Jack Keoghan

Jack Keoghan (1888-?) was a famous Irish sportsperson. He played hurling with his local club Tullaroan and with the Kilkenny senior inter-county team from 1907 until 1914.

Club

Jack Keoghan played his club hurling with the famous Tullaroan club and enjoyed much success. He first played for the club at the age of fifteen and won his first senior county title in 1904. Keoghan added three more county titles to his collection in 1907, 1910 and 1911.

Inter-county

Keoghan quickly came to prominence on the inter-county scene and made his debut with Kilkenny in 1907. That year he collected his first Leinster title before later lining out in his first All-Ireland final. Cork provided the opposition on that occasion as 15,000 spectators witnessed a close game at Dungarvan. In a high-scoring game ‘the Cats’ secured a one-point victory giving Keoghan his first All-Ireland medal. Two years later in 1909 Keoghan captured a second Leinster medal as Kilkenny defeated Laois. The subsequent All-Ireland final saw Kilkenny take on Tipperary in Cork. Once again, the game was a high-scoring one as Tipperary suffered their first defeat in a championship decider. A 4-6 to 0-12 victory gave Keoghan his second All-Ireland medal. Two years later in 1911 he added a third provincial title to his collection following a win over Dublin. There was controversy in the All-Ireland final as Kilkenny were destined to play Limerick. On the first occasion the pitch in Cork was water-logged and the game was refixed for Thurles. Limerick pulled out of the replay and the title was awarded to Kilkenny. Limerick defeated Keoghan’s side in a challenge match later that same year. The following year Keoghan collected a fourth Leinster medal before lining out in another All-Ireland final. Cork provided the opposition on that occasion in a low-scoring but close game. In a pattern that would repeat itself on many occasions in the future, Kilkenny won by a single point giving Keoghan his fourth All-Ireland medal. In 1913 Kilkenny were attempting to make history by capturing their third championship in-a-row. They retained their provincial dominance with Keoghan collecting a fifth Leinster title. The All-Ireland final saw ‘the Cats’ square up to Tipperary in the first fifteen-a-side final. Kilkenny had the lead at half-time and only scored a goal in the second-half. They won the game by 2-4 to 1-2 giving Keoghan a fifth All-Ireland winners’ medal. Four All-Ireland titles in-a-row proved beyond this Kilkenny team as they were beaten by Laois in 1914.

Keoghan retired from inter-county hurling following that defeat and emigrated to the United States. Here he took a prominent role in the affairs of the Gaelic Athletic Association. Keoghan returned to Ireland twenty years later when he was chosen to on the United States team that played in the Tailteann Games.