Tom McInerney (1905–1998) 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

O'Callaghan's Mills O'Callaghan's Mills (), also O'Callaghansmills, is a village in County Clare, Republic of Ireland, Ireland, and a Catholic parish by the same name. It takes its name from the O'Callaghan family, who were large landowners in the area, and a corn ...

. A defender, he played for the

Clare Clare may refer to: Places Antarctica * Clare Range, a mountain range in Victoria Land Australia * Clare, South Australia, a town in the Clare Valley * Clare Valley, South Australia Canada * Clare (electoral district), an electoral district * Cl ...

senior inter-county team that reached the All-Ireland final in 1932.

Playing career

Club

McInerney played club

with his local club

and enjoyed some success. He won a senior county title with the club in 1937. McInerney was the brother of Pa (Fowler) McInerney, also of O'Callahan's Mills, who won All-Ireland hurling championships with Clare and Dublin in the early 20th century.

Inter-county

McInerney first came to prominence for the

senior inter-county team in 1927 when Clare reached the Munster final.

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 * ...

opposed him on that occasion and went on to win the game by 5–3 to 3–4. In 1928, Clare took on Cork for the second consecutive year in the Munster final. That year, McInerney's side nearly pulled off a shock result, however, both sides finished level after recording 2–2. The replay was not a happy game for Clare as Cork trounced them by 6–4 to 2–2. Two years later, in 1930, McInerney was back in the provincial decider. Tipperary were the opponents on that occasion; however, Clare failed to make the breakthrough once again. A score line of 6–4 to 2–8 gave victory to Tipp. In 1932, Clare reached the Munster final for the fourth time in six years. Once again, Cork, a team that had defeated McInerney's side on many occasions, provided the opposition. The game saw Clare triumph for the first time since 1914. A score line of 5–2 to 4–1 gave McInerney his first and only

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 ...

medal. The subsequent All-Ireland semi-final ended with Clare emerging victorious over

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 ...

by 9–4 to 4–14. This victory allowed Clare to advance to the All-Ireland final where

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 ...

provided the opposition. In a low-scoring but tense game, Clare's

Tull Considine Turlough Owen "Tull" Considine (5 October 1898 – 7 July 1980) was an Irish hurler and Gaelic footballer who played for the Clare senior teams. A talented dual player, Considine first played for the senior hurling team during the 1918 cha ...

scored two goals and was foiled for what would almost certainly have been a third. These goals were negated by Kilkenny's three goal-scoring heroes

Matty Power Matthew "Matty" Power (18 October 1899 – 7 October 1965) was an Irish sportsperson. He played hurling at various times with his local clubs Dicksboro and Garda. Power was also a member of the Kilkenny and Dublin senior inter-county team ...

, Martin White and

Lory Meagher Lorenzo Ignatius "Lory" Meagher (25 May 1899 – 17 May 1973) was an Irish hurler who played as a midfielder at senior level for the Kilkenny county team. Born in Tullaroan, County Kilkenny, Meagher arrived on the inter-county scene at the a ...

. The final score of 3–3 to 2–3 gave victory to Kilkenny. Clare went into decline following this game, as

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 ...

emerged as the dominant force in Munster. McInenrey retired from inter-county hurling in 1936.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:McInerney, Tom 1905 births 1998 deaths Irish schoolteachers O'Callaghan's Mills hurlers Clare inter-county hurlers 20th-century Irish sportsmen