Robbie Kelleher is a former

Gaelic football Gaelic football ( ga, Peil Ghaelach; short name '), commonly known as simply Gaelic, GAA or Football is an Irish team sport. It is played between two teams of 15 players on a rectangular grass pitch. The objective of the sport is to score by ki ...

er who played for the Dublin county team. He is

All-Ireland All-Ireland (sometimes All-Island) refers to all of Ireland, as opposed to the separate jurisdictions of the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland. "All-Ireland" is most frequently used to refer to sporting teams or events for the entire islan ...

winning.

Biography

He grew up in

Glasnevin Glasnevin (, also known as ''Glas Naedhe'', meaning "stream of O'Naeidhe" after a local stream and an ancient chieftain) is a neighbourhood of Dublin, Ireland, situated on the River Tolka. While primarily residential, Glasnevin is also home t ...

County Dublin "Action to match our speech" , image_map = Island_of_Ireland_location_map_Dublin.svg , map_alt = map showing County Dublin as a small area of darker green on the east coast within the lighter green background of ...

. He was educated at Coláiste Mhuire, where he excelled in his studies which included an A in Higher Level Mathematics. He went on to study economics at University and has a successful career in that field.

Playing career

Kelleher has won four All Stars for his performances for Dublin in 1978, 1977, 1975 and 1974, a feat yet to be matched by any left full back. He won three all-Ireland medals for Dublin in 1977, 1976, 1974. The 1974 won his first All-Ireland in a game in which Dublin defeated

Galway Galway ( ; ga, Gaillimh, ) is a city in the West of Ireland, in the province of Connacht, which is the county town of County Galway. It lies on the River Corrib between Lough Corrib and Galway Bay, and is the sixth most populous city ...

by a scoreline of 0-14 to 1–6. His second all-Ireland with Dublin in 1976 with a 3-8 to 0-10 victory over Kerry. 1977 proved the most memorable of years for Kelleher. Dublin won the semi final and just one week before the final Robbie Kelleher married his wife in

San Francisco San Francisco (; Spanish language, Spanish for "Francis of Assisi, Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the List of Ca ...

returning in time for the all-Ireland final victory over

Armagh Armagh ( ; ga, Ard Mhacha, , " Macha's height") is the county town of County Armagh and a city in Northern Ireland, as well as a civil parish. It is the ecclesiastical capital of Ireland – the seat of the Archbishops of Armagh, the ...

. The game finished on a scoreline of 5-12 to 3-6 and he was later awarded an all star for his performances. The day before the game the newspapers famously read on the day before the final ''Wife of Star Flies in for Match.'' He won the National Football League with Dublin 1978 and 1976. 1979 proved a very disappointing year for Kelleher as he suffered very serious injuries. 'That was the year he broke his leg, two operations, screws inserted and the long haul back to fitness for the championship'. Despite expressing his desire to retire in 1979 at the age of 28, the then Dublin manager Kevin Heffernan convinced him to make a return to the Dublin side. He retired in 1981 at the age of 31.

References

Dublin legend's unique build-up to Kerry classic
Independent.ie. 19 May 2020. Year of birth missing (living people) Living people Dublin inter-county Gaelic footballers Gaelic football backs People from Glasnevin Winners of three All-Ireland medals (Gaelic football) People educated at Coláiste Mhuire, Dublin {{Dublin-gaelic-football-bio-stub