Francis Loughnane (born 1945) is an Irish retired hurler who played as a wing-forward for the Tipperary senior team. Loughnane made his first appearance for the team during the 1968 championship and became a regular player over the course of the following decade. During that time he won one

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 ...

winner's medal, 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 ...

winner's medal, one

National League National League often refers to: *National League (baseball), one of the two baseball leagues constituting Major League Baseball in the United States and Canada *National League (division), the fifth division of the English football (soccer) system ...

winner's medal and three

All-Star An all-star team is a group of people all having a high level of performance in their field. Originating in sports, it has since drifted into vernacular and has been borrowed heavily by the entertainment industry. Sports "All-star" as a sport ...

awards. At club level, Loughnane is an

medalist with

Roscrea Roscrea () is a market town in County Tipperary, Ireland. In 2022 it had a population of 5,542. Roscrea is one of the oldest towns in Ireland, having developed around the 7th century monastery of Crónán of Roscrea, Saint Crónán of Roscrea, p ...

. In addition to this he has also won two

club winners' medals and six

county championship The County Championship, currently known for sponsorship reasons as the Rothesay County Championship, is the only domestic first-class cricket competition in England and Wales. Established in 1890, it is organised by the England and Wales Cri ...

winners' medals.

Playing career

Club

Loughnane played his club hurling with

and enjoyed much success in a senior career that lasted more than twenty years. He won his first

winners' medal in 1968, beginning a great era of success for the club. In 1969 Roscrea retained the county championship title before Loughnane subsequently added a

club winners' medal to his collection. A second set of county and provincial titles were annexed by Roscrea in 1970. Loughnane later lined out in the inaugural All-Ireland club final with St. Rynagh's providing the opposition. A 4–5 to 2–5 victory gave him an

club winners' medal. Roscrea continued to be a major force in club hurling over the next decade with Loughnane winning further county championship titles in 1972, 1973 and 1980. He brought the curtain down on his senior club career following a defeat by Kilruane MacDonagh's in the 1985 club championship decider. When journalists decided, in 1996, to select a team of players to celebrate the 25th anniversary of the All-Ireland Club Hurling Championship (a team based on performances at club level) Francis Loughnane was the only Tipperary player chosen. He was honoured in his accustomed position of right half-forward.

Inter-county

By the early 1960s Loughnane had joined the Tipperary minor hurling panel. He won a Munster minor medal in 1962, however, he failed to win an All-Ireland medal at this level. Two years later in 1964 Loughnane captained Tipperary to inaugural Munster and

under-21 titles. He won a second Munster under-21 title in 1965. Three years later in 1968 Loughnane was a substitute when Tipp won the Munster senior title. Roscrea's period of dominance in Tipperary hurling meant that he was Tipperary senior hurling captain in 1969 and 1970. By 1971 he was a full member of the team and won his first senior

title. Loughnane later won his first

title when Tipp defeated

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 ...

in a high-scoring game. He finished off the year by winning the first of three consecutive

awards (1971–73). In 1973, Loughnane captained Tipperary when they reached the Munster final. In a classic thriller, Loughnane scored 2-10 but ended on the losing side as a last minute Richie Bennis point gave Limerick a one-point win on a scoreline of 6–7 to 2–18. The rest of the 1970s proved to be a bleak period for Tipperary's hurling fortunes, however, Loughnane finished off his career by winning 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 ...

medal in 1979. In 2009, he was ranked 111 of all-time greatest Irish hurlers by the

Irish Independent The ''Irish Independent'' is an Irish daily newspaper A newspaper is a Periodical literature, periodical publication containing written News, information about current events and is often typed in black ink with a white or gray backgrou ...

.The 125 greatest stars of the GAA:124-101
Irish Independent, (3 Aug 2009) ("Francis Loughnane (Tipperary) A deadly sniper from frees and open play, he enjoyed an outstanding career as a half-forward with club (Roscrea) and county. He was chosen at right half-forward on the first three All Star teams in 1971, '72 and '73.")

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Loughnane, Francis 1945 births Living people Roscrea hurlers Tipperary inter-county hurlers Munster inter-provincial hurlers All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship winners 20th-century Irish sportsmen