| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Irish name | S. S. Ó Dúláinne | ||
| Sport | Hurling | ||
| Position | Left wing-back | ||
| Born |
6 March 1982 Waterford, Ireland | ||
| Height | 5 ft 11 in (1.80 m) | ||
| Occupation | Sales rep | ||
| Club(s) | |||
| Years | Club | ||
| Fenians | |||
| Club titles | |||
| Kilkenny titles | 0 | ||
| Colleges(s) | |||
| Years | College | ||
| Waterford Institute of Technology | |||
| College titles | |||
| Fitzgibbon titles | 2 | ||
| Inter-county(ies)* | |||
| Years | County | Apps (scores) | |
2001–2014 | Kilkenny | 66 (0–1) | |
| Inter-county titles | |||
| Leinster titles | 11 | ||
| All-Irelands | 9 | ||
| NHL | 8 | ||
| All Stars | 7 | ||
| *Inter County team apps and scores correct as of 14:01, 17 April 2016. | |||
James John Delaney (born 6 March 1982) is an Irish hurler who played as a left wing-back and full-back at senior level for the Kilkenny county team.[1]
Born in Waterford in 1982, Delaney is a native of Johnstown, County Kilkenny. Delaney first played competitive hurling during his schooling at Coláiste Mhuire. He arrived on the inter-county scene at the age of seventeen when he first linked up with the Kilkenny minor team, before later joining the under-21 side. He made his senior debut during the 2001 championship. Delaney immediately became a regular member of the starting fifteen, and won nine All-Ireland medals, eleven Leinster medals and eight National League medals on the field of play. He was an All-Ireland runner-up on two occasions.
As a member of the Leinster inter-provincial team on a number of occasions, Delaney won two Railway Cup medals. At club level Delaney continues to play with Fenians.
Delaney's uncles, Billy Fitzpatrick and Pat Delaney, won nine All-Ireland medals between them between 1969 and 1983, while his father, Shem Delaney, shared in one of these All-Ireland successes as a non-playing substitute. His first cousin, P. J. Delaney, won an All-Ireland medal in 1993.[2]
Throughout his career Delaney made 66 championship appearances, setting him out as the third most "capped" player of all-time. He announced his retirement from inter-county hurling on 5 December 2014.[3][4][5][6] [7][8]
Delaney is widely regarded as one of the greatest players of all-time.[9] In 2003 he won the first of six All-Star awards, while he also made a clean sweep of all the top individual awards, winning the All-Star, Texaco and GPA Hurler of the Year awards. Delaney was also chosen as one of the 125 greatest hurlers of all-time in a 2009 poll. That same year he was chosen on the Leinster team of the past twenty-five years.[10]