Robert O'Keeffe (16 August 1880 – 1949) was an Irish hurler who played for the

Laois County Laois ( ; gle, Contae Laoise) is a Counties of Ireland, county in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is part of the Eastern and Midland Region and in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster. It was known as Queen's County from 1556 ...

senior team. O'Keeffe was a regular member of the starting fifteen during the

1914 This year saw the beginning of what became known as World War I, after Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria, heir to the Austrian throne was assassinated by Serbian nationalist Gavrilo Princip. It also saw the first airline to provide schedule ...

and 1915 championship campaigns. During that time he won one

All-Ireland All-Ireland (sometimes All-Island) refers to all of Ireland, as opposed to the separate jurisdictions of the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland. "All-Ireland" is most frequently used to refer to sporting teams or events for the entire islan ...

medal and back-to-back

Leinster Leinster ( ; ga, Laighin or ) is one of the provinces of Ireland, situated in the southeast and east of Ireland. The province comprises the ancient Kingdoms of Meath, Leinster and Osraige. Following the 12th-century Norman invasion of Ir ...

medals. At club level O'Keeffe had a lengthy career, playing with

Mooncoin Mooncoin () is a census town in County Kilkenny, in Ireland. The population was 1,175 in 2016. Historically part of the Gaelic kingdom of Osraige, today it is in the far south of the county of Kilkenny, located in the valley of the River Suir. I ...

in Kilkenny, St Peter's in Meath and

Borris-in-Ossory Borris-in-Ossory (, or the ' Burgage of Osraige') is a village in west County Laois, Ireland. Bypassed by the M7 motorway on 28 May 2010, the village is situated on the R445 road close to the County Tipperary border between the towns of Mountr ...

in Laois. In retirement from playing O'Keeffe served as a high-ranking referee and was heavily involved in the administration of the GAA. He was chairman of the

Leinster Council The Leinster Council is a provincial council of the Gaelic Athletic Association sports of hurling, Gaelic football, camogie, rounders and handball in the province of Leinster. The Leinster Council has been partnered with the European County ...

, before serving as president of the GAA from 1935 to 1938.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:OKeeffe, Bob 1880 births 1949 deaths All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship winners Alumni of De La Salle Teacher Training College, Waterford Borris-in-Ossory hurlers Chairmen of Gaelic games governing bodies Hurling referees Laois inter-county hurlers Leinster inter-provincial hurlers Leinster Provincial Council administrators Mooncoin hurlers Presidents of the Gaelic Athletic Association St Peters Dunboyne hurlers