Ciarán Kilkenny (born 7 July 1993) is an Irish Gaelic footballer who plays for the Dublin county team and as a dual player for his club Castleknock. He was previously on the playing list of Australian rules football club Hawthorn, as a rookie.[1]
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Irish name | Ciarán Mac Giolla Chainnigh | ||
| Sport | Gaelic football | ||
| Position | Centre forward | ||
| Born |
7 July 1993 Dublin, Ireland | ||
| Height | 1.85 m (6 ft 1 in) | ||
| Occupation | Primary Teacher | ||
| Club(s) | |||
| Years | Club | ||
| Castleknock | |||
| Club titles | |||
| Dublin titles | 1 | ||
| Leinster titles | 1 | ||
| Inter-county(ies)* | |||
| Years | County | Apps (scores) | |
2012– | Dublin | 72 (7-146) | |
| Inter-county titles | |||
| Leinster titles | 12 | ||
| All-Irelands | 8 | ||
| NFL | 5 | ||
| All Stars | 6 | ||
| *Inter County team apps and scores correct as of match played 29 June 2024. | |||
He has featured on an advertising billboard campaign in India.[2]
Early life
editKilkenny attended Scoil Oilibhéir in Clonsilla.[3]
Hurling
editKilkenny represented Dublin at underage at several levels. Despite being previously offered a place on the Dublin senior hurling panel, he chose to dedicate his time solely to football. [citation needed]
Kilkenny does, however, still play hurling for his club, Castleknock.[citation needed]
Football
editClub
editKilkenny won the Dublin Minor Football Championship with Castleknock in 2011.[4] He won the Dublin Junior Football Championship with Castleknock, his last medal before switching codes to Aussie rules.
Inter-county
editMinor/U21
editKilkenny won the 2011 Leinster Minor Football Championship[5] and the Leinster Minor Hurling Championship with Dublin in 2011. He was on the losing side for both teams in the All-Ireland finals in 2011 at Croke Park.
Kilkenny was called up to the Dublin under 21 team in 2012. He won the Leinster Under 21 Football Championship with Dublin in March 2012. Ciaran scored a total of 1-07 in the Leinster final against Louth at Páirc Tailteann in Navan. The game finished on 1-16 to 0-08 with Dublin winning the game by a comfortable 11 point margin to become Leinster champions for the tenth time.[6] Ciaran Kilkenny scored a total of 2-25 (0-7f) for Dublin in the Leinster Championship.[7] Dublin went on to meet Cork in the All-Ireland semi-final at Portlaoise. Kilkenny scored just one point in a game in which Dublin won against the Munster champions. The game finished on a scoreline of 3-11 to 0-14.[8] Ciarán won the all-Ireland under 21 championship with Dublin against Connacht champions Roscommon in Tullamore. Kilkenny scored a total of four points in a close game against Roscommon which ended with heavy scoring from Dublin. The game finished on a scoreline of 2-12 to 1-11.[9]
Kilkenny was named the Cadbury's Hero of the Future for his performances with Dublin in 2012.[10]
Senior
editKilkenny made his debut for the Dublin senior football team against Laois in the 2012 All-Ireland Senior Football Championship when he came on as a substitute for Diarmuid Connolly.[11] He made his first start for the Dublin senior football team against Mayo in the 2012 All-Ireland football semi-final defeat. He scored three points in the game.[12]
Move to AFL
editKilkenny was linked to a possible move to Australia as a rookie in the Australian AFL.[13] Dublin football legend Dessie Farrell described the potential departure of Kilkenny to Australian football as "a huge loss".[14]
Hawthorn confirmed the signing on 29 September 2011, after Carlton had also tried to secure the 19-year-old's services. Kilkenny flew to Melbourne to visit Hawthorn officials at Waverley, and was scheduled to become the first Irishman to play at the club.[15] Recent changes to rookie list rules had made the recruitment of Irish players more appealing, with clubs now able to count one Irish player as an international rookie, meaning the player does not take up a main rookie spot.
After just four months and a return to Ireland for the Christmas, Kilkenny decided for personal reasons to remain in Ireland where he wished to pursue a career with Castleknock and Dublin.[16]
Return to Ireland
editUpon his return to the native soil, Kilkenny collected both the 2013 NFL title and 2013 All-Ireland Senior Football Championship title with Dublin. In March 2014, he tore his anterior cruciate ligament while fulfilling a Dublin football fixture at Croke Park against Kildare in a 2014 NFL, causing him to miss the rest of the season.[17]
This section needs expansion. You can help by adding to it. (November 2019) |
By winning his sixth All Star in 2022, he drew level with Stephen Cluxton and became the Dublin player with the joint highest number of awards.[19]
International rules
editKilkenny played twice for Ireland against Australia in the 2013 International Rules Series, and scored a goal in the second Test at Croke Park.[20][21]
Career statistics
edit- As of match played 28 June 2024
| Team | Year | National League | Leinster | All-Ireland | Total | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Score | Apps | Score | Apps | Score | Apps | Score | ||
| Dublin | 2012 | Division 1 | - | 2 | 0-03 | 2 | 0-03 | |||
| 2013 | 3 | 0-08 | 3 | 0-03 | 6 | 0-11 | ||||
| 2014 | DNP due to injury | |||||||||
| 2015 | 3 | 0-10 | 4 | 0-08 | 7 | 0-18 | ||||
| 2016 | 3 | 0-04 | 4 | 0-01 | 7 | 0-05 | ||||
| 2017 | 3 | 1-08 | 3 | 0-01 | 6 | 1-09 | ||||
| 2018 | 3 | 2-15 | 4 | 0-09 | 7 | 2-24 | ||||
| 2019 | 3 | 0-05 | 5 | 1-08 | 8 | 1-13 | ||||
| 2020 | 3 | 1-13 | 2 | 0-07 | 5 | 1-20 | ||||
| 2021 | 3 | 0-10 | 1 | 0-03 | 4 | 0-13 | ||||
| 2022 | 3 | 1-06 | 2 | 0-06 | 5 | 1-12 | ||||
| 2023 | Division 2 | 3 | 1-08 | 5 | 0-02 | 8 | 1-10 | |||
| 2024 | Division 1 | 3 | 0-05 | 4 | 0-03 | 7 | 0-08 | |||
| Career total | 33 | 6-92 | 39 | 1-54 | 72 | 7-146 | ||||
Honours
edit- Dublin
- Individual
- All Star (6): 2015, 2016, 2018, 2020, 2021, 2022
References
edit- ^ "I'm eager to break Rules".
- ^ "Dublin star Ciarán Kilkenny seems surprised to be the face of a billboard campaign in India". Irish Independent. 17 November 2018. Retrieved 17 November 2018.
- ^ Meagher, John (31 August 2019). "Lattes and lineballs: How the GAA conquered the Dublin suburbs". Irish Independent. Independent News & Media. Retrieved 31 August 2019.
- ^ "Castleknock are Dublin Minor a Champions - HoganStand".
- ^ "DubZone | Dublin GAA's Online Community | Dublin GAA Newsletter".
- ^ "News".
- ^ "News".
- ^ "All-Ireland U21 FC semi-final: Dubs march on - HoganStand".
- ^ "All-Ireland U21 FC semi-final: Dubs march on - HoganStand".
- ^ "Dublin Under-21 star Ciarán Kilkenny honoured". RTÉ News. 23 May 2012.
- ^ "Dublin 1-12 Laois 0-12". RTÉ News. 4 August 2012.
- ^ "Dublin 0-16 Mayo 0-19". RTÉ News. 2 September 2012.
- ^ "Dubs starlet Kilkenny targeted by AFL club | News | eircom SportsHub". Archived from the original on 16 July 2012.
- ^ "Kilkenny would be a huge loss to Dublin football - Farrell".
- ^ "Hawks sign Irish star Kilkenny - AFL.com.au". Archived from the original on 5 October 2012. Retrieved 8 October 2012.
- ^ "Ciarán Kilkenny leaves AFL club Hawthorn to return to Dublin". RTÉ News. 10 January 2013.
- ^ "Cruciate damage ends Ciarán Killenny's season". RTÉ Sport. RTÉ. 9 March 2014. Retrieved 9 March 2014.
- ^ McKeon, Conor (25 September 2019). "'There hasn't been that discussion' - Dublin not yet talking about possible retirements". Irish Independent. Independent News & Media. Retrieved 25 September 2019.
- ^ Roche, Frank (27 October 2022). "Kerry lead way as 11 rookie All Stars signal the changing landscape". Irish Independent.
- ^ "Ireland 57-35 Australia". RTÉ Sport. RTÉ. 19 October 2013. Retrieved 19 October 2013.
- ^ "Ireland 116-37 Australia". RTÉ Sport. RTÉ. 26 October 2013. Retrieved 26 October 2013.