Paddy O'Donovan

Infobox GAA player
code= Hurling
sport = Hurling


name = Paddy O'Donovan
irish = Páidí Ó Donnabháin
fullname = Paddy O'Donovan
placeofbirth = Cork
countryofbirth = Ireland
dyear=
dday=
dmonth=
height =
nickname =
county = Cork
province = Munster
club = Glen Rovers
clposition = Half-back
clubs =
clyears =
clapps(points) =
clcounty =
clprovince=
clallireland =
counties = Cork
icposition = Half-back
icyears = 1939-1949
icapps(points) =
icprovince = 6
icallireland = 5
allstars =
clupdate =
icupdate =

Paddy O'Donovan was an Irish sportsperson. He played hurling with his local club Glen Rovers and was a member of the Cork senior inter-county team in the 1930s and 1940s.

Playing career

Club

O'Donovan played his club hurling with the famous Glen Rovers club in the Blackpool area of Cork city. He first came to prominence with the club as a member of the team that won an unprecedented eight county titles in-a-row between 1934 and 1941. O'Donovan won further county honours in 1944, 1945, 1948, 1949 and 1950.

Inter-county

O'Donovan first tasted success with the Cork senior hurling team in the late 1930s. In 1939 he won his first Munster title following a defeat of Limerick. However, Kilkenny later accounted for Cork in the famous "thunder and lightning" All-Ireland final. Two years later the 1941 championship was severely hampered due to an outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease. Cork only had to play two games to be crowned All-Ireland hurling champions, however, they lost the delayed Munster hurling final to Tipperary. O'Donovan came on as a substitute to claim his first All-Ireland medal.

In 1942 O'Donovan captured his second set of Munster and All-Ireland medals. 1943 proved to be another successful year for him as he won a third Munster medal as well as a third All-Ireland medal. In 1944 O'Donovan captured his fourth Munster hurling title. Later that year Cork created a piece of sporting history by becoming the only team to win four All-Ireland hurling titles in-a-row. O'Donovan was one of the heroes of the team who played in all four finals.

In 1945 Cork surrendered their provincial hurling crown, however, the hurlers returned in 1946 and O'Donovan claimed a fifth provincial hurling title. A fifth All-Ireland hurling medal was later added to his collection following a defeat of old rivals Kilkenny in the final. O'Donovan captured a sixth Munster hurling medal in 1947 before going on to play in his seventh All-Ireland hurling final in less than a decade. The game itself against Kilkenny has often been described as the greatest All-Ireland final ever played, however, O'Donovan ended up on the losing side by a single point. There was some consolation at the start of 1948 as O'Donovan claimed a National Hurling League medal. O'Donovan had retired from inter-county hurling by the start of the 1950s.

Provincial

O'Donovan also won Railway Cup medals with Munster in 1945 and 1949.

Teams