Bennettsbridge Sr. Hurling Teams of 1960 & 1964

With the week that has passed, seeing Glenmore reach the top table within the ranks of Kilkenny hurling, we find time to reflect on past glories. Most of us remember the great teams of the 80`s and 90`s that really put Glenmore on the hurling map. Five senior county titles, two Leinster titles and the coveted Club All Ireland in 1991. We were the first club in Kilkenny to have teams representing at both Intermediate and Senior level when Glenmore won the Junior title in 1991. Numerous players represented at county level and not to forget the famous 5 of the 1992 All Ireland team; Christy Heffernan, Liam Walsh, Titch Phelan, Eddie and Willie O Connor. Currently we have probably one of the greatest goalkeepers of the modern era, Eoin Murphy, in our ranks as well as his brother Alan representing Kilkenny. Recently retired county player and club captain Ger Aylward is another legend. Paddy and Richie Mullally represented at county levels during the noughities and have All Ireland winning medals also.

 In the lead up to our success of the 1980`s, we had a couple of opportunities to make a mark on the senior title Roll of Honour. In 1960 and 1964, Glenmore reached the senior finals and were beaten both times by a great Bennettsbridge team. Between the years 1952-1974, Bennettsbridge contested 16 county finals, winning 11. The 1960 and 1964 Glenmore hurling teams, that were contenders for the senior county championship, don’t seem to be spoken about today, but the men who represented this Parish sixty years ago deserve recognition for the effort they put into reaching these finals. Glenmore had no trainer and organised their training sessions at the Scow Bridge in Gaulstown. Seamus Dunphy was secretary and would have had an input to picking the teams along with the captain at the time. All household names in their own right. This week we would like to remember these teams by reaching into the archives of the match reports from these years.

1960 Glenmore Senior Hurling

In 1960 Glenmore played St. John’s in the first round and won on a scoreline of 5-12 to 1-04. Second round opponents were Eire OG and Glenmore came out on top with a scoreline of 5-08 to 3-05. Local rivals Slieverue were the semi-final opponents Glenmore played in Nowlan Park.

The members of the Glenmore and Slieverue teams included—

Glenmore—M. Cody; J. McDonald; P. O’Connor; D. Dowling; D. Doherty; P. Fitzgerald; N. Hanrahan; J. Doherty; P. Power; J. O’Shea; W. Fitzgerald; M. Cass; J. Sutton; R. Mullally and M. Barron.

Slieverue—S. Griffin; P. Fitzgerald; T. Phelan; E. Dwyer; M. Walsh; T. Walsh; J. Hartley; P. Buggy; P. Irish; E. Horgan; N. Power; G. Buggy, R. Rocket; W. Irish and J. Walsh.

Richie Mullally played at full forward and scored a hat trick of goals on the day. Paul Fitzgerald played at centre back and was noted to have given an “outstanding display in the Glenmore defence”(KP Aug 5 1960) . Slieverue had Sean Griffin play in goal that day and Sean holds the record for scoring 5 goals in the 1954 county final against Tullaroan. That day the future GAA president Paddy Buggy lined out at midfield for Slieverue. Glenmore came out on top in this semi-final with a scoreline of 4-8 to 4-5.

Scorers on the day for Glenmore were: Richie Mullally 3-00; Martin Cass 1-00; John O’Shea 0-04; Micky Barron 0-03; and John Sutton 0-01. Slieverue scorers included: Gerry Buggy 1-00; Dick Rocket 1-00; J. Walsh 1-00; P. Grant 1-00; E. Horgan 0-02; N. Power 0-02 and Pat Irish 0-01.

The county final in 1960 was played between Bennettsbridge and Glenmore. The members of the final teams included:

Glenmore—M. Cody; J. Mc Donald; P. O’Connor; D. Dowling; R. Doherty; P. Fitzgerald; N. Hanrahan; J. Doherty; W. Fitzgerald; J. O’Shea; J. Sutton; J. Boyle; P. Power; R. Mullally and M. Barron.

Bennettsbridge—L. Cleere; M. Treacy; J. Galway; J. Dobbyn; P. Moran; S. Cleere; J. McGovern; R. Carroll; J. Dowling; M. Kelly; T. Kelly; J. Carroll; F. Ryan; M. McCarthy and S. Treacy.

The final game was reported to be a tame affair (KP Oct 14 1960) and saw Bennettsbridge win 4-05 to Glenmore 3-04. The Bridge seemed to have the upper hand in most positions although Glenmore player’s Paul Fitzgerald and John Sutton held their own.

Scorers for Glenmore in the final were: John Sutton 2-02; R. Mullally 1-00; M. Barron 0-01; D Dowling 0-01. Scorers for Bennettsbridge included: M. Kelly 1-01; F. Ryan 1-00; S. Treacy 1-00; J. Carroll 1-00; D. Carroll 0-02; and S. Cleere 0-02.

1964 Glenmore Senior Hurling

In 1964 Glenmore commenced its championship quest with a meeting against Tullogher and winning 3-11 to 2-06. Second round was against James Stephens and Glenmore won with a score of 3-08 to 1-02. Glenmore in its semi-final played against Thomastown in Nowlan Park. The members of the two hurling teams included:

Glenmore—Paul Fitzgerald; John McDonald; Nicky Forristal; John Dowling; John O Shea; Dick Doherty; John Vereker; Billy Fitzgerald; Pat Power; Sean Fitzgerald; Martin Cass; Pat Dowling; Dick Dowling; John Sutton and Mike Phelan. Subs included: Nicky Hanrahan for Sean Fitzgerald and Mickie Barron for Pat Dowling.

Thomastown–Ollie Walsh; W. Grace; Cha Whelan; J. Gibbons; S. Sullivan; J. Doyle; J. Blanchfield; R. Walsh; P. Kelly; T. Walsh; M. Walsh; S. Challoner; J. Murray; J. Kelly and J. Delaney.

Glenmore were not the favourites to win and according to the Kilkenny Journal caused a surprise when they beat Thomastown. The veterans of Glenmore had a big say in the victory as John Sutton scored 3-04 (3-01 from play) and Paul Fitzgerald in the goal saved and cleared brilliantly. Thomastown goalie Ollie Walsh was brought into attack near the end of the game to try and turn it in Thomastown`s favour. Tom Walsh got great praise for his performance, but Glenmore proved too strong on the day. Final score was Glenmore 4-09  to Thomastown 4-06.

Scorers on the day for Glenmore were: John Sutton 3-04; M. Barron 1-00; Billy Fitzgerald 0-02; Pat Power 0-01; Martin Cass 0-01; Nicky Hanrahan 0-01. Scorers for Thomastown included: Tom Walsh 2-05; J. Delaney 1-00; P. Kelly 1-00 and Ollie Walsh 0-01.

For the county final Glenmore again met Bennettsbridge. The teams were comprised of the following players:

Glenmore—Paul Fitzgerald; John McDonald; Nicky Forristal; John Dowling; John O’Shea; Dick Doherty; John Vereker; Pat Power; Billy Fitzgerald; Nicky Hanrahan; Mike Phelan; Martin Cass; Richie Mullally; John Sutton; John Dowling and Mickie Barron subbed for Nicky Hanrahan.

Bennettsbridge—L. Cleere; M. Treacy; T. Bennett;  J. Treacy; S. Cleere; J. McGovern; P. Moran; T. Kelly; N. Skeehan; R. Carroll; J. Carroll; P. Treacy; M. McCarthy and S. Treacy.

Glenmore got off to a flying start scoring 1-01 within 2 minutes. Glenmore didn`t score for the next 50 minutes, and this allowed the Bridge to settle and pick off their scores. Most prominent of the Glenmore defence were John Dowling and John Vereker who had a very good first half and relieved many dangerous situations. John O’Shea also played well. None of the forwards were very successful, but the keenest triers were John Sutton and Dick Dowling.

The final score was Glenmore 1-04 to Bennettsbridge 4-09.

Scorers in the final for Glenmore included: John Sutton 1-01; Dick Doherty 0-02 and Martin Cass 0-01. Scorers for Bennettsbridge that day included: P. Treacy 2-00; P. Moran 0-06; N. Skeehan 1-00; M. McCarthy 1-00; S. Carroll 0-02 and T. Kelly 0-01.

Glenmore dropped to Junior level in 1966 and remained there until 1980.

Thanks to J. Vereker and D. Dowling for sharing their team photos. It is not known whether the 1960 photo was taken before the semi-final or final game.

If you have any corrections, additional information concerning these two teams or attended any of the games etc. and would like to share your memories please place them below or send them to glenmore.history@gmail.com.

Pat Dowling