Mick Crotty is a former Irish sportsperson. He played

hurling Hurling ( ga, iománaíocht, ') is an outdoor team game of ancient Gaelic Irish origin, played by men. One of Ireland's native Gaelic games, it shares a number of features with Gaelic football, such as the field and goals, the number of p ...

with his local club James Stephens and with the

Kilkenny Kilkenny (). is a city in County Kilkenny, Ireland. It is located in the South-East Region and in the province of Leinster. It is built on both banks of the River Nore. The 2016 census gave the total population of Kilkenny as 26,512. Kilken ...

senior inter-county team in the 1970s."Simply the Best?
Irish Independent
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Playing career

Club

Crotty first tasted

success at club level when he was studying at

University College Cork University College Cork – National University of Ireland, Cork (UCC) ( ga, Coláiste na hOllscoile Corcaigh) is a constituent university of the National University of Ireland, and located in Cork. The university was founded in 1845 as one of ...

. He won a senior county title in

Cork Cork or CORK may refer to: Materials * Cork (material), an impermeable buoyant plant product ** Cork (plug), a cylindrical or conical object used to seal a container ***Wine cork Places Ireland * Cork (city) ** Metropolitan Cork, also known as G ...

in 1969 with

UCC The initialism UCC may stand for: Law * Uniform civil code of India, referring to proposed Civil code in the legal system of India, which would apply equally to all irrespective of their religion * Uniform Commercial Code, a 1952 uniform act to h ...

. Later that year he won a senior county title with James Stephens in

. In 1975 he won a second Kilkenny county medal. This was later quickly converted into a

Leinster Leinster ( ; ga, Laighin or ) is one of the provinces of Ireland, situated in the southeast and east of Ireland. The province comprises the ancient Kingdoms of Meath, Leinster and Osraige. Following the 12th-century Norman invasion of Ir ...

club title and an All-Ireland club title. 1976 saw Crotty add another county medal to his collection, however, ‘the Village’ club lost their provincial and All-Ireland titles. Five years later in 1981 he won a final county medal. Once again this victory was converted into another set of Leinster and All-Ireland club titles.

Inter-county

Crotty first came to prominence on the inter-county scene with

in the late 1960s. He won an Oireachtas title with the county in 1969, however, it would be another few years before he became a regular member of the team. In 1972 Crotty won his first

title. This was later converted into a first All-Ireland title as Kilkenny defeated

in a classic final. A second Leinster medal followed in 1973, however, ‘the Cats’ were later defeated by

Limerick Limerick ( ; ga, Luimneach ) is a western city in Ireland situated within County Limerick. It is in the province of Munster and is located in the Mid-West which comprises part of the Southern Region. With a population of 94,192 at the 2016 ...

in the subsequent All-Ireland final. Kilkenny were back in 1974 with Crotty adding a third consecutive Leinster medal to his collection. He later won his second All-Ireland medal as Kilkenny gained revenge on Limerick by defeating them in the championship decider. Crotty won an All Star award for his performances in the 1974 championship. In 1975 Crotty claimed a fourth Leinster medal, before winning his third All-Ireland medal following a victory over surprise finalists

Galway Galway ( ; ga, Gaillimh, ) is a City status in Ireland, city in the West Region, Ireland, West of Ireland, in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Connacht, which is the county town of County Galway. It lies on the River Corrib between Lo ...

. Kilkenny lost their provincial crown in 1976, however, Crotty did add 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 to his collection earlier in the year. ‘The Cats’ bounced back in 1978 with Crotty winning a fifth provincial title. Unfortunately, his team were later defeated by Cork in the All-Ireland final, as ‘the Rebels’ completed the final leg of a three-in-a-row of championship titles. 1979 saw Kilkenny continue their dominance in Leinster with Crotty winning his sixth and final provincial title. He later collected his fourth and final All-Ireland medal as Kilkenny defeated Galway once again. Crotty also won a

Railway Cup The GAA Interprovincial Championship ( ga, An Corn Idir-Chúigeach) 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 ...

medal with

in 1979.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Crotty, Mick 1945 births Living people James Stephens hurlers UCC hurlers Kilkenny inter-county hurlers All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship winners Hurling selectors