Bartholomew Thornhill (1 January 1911 – 16 October 1970), better known as Batt Thornhill, was an Irish hurler. A long-time member of the

Buttevant Buttevant ( or ''Ecclesia Tumulorum'' in the Latin) is a medieval market town, incorporated by charter of Edward III of England, Edward III, situated in North County Cork, Ireland. While there may be reason to suggest that the town may occup ...

club, he was also a four-time All-Ireland Championship winner with the

Cork senior hurling team The Cork county hurling team represents Cork in hurling and is governed by Cork GAA, the county board of the Gaelic Athletic Association. The team competes in the three major annual inter-county competitions; the All-Ireland Senior Hurling Cha ...

. An

All-Ireland All-Ireland (sometimes All-Island) refers to all of Ireland, as opposed to the separate jurisdictions of the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland. "All-Ireland" is most frequently used to refer to sporting teams or events for the entire islan ...

medal winner at junior level, Thornhill was drafted onto the Cork senior team in

1939 This year also marks the start of the Second World War, the largest and deadliest conflict in human history. Events Below, the events of World War II have the "WWII" prefix. January * January 1 ** Third Reich *** Jews are forbidden to ...

. From his debut, he quickly made the full-back position his own and made 22 championship appearances in a career that ended with his last game in

1944 Events Below, the events of World War II have the "WWII" prefix. January * January 2 – WWII: ** Free French General Jean de Lattre de Tassigny is appointed to command French Army B, part of the Sixth United States Army Group in Nor ...

. During that time Thornhill was part of four All-Ireland Championship-winning teams as part of Cork's record-breaking four titles in-a-row between

1941 Events Below, the events of World War II have the "WWII" prefix. January * January–August – 10,072 men, women and children with mental and physical disabilities are asphyxiated with carbon monoxide in a gas chamber, at Hadamar Eu ...

and

. He also secured four

Munster Championship The Munster GAA Hurling Senior Championship, known simply as the Munster Championship, is an annual inter-county hurling competition organised by the Munster Council of the Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA). It is the highest inter-county hurlin ...

s and two

National League The National League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the National League (NL), is the older of two leagues constituting Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada, and the world's oldest extant professional team s ...

titles.

Playing career

Buttevant

Thornhill first played for the

club at adult level in the late 1920s. A decade later he had assumed the captaincy of the Buttevant intermediate team and led the team to a meeting with

Ballincollig Ballincollig () is a suburban town within the administrative area of Cork city in Ireland. It is located on the western side of Cork city, beside the River Lee on the R608 regional road. In 2016 it was the largest town in County Cork, at whic ...

in the 1940 Intermediate Championship final. Thornhill scored a goal from a 70-yard free and ended the game with a winners' medal after the 2-04 to 1-04 victory. He retired from club duty in 1952, having also lined out with divisional side Avondhu in the Senior Championship.

Cork

Junior

Thornhill first played for Cork when he was drafted onto the junior team during the 1933 Munster Junior Championship. He made his debut on 9 July 1933 when he lined out at full-back in Cork's 7-05 to 4-05 defeat of

Clare Clare may refer to: Places Antarctica * Clare Range, a mountain range in Victoria Land Australia * Clare, South Australia, a town in the Clare Valley * Clare Valley, South Australia Canada * Clare (electoral district), an electoral district * Cl ...

but was left out of the team for the subsequent Munster final. Thornhill was recalled to the team for the 1934 Munster final against

Waterford "Waterford remains the untaken city" , mapsize = 220px , pushpin_map = Ireland#Europe , pushpin_map_caption = Location within Ireland##Location within Europe , pushpin_relief = 1 , coordinates ...

, but ended the game on the losing side after the 7-10 to 5-02 defeat. After a number of years of no association with the team, Thornhill was restored to the full-back berth for the 1937 Munster Junior Championship. He won his first

medal that season after Cork's 5-05 to 3-01 defeat of

Limerick Limerick ( ; ga, Luimneach ) is a western city in Ireland situated within County Limerick. It is in the province of Munster and is located in the Mid-West which comprises part of the Southern Region. With a population of 94,192 at the 2016 ...

in the final. Thornhill claimed a second successive Munster Championship medal following Cork's 7-05 to 4-00 victory over Clare in the 1938 Munster final replay. He was again selected at full-back when Cork faced

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

in the

All-Ireland final The All-Ireland Final may refer to: * All-Ireland Hurling Final, the last match to be played in the All-Ireland Hurling Championship (Senior, Minor and Under-21 levels) * The last match to be played in the All-Ireland Senior Football Championship ...

and claimed a winner's medal after the 4-04 to 4-01 victory.

Senior

Thornhill's performances at junior level brought him to the attention of the senior selectors and he was drafted onto the team during the 1938-39 National League. He made his championship debut on 25 June 1939 in a 7-04 to 4-03 defeat of Waterford before later claiming his first

medal after a 4-03 to 3-04 victory over Limerick in the

final Final, Finals or The Final may refer to: *Final (competition), the last or championship round of a sporting competition, match, game, or other contest which decides a winner for an event ** Another term for playoffs, describing a sequence of cont ...

. On 3 September 1939, Thornhill lined out at full-back when Cork suffered a 2-07 to 3-03 defeat by

Kilkenny Kilkenny (). is a city in County Kilkenny, Ireland. It is located in the South-East Region and in the province of Leinster. It is built on both banks of the River Nore. The 2016 census gave the total population of Kilkenny as 26,512. Kilken ...

in the "thunder and Lightning" All-Ireland final. Thornhill claimed his first national silverware when Cork defeated Tipperary by 8-09 to 6-04 to win the 1939-40 National League title. He was again at full-back when Cork surrendered their provincial title to Limerick in the 1940 Munster final. After winning a second successive National League medal after a 4-11 to 2-07 victory over

Dublin Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of th ...

in the 1941 league final, Thornhill lined out in the second

of his career on 28 September 1941 when he was selected at full-back against Dublin. He ended the game with his first All-Ireland medal after the 5-11 to 0-06 victory. Thornhill ended the season by lining out in Cork's 5-04 to 2-05 defeat by

Tipperary Tipperary is the name of: Places *County Tipperary, a county in Ireland **North Tipperary, a former administrative county based in Nenagh **South Tipperary, a former administrative county based in Clonmel *Tipperary (town), County Tipperary's na ...

in the delayed Munster final. Thornhill lined out in a fourth successive Munster final the following year, with Cork claiming the

title A title is one or more words used before or after a person's name, in certain contexts. It may signify either generation, an official position, or a professional or academic qualification. In some languages, titles may be inserted between the f ...

after a 4-15 to 4-01 defeat of Tipperary. He was again selected at full-back for the subsequent

against Dublin and collected his second successive All-Ireland winners' medal after a 2-14 to 3-04 victory. After winning a third provincial championship medal after a 2-13 to 3-08 victory over Waterford in the 1943 Munster final, Thornhill subsequently lined out in a third successive

. He claimed a third successive winners' medal after the 5-16 to 0-04 victory over Antrim. Thornhill claimed a third successive Munster Championship winners' medal - the fourth of his career - after a 4-06 to 3-06 victory over Limerick in the 1944 Munster final replay. On 3 September 1944, he again lined out at full-back in a fourth successive

appearance and ended the 2-13 to 1-02 victory over Dublin by becoming one of a select group of players to have won four successive All-Ireland medals. Thornhill retired from inter-county hurling following this victory.

Munster

Thornhill was first selected for the

Munster Munster ( gle, an Mhumhain or ) is one of the provinces of Ireland, in the south of Ireland. In early Ireland, the Kingdom of Munster was one of the kingdoms of Gaelic Ireland ruled by a "king of over-kings" ( ga, rí ruirech). Following the ...

team for the 1942 Railway Cup final. Lining out at full-back against

Leinster Leinster ( ; ga, Laighin or ) is one of the provinces of Ireland, situated in the southeast and east of Ireland. The province comprises the ancient Kingdoms of Meath, Leinster and Osraige. Following the 12th-century Norman invasion of Ir ...

, he ended the game with his first

Railway Cup The GAA Interprovincial Championship ( ga, An Corn Idir-Chúigeach) or Railway Cup (''Corn an Iarnróid'') is the name of two annual Gaelic football and hurling competitions held between the provinces of Ireland. The Connacht, Leinster, Munster ...

medal after the 4-09 to 4-05 victory. It was the first of three successive winners' medals for Thornhill, as he was also included on the team for the final victories over Leinster in

1943 Events Below, the events of World War II have the "WWII" prefix. January * January 1 – WWII: The Soviet Union announces that 22 German divisions have been encircled at Stalingrad, with 175,000 killed and 137,650 captured. * January 4 – ...

and

Connacht Connacht ( ; ga, Connachta or ), is one of the provinces of Ireland, in the west of Ireland. Until the ninth century it consisted of several independent major Gaelic kingdoms (Uí Fiachrach, Uí Briúin, Uí Maine, Conmhaícne, and Delbhn ...

Later life and death

In retirement from playing, Thornhill remained heavily involved in the administration and organisation of the Buttevant club. A new sportsfield was bought by Thornhill and a local clergyman and entrusted to the club. Thornhill also maintained his barber shop in the town. Thornhill died from

rectal cancer Colorectal cancer (CRC), also known as bowel cancer, colon cancer, or rectal cancer, is the development of cancer Cancer is a group of diseases involving abnormal cell growth with the potential to invade or spread to other parts of th ...

aged 59 on 16 October 1970. He was the first member of Cork's four-in-a-row side to die.

Honours

;Buttevant *

Cork Intermediate Hurling Championship The Cork Intermediate A Hurling Championship (known for sponsorship reasons as the Co-Op Superstores Cork Intermediate A Hurling Championship and abbreviated to the Cork IAHC) is an annual hurling competition organised by the Cork County Board ...

(1):

1940 A calendar from 1940 according to the Gregorian calendar, factoring in the dates of Easter and related holidays, cannot be used again until the year 5280. Events Below, the events of World War II have the "WWII" prefix. January *January ...

;Cork *

All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship The GAA Hurling All-Ireland Senior Championship, known simply as the All-Ireland Championship, is an annual inter-county hurling competition organised by the Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA). It is the highest inter-county hurling competition i ...

(4):

1942 Events Below, the events of World War II have the "WWII" prefix. January * January 1 – WWII: The Declaration by United Nations is signed by China, the United Kingdom, the United States, the Soviet Union, and 22 other nations, in wh ...

Munster Senior Hurling Championship The Munster GAA Hurling Senior Championship, known simply as the Munster Championship, is an annual Inter county, inter-county hurling competition organised by the Munster GAA, Munster Council of the Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA). It is the h ...

(4):

National Hurling League The National Hurling League is an annual Inter county, inter-county hurling competition featuring teams from Ireland and England. Founded in 1925 by the Gaelic Athletic Association, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation within the l ...

(2): 1939-40, 1940-41 *

All-Ireland Junior Hurling Championship The All-Ireland Junior Hurling Championship was a hurling competition organized by the Gaelic Athletic Association in Ireland. The competition was originally contested by the second teams of the strong counties, and the first teams of the weaker ...

(1): 1938 *

Munster Junior Hurling Championship The Munster Junior Hurling Championship is a junior "knockout" competition in the game of Hurling played in the province of Munster in Ireland. The series of games are organised by the Munster Council. The winners of the Munster Junior Hurling Ch ...

(2): 1937, 1938 ;Munster *

(3):

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Thornhill, Batt 1911 births 1970 deaths Buttevant hurlers Avondhu hurlers Cork inter-county hurlers Munster inter-provincial hurlers All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship winners People from Carrigaline