Nicholas "Claus" Dunne (1944 – 27 March 2015) was an Irish hurler who played as a centre-forward for

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 ...

. Born in

Mooncoin Mooncoin () is a census town in County Kilkenny, in Ireland. The population was 1,175 in 2016. Historically part of the Gaelic kingdom of Osraige, today it is in the far south of the county of Kilkenny, located in the valley of the River Suir. I ...

County Kilkenny County Kilkenny ( gle, Contae Chill Chainnigh) is a county in Ireland. It is in the province of Leinster and is part of the South-East Region. It is named after the city of Kilkenny. Kilkenny County Council is the local authority for the cou ...

, Dunne first arrived on the inter-county scene at the age of twenty when he first linked up with the Kilkenny under-21. He made his senior debut during the 1964-65 league. Dunne went on to enjoy a successful career with Kilkenny and won two

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 ...

medals, two

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 ...

medals and one

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 ...

medal. He was an All-Ireland runner-up on two occasions. As a member of the

inter-provincial team, Dunne won one

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. At club level he was a one-time

championship In sport, a championship is a competition in which the aim is to decide which individual or team is the champion. Championship systems Various forms of competition can be referred to by the term championship. Title match system In this system ...

medallist with

. Dunne made 12 championship appearances. He retired from inter-county hurling following the conclusion of the 1973 championship.

Playing career

Club

In 1965 Dunne was wing-forward on the

team that faced

Bennettsbridge Bennettsbridge () is a village in County Kilkenny in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is situated on the River Nore south of Kilkenny city, in the centre of the county. Bennettsbridge is a census town, and has population of 745 as of the 2016 ...

in the final of the Kilkenny senior championship. A narrow 2-8 to 1-8 victory gave Dunne a

Kilkenny Senior Hurling Championship The Kilkenny Senior Hurling Championship (known for sponsorship reasons as the St Canice's Credit Union Senior Hurling Championship and abbreviated to the Kilkenny SHC) is an annual hurling competition organised by the Kilkenny County Board of ...

medal.

Inter-county

Dunne joined the Kilkenny senior team during the 1964-65 league, a campaign which eventually saw Kilkenny lose out to

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 home decider. He was later included on the Kilkenny panel for the championship, making his debut on 27 June 1965 in a 1-20 to 3-8 Leinster semi-final defeat of

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 ...

. After reaching a second successive league decider in 1966, Dunne collected a

medal following an aggregate 10-15 to 2-15 defeat of

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

. He later won a first

medal following a 1-15 to 2-6 defeat of

Wexford Wexford () is the county town of County Wexford, Ireland. Wexford lies on the south side of Wexford Harbour, the estuary of the River Slaney near the southeastern corner of the island of Ireland. The town is linked to Dublin by the M11/N11 N ...

. The subsequent All-Ireland final on 4 September 1966 pitted Kilkenny against

Cork Cork or CORK may refer to: Materials * Cork (material), an impermeable buoyant plant product ** Cork (plug), a cylindrical or conical object used to seal a container ***Wine cork Places Ireland * Cork (city) ** Metropolitan Cork, also known as G ...

for the first time in nineteen years. Kilkenny were the favourites, however, a hat-trick of goals by

Colm Sheehan Colm Sheehan (born 9 September 1941) was an Irish hurler. He played for club side Éire Óg, divisional side Muskerry and was the full-forward on the Cork senior hurling team that won the 1966 All-Ireland Championship. Sheehan's club caree ...

gave Cork a merited 3-9 to 1-10 victory. Kilkenny retained their provincial crown in 1967, with Dunne adding a second Leinster medal to his collection following a 4-10 to 1-12 defeat of Wexford after a scare in the opening half. On 3 September 1967 Kilkenny faced Tipperary in the All-Ireland decider. Tipp looked like continuing their hoodoo over their near rivals as they took a 2-6 to 1-3 lead at half-time. Goalkeeper

Ollie Walsh Patrick Oliver Walsh (13 July 1937 – 9 March 1996) was an Irish hurler and hurling manager. His career included All-Ireland Championship victories as a player and later as a manager with the Kilkenny senior hurling team. After beginning ...

was the hero for Kilkenny as he made a series of spectacular saves, however, the team lost

Eddie Keher Edward Peter Keher (; born 14 October 1941) is an Irish former hurler who played as a centre-forward at senior level for the Kilkenny county team. Born in Inistioge, County Kilkenny, Keher first played competitive hurling whilst at school in ...

and Tom Walsh to injury in the second half. In spite of this, Kilkenny laid to rest a bogey that Tipperary had over the team since 1922, and a 3-8 to 2-7 victory gave Dunne a first

medal. He later won a fourth Cú Chulainn award. Wexford put an end to Kilkenny's hopes of retaining the title in 1968, however, the Noresiders bounced back the following year with Dunne missing the provincial final defeat of

Offaly County Offaly (; ga, Contae Uíbh Fhailí) is a county in Ireland. It is part of the Eastern and Midland Region and the province of Leinster. It is named after the ancient Kingdom of Uí Failghe. It was formerly known as King's County, in hono ...

. On 7 September 1969 Kilkenny lined out against Cork in the All-Ireland decider, with Dunne returning to the starting fifteen at right wing-forward. The Leesiders got into their stride following an early goal by

Charlie McCarthy Charlie McCarthy is Edgar Bergen's famed ventriloquist dummy partner. Charlie was part of Bergen's act as early as high school, and by 1930, was attired in his famous top hat, tuxedo, and monocle. The character was so well-known that his populari ...

and led by six points coming up to half time when Kilkenny raised a green flag themselves. Kilkenny upped their performance after the interval and ran out winners on a 2-15 to 2-9 scoreline. The victory gave Dunne a second All-Ireland medal. Dunne retired from the Kilkenny panel in 1969. However, they recalled him 1973 after Eddie Keher became injured, to help Kilkenny against

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 All-Ireland final on 2 September 1973, however, their plans were hampered as a result of injuries and emigration. In spite of this, the game hung in the balance for the first-half, however, eight minutes after the restart

Mossie Dowling Mossie Dowling (born 1946) is a former Irish sportsperson. He played hurling with his local club Kilmallock and with the Limerick Limerick ( ; ga, Luimneach ) is a western city in Ireland situated within County Limerick. It is in the pr ...

got a vital goal for Limerick. Shortly after this

Richie Bennis Richard "Richie" Bennis (born 1945) is an Irish retired hurler who played as a centre-forward for the Limerick senior team. Born in Patrickswell, County Limerick, Bennis first played competitive hurling during his schooling at CBS Sexton Str ...

spearheaded a rampant Limerick attack which resulted in a 1-21 to 1-14 victory for Limerick.

Inter-provincial

In 1967 Dunne was at left wing-forward on the

team that faced

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 ...

in the inter-provincial decider. A 2-14 to 3-5 victory gave Dunne a

medal.

Honours

Team

;Mooncoin *

(1): 1965 ;Kilkenny *

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 ...

(2):

1967 Events January * January 1 – Canada begins a year-long celebration of the 100th anniversary of Confederation, featuring the Expo 67 World's Fair. * January 5 ** Spain and Romania sign an agreement in Paris, establishing full consular and ...

1969 This year is notable for Apollo 11's first landing on the moon. Events January * January 4 – The Government of Spain hands over Ifni to Morocco. * January 5 **Ariana Afghan Airlines Flight 701 crashes into a house on its approach to ...

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

(4):

1966 Events January * January 1 – In a coup, Colonel Jean-Bédel Bokassa takes over as military ruler of the Central African Republic, ousting President David Dacko. * January 3 – 1966 Upper Voltan coup d'état: President Maurice Yaméogo i ...

(sub),

1973 Events January * January 1 - The United Kingdom, the Republic of Ireland and Denmark enter the European Economic Community, which later becomes the European Union. * January 15 – Vietnam War: Citing progress in peace negotiations, U.S. ...

(sub) *

(1): 1965-66 ;Leinster *

(1): 1967

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Dunne, Claus 1944 births 2015 deaths Mooncoin hurlers Kilkenny inter-county hurlers Leinster inter-provincial hurlers All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship winners