John Doyle (Tipperary hurler)

John Doyle
Senator
In office
5 November 1969 – 1 June 1973
ConstituencyAgricultural Panel
Personal details
Born(1930-02-12)12 February 1930
Holycross, County Tipperary, Ireland
Died29 December 2010(2010-12-29) (aged 80)
Thurles, County Tipperary, Ireland
Political partyFianna Fáil
Spouse
Anne Reidy
(m. 1955)
Children7, including Michael.
John Doyle
Personal information
Sport Hurling
Position Left corner-back
Height 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)
Nickname The Legend
Occupation Farmer, Politician
Club(s)
Years Club
1947–1968
Holycross–Ballycahill
Club titles
Tipperary titles 3
Inter-county(ies)*
Years County Apps (scores)
1948–1967
Tipperary 54 (0–00)
Inter-county titles
Munster titles 10
All-Irelands 8
NHL 11
*Inter County team apps and scores correct as of 10 July 2013.

John Doyle (12 February 1930 – 29 December 2010) was an Irish hurler who played as a left corner-back at senior level for the Tipperary county team.[1][2][3]

Born in Holycross, County Tipperary, Doyle first played competitive hurling whilst at school in Thurles CBS. He arrived on the inter-county scene at the age of sixteen when he first linked up with the Tipperary minor team. He made his senior debut in the 1947-48 National League. Doyle went on to play a key part for Tipperary during a hugely successful era for the team, and won eight All-Ireland medals, ten Munster medals and eleven National Hurling League medals.

As a member of the Munster inter-provincial team for fifteen years, Doyle won six Railway Cup medals. At club level, he won three championship medals with Holycross–Ballycahill.

For almost fifty years Doyle, together with Christy Ring, held a unique record as the only players to win eight All-Ireland medals on the field of play. This record was subsequently surpassed by Henry Shefflin.[4][5] His record of National League medals has yet to be equalled.

Throughout his career Doyle made 54 championship appearances, a Tipperary record which stood until 9 August 2009 when it was surpassed by Brendan Cummins.[6] His retirement came following Tipperary's defeat by Kilkenny in the 1967 championship.

Doyle is widely regarded as one of the greatest hurlers in the history of the game. During his playing days, he won two Cú Chulainn awards, as well as being named Texaco Hurler of the Year in 1964. He has been repeatedly voted onto teams made up of the sport's greats, including at left corner-back on the Hurling Team of the Century in 1984 and the Hurling Team of the Millennium in 2000. He was a Fianna Fáil senator from 1969 to 1973.[7]

  1. ^ Doody, Derry J. F. "Vintage Gaels: John Doyle". Vintage Gaels website. Archived from the original on 10 July 2013. Retrieved 10 July 2013.
  2. ^ "Vintage Gaels: John Doyle". Premierview website. Archived from the original on 3 June 2013. Retrieved 10 July 2013.
  3. ^ Moynihan, Michael (19 November 2011). "Finding reality behind a true hurling legend". Irish Examiner. Retrieved 10 July 2013.
  4. ^ Moran, Seán (8 September 2012). "Shefflin so close to unique pinnacle". Irish Times. Retrieved 22 June 2013.
  5. ^ Keys, Colm (1 October 2012). "'This medal is the sweetest', says Henry Shefflin". Irish Independent. Retrieved 22 June 2013.
  6. ^ "Cummins to set new Tipp record". RTÉ Sport. 5 August 2009. Retrieved 10 July 2013.
  7. ^ Cite error: The named reference oireachtas_db was invoked but never defined (see the help page).