Pa Dillon

Infobox GAA player
code= Hurling
sport = Hurling


name = Pa Dillon
irish = Pádraig Ó Duilleáin
fullname = Pa Dillon
placeofbirth = Freshford
countryofbirth = County Kilkenny
dob =
dob =
height =
nickname =
county = Kilkenny
province = Leinster
club = St. Lachtain's
clposition = Full-back
clubs =
clyears =
clapps(points) =
clcounty =
clprovince=
clallireland =
counties = Kilkenny
icposition = Full-back
icyears = 1964-1972
icapps(points) =
icprovince = 6
icallireland = 3
allstars =
clupdate =
icupdate =

Pa Dillon (born 1938) was an Irish sportsperson. He played hurling with his local club St. Lachtain's and with the Kilkenny senior inter-county team from 1964 until 1972. He is regarded as one of Kilkenny's greatest-ever players.Fact|date=April 2008

Early life

Pa Dillon was born in Freshford, County Kilkenny in 1938. He was educated locally and later worked as a farmer. From an early age Dillon showed great interest in the game of hurling. His first success on the field of play came when the Freshford under-14 team, of which he was a member, won the 'B' county final of 1951 and the under-14 county final the following year. Dillon also won an under-16 county title in 1954.

Playing career

Club

Dillon first made a name for himself as a member of the Freshford team that contested three minor county finals in-a-row between 1954 and 1956, with success only coming in 1955. He later played on the team that won the junior county championship in 1959. Shortly after this the St. Lachtain's club was formed and played in the senior championship. In 1961 Dillon led the newly-formed club to their first senior county title. He captured a second county title two years later in 1963.

Inter-county

By the mid-1950s Dillon had come to the attention of the Kilkenny minor hurling selectors. He won back-to-back Leinster titles at this level in 1955 and 1956, however, an All-Ireland medal at this level eluded him. Dillon later joined the county's senior team, making his senior debut in a tournament game against Waterford in 1960. It would be 1964, however, before he became the regular full-back on the team. That year Dillon won his first senior Leinster medal, however, Kilkenny were beaten by Tipperary in the subsequent All-Ireland final. Two years later in 1966 he added a National Hurling League medal to his collection. He later collected a second Leinster title, however, Cork were victorious over Kilkenny in Dillon's second All-Ireland final appearance.

In 1967 Kilkenny bounced back and Dillon won a third provincial title. He subsequently collected his first All-Ireland medal, following 'the Cats' first victory over Tipperary since 1922. Two years later in 1969 Dillon played a key role as Kilkenny regained their provincial crown from Wexford. He later went on the win a second All-Ireland medal as his side defeated Cork in the championship decider. 1971 saw Dillon win a fifth Leinster title, however, in spite of an excellent scoring display by Eddie Keher in the All-Ireland final, victory went to Tipperary. In 1972 he won a his sixth and final Leinster title. Once again Kilkenny played Cork in the All-Ireland final, with victory going to Dillon's side. He retired from inter-county hurling following this win.

Teams

External links

* [http://64.233.183.104/search?q=cache:LFu_mVIdzUAJ:kilkenny.gaa.ie/pa.htm+pa+dillon+kilkenny&hl=en&ct=clnk&cd=1&gl=ie Profile of Pa Dillon]