Martin Quigley

Martin Quigley (born 1951 in Rathnure, County Wexford) is an Irish former sportsman.

Quigley first came to prominence on the inter-county scene as a member of the Wexford minor hurling team in the 1960s.

He won a Leinster title in this grade in 1967 before later lining out in his first All-Ireland final.

Cork provided the opposition on that occasion and went on to claim a 2–15 to 5–3 victory.

Quigley won second Leinster minor medal in 1968 before lining out in a second All-Ireland final.

Cork were the opponents once again, however, the result was the same as 'the Rebels' took the title with a 2–13 to 3–7 win.

In 1969 Quigley moved up to the under-21 grade.

In this grade he won a Leinster title in 1969 before later lining out in the All-Ireland final.

A Cork team that he was well used to provided the opposition on that occasion and won the game by 5–13 to 4–7.

He played hurling for his local club Rathnure and at senior level for the Wexford county team in the 1970s and 1980s.

Quigley played his club hurling with the Rathnure club.

Quigley added a second Leinster under-21 title to his collection in 1970 before later playing in his second consecutive All-Ireland final.

Once again Cork provided the opposition, however, the game ended in a draw.

The replay proved more conclusive as 'the Rebels' trounced Quigley's side by 5–17 to 0–8.

He won a senior Leinster medal in 1970 as All-Ireland champions Kilkenny fell in the provincial final.

Galway were defeated in the penultimate game of the championship, setting up an All-Ireland final meeting with Cork, Quigley's bête noire an underage levels.

For the first time ever the final would be contested over eighty minutes instead of the usual sixty.

The game itself was an exciting affair with a record sixty-four scores and eleven goals in all.

After a free-flowing game Cork emerged victorious by 6–21 to 5–10.

Their opponents in the All-Ireland final were Cork, a team looking for their first championship title since 1970 when they defeated Wexford.

He won his first senior county title with the club in 1971.

These wins were converted into Leinster club titles in 1971 and 1973.

In 1971 Quigley was appointed captain of the under-21 team.

That year he collected a third consecutive Leinster medal before lining out in the All-Ireland final.

For the fifth year in-a-row Quigley faced Cork in a championship decider and, unfortunately, Cork made it five out of five with a 7–8 to 1–11 victory over the Leinster men.

By this stage Quigley had already made his debut on the Wexford senior team.

Quigley played in his next Leinster final in 1971.

The Kilkenny team of that era, a team often described as the greatest of all time, provided the opposition on that occasion.

It was the first of a famous four-in-a-row as further county titles were annexed in 1972, 1973 and 1974.

In fact, it was the first of five successive defeats at the hands of Kilkenny in Leinster finals for Wexford; however, Quigley missed the 1972 decider.

In spite of a lack of success in the championship Wexford reached the final of the National Hurling League in 1973.

On that occasion Limerick were the opponents, however, victory went to Wexford giving Quigley his first major title at senior level.

1976 saw Wexford and Kilkenny battle it out in the Leinster final for the seventh year in succession.

'The Cats' were going for a provincial six in-a-row and an All-Ireland three-in-a-row, however, Wexford shocked the reigning champions by 2–20 to 1–6.

It was a trouncing that nobody expected and it gave Quigley his second Leinster medal.

Wexford's championship campaign nearly came unstuck in their next game against Galway.

A high-scoring game ended in a 5–14 to 2–23 draw and a replay was forced at the newly opened Páirc Uí Chaoimh in Cork.

The second game was just as tense an affair, however, Wexford emerged victorious by 3–14 to 2–14.

Quigley won further county medals in 1977, 1979 and 1980.

He continued his club hurling well into the 1980s, winning both county and Leinster titles in 1986.