Thomas Walsh (born 5 May 1983) is an Irish hurler who played as a right wing-back at senior level for the Kilkenny county team.
Born in Tullaroan, County Kilkenny, Walsh first played competitive hurling during his schooling at St Kieran's College. He arrived on the inter-county scene at the age of seventeen when he first linked up with the Kilkenny minor team, before later joining the under-21 side. He joined the senior panel during the 2002 championship. Walsh became a regular member of the starting fifteen the following year, and won nine All-Ireland medals (two as a non-playing substitute), ten Leinster medals and seven National League medals. He was an All-Ireland runner-up on two occasions.
At international level Walsh has played for the composite rules shinty-hurling team, captaining his country to the title in 2009. As a member of the Leinster inter-provincial team on a number of occasions (17 games), he won five Railway Cup medals. At club level Walsh continues to play with Tullaroan.
Walsh's grandfather, Paddy Grace, as well as his brother, Pádraig, have also enjoyed All-Ireland success with Kilkenny. His sister, Grace, is a key member of the Kilkenny senior camogie team.
Throughout his career Walsh made 56 championship appearances. He announced his retirement from inter-county hurling on 20 November 2014.
Walsh is one of the most successful players of all-time. During his playing days he won nine consecutive All-Star awards, while he was later chosen as one of the 125 greatest hurlers of all-time in a 2009 poll. That same year Walsh made a clean sweep of all the top individual awards, winning the All-Star, Texaco and GPA Hurler of the Year awards, while he was chosen on the Leinster team of the past twenty-five years.
Playing career Walsh's playing career was influenced by his paternal aunt Alice who has inspired him through every path of his career. Alice was known for her hockey career. It is true he would not be who he is today without her. Walsh's discipline on the pitch is inspired by his other aunt, Mary who is known for her all elbows approach.
Colleges During his schooling at St Kieran's College in Kilkenny, Walsh established himself as a key member of the senior hurling team. In 1999 he won his first Leinster medal following a 3–13 to 1–11 defeat of Dublin Colleges.
Walsh added a second Leinster medal to his collection in 2000, as Dublin Colleges were defeated by 2–13 to 1–10. St Flannan's College provided the opposition in the subsequent All-Ireland decider. Having come close to beating the Ennis-based school at the same stage the previous year, St. Kieran's made no mistake this time and recorded a 1–10 to 0–9 victory, giving Walsh an All-Ireland medal.
University During his studies at University College Cork, Walsh was an automatic inclusion on the college hurling team. In 2004, he was at left wing-back as UCC faced Waterford Institute of Technology in the final of the Fitzgibbon Cup. Against the wind, Waterford rallied with late scores to overhaul Cork, with a last minute free from Wexford senior Rory Jacob being the clinching score in an 0–11 to 0–9 defeat for Walsh's side.
Club Walsh has been heavily involved with the Tullaroan club for many years. He enjoyed much success at juvenile level, claiming championship medals from primary school up to under-16 grades. The highlight of his juvenile career came in 1997 when he was part of the Féile na nGael-winning Tullaroan side.
In 1999 Walsh was a key member of the Tullaroan minor team. A 1–16 to 0–6 trouncing of Shamrocks gave him a championship medal.
Two years later in 2001 Walsh had joined the Tullaroan under-21 team that faced Carrickshock in the championship decider. A 1–14 apiece draw was the result on that occasion, however, Tullaroan claimed a 2–16 to 2–7 victory in the replay.
By this stage Walsh had joined the Tullaroan senior team. After playing a number of challenge and Byrne Cup games he later became a championship regular.
Minor and under-21 Walsh first played for Kilkenny at the turn of the century when he joined the minor side. He won his sole Leinster medal in 2001 following a 3–16 to 1–9 trouncing of Wexford.
By 2003 Walsh was a key member of the Kilkenny under-21 team. He won his first Leinster medal that year following a 0–12 to 1–4 defeat of Dublin. Kilkenny later faced Galway in the All-Ireland decider. "The Cats" outsmarted a Galway side which struggled in attack and conceded a goal a minute into the second half. The 2–13 to 0–12 score line gave Walsh his first All-Ireland medal in the grade.
Walsh collected a second Leinster medal in 2004, as Wexford were downed once again by 0–16 to 2–3. The subsequent All-Ireland final between Kilkenny and old rivals Tipperary was a total mismatch. "The Cats" scored key goals early in the opening half, which helped power them to a 3–21 to 1–6 victory.
Senior
Beginnings Walsh was just out of the minor grade when he was added to the Kilkenny senior panel in 2002. That year he shared in his county's Leinster and All-Ireland triumphs, however, Walsh was yet to make his debut.
In 2003 Walsh became a regular member of the starting fifteen during Kilkenny's successful run to the final of the National Hurling League. Kilkenny came back from eight points down to secure a stunning 5–14 to 5–13 extra-time defeat of Tipperary, with Walsh collecting his first league medal. He later made his senior championship debut on 7 June 2003 in a 3–16 to 0–10 Leinster semi-final defeat of Dublin. Walsh went on to collect his first Leinster medal on the field of play, as Kilkenny defeated Wexford by 2–23 to 2–12. The subsequent All-Ireland final on 14 September 2003 saw Kilkenny face Cork for the first time in four years. Both teams remained level for much of the game, exchanging tit-for-tat scores. A Setanta Ó hAilpín goal gave Cork the advantage, however, a Martin Comerford goal five minutes from the end settled the game as Kilkenny went on to win by 1–14 to 1–11. It was Walsh's first All-Ireland medal on the field of play. He was later honoured with his first All-Star award.
After facing a shock, last-minute 2–15 to 1–16 defeat by Wexford in the Leinster semi-final in 2004, Kilkenny worked their way through the qualifiers and lined out against Cork in the All-Ireland decider on 12 September 2004. The game was expected to be a classic, however, a rain-soaked day made conditions difficult as Kilkenny aimed to secure a third successive championship. The first half was a low-scoring affair and provided little excitement for fans, however, the second half saw Cork completely take over. For the last twenty-three minutes Cork scored nine unanswered points and went on to win the game by 0–17 to 0–9. Kilkenny ended the year with no silverware, however, Walsh was still presented with a second consecutive All-Star award.
Kilkenny were back in form in 2005, with Walsh winning a second National League medal following a 3–20 to 0–15 victory over Clare. "The Cats" later struggled against a wasteful Wexford side, however, a 0–22 to 1–16 victory gave Walsh a second Leinster medal. While a third successive All-Ireland showdown with Cork seemed likely, Galway defeated Kilkenny in the All-Ireland semi-final in one of the games of the decade. Walsh later added a third successive All-Star award to his collection.
Four-in-a-row In 2006 Walsh added a third National League medal to his collection following a 3–11 to 0–14 victory over Limerick. He later won his third Leinster medal following another facile 1–23 to 1–12 victory over Wexford. On 3 September 2006 Kilkenny faced a Cork team who were presented with the opportunity to become the first side in nearly thirty years to secure three successive All-Ireland championships. Like previous encounters neither side took a considerable lead, however, Kilkenny had a vital goal from Aidan Fogarty. Cork were in arrears coming into the final few minutes, however, Ben O'Connor scored a late goal for Cork. It was too little too late as the Cats denied Cork on a score line of 1–16 to 1–13. Walsh, whose uncle died just a few hours before the game, collected his second All-Ireland medal. He rounded off the year once again by claiming a fourth successive All-Star award.
Walsh collected a fourth Leinster medal in 2007, as Kilkenny asserted their provincial dominance and defeated Wexford by 2–24 to 1–12. On 2 September 2007 Kilkenny faced defeated Munster finalists and surprise All-Ireland semi-final winners Limerick in the championship decider. Kilkenny got off to a flying start with Eddie Brennan and Henry Shefflin scoring two goals within the first ten minutes to set the tone. Limerick launched a second-half comeback, however, "the Cats" were too powerful and cruised to a 2–19 to 1–15 victory. It was Walsh's third All-Ireland medal. He was later presented with a fifth successive All-Star award.
Kilkenny secured the Leinster crown again in 2008, with Walsh collecting a fifth winners' medal following a 5–21 to 0–17 defeat of Wexford. On 8 September 2008 Kilkenny faced Waterford in the All-Ireland decider for the first time in forty-five years. In a disappointingly one-sided final, Kilkenny produced a near perfect seventy minutes as Waterford endured a nightmare afternoon. A 23-point winning margin, 3–24 from play, only two wides in the entire match and eight scorers in all with Eddie Brennan and Henry Shefflin leading the way in a 3–30 to 1–13 victory. It was Walsh's fourth All-Ireland medal, while a sixth consecutive All-Star quickly followed.
Walsh collected a fourth National League medal in 2009, as Kilkenny beat Tipperary by 2–26 to 4–17 with a thrilling extra-time victory. He later won a fifth successive Leinster medal, as new challengers Dublin were bested by 2–18 to 0–18. On 6 September Kilkenny were poised to become the second team ever in the history of hurling to win four successive All-Ireland championships when they faced Tipperary in the decider. For long periods Tipp looked the likely winners, however, late goals from Henry Shefflin and substitute Martin Comerford finally killed off their efforts to secure a 2–22 to 0–23 victory. Walsh had collected his fifth All-Ireland medal, however, the game was not without incident for him. A wild pull on him by Benny Dunne was punished with a red card. Walsh later collected a seventh successive All-Star award, while he also picked up the Texaco, Vodafone and GPA Hurler of the Year awards.
Continued dominance In 2010 Kilkenny defeated Galway in an eagerly-anticipated but ultimately disappointing provincial decider. A 1–19 to 1–12 victory gave Walsh a seventh Leinster medal. The drive for a fifth successive All-Ireland crown reached a head on 5 September 2010, when Kilkenny faced Tipperary in the All-Ireland decider. "The Cats" lost talisman Henry Shefflin due to injury, while Tipperary's Lar Corbett ran riot and scored a hat-trick of goals as Walsh's side fell to a 4–17 to 1–18 defeat. In spite of this defeat, Walsh later won an eight successive All-Star award.
Kilkenny's stranglehold in Leinster continued in 2011. A 4–17 to 1–15 defeat of Dublin gave "the Cats" a record-equalling seventh successive championship. It was Walsh's eighth winners' medal overall. Kilkenny subsequently faced Tipperary in a record-breaking seventh successive All-Ireland decider on 4 September 2011. Goals by Michael Fennelly and Richie Hogan in either half gave Kilkenny, who many viewed as the underdogs going into the game, a 2–17 to 1–16 victory. Walsh, who collected a sixth All-Ireland medal, was lucky not to have received a red card as a wild strike of his hurley caught referee Brian Gavin on the bridge of the nose, resulting in a four-minute stoppage. He later collected a ninth successive All-Star award.