Michael 'Hopper' McGrath (born 30 June 1963 in

Bullaun A bullaun ( ga, bullán; from a word cognate with "bowl" and French ''bol'') is the term used for the depression in a stone which is often water filled. Natural rounded boulders or pebbles may sit in the bullaun. The size of the bullaun is high ...

County Galway "Righteousness and Justice" , anthem = () , image_map = Island of Ireland location map Galway.svg , map_caption = Location in Ireland , area_footnotes = , area_total_km2 = ...

) is 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 ...

former sportsperson. He played

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 pla ...

with his local club Sarsfields and was a member of the

Galway Galway ( ; ga, Gaillimh, ) is a city in the West of Ireland, in the province of Connacht, which is the county town of County Galway. It lies on the River Corrib between Lough Corrib and Galway Bay, and is the sixth most populous city ...

senior inter-county team in the 1980s and 1990s. McGrath played for the Galway hurling team that was crowned All-Ireland Senior Hurling Champions in

1987 File:1987 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The MS Herald of Free Enterprise capsizes after leaving the Port of Zeebrugge in Belgium, killing 193; Northwest Airlines Flight 255 crashes after takeoff from Detroit Metropolitan Airpor ...

(defeating Kilkenny) and 1988 (defeating

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 ...

.) McGrath was captain of the Sarsfields team when Sarsfields captured their second

Galway Senior Hurling Championship The Galway Senior Hurling Championship (known for sponsorship reasons as the Brooks Galway Senior Hurling Championship) is an annual hurling competition organised by the Galway County Board of the Gaelic Athletic Association since 1887 for th ...

title in 1989. On that occasion Sarsfields defeated

Athenry Athenry (; ) is a town in County Galway, Ireland, which lies east of Galway city. Some of the attractions of the medieval town are its town wall, Athenry Castle, its priory and its 13th century street-plan. The town is also well known by virtu ...

in St.Brendans Park

Loughrea Loughrea ( ; ) is a town in County Galway, Ireland. The town lies to the north of a range of wooded hills, the Slieve Aughty Mountains, and the lake from which it takes its name. The town's cathedral, St Brendan's, dominates the town's skyline. ...

, where the final score was Sarsfields 3-7, Athenry 1-8. McGrath helped Sarsfields to win the club's third senior county title in 1992. On that occasion Sarsfields defeated

Carnmore Carnmore () is an electoral area located at the southern end of the parish of Claregalway, approximately east of Galway city in County Galway, Ireland. Carnmore is in a Gaeltacht area, although the majority of residents use English as their ...

in the county final reply, where the final score was Sarsfields 1-14, Carnmore 1-5. McGrath helped Sarsfields to retain the county title in 1993 (the club's fourth senior county title). On that occasion Sarsfields once again defeated

, where the final score was Sarsfields 1-10, Carnmore 0-4. Following after the senior county title wins of 1992 and 1993, and McGrath with Sarsfields won his first All-Ireland Senior Club Championship medal in spring of

1993 File:1993 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The Oslo I Accord is signed in an attempt to resolve the Israeli–Palestinian conflict; The Russian White House is shelled during the 1993 Russian constitutional crisis; Czechoslovakia is peace ...

. McGrath and Sarsfields repeated the same feat in

1994 File:1994 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The 1994 Winter Olympics are held in Lillehammer, Norway; The Kaiser Permanente building after the 1994 Northridge earthquake; A model of the MS Estonia, which sank in the Baltic Sea; Nelson Ma ...

when the Sarsfields club becomes the first hurling club to retain their All-Ireland Senior Club championship title. McGrath again played for Sarsfields when the club captured their fifth senior county title in 1995. On that occasion Sarsfields defeated

Portumna Portumna ( - meaning 'the landing place of the oak') is a market town in the south-east of County Galway, Ireland, on the border with and linked by a bridge to County Tipperary. The town is located to the west of the point where the River Shanno ...

where the final score was Sarsfields 0-17, Portumna 1-9. McGrath played on the 1997 Sarsfields them when the club captured their sixth senior county title in 1997. On that occasion Sarsfields defeated

Clarinbridge Clarinbridge () is a village in south County Galway, Ireland. It is on the mouth of the Clarin River at the end of Dunbulcaun Bay, which is the easternmost part of Galway Bay. The placename is also spelled Clarenbridge. Notable people * Alex ...

where the final score was Sarsfields 0-11, Clarinbridge 1-6. McGrath is also the holder of two

GAA GPA All Stars Awards The Gaelic Athletic Association-Gaelic Players' Association All Stars Awards (often known simply as the All Stars) are awarded annually to the best player in each of the 15 playing positions in Gaelic football and hurling. Additionally, one play ...

awarded in 1987 and 1988.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:McGrath, Michael 1963 births Living people Sarsfields (Galway) hurlers Galway inter-county hurlers Connacht inter-provincial hurlers Hurling referees All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship winners