John Doyle was an Irish sportsperson and politician, hailed as one of the best defenders in hurling[3] and his county's most iconic player upon his death died he was , 80. He played hurling with his local Holycross-Ballycahill club from the 1940s until the 1970s and was a member of the Tipperary senior inter-county team from 1949 until 1967. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest hurlers in the history of the game[5] and is one of only a handful of players to have won All-Ireland medals in three separate decades.Doyle’s status as one of the all-time greats is self-evident. His haul of eight senior All-Ireland medals is a record which he jointly holds with Christy Ring.[5] Doyle was also the first hurler to win ten Munster Championship titles, a record which was later equalled by Jimmy Barry-Murphy. His tally of 11[5] National Hurling League medals is a record which has never been equalled. Doyle held the record for most Championship appearances (54) by a Tipperary player until overtaken by Brendan Cummins in 2009.[1]
Doyle has also been the recipient of many awards and honours off the field. In 1964 his hurling prowess earned him the prestigious Texaco Hurler of the Year award. He was later honoured in 1984 when he was named, by popular opinion, in the left corner-back position on the GAA Hurling Team of the Century. He was named in the right corner-back position on the GAA Hurling Team of the Millennium in 1999. In 2009 he was named in the Sunday Tribune's list of the 125 Most Influential People In GAA History.[5]
(12 February 1930 – 29 December 2010)
Early life
John Doyle was born in Holycross, County Tipperary in 1930.[5] An only child, whose mother died six weeks after his birth, he was raised by his father on the family farm. Doyle was educated at the local St. Michael's national school in Holycross, and later attended Thurles CBS. From an early age he showed a great interest in hurling, and it was in secondary school that his skills were further developed and nurtured by the Christian Brothers.Doyle's style
Possessed of a strong physique and a long stride, Doyle was famed for his dependable close defensive play, marked by his ability to execute long clearances from very tight entanglements in his corner-back position. His tussles with such illustrious Munster forwards as Paddy Barry (Cork) and Jimmy Smyth (Clare) have gained legendary status with the passing years. He holds a unique record in that he was never substituted in 19 years of inter-county championship and national league hurling, ample proof of his renowned durability.Individually, his mastery of the shoulder-to-shoulder charge, allied to an above average number of deliveries out of defence marked him apart. Collectively, with fellow inner-defenders, Michael Maher (Holycross) and Kieran Carey (Roscrea), he completed a very formidable trio as Tipperary's last line of defence for a ten year period from the late 1950s. Their marshalling territory in front of goal was famously known as "Hell's Kitchen" because of the often tempestuous nature of the exchanges which greeted the dropping ball arriving from mid-field. Their engagements with Cork in the Munster Championship and Kilkenny and Wexford in the All-Ireland series were among the most thrilling episodes of hurling play in the mid-century. They were past masters at 'holding-off' the forwards, which was a legal ploy designed to afford protection to the goalkeeper, thus allowing him ample time and space to 'catch and clear'. This was an integral and important part of their defensive strategy which paid rich dividends through many campaigns. This was a period when goalkeepers were legitimate targets for in-rushing forwards who were then allowed to charge the custodian with impunity, not a welcoming prospect for most goalkeepers intent on keeping an eye on a fast approaching sliothar. However, a succession of Tipperary goalkeepers enjoyed maximum protection from the 'Kitchen' staff who repelled all invaders, employing ample strength and muscle as the occasion required. Doyle considered Ned Wheeler (Wexford) and Eddie Keher (Kilkenny) his strongest opponents and is quoted as saying that tackling Wheeler was like colliding with a tree.
Playing career
Club
Doyle played hurling with his local Holycross-Ballycahill club. Although not regarded as one of the most successful clubs in the Tipperary SHC, Doyle still had much success with the side. In 1948 he won his first county title with the club. Incidentally it was also the club’s very first county title. Two more followed for Doyle in 1951 and 1954.Inter-county
In 1946 Doyle played his first matches at minor level for Tipperary. That year his side reached the All-Ireland final, however, they were beaten by Dublin. The following year he was back again with the Tipp minors who this time comfortably defeated Galway to win the All-Ireland. It was these performances that brought Doyle to the attention of the senior selectors, and he was quickly slotted in to the senior team.Doyle made his senior debut in 1949 at the beginning of a glorious era for Tipperary hurling. That year he won his first Munster title before having a huge victory over Laois to claim his first All-Ireland medal. In 1950 Doyle began the year by winning the first of a record ten National Hurling League titles with Tipp. He later won his second provincial title before converting it into his second All-Ireland medal following a 1-point win over Kilkenny. In 1951 Doyle captured his third Munster title in-a-row. Once again this was converted into his third All-Ireland medal in-a-row, following a huge victory over Wexford.
1952 began well for Doyle when he won his second National League medal. Later in the Munster semi-final Tipp secured their 15th consecutive championship win, a record which still stands today. It looked as if Doyle’s side would cruise to further Munster and All-Ireland titles, however, Cork put a stop to this with a victory in the Munster final. The next few years proved frustrating for Tipperary in the Munster championship, however, Doyle added to his National League medal tally in 1954, 1955 and 1957.
In 1958 Tipperary had bounced back and Doyle collected his fourth Munster medal. Once again this was converted into a fourth All-Ireland medal following a huge win over Galway in the final. In the meantime Tipperary captured two more National League titles in 1959 and 1960. It would be 1960 before Tipp wrested back their Munster crown from Waterford with Doyle capturing his fifth provincial title. In the final Tipp faced Wexford, thus beginning a great rivalry between the two counties that would last for the entire 1960s. Unfortunately Doyle ended up on the losing side in that final. In 1961 it was National League medal number eight and Munster medal number six for Doyle. In the All-Ireland final Tipp faced Dublin, however, in spite of being red-hot favourites, Doyle’s side were lucky to clinch victory by a single point bringing his All-Ireland medal tally up to five.
In 1962 Tipp were still the kingpins of Munster hurling with Doyle capturing a seventh provincial medal at corner-back. In the subsequent All-Ireland final the second instalment of the Tipperary-Wexford rivalry resulted in a win for Tipp and a sixth All-Ireland medal for Doyle. Two years later in 1964 Tipperary were once again invincible to all attack. In the National League Doyle claimed his ninth title and in Munster Doyle captured his eighth medal. In the All-Ireland final Kilkenny were the favourites to retain the title, however, Tipperary completely swept them off the field and won by 14-points. It was Doyle’s seventh All-Ireland medal and he was quickly closing in on Christy Ring’s record of eight All-Ireland medals.
In 1965 the year began well when Doyle captured his tenth and final National League medal. He subsequently captured his ninth Munster title. In the All-Ireland final Wexford were once again waiting for Tipp, however, victory went to Doyle’s side and he captured a record-equalling eighth All-Ireland medal. Two years later in 1967 the chance for Doyle to capture an unprecedented ninth All-Ireland medal presented itself. Tipp breezed through the Munster championship with Doyle capturing his tenth and final medal. In the All-Ireland final Tipp’s opponents were Kilkenny. The omens were good as Kilkenny hadn’t beaten Tipperary in the championship since 1922. On the day, however, Kilkenny were the stronger side and Doyle was denied his ninth medal. Time had finally caught up with him, so he retired from inter-county hurling following this defeat.
Although Doyle holds the same number of All-Ireland medals as Christy Ring, he still regards the Cork man as the greatest hurler of all-time. He has admitted, to his own great credit, that it was his team-mates who won the eight medals for him but it was Ring who won the eight medals for his team-mates.
As well as his All-Ireland and National League victories Doyle also won five Railway Cup medals, six Oireachtas medals and two Cu Chulainn awards in 1963 and 1964.
Sporting retirement
In retirement from inter-county hurling Doyle continued to work on his farm in Holycross. His status as one of the greatest players of all-time was further enhanced in 1984 and again in 2000 when he was named on the Gaelic Athletic Association’s Hurling Team of the Century and the Hurling Team of the Millennium.Political career
In later years he entered politics. He stood unsuccessfully as a Fianna Fáil candidate at the 1969 general election for the Tipperary North constituency, but was subsequently elected to Seanad Éireann on the Agricultural Panel. He served until 1973 when he lost his seat.[6][7]Death
Doyle died on 28 December 2010 at the age of 80. He is survived by his wife Anne, seven children and fifteen grandchildren [8] [9] Taoiseach Brian Cowen was among those who paid tribute saying "He was an immense hurler and an incredibly decent man, his love of the GAA was matched by his concern for his country and his own community, he was a Tipperary legend and a proud Irishman".[10] Doyle was buried at Holy Cross Abbey outside Thurles on 31 December 2010.[11]Honours
Tipperary
Player
- All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship:
- Winner (8): 1949, 1950, 1951, 1958, 1961, 1962, 1964, 1965
- Munster Senior Hurling Championship:
- Winner (10): 1949, 1950, 1951, 1958, 1960, 1961, 1962, 1964, 1965, 1967
- National Hurling League:
- Winner (11): 1949, 1950, 1952, 1954, 1955, 1957, 1959, 1960, 1961, 1964, 1965
- All-Ireland Minor Hurling Championship:
- Winner (1): 1947
- Munster Minor Hurling Championship:
- Winner (2): 1946, 1947
Munster
- Railway Cup:
- Winner (8): 1951, 1952, 1953, 1955, 1960, 1961, 1963, 1966
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