Michael Collins is a Gaelic football referee from County Cork. He is from Clonakilty.
| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Native name | Mícheál Ó Coileáin |
| Home town | Clonakilty |
| Occupation | SuperValu employee |
| Years active | 1985–2013 |
| Employer | GAA |
| Sport | |
| Sport | Gaelic football |
| Position | Referee |
Collins first took up refereeing in 1985 when he officiated a West Cork Junior B Football League game in Barryroe.[1] After four years, he was part of the Cork GAA referees' panel.[1]
He made his inter-county debut in 1994,[2][1] overseeing a Munster MFC game between Waterford and Tipperary.[1] His first involvement at senior inter-county level saw him referee Limerick against Tipperary in the 1998 Munster SFC.[1] He later officiated the 2001 Ulster SFC final, an All-Ireland SFC quarter-final and the 2001 All-Ireland Senior Football Championship Final between Galway and Meath.[2] He also received a Celtic Ross Sports Star of the Year Award in 2001.[1]
Collins's inter-county refereeing career concluded in 2013, after he officiated the Division 2 game between Longford and Laois.[3] His last championship involvement was a Leinster SFC first round game between Wexford and Longford.[3] He was replaced by David Gough, who would become an All-Ireland SFC final recipient himself, though there was space on the panel after Pádraig Hughes injured himself against Eamonn Doherty when he was officiating the Dublin game in Ballybofey.[3][4]
Collins is married and has a son.[1] As of 2018, he was working in SuperValu in Clonakilty.[1]
References
edit- ^ a b c d e f g h "Collins: Being honoured as a referee was special". The Southern Star. 23 January 2018.
- ^ a b "GAA: Collins to referee football final". Irish Examiner. 11 September 2001.
- ^ a b c Fogarty, John (8 May 2013). "Collins gets marching orders from football championship panel". Irish Examiner.
- ^ Kelly, Niall (9 April 2013). "The accidental clash which injured GAA ref Padraig Hughes". The42.ie.