Mick King (1905 – 15 March 1961) was an Irish sportsperson. He played

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

with his local club Castlegar and with the

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 ...

senior inter-county team from 1923 until 1935. In 2000, King was posthumously named on the Galway Hurling Team of the Millennium.

Playing career

Club

King played his club hurling with his local club in Castlegar, however, he enjoyed little success. Although Castlegar are the most successful club in the Galway county championship, King had retired from hurling just one year before the club won their first county title.

Inter-county

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

in 1923. That year the county won the All-Ireland title for the first time, however, King was not a member of the team. In 1924, Galway reached the All-Ireland final once again, however, King played no part in the defeat by

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 ...

. By 1925 King had established himself on the team, as Galway beat

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 ...

by 9-4 to 6-0 in the All-Ireland semi-final to set up a championship decider with Tipperary. It was Galway's third All-Ireland final in-a-row, however, Tipperary scored two quick goals. King's side never recovered and lost the game by 5-6 to 1-5. The next two seasons saw Galway face defeat in the All-Ireland semi-final; however, the team received special treatment in 1928. That year Galway got a bye into the All-Ireland final without even picking up a hurley. Cork were the opponents on that occasion and beat King's side by 6-12 to 1-0. King was off the team again in 1929 as Galway lost out to Cork in a second consecutive championship decider. This was Galway's last appearance in the All-Ireland final until 1953, however, there was one final victory left in the team in the 1930-1931

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 ...

. In the final of that competition Galway played Tipperary, the reigning All-Ireland champions. Galway won the game by 4-5 to 4-4. It was King's sole National League title and his only major honour from inter-county activity. After suffering a number of consecutive defeats in the All-Ireland semi-final, King retired from inter-county hurling in 1935. King was posthumously named on the Galway Hurling Team of the Millennium in 2000. His inclusion on the team in the right wing-forward position marks him out as one of his county’s greatest-ever players.

References

* Corry, Eoghan, ''The GAA Book of Lists'' (Hodder Headline Ireland, 2005). * Fullam, Brendan, ''Captains of the Ash'' (Wolfhound Press, 2002).

External links

Galway GAA honours

Mick King at the Castlegar G.A.A. Club
{{DEFAULTSORT:King, Mick 1905 births 1961 deaths Castlegar hurlers Galway inter-county hurlers All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship winners 20th-century Irish sportsmen