Luke Meade

Luke Meade (born 29 October 1996) is an Irish hurler. At club level he plays with Newcestown and at inter-county level with the Cork senior hurling team. He usually lines out as a midfielder.

Early life

Born and raised in Newcestown, County Cork, Meade played hurling with the school team at Hamilton High School in Bandon. He progressed through the various age grades and was part of the school's senior team that beat Midleton CBS to win the Dr O'Callaghan Cup title in 2014. He also played numerous games for the school in the Harty Cup.

Meade later studied at Mary Immaculate College in Limerick and was added to their Fitzgibbon Cup panel in 2016. His debut season ended with a winners' medal after a 3–24 to 1–19 defeat of the Institute of Technology, Carlow in the final. Meade was also part of the Mary I team beaten by University College Cork in the 2019 final.

Club career

Meade began his club career at juvenile and underage levels with the Newcestown club. He was part of the club's under-21 team that claimed three successive West Cork U21AHC titles between 2013 and 2015.

By that stage Meade had already joined Newcestown's top adult team. He had his first success in October 2015 when Newcestown beat Valley Rovers by 1–23 to 0–08 to claim the Cork PIHC title. He was also part of the Newcestown team beaten by Wolfe Tones na Sionna in the subsequent Munster final.

In October 2023, Meade won a Cork SAHC title after a 3–17 to 0–24 defeat of Blarney in the final replay.

Inter-county career

Meade first played for Cork as a member of the minor team and scored 2–04 in his debut against Kerry in April 2014. He later spent three seasons with the under-21 team but ended his underage career with a two-point defeat by Limerick in the 2017 Munster U21 final after an injury-ravaged season.

Meade had just turned 18 and was still in secondary school when he was approached to join the Cork senior hurling team in January 2015. He was selected at left corner-forward in a challenge game against Limerick and scored a hat-trick of goals in a 6–13 to 2–18 victory. Later that year he was added to Cork's intermediate team and won a Munster IHC medal following a 0–20 to 0–18 defeat of Limerick in the final. Cork lost the 2015 All-Ireland IHC final to Galway, with Meade being introduced as a second-half substitute in the 0–23 to 0–14 defeat.

After making several appearances during the 2016 Munster League, Meade was a member of the extended training panel for the subsequent National League and All-Ireland SHC campaigns. He became a regular member of the starting fifteen during Cork's 2017 National League campaign and made his Munster SHC debut in May 2017 in a 2–27 to 1–26 quarter-final defeat of Tipperary. Meade subsequently claimed a provincial winners' medal following Cork's 1–25 to 1–20 defeat of Clare in the 2017 Munster final.

Meade collected a second consecutive provincial winners' medal in July 2018 after scoring 1–01 from play in a 2–24 to 3–19 defeat of Clare in the 2018 Munster final. In August 2021, he lined out at midfield when Cork suffered a 3–32 to 1–22 defeat by Limerick in the 2021 All-Ireland final.

Career statistics

Club

Inter-county

Honours

Hamilton High School Dr O'Callaghan Cup: 2014

Mary Immaculate College Fitzgibbon Cup: 2017

Newcestown Cork Senior A Hurling Championship: 2023 Cork Premier Intermediate Hurling Championship: 2015 West Cork Under-21 A Hurling Championship: 2013, 2014, 2015

Cork Munster Senior Hurling Championship: 2017, 2018, 2025 National Hurling League: 2025 Munster Senior Hurling League: 2017 Munster Intermediate Hurling Championship: 2015