Tony Kelly (hurler)

Tony Kelly (born 15 December 1993) is an Irish hurler who plays for Clare Senior Championship club Ballyea and at inter-county level with the Clare county hurling team. He is the youngest hurler to ever win 'Hurler of the year' during 2013 at age 19, when he also won 'Young hurler of the year' and the all Ireland senior hurling championship.

Tony Kelly
Personal information
Irish name Antaine Ó Ceallaigh
Sport Hurling
Position Midfield/Centre Forward
Born (1993-12-15) 15 December 1993
Ballyea, County Clare, Ireland
Height 1.82 m (6 ft 0 in)
Nickname TK
Club(s)
Years Club
 Ballyea
Clondegad
Club titles
Clare titles 4
Munster titles 1
All-Ireland Titles 1
Colleges(s)
Years College
2012-2018
 University of Limerick
College titles
Fitzgibbon titles 2
Inter-county(ies)*
Years County Apps (scores)
2012-present
 Clare 55 (14-309)
Inter-county titles
Munster titles 0
All-Irelands 1
NHL 1
All Stars 4
*Inter County team apps and scores correct as of 23:20, 24 June 2021.

Early life

Kelly attended St Flannan's College in Ennis for his secondary education and as of 2021 works in the school as a teacher as well as coaching the senior hurling team.[1]

Playing career

Minor and under-21

Kelly first came to prominence on the inter-county scene as a member of the Clare minor team in 2010. He won his first Munster medal that year following a 1-16 to 1-11 defeat of Waterford.[2] Clare subsequently qualified for the All-Ireland decider against Kilkenny, however, Kelly's side faced a narrow 2-10 to 0-14 defeat.[3]

In 2011 Kelly was appointed captain of the Clare minor team. He won a second consecutive Munster medal that year following a 1-20 to 3-9 defeat of Waterford once again.[4] The subsequent All-Ireland semi final saw Clare defeated by Galway after extra time.

Kelly also became a member of the Clare under-21 team in 2011, however they were defeated in the Munster Semi-final by Limerick on a scoreline of 2-19 to 1-15 despite a contribution of 3 points from play from Tony Kelly. This remains Kelly's only defeat in the Munster Minor and Under-21 Championships. Kelly won his first Munster medal in that grade as Clare defeated Tipperary by 1-16 to 1-14 in the 2012 Munster Final in Cusack Park in Ennis.[5] After trailing at half-time, Clare outscored Kilkenny by 1-10 to 0-4 in the second period of play to secure a 2-17 to 2-11 victory in the All-Ireland final of the same year.[6] It was Kelly's first All-Ireland medal in the grade.

Clare dominated the under-21 series once again in 2013. A 1-17 to 2-10 defeat of Tipperary in the provincial decider gave Kelly a second Munster medal.[7] The subsequent All-Ireland saw Clare face first-time finalists Antrim. In a complete mismatch, Clare powered to a 2-28 to 0-12 victory, with Kelly collecting a second consecutive All-Ireland medal.[8]

Senior

Kelly made his senior championship debut at left wing-forward and scoring 1-2 in a 1-16 to 0-16 defeat of Dublin on 7 July 2012.[9]

On 8 September 2013 Kelly lined out against Cork in his first All-Ireland final. Three second-half goals through Conor Lehane, Anthony Nash and Pa Cronin, and a tenth point of the game from Patrick Horgan gave Cork a one-point lead as injury time came to an end. A last-gasp point from corner-back Domhnall O'Donovan earned Clare a 0-25 to 3-16 draw.[10] The replay on 28 September was regarded as one of the best in recent years. Clare's Shane O'Donnell was a late addition to the team, and went on to score a hat-trick of goals in the first nineteen minutes of the game. Horgan top scored for Cork, however, further goals from Conor McGrath and Darach Honan secured a 5-16 to 3-16 victory for Clare.[11] It was Kelly's first All-Ireland medal. He rounded off the season by collecting his first All-Star award, while also becoming the only player in the history of the scheme to have won the Hurler and Young Hurler of the Year awards in the same year.[12][13]

In June 2014, Kelly featured in the Sky Sports television advert to promote their new broadcasting deal with the GAA.[14]

On 8 May 2016, Clare won the 2016 National Hurling League, their first National Hurling League title since 1978 after a 1-23 to 2-19 win against Waterford in a replay. Kelly scored 1-6 in the game, including two late points to win the game.[15]

On 25 October 2020, Kelly scored 17 points in the first game of the delayed Munster Championship against Limerick, in a game that Clare lost 1-23 to 0-36.[16] On 7 November 2020, he scored 0-13 against Laois in round 1 of the qualifiers, and a week later scored 1-15 against Wexford in round 2. [17]

Career statistics
As of match played 24 June 2023
Team Year National League Munster All-Ireland Total
DivisionAppsScoreAppsScoreAppsScoreAppsScore
Clare 2012 Division 1B 00-0000-0022-0422-04
2013 Division 1A 62-1920-0560-17142-41
2014 70-2110-0120-07100-29
2015 41-2410-0220-1371-39
2016 Division 1B 31-1110-0130-2671-38
2017 Division 1A 31-1620-1010-0661-32
2018 50-1451-1730-09131-40
2019 50-1441-11—91-25
2020 60-6810-1731-36101-121
2021 Division 1B 42-3922-2121-2085-80
2022 Division 1A 3 3-32 4 1-46 2 0-08 9 4-86
2023 3 1-02 5 2-28 1 3-04 9 6-34
Total 4911-260287-159277-15010425-569

Honours

Team

University of Limerick

Clondegad

  • Clare Under-21 A Football Championship (1) : 2012
  • Clare Intermediate Football Championship (1) : 2011
  • Clare Minor B Football Championship (1) : 2009

Ballyea

Clare

Individual

Awards

References
  1. "Tony Kelly aspiring to lead through actions not words". Clare Echo. 23 October 2020. Retrieved 10 November 2021.
  2. Cahill, Jackie (12 July 2010). "Another Clare boost as 21-year wait ends". Irish Examiner. Retrieved 9 November 2013.
  3. O'Toole, Fintan (6 September 2010). "Kilkenny pushed to the limit". Irish Examiner. Retrieved 9 November 2013.
  4. O'Toole, Fintan (11 July 2011). "Banner flies high once again". Irish Examiner. Retrieved 9 November 2013.
  5. O'Flynn, Diarmuid (9 August 2012). "Bannermen celebrate redemption". Irish Examiner. Retrieved 9 November 2013.
  6. O'Flynn, Diarmuid (17 September 2012). "Dynamic duo drive Clare to glory". Irish Examiner. Retrieved 9 November 2013.
  7. O'Flynn, Diarmuid (8 August 2013). "Banner's rise irresistible". Irish Examiner. Retrieved 9 November 2013.
  8. O'Riordan, Ian (14 September 2013). "Clare win pulling up to take third title in five years". Irish Times. Retrieved 9 November 2013.
  9. Crowe, Dermot (8 July 2012). "Dublin defeat leaves Daly future in doubt". Irish Independent. Retrieved 9 November 2013.
  10. O'Flynn, Diarmuid (9 September 2013). "An emotional, riveting roller-coaster". Irish Examiner. Retrieved 22 September 2013.
  11. O'Flynn, Diarmuid (30 September 2013). "A day borrowed from the hurling gods". Irish Examiner. Retrieved 1 October 2013.
  12. O'Rourke, Steven (8 November 2013). "Tony Kelly wins Hurler and Young Hurler of the Year awards". The Score website. Archived from the original on 9 November 2013. Retrieved 9 November 2013.
  13. "MDMA and Tony Kelly scoop top gongs at GAA GPA All Star Awards". Irish Independent. 8 November 2013. Retrieved 18 November 2013.
  14. "Tony Kelly spent 10 hours soloing in front of the cameras for Sky Sports GAA ad". The Score. 28 May 2014. Archived from the original on 18 June 2014. Retrieved 18 June 2014.
  15. "Clare take long-awaited Div 1 title in controversial circumstances against Waterford". Irish Examiner. 8 May 2016. Retrieved 9 May 2016.
  16. "'He's a once-in-a-generation kind of player' - Kelly's brilliance lights up opening day in Munster". The 42. 25 October 2020. Retrieved 27 October 2020.
  17. "Clare seeing fruits of Tony Kelly's summer travails, says Patrick O'Connor". RTE Sport. 17 October 2020. Retrieved 20 October 2020.
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