Niall Donohue

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Niall Donohue
Personal information
Irish name Niall Ó Donnchú
Sport Hurling
Position Left half back (No7)
Born (1990-10-25)25 October 1990
Kilbeacanty, County Galway, Ireland
Died 23 October 2013(2013-10-23) (aged 22)
Height 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)
Club(s)
Years Club
2007–2013
Club titles
Galway titles 0
Inter-county(ies)
Years County Apps (scores)
2012–2013
 Galway 7 (0-1)
Inter-county titles
Leinster titles 1
All-Irelands 1 (U21)
NHL 0
All Stars 0

Niall Donohue (also spelled Donoghue) (25 October 1990 − 23 October 2013)[1] was an Irish hurler who played at senior level for the Galway senior team.[2]

Early life and career[]

Born in Kilbeacanty, County Galway, Donohue first played competitive hurling while at school in Gort Community School. He arrived on the inter-county scene at the age of seventeen when he first linked up with the Galway minor team, before later joining the under-21 side. He made his senior debut in the 2012 National Hurling League. Donohue played a key part for Galway over the following two seasons, and won one Leinster medal. He was an All-Ireland runner-up on one occasion. He was also nominated for an All Star this year.[when?] Throughout his career Donohue made eight championship appearances.[citation needed]

As a member of the Connacht inter-provincial team for two successive years, Donohue unsuccessfully contested two Railway Cup finals. At club level he played with .[citation needed]

Death[]

Donohue was found dead in his home on 23 October 2013, two days before his 23rd birthday.[1] His death brought the topic of suicide into public consciousness.[3] His funeral was attended by a large number of mourners from the GAA community across the country, including his Galway teammates. A number of other figures in the GAA, such as the Kilkenny manager Brian Cody and the association president Liam O'Neill, called to the Donohue family home to pay their respects.[4]

In 2017 following Galway's win at the All-Ireland Hurling final, winning captain David Burke paid tribute to Donohue in his winner's speech stating: "One other person I can't let today pass without mentioning: He was soldiering with us for years, a good friend of mine and first cousin of Conor Whelan, he passed away in 2013. Niall Donohue, we'll never forget him and we'll remember him today."

References[]

  1. ^ Jump up to: a b Ó Caollaí, Éanna (24 October 2013). "Galway hurler Niall Donohue dies suddenly aged 22". The Irish Times. Retrieved 24 October 2013.
    - "Galway hurling star Niall Donohue (22) dies suddenly". Irish Independent. 24 October 2013. Retrieved 24 October 2013.
  2. ^ "Player profiles: Niall Donoghue". Galway Hurling Supporters Club website. Archived from the original on 9 July 2012. Retrieved 23 August 2012.
  3. ^ "Niall Donoghue's cousin urges young people to reach out if they need to talk about problems". Mirror. 27 October 2013. Retrieved 27 October 2013.
  4. ^ Siggins, Lorna (28 October 2013). "Smiles among the tears as hurler Niall Donohue is laid to rest: Community asked to look out for signs of difficulty in others". The Irish Times. Retrieved 28 October 2013.
    - Crawford, Caroline (27 October 2013). "Farewell Niall Donohue: A thousand descend on Galway for hurler's funeral". Irish Independent. Retrieved 27 October 2013.


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