Stephen McDonagh (born 15 October 1969) is an Irish retired hurler who played as a left corner-back for the

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 ...

senior team. McDonagh joined the team during the 1992-93 National League and was a regular member of the starting fifteen until his retirement prior to the start of the 2004 championship. During that time he won two

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 ...

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. McDonagh was an All-Ireland runner-up on two occasions. At club level McDonagh was a one-time county club championship medalist with

Bruree Bruree () is a village in south-eastern County Limerick, Ireland, on the River Maigue. It takes its name from the nearby ancient royal fortress, the alternative name of which from the earliest times into the High Middle Ages was ''Dún Eochair M ...

Playing career

Club

McDonagh played his club hurling with Bruree and enjoyed some success in a career that spanned almost twenty-five years. Having played in and lost the county final of 1994, it would take twelve years before McDonagh lined out in his second championship decider. As captain of the team he led his club men against club kingpins Patrickwell. Bruree took an early lead by trailed by two points at the interval. A 49th-minute goal eventually helped the team to 1-16 to 1-15 victory. It was a first championship medal for McDonagh.

Inter-county

McDonagh joined the Limerick senior hurling panel during the 1992-93 National League and made his debut against

Galway Galway ( ; ga, Gaillimh, ) is a City status in Ireland, city in the West Region, Ireland, West of Ireland, in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Connacht, which is the county town of County Galway. It lies on the River Corrib between Lo ...

in the quarter-final of the competition. The following year McDonagh became a regular member of the starting fifteen as Limerick qualified for the Munster final. Provincial whipping boys

Clare Clare may refer to: Places Antarctica * Clare Range, a mountain range in Victoria Land Australia * Clare, South Australia, a town in the Clare Valley * Clare Valley, South Australia Canada * Clare (electoral district), an electoral district * Cl ...

were the opponents and a rout took place. A 0-25 to 2-10 score line gave Limerick the win and gave McDonagh his first

medal. Limerick subsequently qualified to meet

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 ...

in the All-Ireland final. It looked as if McDonagh's side were going to make history and claim a first title in twenty-one years as Limerick had a five-point lead with as many minutes left. Offaly suddenly sprang to life following a

Johnny Dooley Johnny Dooley (born 7 October 1971 in Clareen, County Offaly) is an Irish former hurling manager and player. He played hurling with his local club Clareen GAA and was a member of the Offaly senior inter-county team from 1991 until 2002. Doole ...

goal from a close-in free. Following the puck-out Offaly worked the ball up the field and Pat O'Connor struck for a second goal. The Offaly forwards scored another five unanswered points in the time remaining to secure a 3-16 to 2-13 victory. It was a bitter blow for Limerick who looked as if they had one hand on the Liam MacCarthy Cup. Two years later in 1996 McDonagh was back in the provincial decider. Limerick faced

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 ...

on that occasion and looked to be heading out of the championship as Tipp took a ten-point lead. McDonagh's side battled back to secure a 0-19 to 1-16 draw and a second chance to defeat their near rivals. The replay also saw Tipperary take a decisive lead, however, Limerick's goal-scoring ability was the deciding factor. A 4-7 to 0-16 score line gave Limerick the win and gave McDonagh a second Munster medal. The subsequent All-Ireland final pitted Limerick against

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 ...

for the first time in over forty years. The game was far from a classic; however, it did provide excitement. Tom Dempsey was the hero of the day as he scored a goal after nineteen minutes to give Wexford a major advantage. His side led by 1-8 to 0-10 at half-time in spite of having Éamonn Scallan sent off. Wexford took a four-point lead in the second-half; however, this was whittled back to two points as Wexford hung on for the last twenty minutes. The final score of 1-13 to 0-14 provided Limerick with a second All-Ireland defeat in three seasons. Limerick bounced back immediately in 1997 by defeating

by 1-12 to 1-9 to take the National Hurling League title. It was McDonagh's sole winners' medal in that competition. The recent All-Ireland defeats, however, seemed to have damaged the team as Limerick crashed out of the provincial championship at an early stage. This process repeated itself over the next few years and it was 2001 before McDonagh lined out in another Munster final. Tipperary were the opponents on that occasion, however, Limerick fell by 2-16 to 1-17. McDonagh was now in the twilight of his career and success seemed as far away for Limerick as it did when he joined the panel. After failing to make an impact on the panel under new manager Pad Joe Whelehan in 2004, McDonagh decided to retire from inter-county hurling after a National League game against Galway.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:McDonagh, Stephen 1969 births Living people Bruree hurlers Limerick inter-county hurlers Munster inter-provincial hurlers