Eugene O'Neill

Eugene O'Neill (born 15 February 1978 ) is an Irish former hurler. At club level, he played with Cappawhite and at inter-county level with the Tipperary senior hurling team.

Career

O'Neill first played hurling to a high standard as a secondary school student at Doon CBS. He won a Munster Colleges SBHC medal in 1995, before later scoring four points in Doon's 5-11 to 0-04 defeat of St Patrick's College, Maghera in the All-Ireland final. O'Neill later played with Cork Institute of Technology in the Fitzgibbon Cup.

At club level, O'Neill first played with Cappawhite at juvenile and underage levels. He won several divisional underage titles as a dual player, as well as the Tipperary U21HC title in 1999. By that stage, O'Neill had progressed to adult level with Cappawhite and won three West Tipperary SHC titles between 2000 and 2005.

O'Neill first appeared on the inter-county scene with Tipperary at minor level. He won a Munster MHC medal, as well as being full-forward on the team that won the All-Ireland MHC title in 1996. His subsequent three seasons with the under-21 team ended with a Munster U21HC medal in 1999.

Progression to the senior team was immediate for O'Brien. He was at full-forward when Tipperary were beaten by Clare in the 1997 All-Ireland final, however, he ended his debut season by being named Young Hurler of the Year.

O'Brien claimed a his first senior silverware in 1999 when Tipperary won the National Hurling League title, before adding a second league medal to his collection in 2001. Tipperary made a clean sweep of all the major hurling competitions that season, with O'Brien later winning a Munster SHC before Tipperary beat Galway in the 2001 All-Ireland final.

Honours

Doon CBS All-Ireland Colleges Senior B Hurling Championship: 1995 Munster Colleges Senior B Hurling Championship: 1995

Cappawhite West Tipperary Senior Hurling Championship (3): 2000, 2001, 2005 Tipperary Under-21 Hurling Championship (1): 1999

Tipperary All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship (1): 2001 Munster Senior Hurling Championship (1): 2001 National Hurling League (2): 1999, 2001 Munster Under-21 Hurling Championship (1): 1999 All-Ireland Minor Hurling Championship (1): 1996 Munster Minor Hurling Championship (1): 1996