Joe Connolly (hurler)
 |
| 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-final stages in 1982 and 1983. Connolly retired from inter-county hurling following a serious knee injury in 1984.