[Ger Fennelly]]<br>([[Kilkenny GAA|Kilkenny]]) |
||
| Line 24: | Line 74: | ||
{{end box}} |
{{end box}} |
||
==Teams== |
|||
{{Galway Hurling Team 1980}} |
{{Galway Hurling Team 1980}} |
||
{{DEFAULTSORT:Connolly, Joe}} |
{{DEFAULTSORT:Connolly, Joe}} |
||
{{hurling-bio-stub}} |
|||
[[Category:1956 births]] |
[[Category:1956 births]] |
||
[[Category:Living people]] |
[[Category:Living people]] |
||
Revision as of 23:28, 7 August 2007
Joe Connolly (born 1956) is a former Irish sportsman. He played hurling with Galway in the 1970s and 1980s.
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Irish name | Seosamh Ó Conghaile | ||
| Sport | Hurling | ||
| Position | Centre-forward | ||
| Club(s) | |||
| Years | Club | ||
| Castlegar | |||
| Inter-county(ies) | |||
| Years | County | ||
1976-1983 | Galway | ||
| Inter-county titles | |||
| Connacht titles | 0 | ||
| All-Irelands | 1 | ||
Joe Connolly (born 1956) is former Irish sportsperson. He played hurling with his local club Castlegar and with the Galway senior inter-county team in the 1970s and 1980s.
Early life
Joe Connolly was born in Castlegar, County Galway in 1956. He was educated at Briarhill national school and later attended St. Mary’s College in Galway. Here his hurling skills were developed, however, Connolly faced disappointment in three consecutive Connacht colleges finals. He later attended University College Galway where he won a Fitzgibbon Cup medal in 1977.
Playing career
Club
Connolly played his club hurling with his local club Castlegar. He won his first county title in 1979, with this victory being later converted into a Connacht club title. Connolly later captained his club to an All-Ireland victory over Ballycastle. Injury robbed Connolly of another set of county, provincial and All-Ireland club medals in 1984 and 1985.
Inter-county
Connolly’s inter-county hurling career with Galway began in the 1975-76 National Hurling League. He made his championship debut in 1976, however, Galway were knocked out of the championship by Wexford. Connolly had little success in his first few seasons, however, in 1979 he won a National League title. Galway later faced Kilkenny in the All-Ireland final, however, victory went to ‘the Cats’ in one of the least memorable finals of the decade. The following year Connolly was captain of the team as Galway reached a second consecutive All-Ireland final. On that occasion the men from the West defeated Limerick to win their first All-Ireland title since 1923. After Connolly accepted the Liam McCarthy Cup in the Hogan Stand he delivered what has been described as the finest post-match victory speech that Croke Park has ever heard. Delivered through his native Irish, Connolly was clearly overcome with emotion. The following is an excert in English of that famous speech:
"People of Galway, after fifty-seven years the All-Ireland title is back in Galway…It’s wonderful to be from Galway on a day like today. There are people back in Galway with wonder in their hearts, but also we must remember (Galway) people in England, in America, and round the world and maybe they are crying at this moment…People of Galway, we love you!"
The final phrase is an echo of Pope John Paul II’s address to the young people of Ireland the previous year. The celebrations didn’t just end with Connolly’s speech as Joe McDonagh seized the microphone and lead the crown in a version of the West’s Awake. In 1981 Galway reached the All-Ireland final once again, however, the scenes of the previous year were not repeated as Offaly were the victors on that occasion. The following few years proved difficult as Galway were knocked out at the All-Ireland semi-fianl stages in 1982 and 1983. Connolly retired from inter-county hurling following a serious knee injury in 1984.