Tipperary Hurling Tipperary GAA Premierview

3) Nicky English (1978-88)

Czar” “God”, “Nicky God”, “Hurling’s Maradona” and “Superstar” were just some of the titles that were that were bandied about when the Prince of Modern Tipperary hurling was at his peak. The papers at the time had a pretty standard heading for Tipp after Nicky had played a good game and it went “X given an English Lesson” (with X being the county that Tipp had just played). He is the best hurler that I, and indeed many of the newer generation of Tipp hurling followers have ever seen. In match-day programmes when many of the current Tipp players are asked for the player they most admired the majority mention Nicky English. He was the one player who during the 80’s and early 90’s who gave opposing defences sleepless nights before and after games. English was a hurler of superb natural ability and a very reliable free-taker. He got many spectacular scores, such as the kicked goal in the 1987 Munster Final kicked goal, and many other crucial ones such as in the 1987 Munster final replay to take the game into extra time. He also carried Tipp’s hurling expectations on his shoulders for a number of years before 1987.

However it all could have been all so different! Nicky grew up in Cullen close to the Limerick border in a football area and it was not until he went to Secondary School in Tipp Town that he played his first competitive hurling game. While he was an outstanding footballer, (Co. Minor Football team 78-80) hurling was his first love. Unusually his first his first Munster medal was in neither sport it was in tennis when he was part of the Lattin Tennis club team that won the Munster U14 in 1977. In 1979 he did not make the final panel for the Tipp minor team because of his lack of size and physical strength. However his luck changed in 1980 when he was picked for the Tipp minor hurling team. He scored a point against Cork in the first round at midfield with Joe Hayes. He suffered a broken leg that Summer, missing the Munster Final, but despite only being out of plaster for 5 weeks, he played in the All-Ireland Final at corner forward and scored a goal.

The next phase was the most crucial of his developing from a scrawny hurler into 1 of the most feared forwards in the country. In the autumn of 1980 he entered UCC and when he left (eventually!) in the spring of 1985 he had 5 Fitzgibbon medals under the tutelage of Fr. Michael O’ Brien being captain in 1985. In 1981 he was on the Tipp U21 team with Fox, Bobby Ryan, Pat McGrath and Ger O’Neill, they won the All-Ireland with Nicky at corner forward. They beat Kilkenny in Waterford in the All-Ireland Final.

Nicky was also a superb footballer and played for 3 years each with the Tipp Minors and U21 footballers. In 1980 he played on the Tipp minor football team that were 7 points up on Kerry with 6 minutes to go but 2-2 from Kerry in the closing minutes won a game that Kerry that scarcely deserved to win (Liam Kearns the current Limerick football manager got 1 of the goals). In 1981 he was on the Tipp U21 football team that was desperately close to beating Cork, losing by only a point. Another point that also seems to have been forgotten is that Nicky was a very versatile. He played at midfield during his minor days, and also was a superb centre back, regularly playing there for his club and UCC. He gave one of his best ever hurling performances when he went centre back for UCC in the Fitzgibbon Cup Semi-Final of 83.

In October of 1981 he played his first game for Tipp a challenge against Offaly in Coventry, and the following month he made his League debut against Waterford. Tipp, with a lot of the U21’s got a rude awakening in the League, when expose to senior hurling. On his championship debut, he lined out as a half-forward when Tipp were well beaten by an experienced Cork side by 1-19 to 2-8. He went on the All-Stars trip to America as a replacement. The following year was an historic one as Tipp won their first Championship game in 10 years against Clare in Limerick. Nicky was struggling in the corner, but he went centre forward and excelled on Sean Stack as Tipp won. Reality struck harshly 3 weeks later when Tipp were battered off the field by a physical Waterford team. Nicky was stretchered off - with the game almost over - with a busted mouth and teeth and had a spell in hospital. He got consolation with his first All-Star award. He would go on to win 6 in the next 7 years ; missing out in 1986 when he was injured.

1984 was a massive year for the GAA, but more especially in Tipp, with the All-Ireland hurling final due to be played in Thurles. Tipp got to the League quarter Finals but lost to Limerick. Nicky won his first Railway Cup medal in 1984. In the Munster semi-final, Tipp beat Clare by 2 points courtesy of a last minute goal. Nicky was influential in almost all the Tipp scores. The Munster Final was against old and feared rivals Cork in Thurles. In a pulsating game Tipp again fell short, they were 4 points up with 6 minutes to go when a pass from Mick Doyle to Nicky never made it, preventing Nicky adding to his brilliant first-half goal. Cork being Cork went down the other end, scoring 2 late goals to snatch the game from Tipp. This was a shattering defeat for Tipp, particularly as the All-Ireland Final - which Cork easily won - was played on Tipp's home soil.

1985 saw Tipp win their first trophy since 1979 when they beat Galway in the Ford Open Draw Final. Tipp had to have 2 attempts to beat Clare in the Semi-Final, with Nicky scoring the equaliser in the drawn game and getting 2 goals in the replay. Tipp again faced Cork in front of 50,000 in Cork but despite great forward play by Ger O’ Neill and Nicky (2-3) Tipp lost 4-17 to 4-11. Such was his display in the Munster final that he picked up another All-Star. In 1986 he was in superb form but a punctured lung kept him in the stand in Ennis as Tipp were well beaten by Clare.

1987 saw the famine finally over with an historic Munster Final victory. An ankle injury kept Nicky in the stand for the Kerry game. In the semi-final against Clare in Killarney, Nicky lined out at corner forward and scored 1-2 in a drawn game despite playing poorly. In the replay, with Aidan Ryan in inspired form, Tipp cruised into the Munster final with Nicky scoring 2-4. The drawn Munster Final was the one that shot Nicky to national prominence. Despite playing poorly in the first half, (played corner, wing and full forward), he got a superb goal in the second half which has been shown repeatedly on telly to this day. Nicky found himself through on goals, (without his hurley again!), and controlled the ball with his first touch then curled it past Ger Cunningham for a brilliant goal to put Tipp 7 points up. In injury time he gained the vital free to put Tipp level. He scored 1-1.
In the replay, he again scored another great goal. A long clearance dropped in front of him and in one swift action he rose and buried it past Ger Cunningham, from quite a distance. His equalising point at the end was crucial. He gained possoession out the field and soloed towards the goal, and showing nerves of steel he coolly hand passed the ball over the bar to put the game into extra-time. The rest as they say is history as Mick Doyle and Donie O Connell finished off Cork with a deluge of goals.



Will we ever forget this Goal??,drawn munster final1987

In his autobiography Nicky says that the 1987 All-Ireland Semi-Final with Galway was the finest game of hurling he ever played in. Tipp were back in the big time with massive crowds at training and a lot of media attention. Nicky scored 6 points in the semi-final and played very well on Conor Hayes. He had 1 goal bound effort taken off the line, and 2 of his point shots were just over the bar. Despite Fox being on fire as well, Galway’s experience paid off as they advanced to the All-Ireland Final.

He won his fourth All-Star award in '87, and was in the best form of his life when the League campaign commenced. Having taken over from Fox as free-taker he was scoring freely in the latter stages of the League, with the national media following his every game with a lot of interest. In his own opinion, his best ever display was against Waterford in the League Semi-Final when he scored 2-11. In the Final win over Offaly he scored 1-3 as Pa O’ Neill collected the cup. However after being injury free for a few years he picked up a very bad hamstring injury. This was the start of long list of injuries, which would haunt the remainder of his career.

Due to the hamstring injury he did not play in the victory over Limerick in the Munster Semi-Final of 1988, but was back to score 9 points in the win over Cork in the final. Tipp struggled for long spells before finally dispatching Antrim in the Semi-Final with Nicky scoring 1-7. Tipp's build-up to the final was over-shadowed by controversy, with the captain Pa O’ Neill being dropped and Nicky being announced as his replacement. The divisions it caused are still festering to this day and in the build-up to the final there was unbearable pressure on Nicky who was Tipp’s main player, free taker, and through no fault of his own - the captain. He received abusive letters and cards before the final and was under the full glare of the media who got a lot of mileage out of the story. What was forgotten was that Leahy was the player who came on in Pa O’ Neill’s place and had a good game in the final.

It was a relieved Nicky who led Tipp onto the field for their first All-Ireland Final appearance since 1971. However the atmosphere seemed to get to most of the Tipp players and they were always chasing the game. Nicky was well marshalled by Conor Hayes and was unable to score from play (6 points from frees). The Tipp backs were playing well but the forwards were being well held by some superb Galway play,particulary from their half-back line of Keady, Finnerty, and McInerney. Nicky had a penalty right at the end, but his goal-bound effort was too high and Galway remained All-Ireland champions. He picked up his fifth All-Star in December as Colm Bonnar, Bobby and Declan also picked up statuettes. Tipp were getting closer and closer to the bigger prize and had progressed each year since Babs took over the reigns. 1989 would bring the reward dreamed about since he was kid hitting a ball off a wall in Cullen.