Martin O'Connell (born 29 August 1963 in Carlanstown,
County Meath) is an
Irish former sportsperson. He played
Gaelic football
Gaelic football ( ga, Peil Ghaelach; short name '), commonly known as simply Gaelic, GAA or Football is an Irish team sport. It is played between two teams of 15 players on a rectangular grass pitch. The objective of the sport is to score by kic ...
with his local club
St Michael's and was a senior member of the
Meath county team from 1984 until 1997. O'Connell was listed on the "An Post/GAA Football Team of the Millennium".
In a senior inter-county career that spanned two decades, O'Connell won every honour in the game at senior level. O'Connell claimed a Meath record of six
Leinster and three
National Football League titles.
O'Connell has also been the recipient of many awards off the field. He claimed four
All Star awards as well as being named
Texaco Footballer of the Year
The Texaco Footballer of the Year was a Gaelic football award, created in 1958, that honoured the achievements of a footballer of outstanding excellence. The award was part of the Texaco Sportstars Awards, in which Irish sportspeople from all f ...
in his final playing season in 1996. Shortly after his inter-county career ended O'Connell was named in the left wing-back position on the GAA Football Team of the Millennium.
In May 2020, the ''
Irish Independent
The ''Irish Independent'' is an Irish daily newspaper and online publication which is owned by Independent News & Media (INM), a subsidiary of Mediahuis.
The newspaper version often includes glossy magazines.
Traditionally a broadsheet new ...
'' named O'Connell as one of the "dozens of brilliant players" who narrowly missed selection for its "Top 20 footballers in Ireland over the past 50 years".
The All-Ireland medal he won in 1987 was stolen during a burglary in November 2020 but retrieved a short time later.
See also
*
List of people on stamps of Ireland
References
External links
Hogan Stand Article
{{DEFAULTSORT:Oconnell, Martin
1963 births
Living people
Gaelic football backs
Irish butchers
Meath inter-county Gaelic footballers
St Michael's (Meath) Gaelic footballers
Texaco Footballers of the Year
Winners of three All-Ireland medals (Gaelic football)