Stephen O'Keeffe (born 29 April 1991) is an Irish
hurler who plays for
Waterford Senior Championship club
Ballygunner
Ballygunner ( ga, Baile Gunnair), is a civil parish in County Waterford, Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It lies on the southern outskirts of Waterford city.
The placename is derived, in part, from the Old Norse masculine personal name ''Gunnarr' ...
and formerly at inter-county level with the
Waterford county hurling team
The Waterford county hurling team represents Waterford in hurling and is governed by Waterford GAA, the county board of the Gaelic Athletic Association. The team competes in the three major annual inter-county competitions; the All-Ireland Senio ...
. He usually lines out as a goalkeeper.
Playing career
De La Salle College
O'Keeffe first came to prominence as a hurler with
De La Salle College 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 ...
. He played in every grade before eventually joining the college's senior team. On 11 March 2007, he won a
Harty Cup medal after lining out in goal for De La Salle's 2-07 to 0-11 defeat of
St. Flannan's College
Saint Flannan's College is an Irish co-educational secondary school located in Ennis, County Clare, which takes its name from the 7th century patron saint of the Dál gCais. Formerly an all-boys boarding school, the first girls class was entere ...
. O'Keeffe retained his position in goal when De La Salle faced
Kilkenny CBS in the
All-Ireland final
The All-Ireland Final may refer to:
* All-Ireland Hurling Final, the last match to be played in the All-Ireland Hurling Championship (Senior, Minor and Under-21 levels)
* The last match to be played in the All-Ireland Senior Football Championship
...
on 22 April 2007. He ended the game with a winners' medal following the 0-13 to 1-09 victory.
On 8 March 2008, O'Keeffe won a second successive Harty Cup medal following a 1-11 to 0-07 defeat of Thurles CBS in the final. On 19 April 2008, he won a second successive All-Ireland medal following De La Salle's 2-09 to 2-08 defeat of Thurles CBS in a final replay.
Waterford Institute of Technology
O'Keeffe studied at the
Waterford Institute of Technology
The Waterford Institute of Technology (WIT; ga, Institiúid Teicneolaíochta Phort Láirge) was an institute of technology, located in Waterford, Ireland. The institute had six constituent schools and offered programmes in business, engineerin ...
and joined the
senior hurling team in his second year at the institute. On 1 March 2014, he lined out in goal when Waterford IT defeated the
Cork Institute of Technology
Cork Institute of Technology (CIT; ga, Institiúid Teicneolaíochta Chorcaí) was an institute of technology, located in Cork, Ireland. Upon its dissolution, the institute had 17,000 students studying in art, business, engineering, music, dram ...
by 0-17 to 0-12 to win the
Fitzgibbon Cup
The Fitzgibbon Cup ( ga, Corn Mhic Giobúin) is the trophy for the premier hurling championship among higher education institutions (universities, colleges and institutes of technology) in Ireland.
The Fitzgibbon Cup competition is administered ...
.
Ballygunner
Minor
O'Keeffe joined the
Ballygunner
Ballygunner ( ga, Baile Gunnair), is a civil parish in County Waterford, Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It lies on the southern outskirts of Waterford city.
The placename is derived, in part, from the Old Norse masculine personal name ''Gunnarr' ...
club at a young age and played in all grades at juvenile and underage levels. On 12 November 2006, he was just 15-years-old when he lined out in goal when Ballygunner defeated
Cappoquin
Cappoquin, also spelt Cappaquin or Capaquin (), is a town in west County Waterford, Ireland. It is on the Blackwater river at the junction of the N72 national secondary road and the R669 regional road. It is positioned on a sharp 90-degree b ...
by 2-12 to 2-05 to win the Waterford Minor Championship title.
On 30 September 2007, O'Keeffe lined out in goal in a second successive Waterford Minor Championship final. A 3-24 to 2-09 defeat of
Dungarvan
Dungarvan () is a coastal town and harbour in County Waterford, on the south-east coast of Ireland. Prior to the merger of Waterford County Council with Waterford City Council in 2014, Dungarvan was the county town and administrative centre of ...
secured a second successive winners' medal.
Three titles in-a-row proved beyond the Ballygunner minor team, however, on 8 November 2009 Ballygunner lined out in a third final in four seasons. O'Keeffe collected a third winners' medal after a 2-17 to 0-10 defeat of
Dunhill-
Fenor
Fenor, officially Fennor (), is a village in County Waterford, Ireland. The village itself is quite small, consisting almost entirely of the local school, pub, and parish church. It is on the R675 road around west of Tramore.
History Ston ...
.
Senior
On 11 October 2009, O'Keeffe was just 18-years-old when he lined out in goal in his first
Waterford Senior Championship final.
Lismore were the opponents, however, the game ended in a 4-12 to 2-18 draw. The replay a week later saw O'Keeffe claim his first winners' medal following a 1-17 to 0-19 victory. On 29 November 2009, he was in goal when Ballygunner suffered a 2-11 to 0-09 defeat by
Newtownshandrum
Newtownshandrum () is a small village in County Cork, Ireland located west of Charleville on the R515 road. The name translates from Irish to mean 'new town of the old ridge'. Historic maps from 1829–1841 and 1897–1913 identify the village ...
in the
Munster final.
O'Keeffe lined out in his second Waterford Senior Championship final on 24 October 2010, with Ballygunner hoping to retain the title for the first time in 12 years. He ended on the losing side following a 3-13 to 1-11 defeat by
De La Salle.
Ballygunner qualified for a third successive Waterford Senior Championship final on 16 October 2011, with O'Keeffe lining out in goal once again. He collected a second winners' medal following a 1-19 to 0-06 defeat of
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 ...
.
Four final appearances in succession proved beyond Ballygunner, however, the club reached a fourth
final
Final, Finals or The Final may refer to:
*Final (competition), the last or championship round of a sporting competition, match, game, or other contest which decides a winner for an event
** Another term for playoffs, describing a sequence of cont ...
in five seasons on 13 October 2013. O'Keeffe ended on the losing side for the second time in his career following a 3-16 to 3-13 defeat by first-time champions
Passage
Passage, The Passage or Le Passage may refer to:
Arts and entertainment Films
* ''Passage'' (2008 film), a documentary about Arctic explorers
* ''Passage'' (2009 film), a short movie about three sisters
* ''The Passage'' (1979 film), starring ...
.
O'Keeffe lined out in goal in a fifth
Waterford Senior Championship final on 5 October 2014. Ballygunner defeated
Mount Sion by 2-16 to 0-09, with O'Keeffe collecting a third winners' medal.
On 18 October 2015, O'Keeffe won a fourth Waterford Senior Championship medal following a 0-16 to 0-12 defeat of Tallow in the
final
Final, Finals or The Final may refer to:
*Final (competition), the last or championship round of a sporting competition, match, game, or other contest which decides a winner for an event
** Another term for playoffs, describing a sequence of cont ...
. He later lined out in a second
Munster final on 19 November 2015. O'Keeffe ended the game on the losing following a 2-18 to 2-11 defeat by
Na Piarsaigh
Na Piarsaigh are a hurling and Gaelic football club based in the north side of Cork City, Ireland.
History
Formation
In 1943 a group of idealistic young men drawn mostly from the hurling nursery of North Mon laid the foundations of Cumann I ...
.
On 23 October 2016, O'Keeffe lined out in a fourth successive Waterford Championship final and his seventh overall. He collected a fifth winners' medal at the end of the game after a 4-20 to 1-12 defeat of Passage.
On 22 October 2017, O'Keeffe won a sixth Waterford Senior Championship medal in goal when Ballygunner defeated De La Salle by 2-18 to 0-16 in the final. On 19 November 2017, he lined out in a third
Munster final, however, he ended on the losing side once again following a 3-15 to 2-10 defeat by Na Piarsaigh.
O'Keeffe won a seventh Waterford Senior Championship title on 7 October 2018 when Ballygunner defeated
Abbeyside by 2-19 to 0-13 to secure a fifth successive title. He was again in goal on 18 November when Ballygunner defeated Na Piarsaigh by 2-14 to 2-08 to win the
Munster Championship
The Munster GAA Hurling Senior Championship, known simply as the Munster Championship, is an annual inter-county hurling competition organised by the Munster Council of the Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA). It is the highest inter-county hurlin ...
.
On 13 October 2019, O'Keeffe was again in goal when Ballygunner faced De La Salle in the
Waterford Senior Championship final. He ended the game on the winning side and collected an eighth winners' medal following the 1-24 to 1-15 victory.
Waterford
Minor and under-21
O'Keeffe first lined out for
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 ...
as a member of the minor team during the
2008 Munster Championship. He made his first appearance for the team on 25 June 2008 when he lined out in goal in a 4-13 to 1-06 defeat by
Cork
Cork or CORK may refer to:
Materials
* Cork (material), an impermeable buoyant plant product
** Cork (plug), a cylindrical or conical object used to seal a container
***Wine cork
Places Ireland
* Cork (city)
** Metropolitan Cork, also known as G ...
.
O'Keeffe was also eligible for the minor grade in
2009
File:2009 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: The vertical stabilizer of Air France Flight 447 is pulled out from the Atlantic Ocean; Barack Obama becomes the first African American to become President of the United States; 2009 Iran ...
. He was in goal when Waterford qualified for a
Munster final-meeting with
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 12 July 2009. He collected a
Munster Championship
The Munster GAA Hurling Senior Championship, known simply as the Munster Championship, is an annual inter-county hurling competition organised by the Munster Council of the Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA). It is the highest inter-county hurlin ...
medal following the 0-18 to 1-13 victory.
O'Keeffe joined the Waterford under-21 team in advance of the
2010 Munster Championship. He made his first appearance for the team on 3 June 2010 in a 1-16 to 1-03 defeat by Cork.
O'Keeffe retained his status as first-choice goalkeeper with the Waterford under-21 for the
2011 Munster Championship. He made his only appearance for the team on 1 June 2011 when he lined out in goal in a 4-12 to 1-16 defeat by
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 19 July 2012, O'Keeffe made his last appearance for the Waterford under-21 team. He once again lined out in goal in a 2-22 to 0-09 defeat by
Clare in the
Munster Championship
The Munster GAA Hurling Senior Championship, known simply as the Munster Championship, is an annual inter-county hurling competition organised by the Munster Council of the Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA). It is the highest inter-county hurlin ...
.
Senior
O'Keeffe was added to the Waterford senior panel prior to the start of the
2011 National League. He made his first appearance for the team on 20 February 2011 when he lined out in goal in a 1-11 to 0-12 defeat of
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 ...
. O'Keeffe later served as sub-goalkeeper to
Clinton Hennessy
Clinton Hennessy (born 28 July 1977) is an Irish hurler who played as a goalkeeper for the Waterford senior team.
Hennessy joined the team when he replaced Stephen Brenner as first-choice 'keeper in 2005 and was a regular member of the star ...
during the
2011 Munster Championship.
On 17 June 2012, O'Keeffe made his
Munster Championship
The Munster GAA Hurling Senior Championship, known simply as the Munster Championship, is an annual inter-county hurling competition organised by the Munster Council of the Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA). It is the highest inter-county hurlin ...
debut in a 2-17 to 1-18 defeat of Clare. On 15 July 2012, he was again in goal when Waterford suffered a 2-17 to 0-16 defeat by Tipperary in the
Munster final.
On 3 May 2015, O'Keeffe won a
National League
The National League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the National League (NL), is the older of two leagues constituting Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada, and the world's oldest extant professional team s ...
medal following Waterford's 1-24 to 0-17 defeat of Cork in the
final
Final, Finals or The Final may refer to:
*Final (competition), the last or championship round of a sporting competition, match, game, or other contest which decides a winner for an event
** Another term for playoffs, describing a sequence of cont ...
. On 12 July 2015, he was also in goal when Waterford were beaten for the fourth time in six seasons by Tipperary in the
Munster final.
On 1 May 2016, O'Keeffe was in goal when Waterford drew 0-22 apiece with Clare in the
National League final. He retained his position for the replay, which Waterford lost by 1-23 to 2-19. On 10 July 2016, O'Keeffe lost the third
Munster final of his career when Waterford suffered a 5-19 to 0-13 defeat by Tipperary.
On 3 September 2017, O'Keeffe lined out in the
2017 All-Ireland final. He kept a clean sheet but ended the game on the losing side following a 0-26 to 2-17 victory for
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 ...
. O'Keeffe ended the season by winning an
GAA/GPA All-Star award.
On 31 March 2019, O'Keeffe was in goal when Waterford faced
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 ...
in the
National League final. He ended the game on the losing side following a 1-24 to 0-19 defeat.
Career statistics
Honours
;De La Salle College
*
Dr. Croke Cup
The Dr Croke Cup is the trophy presented to the winner of the All Ireland Secondary Schools Senior "A" hurling championship. Before that it was an inter-county GAA competition in hurling. The first Croke Cups (which included hurling and Gaelic ...
(2): 2007, 2008
*
Harty Cup (2): 2007, 2008
;Waterford Institute of Technology
*
Fitzgibbon Cup
The Fitzgibbon Cup ( ga, Corn Mhic Giobúin) is the trophy for the premier hurling championship among higher education institutions (universities, colleges and institutes of technology) in Ireland.
The Fitzgibbon Cup competition is administered ...
(1): 2014
;Ballygunner
*
Munster Senior Club Hurling Championship
The Munster Senior Club Hurling Championship (known for sponsorship reasons as the AIB Munster GAA Hurling Senior Club Championship) is an annual hurling competition organised by the Munster Council of the Gaelic Athletic Association since 1964 f ...
(1):
2018
File:2018 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2018 Winter Olympics opening ceremony in PyeongChang, South Korea; Protests erupt following the Assassination of Jamal Khashoggi; March for Our Lives protests take place across the United ...
*
Waterford Senior Hurling Championship
The Waterford Senior Hurling Championship (known for sponsorship reasons as the JJ Kavanagh & Sons Senior Hurling Championship) is an annual hurling competition organised by the Waterford County Board of the Gaelic Athletic Association since 1 ...
(9):
2009
File:2009 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: The vertical stabilizer of Air France Flight 447 is pulled out from the Atlantic Ocean; Barack Obama becomes the first African American to become President of the United States; 2009 Iran ...
,
2011
File:2011 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: a protester partaking in Occupy Wall Street heralds the beginning of the Occupy movement; protests against Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi, who was killed that October; a young man celebrate ...
,
2014
File:2014 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Stocking up supplies and personal protective equipment (PPE) for the Western African Ebola virus epidemic; Citizens examining the ruins after the Chibok schoolgirls kidnapping; Bundles of wat ...
,
2015
File:2015 Events Collage new.png, From top left, clockwise: Civil service in remembrance of November 2015 Paris attacks; Germanwings Flight 9525 was purposely crashed into the French Alps; the rubble of residences in Kathmandu following the Apri ...
,
2016
File:2016 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Bombed-out buildings in Ankara following the 2016 Turkish coup d'état attempt; the impeachment trial of Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff; Damaged houses during the 2016 Nagorno-Karabakh ...
,
2017
File:2017 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: The War Against ISIS at the Battle of Mosul (2016-2017); aftermath of the Manchester Arena bombing; The Solar eclipse of August 21, 2017 ("Great American Eclipse"); North Korea tests a ser ...
,
2018
File:2018 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2018 Winter Olympics opening ceremony in PyeongChang, South Korea; Protests erupt following the Assassination of Jamal Khashoggi; March for Our Lives protests take place across the United ...
,
2019
File:2019 collage v1.png, From top left, clockwise: Hong Kong protests turn to widespread riots and civil disobedience; House of Representatives votes to adopt articles of impeachment against Donald Trump; CRISPR gene editing first used to experim ...
,
2020
2020 was heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to global Social impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, social and Economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, economic disruption, mass cancellations and postponements of events, COVID- ...
;Waterford
*
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 ...
(1):
2015
File:2015 Events Collage new.png, From top left, clockwise: Civil service in remembrance of November 2015 Paris attacks; Germanwings Flight 9525 was purposely crashed into the French Alps; the rubble of residences in Kathmandu following the Apri ...
*
Munster Minor Hurling Championship
The Munster GAA Hurling Minor Championship (known for sponsorship reasons as the Electric Ireland Munster GAA Hurling Minor Championship) is an annual inter-county hurling competition organised by the Munster Council of the Gaelic Athletic Assoc ...
(1):
2009
File:2009 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: The vertical stabilizer of Air France Flight 447 is pulled out from the Atlantic Ocean; Barack Obama becomes the first African American to become President of the United States; 2009 Iran ...
;Awards
*
All-Stars (1): 2017
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Okeeffe, Stephen
1991 births
Living people
Ballygunner hurlers
Waterford inter-county hurlers
Hurling goalkeepers
Alumni of Waterford Institute of Technology
Waterford IT hurlers