Eoin Kelly

Eoin Kelly (born 6 January 1982) is an Irish hurler who played as a right corner-forward at senior level for the Tipperary county team.

Born in Mullinahone, County Tipperary, Kelly first played competitive hurling whilst at school in St Kieran's College.

He arrived on the inter-county scene at the age of fifteen when he first linked up with the Tipperary minor team as a goalkeeper, before later joining the under-21 side.

Kelly was just fifteen-years-old when he made his minor championship debut for Tipperary as a goalkeeper in 1997.

In a progressive move by the selectors he was later moved from the number one position to a more natural place in the full-forward line.

He collected his first Munster medal that year following a 2–13 to 1–13 defeat of Clare.

In 1999 he won his first Leinster medal following a 3–13 to 1–11 defeat of Dublin Colleges.

Tipperary failed to retain their provincial crown the following year, however, in 1999 Kelly added a second Munster medal to his collection as Clare were defeated once again.

Tipp progressed to the All-Ireland final where old rivals Galway provided the opposition.

A 0–13 to 0–10 score line resulted in defeat for Kelly's side.

By this stage Kelly was also a key fixture on the Tipperary under-21 team.

He was still only seventeen years-old when he came on as a substitute against Clare to claim his first Munster medal in that grade in 1999.

He made his senior debut during the 2000 championship.

Kelly had a lengthy career, and won two All-Ireland medals, five Munster medals and two National Hurling League medals.

He was an All-Ireland runner-up on three occasions.

At international level Kelly has played for the composite rules shinty-hurling team.

As a member of the Munster inter-provincial team on a number of occasions, he won two Railway Cup medals.

At club level Kelly is a one-time championship medallist with Mullinahone.

His brother, Paul Kelly, is also an All-Ireland medallist with Tipperary, while his first cousins, Niall and Ollie Moran had lengthy careers with Limerick.

Kelly's career tally of 21 goals and 368 points ranks him as the third highest championship scorer of all-time.

He remains Tipperary's all-time top scorer.

Throughout his career Kelly made 63 championship appearances.

Kelly added a second Leinster medal to his collection in 2000, as Dublin Colleges were once again defeated by 2–13 to 1–10.

St Flannan's College provided the opposition in the subsequent All-Ireland decider.

Having come close to beating the Ennis-based school at the same stage the previous year, St Kieran's made no mistake this time and recorded a 1–10 to 0–9 victory, giving Kelly an All-Ireland medal.

During his studies at the Limerick Institute of Technology, Kelly was an automatic inclusion on the college hurling team.

After winning several divisional championship titles, the highlight of his club career came in 2002 when Mullinahone reached the final of the senior championship for only the second time in their history.

Local kingpins Thurles Sarsfields provided the opposition, however, in spite of leading by six points coming into the final quarter, the game ended in a 0–14 apiece draw.

The replay was more conclusive.

Kelly scored a remarkable 2–7 and picked up the man of the match award as Mullinahone claimed a 2–10 to 1–11 victory.

Not only was it Kelly's first championship medal but it was also a first title for the club.

In 2003 Tipperary broke through Limerick's stranglehold on the championship and Kelly secured a second Munster medal following a 2–14 to 0–17 defeat of Cork after extra-time.

In 2005 he was captain of the team that faced the University of Limerick in the final of the Fitzgibbon Cup.

LIT failed to bend under the weight of history and recorded a comprehensive 2–13 to 3–4 victory to claim the title for the very first time.

Kelly was just sixteen-year-old when he became a regular member of the Mullinahone senior hurling team.

He has often been voted onto teams made up of the sport's greats, including at right corner-forward on a special Munster team of the quarter century in 2009.

Kelly has accepted a role as selector under Davy Fitzgerald for the Waterford senior hurling team for the 2023 season.

During his schooling at St Kieran's College in Kilkenny, Kelly established himself as a key member of the senior hurling team.

His announced his retirement from inter-county hurling on 1 December 2014.

During his playing days, Kelly won six All-Star awards.