James Phelan (6 April 1917 – 5 January 2006) was an
Irish
Irish may refer to:
Common meanings
* Someone or something of, from, or related to:
** Ireland, an island situated off the north-western coast of continental Europe
***Éire, Irish language name for the isle
** Northern Ireland, a constituent unit ...
hurler who played as a left corner-forward for the
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 ...
senior team.
Born in
Ballyragget
Ballyragget () is a small town on the river Nore in the north of County Kilkenny in Ireland. Ballyragget is on the N77 north of Kilkenny. As of the 2016 census, it had a population of 1,082 people.
Toponymy
The name 'Ragget' is Anglo-Norm ...
,
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 ...
, Phelan first played competitive hurling whilst at school in Mount Sion CBS. He arrived on the inter-county scene at the age of sixteen when he first linked up with the
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 ...
minor team. He made his senior debut for Kilkenny in the
1939 championship. Phelan's senior career was brief but successful, winning one
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 and 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. He was an All-Ireland runner-up on one occasion.
As a member of the
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 ...
inter-provincial team for three years, Phelan 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 in 1941. At club level he enjoyed a distinguished career with
Mount Sion,
Tullaroan
Tullaroan () is a village in the western part of County Kilkenny in the Slieveardagh Hills near the County Tipperary, Tipperary border. Tullaroan is also the name of the local civil parish.
Sport
Tullaroan GAA are the most successful Gaelic Ath ...
,
Éire Óg and
Carlow Town.
Throughout his brief career Phelan made just 8 championship appearances. His retirement came following a defeat by
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
1942 championship.
In retirement from playing, Phelan became involved in team management and coaching at club and inter-county levels. As coach of
Carlow
Carlow ( ; ) is the county town of County Carlow, in the south-east of Ireland, from Dublin. At the 2016 census, it had a combined urban and rural population of 24,272.
The River Barrow flows through the town and forms the historic bounda ...
he guided the team to the All-Ireland successes at
junior
Junior or Juniors may refer to:
Arts and entertainment Music
* ''Junior'' (Junior Mance album), 1959
* ''Junior'' (Röyksopp album), 2009
* ''Junior'' (Kaki King album), 2010
* ''Junior'' (LaFontaines album), 2019
Films
* ''Junior'' (1994 ...
level in 1960 and
intermediate level in 1962.
Playing career
College
Phelan first played competitive hurling during his tenure at Mount Sion CBS in
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 ...
. Described as one of the greatest
Harty Cup players of all time, he enjoyed little success in this competition but was chosen for Munster in the inter-provincial colleges series. As the only Mount Sion representative on the team, Phelan won two All-Ireland medals.
Club
Phelan first enjoyed success at club level with the
Mount Sion club in Waterford, winning back-to-back championship medals in the minor grade in 1933 and 1934.
After joining the Mount Sion junior team, Phelan won a championship medal in this grade in 1935.
Mount Sion, at their first attempt, won their way into the semi-final of the senior championship, where they caused a major shock by beating Decies kingpins,
Erin's Own in search of an incredible ten-a-row. Mount Sion later beat
Tallow
Tallow is a rendering (industrial), rendered form of beef or mutton fat, primarily made up of triglycerides.
In industry, tallow is not strictly defined as beef or mutton fat. In this context, tallow is animal fat that conforms to certain techn ...
by 2–6 to 1–5 in the 1936 final, with Phelan lining out at centre-forward. The club, however, lost the game as a Tallow objection, due to one of the Mount Sion players having hurled in
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 ...
that same year, was upheld. This unsatisfactory conclusion brought the curtain down on Phelan's club career in Waterford.
On returning to Kilkenny, Phelan played with
Tulalroan, however, he enjoyed little success. When that club disbanded for a short while he threw in his lot with
Éire Óg, a highly regarded city team and it was with them he played his only championship decider in 1941. A narrow 4–5 to 3–7 defeat was the result on that occasion.
Phelan's working life saw him join the
Carlow Town team.
Inter-county
Phelan made his senior debut for Kilkenny in the provincial decider in 1939. A 2–12 to 4–3 victory gave him his first
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 ...
medal. The subsequent All-Ireland final pitted Kilkenny against Cork. In one of the most iconic championship deciders of all time, played on the day that
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
broke out, the climax of the game was played in a ferocious thunder storm. While a draw looked likely as the hour drew to a close,
Paddy Phelan
Patrick Phelan (16 September 1910 – 7 December 1971) was an Irish hurler who played as a left wing-back for the Kilkenny senior team.
Born in Freshford, County Kilkenny, Phelan arrived on the inter-county scene at the age of twenty-one whe ...
sent a seventy-yard free in towards the Cork goalmouth. The sliotar was gobbled up by the defence and cleared, but only as far as
Jimmy Kelly who sent it straight over the bar for a one-point lead. Immediately after the puck-out the referee blew the whistle and Kilkenny were victorious on a score line of 2–7 to 3-3. Phelan contributed 2-1 and collected 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.
In 1940 Phelan secured a second successive Leinster medal, as Kilkenny retained their provincial crown following a 3–6 to 2–5 defeat of Dublin. The subsequent All-Ireland decider on 1 September 1940 brought Kilkenny and
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 ...
together for the last great game between the two outstanding teams of the decade. Early in the second-half Kilkenny took a four-point lead, however, once
Mick Mackey
Michael John Mackey (12 July 1912 – 13 September 1982) was an Irish hurler who played as a centre-forward at senior level for the Limerick county team.
Born in Castleconnell, County Limerick, Mackey first arrived on the inter-county scene a ...
was deployed at midfield he proceeded to dominate the game. Limerick hung on to win the game on a score line of 3–7 to 1–7.
An outbreak of
foot and mouth disease
Foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) or hoof-and-mouth disease (HMD) is an infectious and sometimes fatal viral disease that affects cloven-hoofed animals, including domestic and wild bovids. The virus causes a high fever lasting two to six days, followe ...
hampered Kilkenny's championship aspirations in 1941, while the following year Kilkenny lost out to Dublin in the provincial series. Phelan brought the curtain down on his inter-county career following this defeat.
Inter-provincial
Phelan also had the honour of lining out with
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 ...
in the inter-provincial series of games. He made his debut in 1940 and was a regular on the team for three seasons.
In 1941 Phelan played in his second inter-provincial final, with
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, rà ruirech). Following the ...
providing the opposition. A narrow 2–5 to 2–4 victory gave Phelan his sole
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, while it denied the southern province a remarkable fifth successive title.
Coaching career
In retirement from playing Phelan became involved in team management. He coached the Carlow team to a junior
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 ...
title in 1960 and, two years later 1962, his team collected an All-Ireland intermediate title.
Personal life
Phelan was born in
Ballyragget
Ballyragget () is a small town on the river Nore in the north of County Kilkenny in Ireland. Ballyragget is on the N77 north of Kilkenny. As of the 2016 census, it had a population of 1,082 people.
Toponymy
The name 'Ragget' is Anglo-Norm ...
,
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 ...
in 1918. He was educated in
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 ...
, and twice he tasted success in the Harty Cup, the Munster colleges championship. He joined the
Irish Sugar Company
Greencore Group plc is a food company in Ireland. It was established by the Irish government in 1991, when Irish Sugar was privatised, but today Greencore's products are mainly convenience foods, not only in Ireland but also in the United Kingd ...
in
Carlow
Carlow ( ; ) is the county town of County Carlow, in the south-east of Ireland, from Dublin. At the 2016 census, it had a combined urban and rural population of 24,272.
The River Barrow flows through the town and forms the historic bounda ...
in 1937. By the time of his retirement in 1982 Phelan had attained the position of chief accountant.
Phelan died in Carlow in January 2006. He was the last surviving member of the Kilkenny team that won the All-Ireland title in 1939.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Phelan, Jimmy
1917 births
2006 deaths
Tullaroan hurlers
Mount Sion hurlers
Carlow Town hurlers
Éire Óg (Kilkenny) hurlers
Kilkenny inter-county hurlers
Waterford inter-county hurlers
Hurling managers
People from Ballyragget