Seán McLoughlin (born 1935) is an
Irish retired
hurler who played as a left corner-forward for the
Tipperary senior team.
Born in Rahealty,
County Tipperary
County Tipperary () is a Counties of Ireland, county in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Munster and the Southern Region, Ireland, Southern Region. The county is named after the town of Tipperary (tow ...
, McLoughlin first played competitive hurling during his schooling at
Thurles CBS. He arrived on the inter-county scene at the age of sixteen when he first linked up with the Tipperary minor team. He joined the senior panel during the
1958 championship. McLoughlin went on to play a key role for during a hugely successful era for the team, and won four
All-Ireland
All-Ireland (sometimes All-Island) is a term used to describe organisations and events whose interests extend over the entire island of Ireland, as opposed to the separate jurisdictions of the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland. "All-Irelan ...
medals, seven
Munster
Munster ( or ) is the largest of the four provinces of Ireland, located in the south west of the island. In early Ireland, the Kingdom of Munster was one of the kingdoms of Gaelic Ireland ruled by a "king of over-kings" (). Following the Nor ...
medals and two
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 ...
medals. He was an All-Ireland runner-up on three occasions.
As a member of the
Munster
Munster ( or ) is the largest of the four provinces of Ireland, located in the south west of the island. In early Ireland, the Kingdom of Munster was one of the kingdoms of Gaelic Ireland ruled by a "king of over-kings" (). Following the Nor ...
inter-provincial team on a number of occasions, McLoughlin won one
Railway Cup
The GAA Interprovincial Championship () or Railway Cup (''Corn an Iarnróid'') is the name of two annual Gaelic football and hurling competitions held between the provinces of Ireland. The Connacht, Leinster, Munster and Ulster GAA teams are co ...
medal. At club level he is a ten-time
championship
In sport, a championship is a competition in which the aim is to decide which individual or team is the champion.
Championship systems
Various forms of competition can be referred to by the term championship.
Title match system
In this sys ...
medallist with
Thurles Sarsfields.
Throughout his career McLoughlin made 26 championship appearances. His retirement came following the conclusion of the
1969 championship.
Playing career
Inter-county
Senior
=Beginnings
=
McLoughlin joined the Tipperary senior team in 1958, however, he remained a peripheral figure on the team for a number of years.
On 17 July 1960 McLoughglin made his senior championship debut in a 6-9 to 2-7 Munster semi-final defeat of reigning champions
Waterford
Waterford ( ) is a City status in Ireland, city in County Waterford in the South-East Region, Ireland, south-east of Ireland. It is located within the Provinces of Ireland, province of Munster. The city is situated at the head of Waterford H ...
. He later won his first
Munster
Munster ( or ) is the largest of the four provinces of Ireland, located in the south west of the island. In early Ireland, the Kingdom of Munster was one of the kingdoms of Gaelic Ireland ruled by a "king of over-kings" (). Following the Nor ...
medal following a narrow 4-13 to 4-11 defeat of
Cork
"Cork" or "CORK" may refer to:
Materials
* Cork (material), an impermeable buoyant plant product
** Stopper (plug), or "cork", a cylindrical or conical object used to seal a container
*** Wine cork an item to seal or reseal wine
Places Ireland
* ...
in what has been described as the toughest game of hurling ever played. This victory allowed Tipperary to advance directly to an All-Ireland final meeting with
Wexford
Wexford ( ; archaic Yola dialect, Yola: ''Weiseforthe'') is the county town of County Wexford, Republic of Ireland, Ireland. Wexford lies on the south side of Wexford Harbour, the estuary of the River Slaney near the southeastern corner of the ...
on 4 September 1960. A certain amount of over-confidence was obvious in the Tipperary camp, particularly in trainer
Phil Purcell's comment that no player was capable of marking star forward
Jimmy Doyle. The game ended in remarkable circumstances as the crowd invaded the pitch with a minute to go, mistaking the referee's whistle for the end of the game. When the crowd were finally moved off the pitch Tipperary continued playing with only twelve men, but Wexford won on a score line of 2-15 to 0-11. It was McLoughlin's first All-Ireland defeat.
=Total dominance
=
1961 saw McLoughlin add a second Munster medal to his collection, as old rivals Cork were downed by 3-6 to 0-7. The absence of the All-Ireland semi-final allowed Tipperary to advance directly to the final itself, with
Dublin
Dublin is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. Situated on Dublin Bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, and is bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, pa ...
's first native hurling team providing the opposition on 3 September 1961. The game was a close run thing, however, Tipperary held on to win by 0-16 to 1-12. It was McLoughlin's first
All-Ireland
All-Ireland (sometimes All-Island) is a term used to describe organisations and events whose interests extend over the entire island of Ireland, as opposed to the separate jurisdictions of the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland. "All-Irelan ...
medal.
In 1962 Tipperary were still the kingpins of Munster. A 5-14 to 2-3 trouncing of Waterford in the decider gave McLoughlin a third successive Munster medal. Tipperary's nemesis of two years earlier, Wexford, waited in
Croke Park
Croke Park (, ) is a Gaelic games stadium in Dublin, Ireland. Named after Archbishop Thomas Croke, it is referred to as Croker by GAA fans and locals. It serves as both the principal national stadium of Ireland and headquarters of the Gaelic At ...
to test them once again in the subsequent All-Ireland final on 2 September 1962. Wexford, however, were not the force of old and the side got off to possibly the worst start ever by a team in a championship decider. After just ninety seconds the Leinster champions were down by two goals, however, the game turned out to be much closer than people expected. Tipperary eventually secured the win on a score line of 3-10 to 2-11, giving McLoughlin a second All-Ireland medal.
After losing the following year's Munster final to Waterford in one of the hurling shocks of the decade, Tipperary bounced back in 1964. Tipperary later cantered casually past Cork by fourteen points in the provincial decider, giving McLoughlin a fourth Munster medal. The All-Ireland final on 6 September 1964 saw
Kilkenny
Kilkenny ( , meaning 'church of Cainnech of Aghaboe, Cainnech'). is a city in County Kilkenny, Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is located in the South-East Region, Ireland, South-East Region and in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinst ...
enter the game as firm favourites against Tipperary.
John "Mackey" McKenna scored Tipp's first goal after ten minutes as the Munster champions took a 1-8 to 0-6 interval lead. The second half saw Tipperary score goals for fun, with
Donie Nealon getting a hat-trick and McLoughlin another. Kilkenny were humiliated at the full-time whistle as Tipperary triumphed by 5-13 to 2-8. It was McLoughlin's third All-Ireland medal.
In 1965 McLoughlin won a first
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 as
New York
New York most commonly refers to:
* New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States
* New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York
New York may also refer to:
Places United Kingdom
* ...
were narrowly defeated on an aggregate score of 6-19 to 5-20. Tipperary demolished all opposition in the provincial championship once again and a 4-11 to 0-5 trouncing of Cork gave him a fifth Munster medal. Wexford were Tipperary's opponents in the subsequent All-Ireland final on 5 September 1965, however, the game failed to live up to the two classic games between the two sides in 1960 and 1962. Victory went to Tipperary on that occasion by 2-16 to 0-10, courtesy of a brace of goals by McLoughlin. The win gave him a fourth All-Ireland medal.
=Decline
=
After surrendering their provincial crown in 1966, Tipperary bounced back the following year, with McLoughlin winning a seventh Munster medal following a 4-12 to 2-6 defeat of
Clare. 3 September 1967 saw Kilkenny face Tipperary in the All-Ireland decider. Tipperary looked like continuing their hoodoo over their near rivals as they took a 2-6 to 1-3 lead at half-time. Goalkeeper
Ollie Walsh was the hero for Kilkenny as he made a series of spectacular saves, however, the team lost
Eddie Keher and
Tom Walsh to injury in the second half. In spite of this, Kilkenny laid to rest a bogey that Tipperary had over the team since 1922, and a 3-8 to 2-7 victory resulted in defeat for McLoughlin's team.
McLoughlin won a second National League medal in 1968 as New York were defeated on an aggregate score of 6-27 to 4-22. Tipperary retained their status as provincial kingpins once again and a 2-13 to 1-7 trouncing of Cork gave McLoughlin a seventh Munster medal. For the fourth time of the decade, Wexford were Tipperary's opponents in the subsequent All-Ireland final on 1 September 1968. At half-time it looked as if Tipperary were cruising to another victory as they took an eight-point lead. Just after the restart Wexford had a
Christy Jacob goal disallowed before
Tony Doran scored a goal after just six minutes. Tipperary fought back, however, it was too late as Wexford won by 5-8 to 3-12.
On 27 July 1969 McLoughlin played his last game for Tipperary in a 4-6 to 0-9 Munster final defeat by Cork.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:McLoughlin, Sean
1935 births
Living people
Rahealty hurlers
Thurles Sarsfields hurlers
Tipperary inter-county hurlers
Munster inter-provincial hurlers
All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship winners
20th-century Irish sportsmen