Stephen O'Keeffe (born 29 April 1991) is an Irish hurler who plays for Waterford Senior Championship club

Ballygunner Ballygunner (), is a civil parish in County Waterford, Ireland. It lies on the southern outskirts of Waterford city. The placename is derived, in part, from the Old Norse masculine personal name ''Gunnarr''. Ballygunner contains several townl ...

and formerly at inter-county level with the

Waterford county hurling team The Waterford county hurling team represents County Waterford, Waterford in hurling and is governed by Waterford GAA, the County board (Gaelic games), county board of the Gaelic Athletic Association. The team competes in the three major annual ...

. 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 ( ) 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 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. O'Keeffe retained his position in goal when De La Salle faced Kilkenny CBS in the All-Ireland final 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; ) was an Institutes of technology in the Republic of Ireland, institute of technology, located in Waterford, Ireland. The institute had six constituent schools and offered programmes in business, engi ...

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; ) was an Institutes of technology in the Republic of Ireland, institute of technology, located in Cork (city), Cork, Ireland. Upon its dissolution, the institute had 17,000 students studying in art, business, ...

by 0-17 to 0-12 to win the

Fitzgibbon Cup The Fitzgibbon Cup () 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 by Comhairle Ard Oideac ...

Ballygunner

Minor

O'Keeffe joined the

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 sometimes spelt Cappaquin, is a town in western County Waterford, Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is on the Munster Blackwater, Blackwater river at the junction of the N72 road (Ireland), N72 national secondary road and the R ...

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 Stone ...

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, Republic of Ireland, Ireland located west of Charleville, County Cork, Charleville on the R515 road (Ireland), R515 road. The name translates from Irish to mean 'new town of the old ridge'. ...

in the

Munster final 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 ...

. 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 rendered form of beef or mutton suet, primarily made up of triglycerides. In industry, tallow is not strictly defined as beef or mutton suet. In this context, tallow is animal fat that conforms to certain technical criteria, inc ...

. Four final appearances in succession proved beyond Ballygunner, however, the club reached a fourth

final Final, Finals or The Final may refer to: *Final examination or finals, a test given at the end of a course of study or training *Final (competition), the last or championship round of a sporting competition, match, game, or other contest which d ...

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. 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

. He later lined out in a second

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 Hurling and Football Club is a Gaelic Athletic Association club in Fair Hill, Cork, Ireland. The club is affiliated to the Seandún Board and fields teams in both hurling and Gaelic football. History Located in the Fair Hill area ...

. 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

, 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 Abbeyside () is a townland in Dungarvan in County Waterford, Ireland. It lies on the east bank of the Colligan River. History MacGrath's Castle was a notable landmark in Abbeyside, overlooking Dungarvan Harbour, until it collapsed in January ...

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. 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

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 ** 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 * ...

. O'Keeffe was also eligible for the minor grade in

2009 2009 was designated as the International Year of Astronomy by the United Nations to coincide with the 400th anniversary of Galileo Galilei's first known astronomical studies with a telescope and the publication of Astronomia Nova by Joha ...

. He was in goal when Waterford qualified for a

-meeting with Tipperary on 12 July 2009. He collected a Munster Championship 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. 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 Clare may refer to: Places Antarctica * Clare Range, a mountain range in Victoria Land Australia * Clare, South Australia, a town in the Clare Valley * Clare Valley, South Australia Canada * Clare (electoral district), an electoral district * Cl ...

in the Munster Championship.

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 ( ; 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 ...

. O'Keeffe later served as sub-goalkeeper to Clinton Hennessy during the 2011 Munster Championship. On 17 June 2012, O'Keeffe made his Munster Championship 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

. On 3 May 2015, O'Keeffe won a

National League National League often refers to: *National League (baseball), one of the two baseball leagues constituting Major League Baseball in the United States and Canada *National League (division), the fifth division of the English football (soccer) system ...

medal following Waterford's 1-24 to 0-17 defeat of Cork in the

. On 12 July 2015, he was also in goal when Waterford were beaten for the fourth time in six seasons by Tipperary in the

. 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

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 ( ; , ) is a City status in Ireland, city in (and the county town of) County Galway. It lies on the River Corrib between Lough Corrib and Galway Bay. It is the most populous settlement in the province of Connacht, the List of settleme ...

. 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 ( ; ) is a city in western Ireland, in County Limerick. It is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Munster and is in the Mid-West Region, Ireland, Mid-West which comprises part of the Southern Region, Ireland, Southern Region. W ...

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 (2): 2007, 2008 * Harty Cup (2): 2007, 2008 ;Waterford Institute of Technology *

(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 GAA, Munster Council of the Gaelic Athletic Associatio ...

(1):

2018 Events January * January 1 – Bulgaria takes over the Presidency of the Council of the European Union, after the Estonian presidency. * January 4 – SPLM-IO rebels loyal to Chan Garang Lual start a raid against Juba, capital of ...

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 18 ...

(9):

2011 The year marked the start of a Arab Spring, series of protests and revolutions throughout the Arab world advocating for democracy, reform, and economic recovery, later leading to the depositions of world leaders in Tunisia, Egypt, and Yemen ...

2014 The year 2014 was marked by the surge of the Western African Ebola epidemic, West African Ebola epidemic, which began in 2013, becoming the List of Ebola outbreaks, most widespread outbreak of the Ebola, Ebola virus in human history, resul ...

2015 2015 was designated by the United Nations as: * International Year of Light * International Year of Soil __TOC__ Events January * January 1 – Lithuania officially adopts the euro as its currency, replacing the litas, and becomes ...

2016 2016 was designated as: * International Year of Pulses by the sixty-eighth session of the United Nations General Assembly. * International Year of Global Understanding (IYGU) by the International Council for Science (ICSU), the Internationa ...

2017 2017 was designated as the International Year of Sustainable Tourism for Development by the United Nations General Assembly. Events January * January 1 – Istanbul nightclub shooting: A gunman dressed as Santa Claus opens fire at the ...

2019 This was the year in which the first known human case of COVID-19 was documented, preceding COVID-19 pandemic, the pandemic which was declared by the World Health Organization the following year. Up to that point, 2019 had been described as ...

2020 The year 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 even ...

;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):

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, inter-county hurling competition organised by the Munster GAA, Munster Council of ...

(1):

;Awards *

All-Stars An all-star team is a group of people all having a high level of performance in their field. Originating in sports, it has since drifted into vernacular and has been borrowed heavily by the entertainment industry. Sports "All-star" as a sport ...

(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 21st-century Irish sportsmen