Michael Gill (22 September 1899 – 21 September 1980) was an Irish hurler. At club level he played with

Ballinderreen Ballinderreen (), also Ballindereen, is a village located on the N67 road (Ireland), N67 road between Kilcolgan and Kinvara in south County Galway, Ireland. Location and name Ballinderreen village is approximately 22 km south of Galway ...

and Garda, and also lined out at inter-county level with

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 ...

and

Dublin Dublin is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. Situated on Dublin Bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, and is bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, pa ...

. Gill is the only player to win two All-Ireland SHC medals in a single year.

Career

Gill first played hurling at club level with the

club in south Galway. His performances for the club resulted in a call-up to the

Galway senior hurling team The Galway county hurling team ( ) represents County Galway, Galway in hurling and is governed by Galway GAA, the County board (Gaelic games), county board of the Gaelic Athletic Association. The team competes in the three major annual inter-co ...

and he made his debut in the 1922 All-Ireland semi-final defeat by Tipperary. Gill was a member of the Galway team that beat

Limerick Limerick ( ; ) is a city in western Ireland, in County Limerick. It is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Munster and is in the Mid-West Region, Ireland, Mid-West which comprises part of the Southern Region, Ireland, Southern Region. W ...

by 7–03 to 4–05 in the 1923 All-Ireland final, a match that wasn't played until September 1924. By that stage, Gill had transferred to the Garda club in

, with whom he won six Dublin SHC medal. He also declared for the

Dublin senior hurling team The Dublin county hurling team represents Dublin in hurling and is governed by Dublin GAA, the county board of the Gaelic Athletic Association. The team competes in the three major annual inter-county competitions; the All-Ireland Senior Hurling ...

in November 1923. Gill won his first Leinster SHC medal in his first season with the team, while he claimed his second All-Ireland SHC winners' medal, just three months after winning his first, when Dublin beat his native Galway in the 1924 All-Ireland final. Gill was selected for the

Leinster Leinster ( ; or ) is one of the four provinces of Ireland, in the southeast of Ireland. The modern province comprises the ancient Kingdoms of Meath, Leinster and Osraige, which existed during Gaelic Ireland. Following the 12th-century ...

team for the inaugural

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 1927 and ended the competition with a winners' medal after Leinster's defeat of

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 ...

in the

final Final, Finals or The Final may refer to: *Final examination or finals, a test given at the end of a course of study or training *Final (competition), the last or championship round of a sporting competition, match, game, or other contest which d ...

. Later that season he

captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader or highest rank officer of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police depa ...

ed Dublin when he won his second Leinster SHC medal in 1927. Gill claimed a third All-Ireland winners' medal after he captained Dublin to a defeat of

Cork "Cork" or "CORK" may refer to: Materials * Cork (material), an impermeable buoyant plant product ** Stopper (plug), or "cork", a cylindrical or conical object used to seal a container *** Wine cork an item to seal or reseal wine Places Ireland * ...

in the 1927 All-Ireland final. Gill won a third Leinster SHC title with Dublin in 1928. Later that year he was selected for the

Ireland Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe. Geopolitically, the island is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially Names of the Irish state, named Irelan ...

team that beat the United States in the

Tailteann Games Tailteann Games or Aonach Tailteann may refer to: * Tailteann Games (ancient) sporting and religious festival in Gaelic Ireland * Tailteann Games (Irish Free State) The Tailteann Games or Aonach Tailteann was an Irish sporting and cultural festi ...

. Gill added 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 in 1929. He won a fourth Leinster SHC medal a year later, however, Dublin were later beaten by Tipperary in the 1930 All-Ireland final. Gill declared for Galway in 1931 and claimed a second National League title that year. He continued to line out with Galway, and also played with Conancht, until his retirement from hurling in 1938.

Personal life and death

Gill trained as a member of the

Garda Síochána (; meaning "the Guardian(s) of the Peace") is the national police and security service of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is more commonly referred to as the Gardaí (; "Guardians") or "the Guards". The service is headed by the Garda Commissio ...

, but left the force in 1927 with the intention of emigrating to the United States. The Wall Street crash and the subsequent depression ended this plan an he rejoined the force in 1931. He retired in 1962, having spent 20 years on security duty at

Áras an Uachtaráin (; "Residence of the President"), formerly the Viceregal Lodge, is the List of official residences, official residence and principal workplace of the President of Ireland. It is located off Chesterfield Avenue in the Phoenix Park in Dublin, ...

. Gill died at the Mater Hospital on 21 September 1980, just one day short of his 81st birthday and just two weeks after the Galway hurlers bridged a 57-year gap to capture their second All-Ireland title.

Honours

;Garda *

Dublin Senior Hurling Championship The Dublin Senior Hurling Championship () is an annual hurling competition organised by the Dublin County Board of the Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA) since 1887 for the top hurling clubs in County Dublin, Ireland. Sixteen clubs compete. In ...

: 1925, 1926, 1927, 1928, 1929, 1931 ;Galway *

All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship The GAA Hurling All-Ireland Senior Championship, known simply as the All-Ireland Championship, is an annual Inter county, inter-county hurling competition organised by the Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA). It is the highest-tier competition for ...

1923 In Greece, this year contained only 352 days as 13 days was skipped to achieve the calendrical switch from Julian to Gregorian Calendar. It happened there that Wednesday, 15 February ''(Julian Calendar)'' was followed by Thursday, 1 March ' ...

: 1930–31 ;Dublin *

1924 Events January * January 12 – Gopinath Saha shoots Ernest Day, whom he has mistaken for Sir Charles Tegart, the police commissioner of Calcutta, and is arrested soon after. * January 20–January 30, 30 – Kuomintang in Ch ...

1927 Events January * January 1 – The British Broadcasting ''Company'' becomes the BBC, British Broadcasting ''Corporation'', when its Royal Charter of incorporation takes effect. John Reith, 1st Baron Reith, John Reith becomes the first ...

Leinster Senior Hurling Championship The Leinster GAA Hurling Senior Championship, known simply as the Leinster Championship, is an annual inter-county hurling competition organised by the Leinster Council of the Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA). It is the highest inter-county hur ...

(c),

1928 Events January * January – British bacteriologist Frederick Griffith reports the results of Griffith's experiment, indirectly demonstrating that DNA is the genetic material. * January 1 – Eastern Bloc emigration and defection: Boris B ...

1930 Events January * January 15 – The Moon moves into its nearest point to Earth, called perigee, at the same time as its fullest phase of the Lunar Cycle. This is the closest moon distance at in recent history, and the next one will be on J ...

: 1928–29 ;Leinster *

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Gill, Mick 1899 births 1980 deaths Ballinderreen hurlers Garda hurlers Galway inter-county hurlers Dublin inter-county hurlers Leinster inter-provincial hurlers Connacht inter-provincial hurlers All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship winners Garda Síochána officers Police officers from County Galway