Last Man Standing: Hurling Goalkeepers

by Christy O'Connor

'Goalkeepers walk a tightrope between triumph and disaster...' The hurling goalkeeper must surely occupy the most precarious position on the pitch -- glorified as a savior if their team succeeds and damned if they fail. For this book Christy O'Connor has had unique and continuous access to twelve goalkeepers over one season and tracked their experiences through the highs and lows, the celebrations and rejections, the saves and the misses, resulting in an inside story never told before. The players talk frankly about the pressures, the passion, the trauma, the disappointments and glories, the utter despair at being dropped from the team and the long road back to re-selection. The brotherhood of goalies forms a kind of inner club within the hurling community -- here we are taken into its heart and spirit as never before. Donal Og Cusack (Cork); James McGarry (Kilkenny); Liam O'Donoghue (Galway); Brendan Cummins (Tipperary); Stevie Brenner (Waterford); Brian Mullins (Offaly); Timmy Houlihan (Limerick); Brendan McLoughlin (Dublin); Davy Fitzgerald (Clare); Graham Clarke (Down); DD Quinn (Antrim); Damien Fitzhenry (Wexford), as well as a wealth of stories and anecdotes about famous past teams and players.

320 pages, Paperback

First published August 26, 2005

Reviews

[Elaine]

Only makes sense if you hurl, but if you do, and like me are also a goalkeeper, it hits home.

[Joel]

Hurling is a field sport popular in Ireland. This book- written by a former goalkeeper, so he knows the subject well- follows about a dozen top-level hurling goalkeepers over the course of the 2004 season. They’re an interesting mix of players and personalities; some stars in their prime, some struggling for playing time, some near the end of their careers. Some of them are struggling to overcome mistakes they’ve made in important games.

The book was of particular interest to me, because I’ve been a hurling goalkeeper myself for the past 24 years (not in Ireland; in the Milwaukee Hurling Club). When the author, and his interview subjects, recount various key plays- both goals they allowed and saves they made- I could easily visualize what they’re talking about, and remember similar plays from my own experience.

What was outside my experience: the atmosphere and pressure of top-level hurling in Ireland. In America, hurling isn’t a well-known sport; at my games, the only spectators generally are family of the players. The goalkeepers profiled in this book play in stadiums filled with tens of thousands of screaming people, who are only too willing to cast goalkeepers as scapegoats if their team loses. The level of abuse some of these goalies take- sometimes even away from the stadium- is hair-raising.

It’s an excellent book, and easy to recommend to anyone who likes the sport. The main question is, is it worth reading if you’re not very familiar with hurling? There are a couple barriers to understanding the text; not only terminology specific to hurling, but also phrases that may be familiar to an Irish reader, which I (and probably most non-Irish readers) had to puzzle out by context. As long as you have a love of sport, though, I think you’ll find the effort worthwhile.

[Mark Carolan]

Superb book. A brilliant insight into what hurling means to each county as told through their eccentric goal keepers

[Aaron Fitzgerald]

Must read for all young hurlers for hurling inspirarional book.with chapters by donal og cusack and timmy quid.

[David Fay]

Great read. Goes through 14 or 15 of the hurling goalkeepers in 2004.