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Hanniffy bows out
03 April 2008


Still reeling from their relegation to Division 2 of the NHL, Offaly have suffered another severe blow with the news that Gary Hanniffy has retired from inter-county hurling.

The Birr clubman, who turns 31 on Friday, has informed Offaly manager Joe Dooley of his decision, and his retirement severs the last remaining link with Offaly's 1998 All-Ireland winning team. A powerful presence of the '40', Hanniffy's finest performance in an Offaly jersey came in the 2000 All-Ireland semi-final victory over Cork when he ran no less a player than Brian Corcoran ragged.

Hanniffy has been working in Cork for the past three years as an environmental adviser and revealed this was a major factor in his decision to quit.

"I'm in Cork three years now and I'm not getting any quieter in the job. There's no getting away from the fact that it's 130 miles away from home," he said.

"Inter-county is a completely different level of commitment than club all the way through the summer and in and out of the gym. You don't complain about it because you're enjoying it when you're doing it."

Hanniffy confirmed that he will continue to line out for Birr, who he captained to All-Ireland club glory in 2003.

"It's been a double-edged sword because we've had huge success with Birr and limited success with Offaly but at the end of the day it was always a privilege to pull on the Offaly jersey and I suppose that's why I did it."

I think that was widely expected. It's a bit sad because ultimately he never really played to his full potential for the county for any length of time at all. There were occasional games where he was outstanding, most notably the AI semi in 2000, but all in all he just never did as much as a guy with his size and skill should have been able to do. I hope that doesn;t come across as too critical - if it does it's only because I always regarded his ability very highly, and while he might have played alongside lads who were doing no better than him, Gary was never a guy you had to wonder if he was good enough to play intercounty - you knew he was.

Birr seemed to get the best out of him a lot more frequently for whatever reason.

Still - fair play, I don't think anyone could blame him for taking that decision when he's based in Cork. He's put a lot of effort in down the years and all supporters would thank him for that, myself definitely included.

He'll be a loss to Offaly. He gave 11 years good service to the county, despite being based outside of the county. He was one of the few Offaly players capable of troubling the opposition under a high ball.
He always comes across as a gentleman and is highly regarded.

He had some great days in the Offaly jersey.
Remember he came off the bench and struck 3 great points against Clare down in Thurles in 1998.
Ultimately the winning margin that day.

He helped usher Brian Corcoran into early retirement in 2000.
He could strike points on the run off both sides and once he got into his stride he was hard to stop.

Granted he often got bottled up by his marker once he caught the ball. Partly due to Offaly puckouts tending to be lofted and "falling softly" rather than being delivered bullet style - Meaning his marker could have him well collared by the time the ball arrived. I think Offaly managers could have got him to adopt a catch and fling the handpass type game, rather than trying to strike when static and tightly marshalled.

This year, we have very few feasible targets for clearances and puckouts.
I fear the "invisible wall" will be extra bouncy this year.
The magical wall on the opposition '45 that we can't seem to get that ball beyond.
Where every Offaly clearance is won by the opposition and instantly rammed back down the field.

It is something akin to trying to playing tennis, where your opponent is a 100 foot high wall built at the net.

Thanks to Gary for his years of service and for contributing to some great times. As mentioned above the 2000 semi was an amazing display.

Best of luck in the future Gary.

A player with huge potential and in my opinion under the right manager could have been a top class intercounty hurler.
Didnt help his cause been in Cork the last 3 years.

All the best for the future

Best wishes to Gary on his retirement. I won't lie, he drove me to despair numerous times in the past playing for Offaly, I'd say he was the most hooked hurler in Ireland. However today is not the day for highlighting any limitations he had, and he had a lot of positives too, but his longevity and commitment in travelling from Cork especially are a credit to him. I hope he plays for a while with Birr yet, and it's sad to be breaking the final link with 1998. I wonder when next we will have an All Ireland medallist retiring?

I wholeheartedly agree. His commitment to the county was top class. T'wont be the same without him.

Kevin wrote:Thanks to Gary for his years of service and for contributing to some great times. As mentioned above the 2000 semi was an amazing display.

Best of luck in the future Gary.

Best of luck to Gary

as an aside
Lads/lasses, was Ger Oakley not a panellist in 98? My recollection is he played in some of the early rounds, lost his place and dropped off the panel - however i thought he rejoined the panel before the end of the year

Turk,

I'm nearly certain you are correct. I remember Babs spouting off that he just was not good enough for intercounty hurling, but then Michael Bond brought him back into the fold unless I am mistaken...anyone out there who can help on this item?

He was.
He started the second match against Clare, it didn't go well for him and he was taken off during the first half.
He withdrew from the panel for the third match against Clare but was brought back on the panel for the final.

turk wrote:as an aside
Lads/lasses, was Ger Oakley not a panellist in 98? My recollection is he played in some of the early rounds, lost his place and dropped off the panel - however i thought he rejoined the panel before the end of the year

Something for ye for a Friday.

in how many different venues did Gary Hanniffy play championship hurling for Offaly?

12?

Crow Park
Navan
Thurles
Pairc Ui C
Nowlan Park
Portleix
Limerick
Ennis
Parnell Park
Tellamore
Carlow
Mullingar (this is the tricky one?)

It's eleven on my count, being the first eleven Bord na Mona man listed.
Gary didn't appear in the 1997 match against Meath in Mullingar. He made his championship debut in the next round against Laois. Thats according to "The Music of the Ash".
Actually Ger Oakley played in that match in Mullingar, giving him championship appearances at twelve different venues. I doubt there are many (if any) in the country who have exceeded that. I wonder?

Bord na Mona man wrote:12?
Mullingar (this is the tricky one?)

All the best Gary and thanks for all your years of service in the tri-colour jersey. People that know you say that you are a true gent and you're dedication to the County can never be questioned. That performance in 2000 against the rebels will never be forgotten, you will be missed on the 40' this year.

Best of Luck to Gary and Thanks for the Inter-County Memories, especially Thurles 1998 and the Ending of Brian Corcoran's Illustrious First Career as a Centre-Half-Back.