Jack McCaffrey
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Jack McCaffrey (born 19 October 1993) is a Gaelic footballer who plays for Clontarf.


Early and personal life

His father Noel also represented Dublin in football. McCaffrey attended Belvedere College private school and studied medicine at
University College Dublin University College Dublin (commonly referred to as UCD) ( ga, Coláiste na hOllscoile, Baile Átha Cliath) is a public research university in Dublin, Ireland, and a member institution of the National University of Ireland. With 33,284 student ...
(UCD) and graduated in 2018 with a Bachelor of Medicine, Bachelor of Surgery & Bachelor in the Art of Obstetrics. His classmates included Mark English, considered by
Jerry Kiernan Jeremiah Kiernan (31 May 1953 – 21 January 2021) was an Irish long-distance runner. Biography Kiernan was born in Listowel, County Kerry. He represented his native country at the 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles, California, where he finis ...
to be the country's "greatest talent" ever in middle-distance running. English issued a challenge to McCaffrey, himself considered football's fastest player, to take him on over
100 metres The 100 metres, or 100-meter dash, is a sprint race in track and field competitions. The shortest common outdoor running distance, the dash is one of the most popular and prestigious events in the sport of athletics. It has been conteste ...
. McCaffrey is a qualified medical doctor. He works in Temple Street Children's Hospital. He is an opponent of professionalism within the GAA.


Playing career

In April 2013, McCaffrey won a
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 ...
winners' medal as Dublin defeated Tyrone by 0–18 to 0–17 to win the 2013 National Football League. He made his championship debut against
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in the 2013 Leinster Senior Football Championship. He scored a solo goal in the 2013 All-Ireland quarter-final against
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 ...
. Still teenaged, he played in the
2013 All-Ireland Senior Football Championship Final The 2013 All-Ireland Football Final, the 126th event of its kind and the culmination of the 2013 All-Ireland Senior Football Championship, was played between Dublin and Mayo at Croke Park, Dublin on 22 September 2013. Mayo were defeated by Dubli ...
, the first such final he would play in. McCaffrey, who was substituted at half-time, recalled how he "got roasted by
Kevin McLoughlin Kevin McLoughlin (born 1988) is a Gaelic footballer who plays for Knockmore and the Mayo county team. He has started at right half forward in four All-Ireland football finals: the 2012 decider, which Mayo lost by 0-13 to 2-11 against Donegal ...
". He played twice and netted for
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 ...
against Australia in the
2013 International Rules Series The 2013 International Rules Series (officially the 2013 Irish Daily Mail International Rules Series) was the 17th International Rules Series contested between Gaelic footballers from Ireland and Australian footballers from Australia. Ireland e ...
. In November 2013, he was named as
All Stars Young Footballer of the Year The GAA & GPA All Stars Young Footballer of the Year (often called the All Stars Young Footballer of the Year, or simply Young Footballer of the Year) is an annual award given at the end of the Championship season to a young footballer aged 21 ...
. In November 2015, McCaffrey received the highest individual honour in the sport when he was named as
All Stars Footballer of the Year The Gaelic Athletic Association & Gaelic Player's Association All Stars Footballer of the Year — known for sponsorship reasons as the Vodafone Footballer of the Year — is a Gaelic football award. It is presented annually to the footballer wh ...
. He did so in spite of contracting food poisoning "in around the Thursday" before the
2015 All-Ireland Senior Football Championship Final The 2015 All-Ireland Senior Football Championship Final, the 128th event of its kind and the culmination of the 2015 All-Ireland Senior Football Championship, was played at Croke Park in Dublin on 20 September 2015. Leinster Champions Dublin an ...
, which left him unable to finish the game. "I couldn't keep any food or water down so I got a drip to stay hydrated. But that was actually great at the time because it completely distracted from the build-up to a final ... all you were worried about is, 'Am I going to be okay?' You're no thinking about the occasion itself. And then thankfully I pulled through and performed okay for the 50 minutes that I lasted". McCaffrey missed the
2016 All-Ireland Senior Football Championship The 2016 All-Ireland Senior Football Championship was the 129th edition of the GAA's premier inter-county gaelic football tournament since its establishment in 1887. 33 teams took part. 31 of the 32 Counties of Ireland participated, with Ki ...
due his travels abroad. He travelled to
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, then
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,
Zambia Zambia (), officially the Republic of Zambia, is a landlocked country at the crossroads of Central, Southern and East Africa, although it is typically referred to as being in Southern Africa at its most central point. Its neighbours are t ...
,
Malawi Malawi (; or aláwi Tumbuka: ''Malaŵi''), officially the Republic of Malawi, is a landlocked country in Southeastern Africa that was formerly known as Nyasaland. It is bordered by Zambia to the west, Tanzania to the north and northeas ...
and
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. In December 2016, McCaffrey confirmed that he would be available again for selection in 2017. McCaffrey played in that year's All-Ireland final win but left the pitch early after sustaining what later proved to be an
anterior cruciate ligament The anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) is one of a pair of cruciate ligament Cruciate ligaments (also cruciform ligaments) are pairs of ligaments arranged like a letter X. They occur in several joints of the body, such as the knee joint and th ...
injury. His antics later in the evening as
Michael Lyster Michael Lyster (born 11 April 1954) is an Irish radio and television broadcaster who works for RTÉ. He mainly covers sporting events, such as Gaelic games and Olympic Games. He is best known for presenting '' The Sunday Game Live'', which he h ...
interviewed Jim Gavin and Stephen Cluxton were much remarked upon. A month after the final, McCaffrey had surgery. McCaffrey returned for Dublin against Longford as a substitute in June 2018. Another substitute appearance in the Leinster final against
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followed, seeing him make two goal chances by himself. However, he did not find the net in that game. He is a former self-admitted "horrific tackler" but the
2018 All-Ireland Senior Football Championship Final The 2018 All-Ireland Senior Football Championship Final was the 131st final of the All-Ireland Senior Football Championship and the culmination of the 2018 All-Ireland Senior Football Championship in Gaelic football. The match was played at C ...
proved to be when he "figured out I'm actually a defender as opposed to some loose attacking player". His dispossession of Mattie Donnelly during injury time of that game offered evidence of this. McCaffrey was named Man of the Match after his team's 2018 final victory. While being interviewed by Lyster for ''
The Sunday Game ''The Sunday Game'' is RTÉ's main Gaelic games television programme. It is shown on RTÉ2 every Sunday during the Football Championship and Hurling Championship seasons. It is one of RTÉ2's longest-running shows, having been on air since 1 ...
'' highlights programme, a leak through the ceiling of the Gibson Hotel caused Lyster, McCaffrey and GAA President John Horan to be drenched in water live on air. Interviewed the following day by journalists, McCaffrey reminded them: "This was the first time I've been on the pitch when the final whistle blew in an All-Ireland final. Incredible. It was so satisfying, such a relief". Another All Star followed, as did a second Footballer of the Year nomination. McCaffrey won the man of the match award in the drawn
2019 All-Ireland Senior Football Championship Final The 2019 All-Ireland Senior Football Championship Final was the 132nd final of the All-Ireland Senior Football Championship and the culmination of the 2019 tournament, the top level of competition in Gaelic football. Reigning All-Ireland champi ...
as well; a second consecutive award, "RTÉ veterans" were reported to be finding it difficult to recall such an occurrence ever before. He was top scorer (1–3) from open play. This compared with the 3–14 from his previous 38 championship games. The three points were also a classic
hat-trick A hat-trick or hat trick is the achievement of a generally positive feat three times in a match, or another achievement based on the number three. Origin The term first appeared in 1858 in cricket, to describe H. H. Stephenson taking three wic ...
, sent over with fist and both feet. Defensively, he forced eight turnovers of possession. McCaffrey left the Dublin panel ahead of the
2020 All-Ireland Senior Football Championship The 2020 All-Ireland Senior Football Championship was the 133rd edition of the Gaelic Athletic Association's premier inter-county Gaelic football tournament since its establishment in 1887. The public health measures introduced to combat the CO ...
. He later described the drawn
2019 All-Ireland Senior Football Championship Final The 2019 All-Ireland Senior Football Championship Final was the 132nd final of the All-Ireland Senior Football Championship and the culmination of the 2019 tournament, the top level of competition in Gaelic football. Reigning All-Ireland champi ...
as the game that "broke me" but decided initially to remain when his former minor and under-21 manager
Dessie Farrell Dessie Farrell is an Irish Gaelic football coach and former player. He has been manager of the Dublin county team since 2019. A former All Star Gaelic footballer who played at senior level for Dublin county team for nearly 15 years, he reti ...
was appointed as Jim Gavin's successor.


Honours


Team

*
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 ...
(5): 2013, 2015, 2017, 2018, 2019 *
Leinster Senior Football Championship The Leinster Senior Football Championship, known simply as the Leinster Championship and shortened to Leinster SFC, is an annual inter-county Gaelic football competition organised by the Leinster Council of the Gaelic Athletic Association (GA ...
(6): 2013, 2014, 2015, 2017, 2018, 2019 *
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 ...
(3): 2013, 2014, 2015 *
All-Ireland Under-21 Football Championship The GAA Football Under-20 All-Ireland Championship (known for sponsorship reasons as the EirGrid GAA Football Under-20 All-Ireland Championship) is an annual inter-county Gaelic football competition organised by the Gaelic Athletic Association ( ...
(2): 2012, 2014 (c) *
Leinster Under-21 Football Championship The Leinster GAA Football Under-20 Championship, known simply as the Leinster Under-20 Championship, is an annual inter-county Gaelic football competition organised by the Leinster Council of the Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA). It is the highe ...
(2): 2012, 2014


Individual

* All-Ireland Senior Football Championship Final Man of the Match (2):
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,
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 ...
(drawn game) * ''
The Sunday Game ''The Sunday Game'' is RTÉ's main Gaelic games television programme. It is shown on RTÉ2 every Sunday during the Football Championship and Hurling Championship seasons. It is one of RTÉ2's longest-running shows, having been on air since 1 ...
'' Player of the Year (1): 2015 *
All Stars Young Footballer of the Year The GAA & GPA All Stars Young Footballer of the Year (often called the All Stars Young Footballer of the Year, or simply Young Footballer of the Year) is an annual award given at the end of the Championship season to a young footballer aged 21 ...
(1): 2013 *
All Stars Footballer of the Year The Gaelic Athletic Association & Gaelic Player's Association All Stars Footballer of the Year — known for sponsorship reasons as the Vodafone Footballer of the Year — is a Gaelic football award. It is presented annually to the footballer wh ...
(1): 2015 *
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 playe ...
(3): 2015, 2017, 2018 * UCD Alumni Award Winner Sport 2020


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:McCaffrey, Jack 1993 births Living people Clontarf Gaelic footballers Dublin inter-county Gaelic footballers Gaelic football backs Irish international rules football players People educated at Belvedere College People from Clontarf, Dublin Sportspeople from Dublin (city) 21st-century Irish medical doctors Winners of five All-Ireland medals (Gaelic football)