Jimmy Smyth (hurler) facts for kids

Jimmy Smyth (born 1 January 1931 – died 9 February 2013) was a famous Irish hurler. He played as a forward for the Clare senior team. Jimmy was known for his amazing scoring skills.

He started playing for Clare in the 1948–49 National Hurling League. He was a key player until he stopped playing in 1967. During his time, he won an Oireachtas medal and a Thomond Feis medal. He also reached the Munster final twice.

For his club, Ruan, Jimmy won the county club championship five times. After he retired from playing, he was honored as one of the best hurlers ever. In 1984, he was named to a special Hurling Team of the Century. This team included players who never won an All-Ireland medal. In 2000, he was also chosen for the Munster Hurling Team of the Millennium.

Jimmy Smyth's Hurling Journey

Early Days at St. Flannan's College

Jimmy Smyth first showed his talent at St. Flannan's College in Ennis. This school was famous for producing great hurlers. Jimmy was a natural at hurling. He joined the Dean Ryan Cup team when he was only thirteen. He won his first medal when Ennis won the junior championship.

In his second year, he joined the Harty Cup team. He won his first Harty Cup medal that year. St. Flannan's beat the North Monastery from Cork to win the title. After that, they played in the All-Ireland final against St Joseph's of Marino. Jimmy's team won easily, 7–10 to 2–3. This gave him his first All-Ireland medal.

St Flannan's won the Harty Cup again in 1946. They beat the North Mon once more. In the All-Ireland final, they played O'Connell School from Dublin. It was a close game, but St. Flannan's won 5–7 to 5–2. This meant Jimmy had won his second All-Ireland medal.

Jimmy won his third Harty Cup medal in a row in 1947. They defeated St. Colman's College. St Flannan's reached the All-Ireland final again. This time, St Joseph's of Roscrea was their opponent. St. Flannan's won 6–8 to 3–1. This gave Jimmy his third All-Ireland medal in a row.

While at St Flannan's, Jimmy also won three medals playing for the Munster team in inter-provincial college games.

Club Success with Ruan

Jimmy played his club hurling with Ruan. He had a lot of success with them.

In 1948, Jimmy played for Ruan in four different age groups: minor, junior, intermediate, and senior. It was a great year! Ruan beat Clarecastle in the county final. This gave Jimmy his first senior championship medal. He also won an intermediate championship medal that same year.

After winning their first championship, Ruan won a second title three years later in 1951.

After a few quieter years, Jimmy's team reached the championship final again in 1959. They beat Éire Óg. This gave Jimmy his third championship medal. In 1960, they beat Scariff in the final. This was a famous "two-in-a-row" for Ruan and Jimmy's fourth championship medal.

They couldn't win three in a row, but the team reached the final again in 1962. They defeated Sixmilebridge that day. This gave Jimmy his fifth and final championship medal with Ruan.

Playing for Clare County

Jimmy first played for Clare as part of the minor hurling team. He started playing when he was just fourteen in 1945. He set a record for Clare by playing at this level for five years in a row. In his first year, Clare reached the Munster final. However, Tipperary beat them easily, 8–10 to 0–2.

When he was seventeen, Jimmy played his first senior game. It was a National Hurling League match against Galway in 1948. He didn't play in the 1949 championship because he was captain of the Clare junior hurling team. He won a Munster medal with the junior team, beating Cork 3–3 to 0–6. Clare then beat Kilkenny before playing London in the All-Ireland final. It was a very close game, but Clare lost by just one point, 3–7 to 3–6.

Jimmy played his first senior championship game in 1950. Clare lost to Tipperary in the Munster semi-final. In just a few seasons, he became known as one of the best scorers in the championship. His score of 6–4 against Limerick in the 1953 Munster quarter-final is still a record today!

In 1954, Clare reached the final of the Oireachtas Tournament. They played Wexford, who were All-Ireland runners-up. The game was a draw, 2–8 each. The replay was also close, but Clare won 3–6 to 0–12. This was Jimmy's first trophy with the Clare senior hurling team.

The next year, Jimmy's team played very well in the provincial championship. They beat Cork and Tipperary. This made Clare favorites to win the Munster title for the first time since 1932. However, Limerick surprised them and won 2–15 to 2–6.

Jimmy won a Thomond Feis medal in 1956. Clare won this warm-up tournament before the main season.

In late 1964, Jimmy left the Clare team. This was a surprise because he was still scoring a lot of points. For example, in 1963, he scored 16–27 in just seven games for Clare. He stopped playing for the county team too early. But he came back to play for the Clare intermediate team in 1966. Then, he returned to the Clare senior team in 1967. That year, he played in his second Munster final. Clare lost to Tipperary 4–12 to 2–6. This was Jimmy's last game for the Clare county team.

Playing for Munster Province

Jimmy also had the honor of playing for Munster in the inter-provincial games. He first joined the team in 1952. He was a substitute when Munster won the Railway Cup that year.

By 1955, Jimmy was a starting player. He won his first Railway Cup medal on the field that year. Munster beat Connacht 6–8 to 3–4.

Munster lost their title in 1956. But they won it back the next year with Jimmy playing in the forward line. They beat Leinster 5–7 to 2–5. This was his second Railway Cup medal. It was the first of five Railway Cup titles in a row for Munster. Jimmy played an important part in all those wins.

Munster couldn't win six in a row. However, they reached the Railway Cup final again in 1963. They narrowly beat Leinster 2–8 to 2–7 in a replay. This gave Jimmy his seventh Railway Cup medal on the field, and his eighth overall. It was also his last game for Munster.

About Jimmy Smyth's Life

Jimmy Smyth was born in Ruan, County Clare. He went to Kells National School. His mother was a teacher there and loved hurling. Jimmy's uncle also played hurling for Clare. Later, Jimmy went to St Flannan's College in Ennis for secondary school.

In 1959, Jimmy married Veronica Gleeson. They lived in Ennis and had four children: Ann, Patricia, Brighid, and Peter. In 1964, Jimmy got an important job at Croke Park in Dublin. So, he and his family moved to Dublin.

After he retired in 1988, Jimmy went to Trinity College, Dublin. He studied philosophy and got his Bachelor of Arts degree in 1993. His Master's thesis was about the songs, poems, and stories of Gaelic games in Munster.

Jimmy Smyth passed away on 9 February 2013.

Awards and Achievements

Team Awards

St Flannan's College

• Dr Croke Cup: 1945, 1946, 1947
• Dr Harty Cup: 1945, 1946, 1947

Ruan

• Clare Senior Club Hurling Championship: 1948, 1951, 1959, 1960, 1962

Clare

• Oireachtas Tournament: 1954
• Thomond Feis: 1956

Munster

• Railway Cup: 1952 (substitute), 1955, 1957, 1958, 1959, 1960, 1961, 1963

Individual Awards

• Hurling Team of the Century (for players who didn't win an All-Ireland): 1984
• Munster Hurling Team of the Millennium: 2000