Liz Neary (born 1951 in
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 ...
,
Ireland
Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...
) is a retired
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 ...
sportsperson. She played
camogie
Camogie ( ; ga, camógaíocht ) is an Irish stick-and-ball team sport played by women. Camogie is played by 100,000 women in Ireland and worldwide, largely among Irish communities.
A variant of the game of hurling (which is played by men onl ...
at various times with her local clubs
St. Paul's and
Austin Stacks and was a member of 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 inter-county team from 1970 until 1987. Neary is regarded as one of the greatest players of all-time.
In a senior inter-county career that lasted for nineteen years she won seven
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, five National League medals and five Gael Linn Interprovincial medals. With her two clubs St. Paul's and Austin Stack's she collected a huge haul of twenty-one county titles and six All-Ireland club medals.
Neary was also presented with a number of personal awards during her career. In 1981 and 1986 she was awarded the B&I Player of the Year Award. In 2004, she was named on the Camogie Team of the Century.
Biography
Liz Neary was born in
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 1951. She was educated locally and later attended the
Presentation Secondary School, Kilkenny
The Presentation Secondary School, Kilkenny is an all girls secondary school catering for students between the ages of 12-19 around the Kilkenny city, and the surrounding areas. The school has a Catholic ethos and falls under the Trusteeship of ...
. It was here that her
camogie
Camogie ( ; ga, camógaíocht ) is an Irish stick-and-ball team sport played by women. Camogie is played by 100,000 women in Ireland and worldwide, largely among Irish communities.
A variant of the game of hurling (which is played by men onl ...
skills were first developed. Neary captained the school to the All-Ireland Colleges' title in 1970.
Playing career
Club
Neary played most of her club
camogie
Camogie ( ; ga, camógaíocht ) is an Irish stick-and-ball team sport played by women. Camogie is played by 100,000 women in Ireland and worldwide, largely among Irish communities.
A variant of the game of hurling (which is played by men onl ...
with
St Paul's Camogie Club in Kilkenny. By the time the club disbanded in the early 1990s, she had already collected twenty county titles. During this period Neary also won six All-Ireland club titles, the first of which came in 1970. She won the last of her six All-Ireland club medals nineteen years later in 1989. Downey later joined the
Austin Stacks club in
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 ...
and went on to win another county medal.
Inter-county
Neary was still in secondary school when she first played senior camogie with
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 1968. By 1972, she was a key member of the team and she lined out in her first championship decider. Cork provided the opposition again and it was the Cork team that won on a 2-5 to 1-4 scoreline.
Two years later, in 1974, Kilkenny were back in the All-Ireland final and, once again, Cork were the opponents. Both sides ended level with Kilkenny scoring 3-8 and Cork scoring 4-5. The replay took place a few weeks later. Kilkenny won by 3-3 to 1-5 and Neary captured her first
All-Ireland Senior Camogie Championship
The All-Ireland Senior Camogie Championship is a competition for inter-county teams in the women's field sport of game of camogie played in Ireland. The series of games are organised by the Camogie Association and are played during the summer mo ...
medal.
Kilkenny surrendered their All-Ireland crown in 1975, however, Neary lined out in a third All-Ireland final in 1976. On that occasion Kilkenny took on
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 ...
. Kilkenny won by 0-6 to 1-2. It was Neary's second All-Ireland medal.
In 1977, Neary was a key player in Kilkenny’s quest for back-to-back All-Ireland titles. That year she lined out in the All-Ireland final once again.
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 winners of the championship two years earlier, provided the opposition. Kilkenny won on a score line of 3-4 to 1-3. It was Neary’s third All-Ireland medal.
Kilkenny went into decline for the next few years; however, Neary added a National Camogie League medal to her collection in 1980. It was Kilkenny's first title in that competition. In 1981, Neary was appointed captain of the Kilkenny senior camogie team. That year Kilkenny met Cork in the championship decider, with both sides ended with 3-9 apiece. The replay was more conclusive, with Kilkenny winning that game by 1-9 to 0-7 and Neary collecting a fourth All-Ireland medal. She also lifted the
O'Duffy Cup
The O'Duffy Cup ( ga, Corn Uí Dúbhthaigh) is the prize presented to the winners of the All-Ireland Senior Camogie Championship.
The cup is named after Seán O'Duffy, a member and administrator of the Kilmacud Crokes club in Dublin, who present ...
. She was later named as the B&I Player of the Year.
Neary won a second National League medal with Kilkenny in 1982. Three years later in 1985 she collected a third winners' medal in that competition. Kilkenny later qualified for another All-Ireland final. Dublin provided the opposition in the final which ended with a 0-13 to 1-5 victory for Kilkenny, and earning her a fifth All-Ireland medal.
1986 saw Neary being appointed captain again. That year she guided Kilkenny to a second consecutive All-Ireland final. For the second year in-a-row Dublin provided the opposition, however, once again the result was the same. Kilkenny won the game by 2-12 to 2-3. It was Neary's sixth All-Ireland title while she also joined a club of players that had captained their county to more than one All-Ireland victory. Neary was later named B&I Player of the Year.
In 1987, Neary added a fourth National League medal to her collection after Kilkenny beat Dublin in yet another national final. Later that year Kilkenny qualified for the All-Ireland final. It was an historic occasion as Downey's side were hoping to capture a third All-Ireland title in-a-row, something that Kilkenny had never achieved. Cork stood in their way. The full-time score of 3-10 to 1-7 gave Kilkenny victory in the final and gave Neary a seventh All-Ireland medal. She retired from inter-county camogie following this victory.
Provincial
Neary also lined 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 Gael Linn sponsored inter-provincial camogie championship. She won five inter-provincial camogie titles with her province.
Retirement
In 2004, she was named in the right corner-back position on a special team picked to celebrate the
centenary
{{other uses, Centennial (disambiguation), Centenary (disambiguation)
A centennial, or centenary in British English, is a 100th anniversary or otherwise relates to a century, a period of 100 years.
Notable events
Notable centennial events at ...
of the
Camogie Association of Ireland
The Camogie Association ( ga, An Cumann Camógaíochta, formerly ga, Cumann Camógaíochta na nGael) organises and promotes the sport of camogie in Ireland and around the world. The association has close ties with the Gaelic Athletic Associat ...
.
References
Sources
* Corry, Eoghan, ''The GAA Book of Lists'' (Hodder Headline Ireland, 2005).
* Donegan, Des, ''The Complete Handbook of Gaelic Games'' (DBA Publications Limited, 2005).
* Fullam, Brendan, ''Captains of the Ash'', (Wolfhound Press, 2002).
{{DEFAULTSORT:Neary, Liz
1951 births
Living people
Kilkenny camogie players
Winners of 7 All-Ireland medals (camogie)