Paudie Sheehy

Paudie Sheehy (1932–1967) was an Irish sportsperson. He played Gaelic football with his local club John Mitchels and was a member of the senior Kerry county team from the 1953 until 1962. A son of the footballer John Joe and brother of Seán Óg and Niall, Sheehy captained Kerry on two occasions.^[1]

Club[]

Sheehy won six Kerry Senior Football Championship medals with John Mitchels in 1952 and five in a row between 1959 and 1963.^{[citation needed]}

College[]

During his college days he played with University College Cork. He won two Sigerson Cup titles during his time with the Cork side. In 1951/52 and again in 1952/53 as the team's captain.^{[citation needed]}

Underage[]

Sheehy first lined out with Kerry at minor level in 1949. He won a Munster Minor Football Championship medal after win final win over Cork.^[2] Sheehy's side later qualified for the All-Ireland Minor Football Championship where they faced Armagh. A 1-07 to 1-05 win seen the title go to the Orchard County.

Sheehy played with the Kerry minor team again in 1950. He won a Munster Minor Football Championship medal after win final win over Limerick.^[3] Sheehy's side later qualified for the All-Ireland Minor Football Championship where they faced Wexford. A 3-06 to 1-04 win over Wexford seen Sheehy pick up a winners medal.^[4]

He also played hurling with Kerry at minor level.

Senior[]

^[5]

Sheehy went straight into the Kerry in 1951. He made his debut in the Munster Senior Football Championship final win over Cork.^[6] He was named at Left Half Forward for the All-Ireland semi-final replay with Mayo, a game Kerry would lose.^[7]

He played in all of Kerry's 1951–52 National Football League games scoring an impressive 1-15 in six games as Kerry lost the Division 3 final to Cork.^[8]

He later made his first Munster Senior Football Championship start at Left Half Forward where he scored four points in a 0-14 to 1-07 win over Waterford. He kept his place for the final against Cork. It was a disaster at the Cork Athletic Grounds as the holders crashed out on a 0-11 to 0-02 scoreline. Despite failing to score in the final he was still Kerry's second highest scorer in the championship.^[9]

He's form kept up during the 1952–53 National Football League. He played in all of Kerry's games as they lost out in the semi-final to Cavan. He end the campaign as Kerry's top scorer with 1-21.<ref> http://www.terracetalk.com/kerry-football/year/1953/League<\ref> Despite being just 21 years old Sheehy was made the sides captain. He hit the ground running by hitting 3-03 in a 6-10 to 0-02 semi-final win over Clare. Despite being held to a single point in the final against Cork his side did enough to take the title on a 2-07 to 2-03 scoreline. This gave Sheehy his second Munster Senior Football Championship medal as well as being the side captain. In the All-Ireland semi-final Kerry faced Leinster champions Louth. Another good display from Sheehy, as he scored two points, in a 3-06 to 1-06 win. Kerry were to face Armagh in the final. However, there was a depute as to weither Sheehy would make the starting lineup for the final. Things were made more complicated as Sheehy's own father John Joe was one of the teams selectors. At the selection meeting before the All-Ireland final, John Joe excused himself from the room when they reached Paudie's position; by the time he returned, his son had been dropped.Jas Murphy would go on the lead Kerry to a seventeenth title on a 0-13 to 1-06 scoreline. Despite being the sides captain at the start of the campaign and their top scorer Sheehy failed to make an appearance during the game.

Despite only scoring in two of the five games he played in during the 1953–54 National Football League he still finished as Kerry's third highest scorer with 1-05.

He began the championship in good form with two points in a 3-10 to 1-02 Munster semi-final with over Waterford. He lined out in his fourth Munster Senior Football Championship final when Kerry again faced Cork. Three points from Sheehy seen his side take the title on a 4-09 to 2-03 scoreline and a third Munster medal for Paudie. His contribution of 1-01 in the All-Ireland semi-final with Galway proved to be the difference in a 2-06 to 1-06 win. After the disappointment a year before Sheehy got his chance to line out in a senior final as Kerry squared off with Leinster champions Meath. It wasn't a good day for the Tralee man however, as he failed to score and Kerry lot out on a 1-13 to 1-07 scoreline.

He played in all of Kerry's 1954–55 National Football League games but his sdie failed to make the knockout stages.

For the second season in a row Kerry accounted for Waterford in the Munster Senior Football Championship. It was Cork again in the final. It was a game that cemented Sheehy as one of the games top forwards as he hit five points in a 0-14 to 2-06 win and a fourth Munster title. Kerry faced Cavan in the All-Ireland semi-final. In a game where he failed to score the sides ended level. In the replay two points from Sheehy helped his side make no mistake with a 4-07 to 0-05 win. The win seen Kerry qualify for a third All-Ireland Senior Football Championship in a row. In Sheehy's second final Kerry faced hot favorites Dublin. Dublin had drawn much attention to themselves by dismantling the reigning All-Ireland champions Meath in the final of that year's Leinster Senior Football Championship in what was a twenty-point win, with Kevin Heffernan in fine form. Sheehy only managed a single point, as Jim Brosnan, scored two crucial second-half points, he flown home from New York for the final, where he had been studying medicine. After the disappointment of missing out on the 1953 win Sheehy had his first All-Ireland Senior Football Championship medal following in his father John Joe's footsteps.

The next few season would see little in terms of success for Sheehy and Kerry. A Munster Senior Football Championship final loss after a re-play was his lot in 1956. Things got a whole lot worse in 1957 as Kerry suffered a shock loss to Waterford in the Munster Senior Football Championship first round.

Honours[]

College[]

University College Cork

• Sigerson Cup (2): 1951/52, 1952/53 (c)

Club[]

John Mitchels

• Kerry Senior Football Championship (6): 1952, 1959, 1960(c), 1961, 1962, 1963

County[]

Kerry

• Munster Senior Football Championship (8): 1951, 1953, 1954, 1955, 1958, 1960, 1961, 1962
• All-Ireland Senior Football Championship (3): 1955, 1959, 1962
• National Football League (1) 1959
• Munster Minor Football Championship (2) 1949, 1950
• All-Ireland Minor Football Championship (1) 1950

References[]