Dick Doyle
Encyclopedia
Richard ‘Dick’ Doyle was an Irish
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. He played hurling
Hurling
Hurling is an outdoor team game of ancient Gaelic origin, administered by the Gaelic Athletic Association, and played with sticks called hurleys and a ball called a sliotar. Hurling is the national game of Ireland. The game has prehistoric origins, has been played for at least 3,000 years, and...

 with his local club Castlebridge and with the 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...

 senior inter-county team in the early 1900s. Doyle captained Wexford to their 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....

 title in 1910.

Biography

Dick Doyle was born in Castlebridge
Castlebridge
Castlebridge is a small village on the R741 regional road in County Wexford, Ireland, north of Wexford Town. It is located near the River Slaney and just north of Wexford Harbour...

, County Wexford
County Wexford
County Wexford is a county in Ireland. It is part of the South-East Region and is also located in the province of Leinster. It is named after the town of Wexford. In pre-Norman times it was part of the Kingdom of Uí Cheinnselaig, whose capital was at Ferns. Wexford County Council is the local...

 in 1879. He grew up on the family farm and later worked on the land himself. In his youth Doyle was regarded as a strong athlete, and he quickly started playing hurling
Hurling
Hurling is an outdoor team game of ancient Gaelic origin, administered by the Gaelic Athletic Association, and played with sticks called hurleys and a ball called a sliotar. Hurling is the national game of Ireland. The game has prehistoric origins, has been played for at least 3,000 years, and...

 with his local team.

Dick Doyle died in July 1946 aged 67.

Club

Doyle played his club hurling
Hurling
Hurling is an outdoor team game of ancient Gaelic origin, administered by the Gaelic Athletic Association, and played with sticks called hurleys and a ball called a sliotar. Hurling is the national game of Ireland. The game has prehistoric origins, has been played for at least 3,000 years, and...

 with his local Castlebridge side. He enjoyed little success with the club because the Wexford county championship was suspended on a number of occasions during the height of Doyle's playing career.

Inter-county

Doyle started playing hurling
Hurling
Hurling is an outdoor team game of ancient Gaelic origin, administered by the Gaelic Athletic Association, and played with sticks called hurleys and a ball called a sliotar. Hurling is the national game of Ireland. The game has prehistoric origins, has been played for at least 3,000 years, and...

 with the 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...

 inter-county team in the early 1900s. He was captain of the team in 1909 as Wexford were defeated by Laois
Laois GAA
The Laois County Board of the Gaelic Athletic Association or Laois GAA is one of the 32 county boards of the GAA in Ireland, and is responsible for Gaelic games in County Laois and the Laois inter-county teams.-History:...

 following an exciting Leinster semi-final.

Doyle retained the captaincy of the team in 1910 with Wexford reaching the Leinster final for the first time in almost a decade. 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...

 provided the opposition on that occasion as Doyle played a real captain's role. He scored a remarkable 3-1, enough to secure a 3-3 to 1-1 victory for his county. It was Doyle's first Leinster
Leinster Senior Hurling Championship
The Leinster GAA Hurling Championship is an annual hurling competition organised by the Gaelic Athletic Association since 1888 for the top hurling teams in the province of Leinster in Ireland....

 medal. Due to timetabling issues 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...

 actually represented Leinster in the early stage sof the All-Ireland series. Wexford, however, were back for the All-Ireland final with Limerick
Limerick GAA
The Limerick County Board of the Gaelic Athletic Association or Limerick GAA is one of the 32 county boards of the GAA in Ireland, and is responsible for Gaelic games in County Limerick...

 providing the opposition. The first-half was an exciting affair with Limerick having a goal disallowed. At the interval Wexford led by 6-0 to 3-1. The second-half saw a fierce onslaught by Limerick who had another goal disallowed. Doyle's side hung on to claim a 7-0 to 6-2 victory. Not only was it Doyle's 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 but iy was also the first time that Wexford won the championship. It would be forty-five years before the county won its second.
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