Tony Hanahoe

Tony Hanahoe

Personal information
Irish name	Antóin Ó hEanchaí
Sport	Gaelic football
Position	Centre-forward
Born	(1945-04-29) 29 April 1945 Clontarf, County Dublin
Occupation	Solicitor
Club(s)
Years	Club
1960s-1980s	St. Vincent's
Club titles
Dublin titles	11
Leinster titles	3
All-Ireland Titles	1
Inter-county(ies)
Years	County
1964-1979	Dublin
Inter-county titles
Leinster titles	6
All-Irelands	3
NFL	2
All Stars	1

Tony Hanahoe (born 29 April 1945 in Clontarf, County Dublin) is a former Irish Gaelic football manager and former player. He played football with his local club St. Vincent's and was a member of the Dublin senior inter-county team from 1964 until 1979. Hanahoe captained Dublin to the All-Ireland titles in 1976 and 1977. He was also manager for the latter win.

Biography

Hanahoe was born in Clontarf, Dublin in 1945. He was educated locally by the Christian Brothers at Scoil Mhuire in Marino and later at St. Joseph’s, affectionately known as ‘Joey’s’, in Fairview. There was no sporting tradition in Hanahoe’s family, however, it was at these schools that his interest at Gaelic games was developed. Hanahoe later attended Trinity College, Dublin where he qualified with a degree in law. He subsequently worked as a solicitor and has worked with victims of the Stardust disaster

Football career

Club

Hanahoe played his club hurling and club football with the famous St. Vincent's club in Dublin. With the club he won eleven Dublin SFC titles in 1964, 1966, 1967, 1970, 1971, 1972, 1975, 1976, 1977, 1981 and 1984. One of these wins was converted into an All-Ireland title in 1976. Hanahoe also won Dublin SHC titles with the club in 1964, 1967 and 1975.

Inter-county

Hanahoe played both minor hurling and football with Dublin in the early 1960s. He played in the Leinster minor final of 1963, however, his side were defeated by Westmeath. Later that same year Hanahoe got trials with the senior team in both sports. He subsequently secured a spot on Dublin’s senior football team and made his debut in 1964. In 1965 Hanahoe the left the Dublin team and put his sporting career on hold. He returned in 1970 when Kevin Heffernan was manager of the side. By this stage Dublin’s football fortunes were at an all-time low. This low ebb culminated in a defeat by Kildare in the 1972 Leinster final. Hanahoe was captain that day and it was feared at the time that all the players would be sacked along with the management team.

Hanahoe played no part in the 1973 championship but he returned in 1974 and Kevin Heffernan was appointed manager once again. That year Hanahoe claimed his first Leinster title before later going on to beat Galway to claim his first All-Ireland medal. In 1975 Dublin retained their provincial title with Hanahoe playing a key role in the full-forward line. His side, however, were later defeated by an up-and-coming Kerry side. In 1976 Hanahoe was appointed captain of Dublin. Under his leadership Dublin captured another Leinster title before gaining revenge over Kerry for the previous year’s defeat. It was Dublin’s nineteenth All-Ireland title and it was Hanahoe’s second. Hanahoe also became one of only seven men to have been presented the Sam Maguire Cup twice as captain. His performance in the championship earned him his sole All-Star award.

Following the conclusion of the 1976 championship Kevin Heffernan unexpectedly stepped down as Dublin manager. Hanahoe was somewhat pushed into accepting the vacant position. He now had the unenviable task of being captain of the side as well as the manager. In spite of this pressure he captured another Leinster title in 1977. He later led Dublin to victory iagainst Kerry before later claiming his third All-Ireland medal following an emphatic victory over Armagh.

In 1978 Hanahoe retained his dual role as captain and manager. He captured his fifth Leinster title in-a-row before leading Dublin into their fifth All-Ireland final in-a-row. Dublin were the red hot favourites to complete the three-in-a-row, however, Kerry were back on form. The game itself is remembered for Mikey Sheehy’s cheeky goal which he scored by lobbing the ball over the head of Paddy Cullen. It was an emphatic victory for Kerry on a score line of 5-11 to 0-9. In 1979 Heffernan returned as manager, however, Hanahoe retained the captaincy of the team. He captured his sixth Leinster title which allowed Dublin to advance to their sixth All-Ireland final appearanace in-a-row. Once again Hanahoe's side faced Kerry. Dublin were outplayed in the final once again and Hanahoe ended up on the losing side. This defeat brought an end to the great Dublin team of the 1970s. Hanahoe retired from inter-county football shortly after.

References

• Humphries, T. (2006). Dublin V Kerry. Penguin Ireland. ISBN 1-84488-085-0.