Kieran McKeever (born 12 March 1968) is a former dual player of

Gaelic games Gaelic games ( ga, Cluichí Gaelacha) are a set of sports played worldwide, though they are particularly popular in Ireland, where they originated. They include Gaelic football, hurling, Gaelic handball and rounders. Football and hurling, the ...

who played

Gaelic football Gaelic football ( ga, Peil Ghaelach; short name '), commonly known as simply Gaelic, GAA or Football is an Irish team sport. It is played between two teams of 15 players on a rectangular grass pitch. The objective of the sport is to score by kic ...

and

hurling Hurling ( ga, iománaíocht, ') is an outdoor team game of ancient Gaelic Irish origin, played by men. One of Ireland's native Gaelic games, it shares a number of features with Gaelic football, such as the field and goals, the number of p ...

for

Derry Derry, officially Londonderry (), is the second-largest city in Northern Ireland and the fifth-largest city on the island of Ireland. The name ''Derry'' is an anglicisation of the Old Irish name (modern Irish: ) meaning 'oak grove'. The ...

during the late 1980s, 1990s and early 2000s. He is chiefly known as a footballer and was part of Derry's

1993 All-Ireland Senior Football Championship The 1993 All-Ireland Senior Football Championship was the 107th staging of the All-Ireland Senior Football Championship, the Gaelic Athletic Association's premier inter-county Gaelic football tournament. The championship began on 16 May 1993 and ...

winning side, also won

Ulster Senior Football Championship The Ulster Senior Football Championship is an inter-county competition for Gaelic football teams in the province of Ulster. It is organised by the Ulster Council of the Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA) and begins in early May. The final is us ...

s in 1993 and 1998. With Derry footballers he usually played at corner-back and is regarded as one of the best defenders and tightest markers to have played the game. In 2000 McKeever became the first

Ulster Ulster (; ga, Ulaidh or ''Cúige Uladh'' ; sco, label=Ulster Scots, Ulstèr or ''Ulster'') is one of the four traditional Irish provinces. It is made up of nine counties: six of these constitute Northern Ireland (a part of the United Kin ...

player to be nominated for All Stars in both football and hurling in the same season. He won the football All Star, but narrowly missed out on the hurling accolade. Had he have won the double All Star, he would have become only the second player ever after Cork legend Ray Cummins to win both awards in the same year. He has won Irish News Ulster All-Star awards and was named right-corner back on the Irish News Team of the Decade in 2004. The public voted him onto the All-Time Derry Football Team via an online poll in 2007. McKeever played club football with St. Canice's GAC Dungiven and club hurling with Kevin Lynchs.

Early life

Kieran McKeever was born into a footballing household. His father Thomas was a Derry minor panelist in the mid 1960s and his brothers Emmet and Cathal have both represented Derry and

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 * '' ...

at hurling and football. In 2008 Cathal transferred to Tyrone side Carrickmore. His abilities as a dual player were nurtured at St Patrick’s Secondary School by former Derry footballers Seán O'Connell, Fintan McCloskey and Francie Brolly and Kilkenny born hurling coach Liam Hinphey. He also excelled at athletics at school, particularly the high jump.

Football career

Inter-county

He captained quite a few successful underage teams including the Derry minor side that were runners up to

Down Down most often refers to: * Down, the relative direction opposed to up * Down (gridiron football), in American/Canadian football, a period when one play takes place * Down feather, a soft bird feather used in bedding and clothing * Downland, a ty ...

in the Ulster Championship team in 1986. He played the game at

Right half back A midfielder is an outfield position in association football. Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in that case known as defensive midfielders. As central midfielders often go across boundarie ...

, despite having a fractured arm. McKeever made his Derry

senior Senior (shortened as Sr.) means "the elder" in Latin and is often used as a suffix for the elder of two or more people in the same family with the same given name, usually a parent or grandparent. It may also refer to: * Senior (name), a surname ...

debut in February 1988 against

Monaghan Monaghan ( ; ) is the county town of County Monaghan, Ireland. It also provides the name of its civil parish and barony. The population of the town as of the 2016 census was 7,678. The town is on the N2 road from Dublin to Derry and Letterken ...

in the

Dr McKenna Cup The Dr McKenna Cup is an annual Gaelic football competition played between counties and universities in the province of Ulster. It is the secondary Gaelic football competition based in Ulster behind the Ulster Senior Football Championship, an ...

at Greenlough. McKeever was Right Corner Back on Derry's 1993 All-Ireland winning team, which beat Cork in the final. McKeever also won an Ulster Championship medal that year and won a second in 1998, where he captained the team. He won four

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the ma ...

medals with Derry in 1992, 1995, 1996, 2000. He was corner back on three of those sides and Centre half back on the 2000 team. McKeever and Derry finished runners-up to

Offaly County Offaly (; ga, Contae Uíbh Fhailí) is a Counties of Ireland, county in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is part of the Eastern and Midland Region and the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster. It is named after the Ancient Ireland ...

in the 1998 National League decider, with McKeever as captain. Having been previously nominated three times for an All Star (1991, 1992 and 1996), McKeever finally received one in 2000. McKeever also won numerous Interprovincial Championship/Railway Cup medals with

Club

McKeever won his first senior county football medal as Dungiven won the 1987 Derry Championship. and added a second in 1991. In 1997 McKeever was part of the

Dungiven Dungiven () is a small town, townland and civil parish in County Londonderry, Northern Ireland. It is near the main A6 Belfast to Derry road, which bypasses the town. It lies where the rivers Roe, Owenreagh and Owenbeg meet at the foot of the ...

side that won another Derry Championship and Ulster Club Championship. Among his underage achievements, McKeever has won an Under-14, Under-16, and two Derry Minor Football Championships. He has also won two All-Ireland special medals.

Hurling career

Inter-county

Among McKeever's hurling honours was winning the Ulster Under 21 Hurling Championship with Derry in 1986, defeating Antrim and Down along the way. They beat Down in the final after a reply; 3-09 to 1-02. In the drawn final McKeever suffered a serious injury. McKeever started his senior inter-county hurling career in 1987 and played until 1992, when he decided to concentrate on football. He returned to the Derry hurling team in 1999 and for his performances in helping Derry win the 2000 Ulster Hurling Championship, he was nominated as an All Star. McKeever won a second Ulster Hurling Championship in 2001 also represented and captained Ulster in hurling in the Railway Cup.

Club

McKeever was part of the Kevin Lynchs U-14 side that captured the B section of 1982

Féile na nGael Féile na nGael (; Irish for "Festival of the Gaels") is an annual tournament comprising the sports of hurling, camogie and handball organised by the Gaelic Athletic Association. Its stated aim is to bond communities, forge friendships, prov ...

Dublin Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of the Wicklow Mountains range. At the 2016 ...

and won county medals at all possible grades.

Honours

Football

County

All-Ireland Senior Football Championship The All-Ireland Senior Football Championship (SFC) ( ga, Craobh Shinsir Peile na hÉireann) is the premier competition in Gaelic football. An annual tournament organised by the Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA), it is contested by the county ...

- Winner (1): 1993 *

- Winner (4): 1992, 1995, 1996, 2000 *

- Runner up: 1998 *

- Winner (2): 1993, 1998 *

- Runner up: 1992, 1997, 2000 *

- Winner (1): 1993, 1999 *

Ulster Minor Football Championship The Ulster Minor Football Championship is the Minor "knockout" competition in the game of Gaelic football played in the province of Ulster in Ireland. The series of games are organised by the Ulster Council. The trophy for the winning side is Th ...

- Runner up: 1986

Club

Ulster Senior Club Football Championship The Ulster Senior Club Football Championship is an annual Gaelic football competition played between the top clubs in Ulster GAA. The trophy awarded to the winners is the Seamus McFerran Cup ( ga, Corn Shéamuis Mhic Fearáin). The winners and th ...

- Winner (1): 1997 *

Derry Senior Football Championship The Derry Senior Football Championship is an annual Gaelic football competition contested by the top sixteen Derry GAA clubs. The winners receive the John McLaughlin Cup and qualify to represent Derry in the Ulster Senior Club Football Champio ...

- Winner (3): 1987, 1991, 1997 *

- Runner up: 1996 *Derry Senior Football League - Winner (2): 1990, 1991 * Derry Minor Football Championship - Winner (2): 1985, 1986 *Derry U-16 Football Championship - Winner (1): 1983 *North Derry U-16 Football Championship - Winner (1): 1983 *Derry U-14 Football Championship - Winner (1): 1982 *Other underage awards

Province

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 ...

- Winner (5/6?) - 1992?, 1993, 1994, 1995, 1998, 2000?

Individual

* All Star - Winner (1): 2000 * All Star - Nominated (runner up): 1991, 1992, 1996 * Irish News Ulster All Stars Team of the Decade (1995-2004) - Winner * Irish News Ulster GAA All-Star - Winner (?): Years? *Derry Senior football captain: 1997-1998 *Derry Minor football captain: 1986

Hurling

County

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

- Winner (2): 2000, 2001 *

- Runner up: 1998?, 1999?, 2003? * Ulster Under 21 Hurling Championship - Winner (1): 1986, 1987?????

Club

Ulster Senior Club Hurling Championship The Ulster Senior Club Hurling Championship (known for sponsorship reasons as the AIB Ulster GAA Hurling Senior Club Championship) is an annual hurling competition organised by the Ulster Council of the Gaelic Athletic Association and contested b ...

- Runner up: 2003?, 2006?, 2007? * Derry Senior Hurling Championship - Winner (9??): 1984, 1987, 1989, 1996, 1998, 2003?, 2004?, 2006?, 2007? * Derry Senior Hurling Championship - Runner up: 1986?, 1991, 1999, 2005? * 'B' Féile na nGael - Winner (1): 1982 *Numerous underage awards including U-14 Derry Hurling Championship

Individual

* All Star - Nominated (runner up): 2000 *Ulster Railway Cup captain: Years? Note: The above lists may be incomplete. Please add any other honours you know of.

References

External links

''Hogan Stand'' article on McKeever by Bernie Mullan
{{DEFAULTSORT:McKeever, Kieran 1968 births Living people Derry inter-county Gaelic footballers Derry inter-county hurlers Dual players Dungiven Gaelic footballers Kevin Lynch's hurlers People from Dungiven Winners of one All-Ireland medal (Gaelic football)