Brian Quinn (born 1972) is an Irish former hurler who played as a right corner-back for the

Clare Clare may refer to: Places Antarctica * Clare Range, a mountain range in Victoria Land Australia * Clare, South Australia, a town in the Clare Valley * Clare Valley, South Australia Canada * Clare (electoral district), an electoral district * Cl ...

senior hurling team. Quinn made his first appearance for the team during the 1994-95 National League and became a regular member of the starting fifteen over the next decade. During that time he won one

Munster Munster ( or ) is the largest of the four provinces of Ireland, located in the south west of the island. In early Ireland, the Kingdom of Munster was one of the kingdoms of Gaelic Ireland ruled by a "king of over-kings" (). Following the Nor ...

medal on the field of play while he also won two

All-Ireland All-Ireland (sometimes All-Island) is a term used to describe organisations and events whose interests extend over the entire island of Ireland, as opposed to the separate jurisdictions of the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland. "All-Irelan ...

medals as a non-playing substitute. He ended up as an All-Ireland runner-up on one occasion. He won Munster and all Ireland junior. At club level Quinn is a one-time county club championship medalist with

Tulla Tulla () is a market town in County Clare, Ireland. It is situated in the east of the county, on the R462 and near its junction with the R352, 18 km from Ennis. The town is in a townland and civil parish of the same name. Etymology Tu ...

. His brother,

Andrew Quinn Andrew Quinn may refer to: * Andrew Quinn (footballer) (born 2002), Irish footballer from Dunshaughlin, County Meath * Andrew Quinn (hurler) (born 1983), Irish hurler from Tulla, County Clare {{hndis, Quinn, Andrew ...

, also played hurling with Clare.

Playing career

Club

Quinn played his club hurling with

and had much success in the twilight of his career. In 2007 Tulla reached the final of the county championship for the first time in almost seventy-five years.

Crusheen Crusheen () is a small village in County Clare, Ireland, in the civil parishes in Ireland, civil parish of Crusheen (Inchicronan). Location The village is 10 kilometres northeast of Ennis on the R458 road (Ireland), R458 road to Gort. It is in ...

, a team who had never won the title, provided the opposition. Quinn scored a crucial goal and collected a Clare Senior Hurling Championship medal following a 1-7 to 0-9 victory. Tulla went on to contest Munster Final but lost by 2 points in terrible conditions. Quinn won his second Clare hurler of the year for his club performances, scoring seven goals along the way.

Inter-county

Quinn first came to prominence on the inter-county scene as a member of the Clare junior hurling team. He won a

medal in this grade in 1993 following a 2-15 to 0-10 trouncing of

Waterford Waterford ( ) is a City status in Ireland, city in County Waterford in the South-East Region, Ireland, south-east of Ireland. It is located within the Provinces of Ireland, province of Munster. The city is situated at the head of Waterford H ...

. Clare later qualified for an All-Ireland final meeting with

Kilkenny Kilkenny ( , meaning 'church of Cainnech of Aghaboe, Cainnech'). is a city in County Kilkenny, Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is located in the South-East Region, Ireland, South-East Region and in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinst ...

. A 3-10 to 0-8 victory gave Quinn an

medal. Success in the junior grade allowed Quinn to join the Clare senior team. He made his debut in a

National Hurling League The National Hurling League is an annual Inter county, inter-county hurling competition featuring teams from Ireland and England. Founded in 1925 by the Gaelic Athletic Association, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation within the l ...

game against

Galway Galway ( ; , ) is a City status in Ireland, city in (and the county town of) County Galway. It lies on the River Corrib between Lough Corrib and Galway Bay. It is the most populous settlement in the province of Connacht, the List of settleme ...

in 1994 and was an unused substitute for Clare's

and

triumphs in 1995. Quinn made his senior championship debut against Kerry in 1997, however, he was once again confined to the substitutes' bench for Clare's subsequent Munster and All-Ireland successes. In 1998 Quinn became a regular member of the Clare starting fifteen. He won his first Munster medal on the field of play that year following a tense draw and a replay with Waterford. While Clare were installed as the favourites to retain their All-Ireland crown, a series of bizarre events led to one of the most controversial championship summers ever. Clare drew with

Offaly County Offaly (; ) is a county in Ireland. It is part of the Eastern and Midland Region and the province of Leinster. It is named after the ancient Kingdom of Uí Failghe. It was formerly known as King's County, in honour of Philip II of Spain ...

in the All-Ireland semi-final, however, in the replay Clare were winning by two points when the referee, Jimmy Cooney, blew the whistle with two minutes of normal time left to be played. The Offaly fans were outraged and staged a sit-down protest on the

Croke Park Croke Park (, ) is a Gaelic games stadium in Dublin, Ireland. Named after Archbishop Thomas Croke, it is referred to as Croker by GAA fans and locals. It serves as both the principal national stadium of Ireland and headquarters of the Gaelic At ...

pitch. The result was not allowed to stand and Clare were forced to meet Offaly for a third time that year. They lost the second replay. Quinn got an all star nomination for his displays that year. Clare lost Munster final and all semi final again in 1999,In 2000 2001 and 2002 Clare lost all first rounds to tipp. After a number of disappointing championship seasons, Clare surprised the hurling world by qualifying for the All-Ireland final again in 2002. Quinn's side put up a good fight against Kilkenny, however, a combined tally of 2-13 for

Henry Shefflin Henry Shefflin (born 11 January 1979) is an Irish hurling List of hurling managers, manager and former player who was the manager of the Galway senior hurling team from 2021 to 2024. In his playing career he was nicknamed "King Henry" because o ...

and

D. J. Carey Denis Joseph Carey (born 11 November 1970) is an Irish former hurler who played as a left wing-forward at senior level for the Kilkenny county team. Carey began his hurling career at club level with Young Irelands. He broke onto the club's t ...

gave "the Cats" a seven-point victory. Clare bounced back in 2003 and finally beat tipp in first round with his brother Andrew scoring an all important goal only to get knocked out by cork and galway in the qualifiers. Quinn won his 1st Clare hurler of the year in 2003 for his displays. Quinn continued to line out with Clare for the next few seasons but called time on his inter-county career following the team's exit from the championship in the 2005 all ireland semi final.

Inter-provincial

Quinn was included on the

panel in 1999 in a defeat by

Connacht Connacht or Connaught ( ; or ), is the smallest of the four provinces of Ireland, situated in the west of Ireland. Until the ninth century it consisted of several independent major Gaelic kingdoms (Uí Fiachrach, Uí Briúin, Uí Maine, C ...

in the final of the

Railway Cup The GAA Interprovincial Championship () or Railway Cup (''Corn an Iarnróid'') is the name of two annual Gaelic football and hurling competitions held between the provinces of Ireland. The Connacht, Leinster, Munster and Ulster GAA teams are co ...

. In 2015 after managing successful underage teams Quinn went on to manage his club Tulla at senior level for 3 years retaining senior status and reaching two quarter-finals. At underage he was involved with Tulla winning a U21 in 1992, losing a final in 1997 and a minor A final in 1998, but won again U21 in 2014. He also won a U16B and a minor B championship with Tulla /Boydke, and has been involved in successful Tulla Comogie teams.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Quinn, Brian 1972 births Living people Tulla (Clare) hurlers Clare inter-county hurlers Munster inter-provincial hurlers