Liz Neary
Encyclopedia
Liz Neary is a retired Irish
sportsperson. She played camogie
at various times with her local clubs St. Paul's and Austin Stacks and was a member of the Kilkenny
senior inter-county team from 1970 until 1987. Neary is regarded as one of the greatest players of all-time.
In a senior inter-county career that lasted for nineteen years she won seven All-Ireland medals, five National League medals and five Gael Linn Interprovincial medals. With her two clubs St. Paul’s and Austin Stack’s she collected a huge haul of twenty-one county titles and six All-Ireland club medals.
Neary was also presented with a number of personal awards during her career. In 1981 and 1986 she was honoured with the prestigious B&I Player of the Year Award. In 2004 she was named on the Camogie Team of the Century.
in 1951. She was educated locally and later attended the Presentation Convent in Kilkenny. It was here that her camogie
skills were first developed. Neary captained the school to the All-Ireland Colleges’ title in 1970.
with the famed St Paul’s
camogie club in Kilkenny and enjoyed much success. When the club disbanded in the early 1990s she had already collected twenty county titles. During this period Neary also won six All-Ireland club titles, the first of which came in 1970. She won the last of her six All-Ireland club medals nineteen years later in 1989. Downey later joined the Austin Stacks
club in Dublin and enjoyed further success by winning yet another county medal.
in 1968. By 1972 she was a key member of the team and she lined out in her first championship decider. Cork provided the opposition again and it was ‘the Rebel’ ladies who captured a 2-5 to 1-4 victory.
Two years later in 1974 Kilkenny were back in the All-Ireland final and, once again, Cork were the opponents. Both sides ended level with Kilkenny scoring 3-8 and Cork scoring 4-5. The replay took place a few weeks later. Kilkenny won by 3-3 to 1-5 and Neary captured her first All-Ireland
medal.
Kilkenny surrendered their All-Ireland crown in 1975, however, Neary lined out in a third All-Ireland final in 1976. On that occasion Kilkenny took on Dublin
. A close game followed with neither side taking a definite lead. At the full-time whistle Kilkenny were the winners by 0-6 to 1-2. It was Neary’s second All-Ireland medal.
In 1977 Neary was a key player in Kilkenny’s quest for back-to-back All-Ireland titles. That year she lined out in the All-Ireland final once again. Wexford
, the winners of the championship two years earlier, provided the opposition. Kilkenny won on a score line of 3-4 to 1-3. It was Neary’s third All-Ireland medal.
Kilkenny went into decline for the next few years; however, Neary added a National Camogie League medal to her collection in 1980. It was Kilkenny’s first title in that competition. This victory acted as a launch pad for further All-Ireland success. In 1981 Neary was appointed captain of the Kilkenny senior camogie team. That year Kilkenny squared up against Cork in the championship decider. After an exciting game both sides ended with 3-9 apiece. The replay was not as exciting, however, it was more conclusive, Kilkenny won that game by 1-9 to 0-7 with Neary collecting a fourth All-Ireland medal. She also lifted the O'Duffy Cup
. She was later named as the B&I Player of the Years.
All-Ireland success was slow in coming over the next few years; however, Neary won a second National League medal with Kilkenny in 1982. Three years later in 1985 she collected a third winners’ medal in that competition. Kilkenny later qualified for another All-Ireland final. Dublin provided the opposition on that occasion; however, they faced a Kilkenny team that was on the verge of dominating camogie for the bones of the next decade. The final ended with a 0-13 to 1-5 victory for ‘the Cats’, giving her a fifth All-Ireland medal.
1986 saw Neary being appointed captain again. That year she guided Kilkenny to a second consecutive All-Ireland final. For the second year in-a-row Dublin provided the opposition, however, once again the result was the same. Kilkenny were much too strong for ‘the Dubs’ and won the game by 2-12 to 2-3. It was Neary’s sixth All-Ireland title while she also joined a club of players that had captained their county to more than one All-Ireland victory. Neary was later named B&I Player of the Year.
In 1987 Neary added a fourth National League medal to her collection after Kilkenny got the better of Dublin in yet another national final. Later that year Kilkenny qualified for the All-Ireland final. It was an historic occasion as Downey’s side were hoping to capture a third All-Ireland title in-a-row, something that Kilkenny had never achieved. Cork stood in their way, however, Kilkenny gave a great performance in the final. The full-time score of 3-10 to 1-7 gave Kilkenny the victory and gave Neary a seventh All-Ireland medal. She retired from inter-county camogie following this victory.
in the Gael Linn sponsored inter-provincial camogie championship. She won five inter-provincial camogie titles with her province.
Republic of Ireland
Ireland , described as the Republic of Ireland , is a sovereign state in Europe occupying approximately five-sixths of the island of the same name. Its capital is Dublin. Ireland, which had a population of 4.58 million in 2011, is a constitutional republic governed as a parliamentary democracy,...
sportsperson. She played camogie
Camogie
Camogie is an Irish stick-and-ball team sport played by women; it is almost identical to the game of hurling played by men. Camogie is played by 100,000 women in Ireland and world wide, largely among Irish communities....
at various times with her local clubs St. Paul's and Austin Stacks and was a member of the Kilkenny
Kilkenny GAA
The Kilkenny County Board of the Gaelic Athletic Association is one of the 32 county boards of the GAA in Ireland and is responsible for Gaelic Games in County Kilkenny. The county board has its head office and main grounds at Nowlan Park and is also responsible for Kilkenny inter-county teams...
senior inter-county team from 1970 until 1987. Neary is regarded as one of the greatest players of all-time.
In a senior inter-county career that lasted for nineteen years she won seven All-Ireland medals, five National League medals and five Gael Linn Interprovincial medals. With her two clubs St. Paul’s and Austin Stack’s she collected a huge haul of twenty-one county titles and six All-Ireland club medals.
Neary was also presented with a number of personal awards during her career. In 1981 and 1986 she was honoured with the prestigious B&I Player of the Year Award. In 2004 she was named on the Camogie Team of the Century.
Biography
Liz Neary was born in KilkennyKilkenny
Kilkenny is a city and is the county town of the eponymous County Kilkenny in Ireland. It is situated on both banks of the River Nore in the province of Leinster, in the south-east of Ireland...
in 1951. She was educated locally and later attended the Presentation Convent in Kilkenny. It was here that her camogie
Camogie
Camogie is an Irish stick-and-ball team sport played by women; it is almost identical to the game of hurling played by men. Camogie is played by 100,000 women in Ireland and world wide, largely among Irish communities....
skills were first developed. Neary captained the school to the All-Ireland Colleges’ title in 1970.
Club
Neary played most of her club camogieCamogie
Camogie is an Irish stick-and-ball team sport played by women; it is almost identical to the game of hurling played by men. Camogie is played by 100,000 women in Ireland and world wide, largely among Irish communities....
with the famed St Paul’s
St Paul’s Camogie Club
St Paul’s is a former camogie club based in Kilkenny city. Ireland, one of the most successful in the history of the game. It won the All Ireland club championship in 1968, 1969, 1970, 1974, 1976, 1987, 1988, and 1989.-Background:...
camogie club in Kilkenny and enjoyed much success. When the club disbanded in the early 1990s she had already collected twenty county titles. During this period Neary also won six All-Ireland club titles, the first of which came in 1970. She won the last of her six All-Ireland club medals nineteen years later in 1989. Downey later joined the Austin Stacks
Austin Stacks
Austin Stacks is a hurling and Gaelic football club based in Tralee in County Kerry, Ireland. It has more All-Ireland Senior Football Championship medals and GAA All-Stars than any other GAA club in Ireland...
club in Dublin and enjoyed further success by winning yet another county medal.
Inter-county
Neary was still in secondary school when she first played senior camogie with KilkennyKilkenny GAA
The Kilkenny County Board of the Gaelic Athletic Association is one of the 32 county boards of the GAA in Ireland and is responsible for Gaelic Games in County Kilkenny. The county board has its head office and main grounds at Nowlan Park and is also responsible for Kilkenny inter-county teams...
in 1968. By 1972 she was a key member of the team and she lined out in her first championship decider. Cork provided the opposition again and it was ‘the Rebel’ ladies who captured a 2-5 to 1-4 victory.
Two years later in 1974 Kilkenny were back in the All-Ireland final and, once again, Cork were the opponents. Both sides ended level with Kilkenny scoring 3-8 and Cork scoring 4-5. The replay took place a few weeks later. Kilkenny won by 3-3 to 1-5 and Neary captured her first All-Ireland
All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship
The GAA Hurling All-Ireland Senior Championship is an annual hurling competition organised by the Gaelic Athletic Association since 1887 for the top hurling teams in Ireland....
medal.
Kilkenny surrendered their All-Ireland crown in 1975, however, Neary lined out in a third All-Ireland final in 1976. On that occasion Kilkenny took on Dublin
Dublin GAA
Dublin County Board of the Gaelic Athletic Association , or Dublin GAA, is one of the 32 county boards of the GAA in Ireland, and is responsible for Gaelic games in County Dublin. The county board is also responsible for the Dublin inter-county teams...
. A close game followed with neither side taking a definite lead. At the full-time whistle Kilkenny were the winners by 0-6 to 1-2. It was Neary’s second All-Ireland medal.
In 1977 Neary was a key player in Kilkenny’s quest for back-to-back All-Ireland titles. That year she lined out in the All-Ireland final once again. Wexford
Wexford GAA
The Wexford County Board of the Gaelic Athletic Association or Wexford GAA is one of the 32 county boards of the GAA in Ireland, and is responsible for Gaelic games in County Wexford. The county board is also responsible for the Wexford inter-county teams.-History:Hurling has been played in...
, the winners of the championship two years earlier, provided the opposition. Kilkenny won on a score line of 3-4 to 1-3. It was Neary’s third All-Ireland medal.
Kilkenny went into decline for the next few years; however, Neary added a National Camogie League medal to her collection in 1980. It was Kilkenny’s first title in that competition. This victory acted as a launch pad for further All-Ireland success. In 1981 Neary was appointed captain of the Kilkenny senior camogie team. That year Kilkenny squared up against Cork in the championship decider. After an exciting game both sides ended with 3-9 apiece. The replay was not as exciting, however, it was more conclusive, Kilkenny won that game by 1-9 to 0-7 with Neary collecting a fourth All-Ireland medal. She also lifted the O'Duffy Cup
O'Duffy Cup
The All-Ireland Senior Camogie Championship is the premier round-robin and knock-out competition in the game of camogie played in Ireland. The series of games are organised by the Camogie Association and are played during the summer months with the All-Ireland Camogie Final being played on the...
. She was later named as the B&I Player of the Years.
All-Ireland success was slow in coming over the next few years; however, Neary won a second National League medal with Kilkenny in 1982. Three years later in 1985 she collected a third winners’ medal in that competition. Kilkenny later qualified for another All-Ireland final. Dublin provided the opposition on that occasion; however, they faced a Kilkenny team that was on the verge of dominating camogie for the bones of the next decade. The final ended with a 0-13 to 1-5 victory for ‘the Cats’, giving her a fifth All-Ireland medal.
1986 saw Neary being appointed captain again. That year she guided Kilkenny to a second consecutive All-Ireland final. For the second year in-a-row Dublin provided the opposition, however, once again the result was the same. Kilkenny were much too strong for ‘the Dubs’ and won the game by 2-12 to 2-3. It was Neary’s sixth All-Ireland title while she also joined a club of players that had captained their county to more than one All-Ireland victory. Neary was later named B&I Player of the Year.
In 1987 Neary added a fourth National League medal to her collection after Kilkenny got the better of Dublin in yet another national final. Later that year Kilkenny qualified for the All-Ireland final. It was an historic occasion as Downey’s side were hoping to capture a third All-Ireland title in-a-row, something that Kilkenny had never achieved. Cork stood in their way, however, Kilkenny gave a great performance in the final. The full-time score of 3-10 to 1-7 gave Kilkenny the victory and gave Neary a seventh All-Ireland medal. She retired from inter-county camogie following this victory.
Provincial
Neary also lined out with LeinsterLeinster GAA
The Leinster Council is a Provincial council of the Gaelic Athletic Association sports of hurling, Gaelic football, camogie, rounders and handball in the province of Leinster. The Leinster Council has been partnered with the European County Board to help develop Gaelic Games in Europe...
in the Gael Linn sponsored inter-provincial camogie championship. She won five inter-provincial camogie titles with her province.
Retirement
In 2004 she was named in the right corner-back position on a special team picked to celebrate the centenary of the Camogie Association of Ireland.Sources
- Corry, Eoghan, The GAA Book of Lists (Hodder Headline Ireland, 2005).
- Donegan, Des, The Complete Handbook of Gaelic Games (DBA Publications Limited, 2005).
- Fullam, Brendan, Captains of the Ash, (Wolfhound Press, 2002).