Sylvester James "Vesty" Muldowney, KC*SG, (14 January 1908 – 6 April 1995) was an Irish hurler who played as a left wing-forward for the

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 ...

senior team. Born in

Rialto The Rialto is a central area of Venice, Italy, in the ''sestiere'' of San Polo. It is, and has been for many centuries, the financial and commercial heart of the city. Rialto is known for its prominent markets as well as for the monumental Ria ...

, Muldowney first played competitive hurling during his schooling at

Synge Street CBS Synge Street CBS (colloquially Synger) is a boys' non-fee-paying state school, under the auspices of the Edmund Rice Schools Trust, located in the Dublin 8 area of Dublin, Ireland. The school was founded in 1864 by Canon ...

. He arrived on the inter-county scene at the age of twenty-four when he first linked up with the Dublin senior team. He made his debut during the 1932 championship. Muldowney immediately became a regular member of the starting fifteen and won one

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 ...

medal. He was an

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 ...

runner-up on one occasion. At club level Muldowney was a one-time

championship In sport, a championship is a competition in which the aim is to decide which individual or team is the champion. Championship systems Various forms of competition can be referred to by the term championship. Title match system In this sys ...

medallist in the junior grade with Kevin's. Muldowney retired from inter-county hurling following the conclusion of the 1934 championship.

Playing career

Club

In 1939 Muldowney enjoyed his biggest success with Kevin's when he won a

medal in the junior grade.

Inter-county

Muldowney first played for Dublin as a member of the senior team in 1932. He was a

runner-up that year as

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 ...

retained the provincial title following a narrow 4-6 to 3-5 victory. In 1934 Muldowney won a Leinster medal following a 3-5 to 2-2 provincial decider defeat of Kilkenny after an earlier draw. The subsequent All-Ireland decider on 2 September 1934 saw

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 ...

providing the opposition. After being in arrears by one point at the interval, the second half was also keenly contested. Dinny O'Neill scored the vital goal which secured a 3-4 to 2-7 draw. The replay on 30 September 1934 was also a close affair with the sides level for much of the match. Dave Clohessy was the goal-scoring hero for Limerick as he bagged four in total to secure a 5-2 to 2-6 victory for the Shannonsiders.

Personal life

Born in

, Muldowney was the fourth child born to Patrick V. Muldowney (1866-1928) and Polly Collins (1878-1950). His father, a native of

Laois County Laois ( ; ) is a county in Ireland. It is part of the Eastern and Midland Region and in the province of Leinster. It was known as Queen's County from 1556 to 1922. The modern county takes its name from Loígis, a medieval kingdom. Hist ...

, was a publican and grocer in

Kilmainham Kilmainham (, meaning " St Maighneann's church") is a south inner suburb of Dublin, Ireland, south of the River Liffey and west of the city centre. It is in the city's Dublin 8 postal district. History Origins Kilmainham's foundation dates ...

. Muldowney had seven siblings: Paddy (born 1900), Maureen (1902-1995), Kevin (1906-1907), Ned (1909-1937), Dick (1911-1981), Joe (born 1914) and Dolly (1916-1939). Educated at

, Muldowney was noted as a keen sportsman and was long jump champion in 1926. He subsequently qualified as a chartered accountant and set up a practice with Harry Grant known as Muldowney Grant & Co. He later amalgamated with Oliver Freaney & Co. in the early 1970s. Muldowney was on the board of a number of businesses in Dublin, as well as being chairman of St. Joseph’s Hospital in

Raheny Raheny () is a northern suburb of Dublin, Republic of Ireland, Ireland, halfway from the city centre to Howth. It is centred on a historic settlement, first documented in 570 AD (Mervyn Archdall (Irish antiquary), Mervyn Archdall). The district ...

and a board member of the

Central Bank of Ireland The Central Bank of Ireland () is the national central bank for Ireland within the Eurosystem. It was the Irish central bank from 1943 to 1998, issuing the Irish pound. It is also the country's main financial regulatory authority, and since 2 ...

. Active in politics Muldowney was chairman of the national executive of

Fine Gael Fine Gael ( ; ; ) is a centre-right, liberal-conservative, Christian democratic political party in Ireland. Fine Gael is currently the third-largest party in the Republic of Ireland in terms of members of Dáil Éireann. The party had a member ...

. He was married to Mary Harvey (1909-2001), the couple had five children. Muldowney died on 6 April 1995.

Honours

Team

;Kevin's *

Dublin Junior Hurling Championship The Dublin Junior Hurling championship is the Junior Gaelic Athletic Association hurling competition of Dublin GAA, Dublin. The winners of the Junior championship go on to qualify for the Dublin Intermediate Hurling Championship in the following ...

(1): 1939 ;Dublin *

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 ...

(1):

1934 Events January–February * January 1 – The International Telecommunication Union, a specialist agency of the League of Nations, is established. * January 15 – The 8.0 1934 Nepal–Bihar earthquake, Nepal–Bihar earthquake strik ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Muldowney, Sylvester 1908 births 1995 deaths Kevin's hurlers Dublin inter-county hurlers 20th-century Irish sportsmen