Con Cottrell

Fr. Con Cottrell (1917 – 3 March 1982) was an Irish hurler who played as a midfielder for the Cork senior team.

Cottrell made his first appearance for the team during the 1941 championship and was a regular member of the starting fifteen until his retirement after the 1947. During that time he won four All-Ireland medals and five Munster medals. Cottrell was an All-Ireland runner-up on one occasion.

At club level Cottrell enjoyed a varied career playing with Valley Rovers, Ballinhassig and Cooley Kickhams.

Playing career

Club

Cottrell played club hurling in Cork with Ballinhassig and Valley Rovers, however, he enjoyed little in the way of success.

As a Gaelic footballer with Cooley Kickhams in Louth, Cottrell won a championship medal in 1939 following a defeat of Newtown Blues.^[1]

Inter-county

Cottrell made his senior debut for Cork in 1941 as an outbreak of foot and mouth disease severely hampered the championship. As a result of this Cork were nominated to represent the province in the All-Ireland series. Cottrell was at centre-back in the final against Dublin, however, it turned into a one-sided affair thanks to contributing goals from Johnny Quirke and Ted O'Sullivan. At the full-time whistle Cork had won by 5-11 to 0-6. It was one of the most one-sided championship deciders of all-time, however, it did give Cottrell a coveted All-Ireland medal.

In 1942 Cottrell added a Munster medal to his collection as Tipp were downed by 4-15 to 4-1 in the provincial decider. He later missed the All-Ireland final which Cork won.

Cottrell was back on the team again in 1943 and a 2-13 to 3-8 defeat of Waterford gave him a second Munster medal. He later lined out in a second All-Ireland decider with Antrim becoming the first Ulster side to qualify for a final. Unfortunately, the occasion got to the Glensmen as Cork built up an unassailable 3-11 to 0-2 half-time lead. The final score of 5-16 to 0-4 gave Cork their second-ever hat-trick of All-Ireland titles while it also gave Cottrell a second All-Ireland medal.^[2]

In 1944 Cork were attempting to capture a fourth All-Ireland title in-a-row. No team in the history of the hurling championship had won more than three consecutive titles. The year got off to a good start when Cork defeated Limerick by 4-6 to 3-6 after a replay to give Cottrell a third Munster medal. For the third time in four years Cork faced Dublin in an All-Ireland decider. Joe Kelly was the hero of the day and he contributed greatly to Cork's 2-13 to 1-2 victory. It was a third All-Ireland medal in four years for Cottrell.^[3]

Five-in-a-row proved to be a bridge too far for Cork, however, the team returned in 1946. A 3-8 to 1-3 defeat of Limerick gave Cottrell his fourth Munster medal. Under the captaincy of Christy Ring, Cork subsequently faced old rivals Kilkenny in the All-Ireland final. While some had written off Cork's chances, they took an interval lead of four points. With ten minutes remaining Cork's lead was reduced to just two points, however, goals by Mossy O'Riordan and Joe Kelly secured the victory. A 7-6 to 3-8 score line gave Cottrell a fourth All-Ireland medal.

Cork retained their provincial dominance in 1947 with Cottrell picking up a fifth winners' medal following a three-point victory over Limerick. The All-Ireland final was a repeat of the previous year with Kilkenny providing the opposition. The stakes were high for both sides as Cork were aiming for a record sixth championship in seven seasons while Kilkenny were aiming to avoid becoming the first team to lose three consecutive All-Ireland finals. In what has been described as one of the greatest deciders of all-time, little separated the two teams over the course if the hour. A Joe Kelly goal put Cork one point ahead with time almost up, however, Terry Leahy proved to be the hero of the day. He converted a free to level the sides again before sending over the match-winner from the subsequent puck-out. With that the game was over and Cottrell's side were beaten by 0-14 to 2-7. It was the fifth time that Kilkenny had pipped Cork by a single point in an All-Ireland final. This defeat brought the curtain down on Cottrell's inter-county career.

Inter-provincial

Cottrell also had the honour of being selected for Munster in the inter-provincial series of games. He made his debut with the province in 1944 and collected a coveted Railway Cup medal following a 4-10 to 4-4 defeat of Connacht. Cottrell added a second winners' medal to his collection the following year following a 6-8 to 2-0 defeat of Ulster.^[4]

Honours

Team

Cooley Kickhams

• Louth Senior Football Championship (1): 1939

Cork

• All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship (4): 1941, 1943, 1944, 1946
• Munster Senior Hurling Championship (5): 1942, 1943, 1944, 1946, 1947

Munster

• Railway Cup (2): 1944, 1945

References