Henry Shefflin: Ireland’s Greatest Hurler

There are many greats in the pantheon of the ancient Gaelic game of hurling, one of the most skillful and fastest field team sport in the world. Henry Shefflin of Kilkenny, who retired on March 25, 2015, ranks as one the greatest, if not the greatest, hurler of all time. His achievements over his senior inter-county career from 1999 to 2015 make him unique in the history of the game: a record of ten All-Ireland senior medals, a record eleven All-Star Awards (for the fifteen best hurlers in the country each year), the only person to be named ‘Hurler of the Year’ on three occasions (2002, 2006 and 2012) and the all-time leading scorer in championship hurling (27 goals and 484 points in 71 championship appearances). In 2006, he was nominated as the RTÉ Sports Person of the Year (for all sports). He also won 13 Leinster senior championships and six National League titles with Kilkenny, as well as three Railway Cups with Leinster (inter-provincial). In addition, Henry Shefflin won two Fitzgibbon Cup titles with Waterford Institute of Technology for third-level colleges, as well as six Kilkenny senior championships with his club Ballyhale Shamrocks, four Leinster titles and three All-Ireland titles.

In May 2011, Henry Shefflin was one a small group chosen to meet Queen Elizabeth during her Irish visit and the following week to meet President Barack Obama during his visit. The following month, he was the member of the Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA) chosen to carry the Olympic Torch in their national stadium, Croke Park, on its way to London, which he regarded as one of the biggest highlights of his career. Many thought that Henry would retire in September 2012 after he made history by becoming the first hurler to win nine All-Ireland medals, surpassing two earlier legends with eight All-Ireland medals each, Christy Ring of Cork (1920-1979) and John Doyle of Tipperary (1930-2010). However, he continued in 2013 despite injuries and in 2014 won his tenth All-Ireland title and on March17, 2015, the All-Ireland club championship with Ballyhale Shamrocks. He then decided it was time to depart the scene, going out in a blaze of glory. No one deserved it more.

In September 2015, he published The Autobiography: Henry Shefflin (Penguin). It is a modest, unassuming and honest account of his hurling career, showing that it was not all sun shine. He records his disappointments, terrible injuries and the pain suffered along the way. There were operations, various treatments, physiotherapy, exercises and personal fitness schedules to recover in time for major games. He put himself under enormous pressure to give a big performance in each game because that was the expectation. He was nominated as ‘man of the match’ on numerous occasions. The respectful relationship between himself and the great Kilkenny manager for his entire senior inter-county career, Brian Cody, is described, as well as the frustration that arose towards the end when injuries and advancing years curtailed the usual high performance. There was a lot of sacrifice, pain and demanding training required to create the hurling genius we came to know as ‘King Henry’, a sobriquet he never let affect his preparation, concentration and focus. Long before the end of his career, Henry Shefflin had become a role model for a new generation in his country.

Bernard O'Hara's latest book entitled Killasser: Heritage of a Mayo Parish is now on sale in the USA and UK as a paperback book at amazon.com, amazon.co.uk or Barnes and Noble

It is also available as an eBook from the Apple iBookstore (for reading on iPad and iPhone), from Amazon.com and Amazon.co.uk (Kindle & Kindle Fire) and from Barnesandnoble.com (Nook tablet and eReader).

An earlier publication, a concise biography of Michael Davitt, entitled Davitt by Bernard O’Hara published in 2006 by Mayo County Council , is now available as Davitt: Irish Patriot and Father of the Land League by Bernard O’Hara, which was published in the USA by Tudor Gate Press (www.tudorgatepress.com) and is available from amazon.com and amazon.co.uk. It can be obtained as an eBook from the Apple iBookstore (for reading on iPad and iPhone), from Amazon.com and Amazon.co.uk (Kindle & Kindle Fire) and from Barnesandnoble.com (Nook tablet and eReader).