Billy Mackessy
Encyclopedia
William ‘Billy’ Mackessy was an Irish
sportsperson. A dual player
with his local club Blackrock
he played both hurling
and Gaelic football
with the Cork senior inter-county teams from 1901 until 1912.
and Gaelic football
with Blackrock
and enjoyed much success. He won his first senior county hurling title
in 1903 and added a second county medal to his collection in 1908. Mackessy finished off his club hurling career by capturing a four-in-a-row in 1910, 1911, 1912 and 1913.
as Cork defeated Limerick
in the provincial decider by 1-9 to 1-6. Cork later trounced Mayo
in the All-Ireland semi-final before lining out against Dublin
in the ‘home’ All-Ireland final. The game was a low-scoring affair with ‘the Dubs’ winning by 1-2 to 0-4.
Two years later in 1903 Mackessy was a member of the Cork hurling team. That year he added a Munster
hurling title to his collection as Cork trounced Waterford
in the provincial final. Mackessy’s side later got a walkover from Galway
allowing the team to advance to the ‘home’ All-Ireland final with Kilkenny
. That game turned into a rout as ‘the Rebels’ won easily by 8-9 to 0-8. The subsequent All-Ireland final saw London
provide the opposition. Once again that game turned into a rout as Cork won by 3-16 to 1-1. It was Mackessy’s first All-Ireland
hurling medal.
Two years later in 1905 Cork were still the kingpins of Munster hurling. Mackessy captured a second provincial hurling medal that year as Cork walloped Limerick by 7-12 to 1-4. For the second year in-a-row Kilkenny later took on Cork in the All-Ireland final. Cork won the game by 5-10 to 3-13; however, the game had to be replayed for a number of reasons. Firstly, Cork goalkeeper Daniel McCarthy was a British army
reservist and, secondly, Kilkenny’s Matt Gargan
had played with Waterford before playing for Kilkenny. The replay produced another high-scoring, however, Kilkenny won the game by 7-7 to 2-9.
In 1906 Mackessy was back with the Cork football team. He collected a second Munster football medal that year as Cork defeated Kerry
by 1-10 to 0-3. Cork subsequently qualified for the All-Ireland final and, once again, Dublin provided the opposition. Mackessy’s side took the lead at half-time, however, ‘the Dubs’ fought back to win the game on a low score line of 0-5 to 0-4.
Cork made it two Munster football titles in-a-row in 1907 as Cork had a nine-point victory over Tipperary
. For the second year in-a-row Cork later played Dublin in the All-Ireland final. The game was delayed because the train carrying the Dublin team to the match location in Tipperary was delayed. In spite of this Dublin still won the game by 0-6 to 0-2. It was Mackessy’s third defeat in an All-Ireland football final.
In 1911 Cork won another Munster football title, however, Mackessy was not on the team. He returned to the Cork set up for the subsequent All-Ireland final. Antrim
provided the opposition on that occasion as an Ulster team contested their first final. Antrim got off to a good start and scored the first goal, however, Cork replied with a goal. Mackessy scored a goal at the start of the second-half and added two more over the course of the thirty minutes. Cork won the game by 6-6 to 1-2 giving Mackessy an All-Ireland
medal and the honour of becoming the second dual player
to have All-Ireland medals in both codes.
In 1912 Mackessy was back with the Cork hurling team. That year he captured a third Munster hurling medal as Tipperary fell in the provincial final. Kilkenny provided the opposition on that occasion in a low-scoring but close All-Ireland final. A 2-1 to 1-3 scor eline gave 'the Cats' the victory.
Republic of Ireland
Ireland , described as the Republic of Ireland , is a sovereign state in Europe occupying approximately five-sixths of the island of the same name. Its capital is Dublin. Ireland, which had a population of 4.58 million in 2011, is a constitutional republic governed as a parliamentary democracy,...
sportsperson. A dual player
Dual player
Dual player or dual star is a term used in Gaelic games to describe a player who plays both Men's Gaelic football and Hurling or Ladies' Gaelic football and Camogie. The player doesn't necessarily have to play at the same standard in both sports...
with his local club Blackrock
Blackrock GAA
Blackrock National Hurling Club is a G.A.A. club located on the southside of Cork City, Ireland. The club was founded in 1883 and is primarily concerned with the game of hurling.-History:...
he played both hurling
Hurling
Hurling is an outdoor team game of ancient Gaelic origin, administered by the Gaelic Athletic Association, and played with sticks called hurleys and a ball called a sliotar. Hurling is the national game of Ireland. The game has prehistoric origins, has been played for at least 3,000 years, and...
and Gaelic football
Gaelic football
Gaelic football , commonly referred to as "football" or "Gaelic", or "Gah" is a form of football played mainly in Ireland...
with the Cork senior inter-county teams from 1901 until 1912.
Club
Mackessy played his club hurlingHurling
Hurling is an outdoor team game of ancient Gaelic origin, administered by the Gaelic Athletic Association, and played with sticks called hurleys and a ball called a sliotar. Hurling is the national game of Ireland. The game has prehistoric origins, has been played for at least 3,000 years, and...
and Gaelic football
Gaelic football
Gaelic football , commonly referred to as "football" or "Gaelic", or "Gah" is a form of football played mainly in Ireland...
with Blackrock
Blackrock GAA
Blackrock National Hurling Club is a G.A.A. club located on the southside of Cork City, Ireland. The club was founded in 1883 and is primarily concerned with the game of hurling.-History:...
and enjoyed much success. He won his first senior county hurling title
Cork Senior Hurling Championship
The Evening Echo Cork County Senior Hurling Championship is an annual hurling competition organised by the Cork County Board of the Gaelic Athletic Association since 1887 for the top hurling teams in the county of Cork in Ireland....
in 1903 and added a second county medal to his collection in 1908. Mackessy finished off his club hurling career by capturing a four-in-a-row in 1910, 1911, 1912 and 1913.
Inter-county
Mackessy first came to prominence on the inter-county scene as a member of the Cork football team in 1901. That year he won his first MunsterMunster Senior Football Championship
The Munster Senior Football Championship is the premier "knockout" competition in the game of football played in the province of Munster in Ireland. The series of games are organised by the Munster Council and are played during the summer months...
as Cork defeated Limerick
Limerick GAA
The Limerick County Board of the Gaelic Athletic Association or Limerick GAA is one of the 32 county boards of the GAA in Ireland, and is responsible for Gaelic games in County Limerick...
in the provincial decider by 1-9 to 1-6. Cork later trounced Mayo
Mayo GAA
The Mayo County Board of the Gaelic Athletic Association or Mayo GAA is one of the 32 county boards of the GAA in Ireland, and is responsible for Gaelic games in County Mayo and the Mayo inter-county teams.-History:...
in the All-Ireland semi-final before lining out against Dublin
Dublin GAA
Dublin County Board of the Gaelic Athletic Association , or Dublin GAA, is one of the 32 county boards of the GAA in Ireland, and is responsible for Gaelic games in County Dublin. The county board is also responsible for the Dublin inter-county teams...
in the ‘home’ All-Ireland final. The game was a low-scoring affair with ‘the Dubs’ winning by 1-2 to 0-4.
Two years later in 1903 Mackessy was a member of the Cork hurling team. That year he added a Munster
Munster Senior Hurling Championship
The Munster GAA Hurling Championship is an annual hurling competition organised by the Gaelic Athletic Association since 1888 for the top hurling teams in the province of Munster in Ireland....
hurling title to his collection as Cork trounced Waterford
Waterford GAA
The Waterford County Board of the Gaelic Athletic Association or Waterford GAA is one of the 32 county boards of the GAA in Ireland, and is responsible for all levels of Gaelic games in County Waterford. The County Board is also responsible for the Waterford inter-county teams. The county...
in the provincial final. Mackessy’s side later got a walkover from Galway
Galway GAA
The Galway County Boards of the Gaelic Athletic Association or Galway GAA is one of the 32 county boards of the GAA in Ireland, and is responsible for Gaelic games in County Galway. The county boards are also responsible for the Galway inter-county teams.Unlike all other counties in Ireland,...
allowing the team to advance to the ‘home’ All-Ireland final with Kilkenny
Kilkenny GAA
The Kilkenny County Board of the Gaelic Athletic Association is one of the 32 county boards of the GAA in Ireland and is responsible for Gaelic Games in County Kilkenny. The county board has its head office and main grounds at Nowlan Park and is also responsible for Kilkenny inter-county teams...
. That game turned into a rout as ‘the Rebels’ won easily by 8-9 to 0-8. The subsequent All-Ireland final saw London
London GAA
The London County Board of the Gaelic Athletic Association or London GAA is one of the county boards outside Ireland, and is responsible for Gaelic games in London...
provide the opposition. Once again that game turned into a rout as Cork won by 3-16 to 1-1. It was Mackessy’s first All-Ireland
All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship
The GAA Hurling All-Ireland Senior Championship is an annual hurling competition organised by the Gaelic Athletic Association since 1887 for the top hurling teams in Ireland....
hurling medal.
Two years later in 1905 Cork were still the kingpins of Munster hurling. Mackessy captured a second provincial hurling medal that year as Cork walloped Limerick by 7-12 to 1-4. For the second year in-a-row Kilkenny later took on Cork in the All-Ireland final. Cork won the game by 5-10 to 3-13; however, the game had to be replayed for a number of reasons. Firstly, Cork goalkeeper Daniel McCarthy was a British army
British Army
The British Army is the land warfare branch of Her Majesty's Armed Forces in the United Kingdom. It came into being with the unification of the Kingdom of England and Scotland into the Kingdom of Great Britain in 1707. The new British Army incorporated Regiments that had already existed in England...
reservist and, secondly, Kilkenny’s Matt Gargan
Matt Gargan
Matt Gargan was a famous Irish sportsperson who played hurling with the Kilkenny. In a senior inter-county career that lasted from 1905 until 1917 he won six All-Ireland titles and five Leinster titles.-Teams:...
had played with Waterford before playing for Kilkenny. The replay produced another high-scoring, however, Kilkenny won the game by 7-7 to 2-9.
In 1906 Mackessy was back with the Cork football team. He collected a second Munster football medal that year as Cork defeated Kerry
Kerry GAA
The Kerry County Board of the Gaelic Athletic Association is one of the 32 county boards of the GAA in Ireland, and is responsible for Gaelic games in County Kerry...
by 1-10 to 0-3. Cork subsequently qualified for the All-Ireland final and, once again, Dublin provided the opposition. Mackessy’s side took the lead at half-time, however, ‘the Dubs’ fought back to win the game on a low score line of 0-5 to 0-4.
Cork made it two Munster football titles in-a-row in 1907 as Cork had a nine-point victory over Tipperary
Tipperary GAA
The Tipperary County Board of the Gaelic Athletic Association or C is one of over 30 regional executive boards throughout the world. These executive boards are known as County Boards even though some no longer correspond to the area under the jurisdiction of the counties from which their names...
. For the second year in-a-row Cork later played Dublin in the All-Ireland final. The game was delayed because the train carrying the Dublin team to the match location in Tipperary was delayed. In spite of this Dublin still won the game by 0-6 to 0-2. It was Mackessy’s third defeat in an All-Ireland football final.
In 1911 Cork won another Munster football title, however, Mackessy was not on the team. He returned to the Cork set up for the subsequent All-Ireland final. Antrim
Antrim GAA
The Antrim County Board of the Gaelic Athletic Association or Antrim GAA is one of the 32 county boards of the GAA in Ireland, and is responsible for Gaelic games in County Antrim. The county board is also responsible for the Antrim inter-county teams...
provided the opposition on that occasion as an Ulster team contested their first final. Antrim got off to a good start and scored the first goal, however, Cork replied with a goal. Mackessy scored a goal at the start of the second-half and added two more over the course of the thirty minutes. Cork won the game by 6-6 to 1-2 giving Mackessy an All-Ireland
All-Ireland Senior Football Championship
The All-Ireland Senior Football Championship, the premier competition in Gaelic football, is a series of games organised by the Gaelic Athletic Association and played during the summer and early autumn...
medal and the honour of becoming the second dual player
Dual player
Dual player or dual star is a term used in Gaelic games to describe a player who plays both Men's Gaelic football and Hurling or Ladies' Gaelic football and Camogie. The player doesn't necessarily have to play at the same standard in both sports...
to have All-Ireland medals in both codes.
In 1912 Mackessy was back with the Cork hurling team. That year he captured a third Munster hurling medal as Tipperary fell in the provincial final. Kilkenny provided the opposition on that occasion in a low-scoring but close All-Ireland final. A 2-1 to 1-3 scor eline gave 'the Cats' the victory.