Liam Cahill (born 13 October 1977) is an Irish hurling manager, former selector and player. He has been manager of the Tipperary county team since 18 July 2022.

Liam Cahill
Personal information
Irish name Liam Ó Cathail
Sport Hurling
Position Right corner-forward
Born (1977-10-13) 13 October 1977 (age 47)
Ballingarry, County Tipperary, Ireland
Height 5 ft 9 in (1.75 m)
Club(s)
Years Club
Ballingarry
Thurles Sarsfields
Club titles
Tipperary titles 1
Inter-county(ies)*
Years County Apps (scores)
1996–2007
Tipperary 25 (5-25)
Inter-county titles
Munster titles 1
All-Irelands 1
NHL 2
All Stars 1
*Inter County team apps and scores correct as of 16:53, 4 September 2016.

Playing career

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College

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Cahill first came to prominence as a hurler with Scoil Ruáin in Killenaule. In 1992 he was a member of the school's junior hurling team that won the All-Ireland Vocational Championship after a 3-04 to 2-04 defeat of St Colman’s Vocational School from Gort.[citation needed]

Club

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Cahill joined the Ballingarry club at a young age and played in all grades at juvenile and underage levels. He enjoyed championship success in the minor grade, winning back-to-back championship medals in 1994 and 1995. As a member of the Ballingarry senior hurling team, Cahill won South Tipperary Championship medals in 1996, 1998 and 2001. Cahill transferred to the Thurles Sarsfields club in 2007.[1]

On 18 October 2009, Cahill was at right wing-back when Thurles Sarsfields defeated Drom-Inch by 0-14 to 0-05 to win the Tipperary Senior Championship.[2]

Inter-county

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Minor and under-21

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Cahill first played at inter-county level when he joined the Tipperary minor hurling team as a fifteen-year old. After scoring 1-04 on his debut against Limerick on 7 April 1993, he later won a Munster Championship medal following a 1-12 to 1-09 defeat of Cork in the final.

After surrendering the championship title the following year, Cahill was appointed captain of the team for Tipperary's unsuccessful championship campaign in 1995.

Cahill subsequently joined the Tipperary under-21 team. After making his first appearance in that grade on 19 June 1996 in a 0-16 to 0-10 defeat of Limerick, he played for three unsuccessful seasons.

Senior

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Cahill made his senior debut for Tipperary on 18 February 1996, replacing Aidan Ryan in a National Hurling League defeat of Cork at Páirc Uí Rinn. On 2 June 1996, he made his first Munster Championship appearance and scored 1-02 in a three-point defeat of Waterford. Cahill finished the championship with 3-10 and was named in the right corner-forward position on the All-Star team.

On 14 September 1997, Cahill came on as a substitute for Michael Cleary in Tipperary's 0-20 to 2-13 All-Ireland final defeat by Clare at Croke Park.[3]

On 16 May 1999, Cahill collected his first silverware at senior level when he won a National Hurling League medal after a 1-14 to 1-10 defeat of Galway in the final.

On 6 May 2001, Cahill won a second National League medal in three years. He was held scoreless and substituted in the 52nd minute in the 1-19 to 0-17 defeat of Clare.[4] Later that season he won a Munster Championship medal after scoring a point in Tipperary's 2-16 to 1-17 defeat of Limerick in the final.[5] On 9 September 2001, Cahill was a non-playing substitute when Tipperary won the All-Ireland title for the first time in a decade after a 2-18 to 2-15 defeat of Galway in the final.[6]

After being a regular player for Tipperary during the 2003 National League, Cahill subsequently fell out of favour with the management after a poor performance against Clare in the Munster Championship. He left the panel in July 2003.[7]

Cahill returned to the Tipperary senior panel under Babs Keating during the 2007 National League.[8] Later that season he made his first championship start in four years in a 2-17 to 2-13 defeat of Offaly.[9] Cahill left the panel after Tipperary's exit from the championship.

Management and coaching career

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Tipperary

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Minor

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Cahill first became involved in inter-county management as a selector on Declan Ryan's Tipperary minor hurling management team in 2007. After helping guide the team to the Munster Championship title after a defeat of Cork, Tipperary later beat Cork for a second time that season in the subsequent All-Ireland final.[10][11]

Cahill's second and final season as a selector with the Tipperary minor team ended with defeats by Cork and Kilkenny.[12]

In September 2013, Cahill returned to inter-county management when he was appointed manager of the Tipperary minor team.[13] His first season in charge ended with a 1-23 to 0-12 defeat by Clare in the Munster Championship.[14]

Cahill's second season as manager saw him guide Tipperary to the Munster Championship title after a three-point defeat of Limerick.[15] On 6 September 2015, Tipperary suffered a 4-13 to 1-16 defeat by Galway in the All-Ireland final.[16]

Cahill remained as manager of the team for a third season in 2016 and guided the team to a second successive Munster Championship title after a 1-24 o 0-10 defeat of Limerick.[17] On 4 September 2016, Cahill's minor team won the All-Ireland title after a 1-21 to 0-17 defeat of Limerick in the final.[18]

Cahill's four-year tenure as Tipperary minor hurling manager ended with a three-point defeat by Cork in 2017.[19]

Under-21 and under-20

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Cahill was appointed manager of the Tipperary under-21 hurling team in November 2017.[20] After being heavily defeated by Cork in the Munster Championship final, Cahill guided Tipperary to an All-Ireland final appearance against the same opposition on 26 August 2018.[21] An injury-time goal from Conor Stakelum secured a 3-13 to 1-16 victory.[22]

As a result of the under-21 success, Cahill refused to rule himself out of the running for the vacant Tipperary senior hurling manager post stating: "The Tipp senior job never really came into my mind to be honest, but I’m absolutely honoured to be linked to it. We'll see."[23] In spite of this, he remained with the underage set-up, becoming the Tipperary under-20 manager. On 23 July 2019, Cahill guided Tipperary to the inaugural Munster Championship title following a 3-15 to 2-17 defeat of Cork in the final.[24] Both sides met again in the All-Ireland final on 24 August 2019, with Tipperary recording a 5-17 to 1-18 victory and a third successive championship defeat of Cork.[25]

Waterford

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Cahill was ratified as manager of the Waterford senior hurling team on 30 September 2019.[26] His first major action as manager saw him drop Noel Connors and Maurice Shanahan from the panel.[27] This was later followed by the retirement of Michael "Brick" Walsh.[28] In August 2021, Cahill confirmed that he would be staying on as manager of the Waterford senior team for at least another year, after turning down the opportunity to manage the Tipperary hurling team.[29]

On 2 April 2022, Waterford won the 2022 National Hurling League after a 4-20 to 1-23 win against Cork in the final.[30][31]

On 15 July 2022, Cahill stepped down as Waterford manager after three years in charge, after opting against taking a fourth year.[32]

Tipperary

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On 18 July 2022, Cahill was named as the new manager of the Tipperary county hurling team on a three year term, replacing Colm Bonnar.[33][34][35] In 2023 he was assisted by coach Michael Bevans and selectors Pádraic Maher, Declan Laffan and TJ Ryan.[36][37][38]

In the 2024 Munster Senior Hurling Championship, Tipperary lost by eighteen points to Limerick in round 1 before drawing with Waterford a week later in Walsh Park.[39][40] In round 3 they lost to Cork by eighteen points on a 4-30 to 1-21 scoreline which eliminated Tipperary from the Munster and All-Ireland Championships.[41] In their final game on 26 May they lost to Clare by three points.[42]

Career statistics

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Team Year National League Munster All-Ireland Total
Division Apps Score Apps Score Apps Score Apps Score
Tipperary 1995-96 Division 1 5 0-02 4 3-10 9 3-12
1997 8 2-13 2 0-02 3 1-02 13 3-17
1998 Division 1A 5 2-06 1 0-03 6 2-09
1999 Division 1B 8 2-14 3 1-05 11 3-19
2000 4 2-04 3 0-01 1 0-00 8 2-05
2001 8 1-22 1 0-01 1 0-00 10 1-23
2002 6 1-08 0 0-00 1 0-00 7 1-08
2003 8 1-06 1 0-01 1 0-00 10 1-07
2004
2005
2006
2007 0 0-00 1 0-00 2 0-00 3 0-00
Total 52 11-75 16 4-23 9 1-02 77 16-100

Honours

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As a player

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Scoil Ruáin
Ballingarry
Thurles Sarsfields
Tipperary
Munster
Awards

In management

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Tipperary
Waterford

References

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  1. ^ "Cahill back in Tipperary frame". Irish Independent. 31 May 2007. Retrieved 4 August 2018.
  2. ^ "Sarsfields in total control". Irish Times. 19 October 2009. Retrieved 29 August 2018.
  3. ^ "Tipperary v Clare: The showtime years". Irish Independent. 16 June 2011. Retrieved 8 September 2018.
  4. ^ Breheny, Martin (7 May 2001). "Tipp triumph as Cummins keeps Clare attack at bay". Irish Independent. Retrieved 19 January 2014.
  5. ^ Breheny, Martin (2 July 2001). "Tipp's grace under pressure produces late victory flourish". Irish Independent. Retrieved 19 January 2014.
  6. ^ Breheny, Martin (10 September 2001). "All-Ireland final: Tipperary 2–18; Galway 2–15". Irish Independent. Retrieved 19 January 2014.
  7. ^ "County call". Irish Independent. 23 July 2003. Retrieved 19 January 2014.
  8. ^ "GAA: Leahy back for Tipp". RTÉ Sport. 14 June 2007. Retrieved 19 January 2014.
  9. ^ "Offaly blow glorious chance to break their Tipp hoodoo". Irish Independent. 1 July 2007. Retrieved 19 January 2014.
  10. ^ "Tipperary make numbers count". Irish Times. 9 July 2007. Retrieved 28 August 2018.
  11. ^ "Carey fires Tipperary to double minor glory". Irish Independent. 3 September 2007. Retrieved 28 August 2018.
  12. ^ "Cork make late returns count". Irish Times. 14 July 2008. Retrieved 28 August 2018.
  13. ^ Kelly, Niall (25 September 2013). "Tipperary appoint Cahill and Connolly as new minor and U21 hurling managers". The 42. Retrieved 28 August 2018.
  14. ^ Cormican, Eoghan (1 May 2014). "Clare turn on scoring style after three red cards trip up Tipp". Irish Examiner. Retrieved 28 August 2018.
  15. ^ Cormican, Eoghan (13 July 2015). "Tipperary storm up final stretch against Limerick". Irish Examiner. Retrieved 28 August 2018.
  16. ^ O'Toole, Fintan (6 September 2015). "Great start for Galway as they lift All-Ireland minor hurling title against Tipperary". The 42. Retrieved 9 August 2018.
  17. ^ "Tipperary romp to Munster minor title". The 42. 10 July 2016. Retrieved 9 August 2018.
  18. ^ Cormican, Eoghan (5 September 2016). "Redemption as powerful Premier get hands on cup". Irish Examiner. Retrieved 30 July 2018.
  19. ^ McDonnell, Brian (4 July 2017). "Proud Liam Cahill signs off on his successful term as Tipperary minor manager". Tipperary Star. Retrieved 30 July 2018.
  20. ^ "Tipperary Management teams confirmed". Tipperary GAA website. 3 November 2017. Retrieved 28 August 2018.
  21. ^ Cormican, Eoghan (4 July 2018). "Cork outclass Tipperary on home soil to end 11-year Munster U21 hurling crown wait". Irish Examiner. Retrieved 28 August 2018.
  22. ^ "Injury time drama as late Tipperary goal secures All-Ireland U21 victory over Cork". Irish Independent. 26 August 2018. Retrieved 28 August 2018.
  23. ^ "'We'll see' - U21 hurling manager Liam Cahill coy on senior Tipp role". RTÉ Sport. 9 August 2018. Retrieved 28 August 2018.
  24. ^ Brophy, Shane (23 July 2019). "Bowe and Morris star as Tipperary claim U20 Munster glory". The 42. Retrieved 23 July 2019.
  25. ^ O'Toole, Fintan (24 August 2019). "Early Tipp goals power them past Cork to seal All-Ireland hurling glory". The 42. Retrieved 25 August 2019.
  26. ^ "Cahill confirmed as new Waterford manager". Hogan Stand. 29 September 2019. Retrieved 29 September 2019.
  27. ^ Fogarty, John (13 October 2019). "New Waterford hurling manager drops Connors and Shanahan from panel". Irish Examiner. Retrieved 16 October 2019.
  28. ^ Fogarty, John (15 October 2019). "Déise legend Michael 'Brick' Walsh ends inter-county career". Irish Examiner. Retrieved 16 October 2019.
  29. ^ "Liam Cahill confirms he's staying on as manager of Waterford hurlers". Irish Independent. 26 August 2021. Retrieved 31 August 2021.
  30. ^ "Bennett blasts Waterford to fourth hurling league title as star forward hits 2-11 past Cork". The 42. 2 April 2022. Retrieved 4 April 2022.
  31. ^ "Four-star Waterford bury Cork in goals". Irish Examiner. 2 April 2022. Retrieved 4 April 2022.
  32. ^ "Liam Cahill steps down as Waterford manager". RTE Sport. 15 July 2022. Retrieved 19 July 2022.
  33. ^ "Liam Cahill appointed as new Tipperary manager on three-year term". RTE Sport. 18 July 2022. Retrieved 19 July 2022.
  34. ^ "Liam Cahill announced as new Tipperary senior hurling manager on three-year term". The 42. 18 July 2022. Retrieved 19 July 2022.
  35. ^ "Cahill: We couldn't walk away from Tipp chance on this occasion". RTE Sport. 18 July 2022. Retrieved 19 July 2022.
  36. ^ "Padraic Maher among Liam Cahill's selectors as he finalises Tipp backroom team". The 42. 23 July 2022. Retrieved 27 July 2022.
  37. ^ "Pádraic Maher named among Liam Cahill's selectors as new Tipp boss finalises management team". Irish Independent. 23 July 2022. Retrieved 27 July 2022.
  38. ^ "'The perfect link' - New boss Cahill hails Maher as he takes Tipperary selector role". The 42. 26 July 2022. Retrieved 27 July 2022.
  39. ^ "Munster SHC: Limerick cruise to emphatic victory". GAA.ie. 28 April 2024. Retrieved 1 May 2024.
  40. ^ "Waterford stunned as late Tipperary rally ties up Walsh Park thriller". RTE Sport. 4 May 2024. Retrieved 14 May 2024.
  41. ^ "Connolly hat-trick inspires Cork to Tipperary trouncing". RTE Sport. 19 May 2024. Retrieved 21 August 2024.
  42. ^ "Munster SHC: Clare overcome Tipp". GAA.ie. 26 May 2024. Retrieved 25 June 2024.
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