Declan Pilkington
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| Born | 1969 (age 56–57) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Occupation | Farmer | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Height | 5 ft 10 in (178 cm) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Sport | Hurling | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Position | Left corner-forward | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Declan Pilkington (born 1969) is an Irish former hurler. At club level, he played with Birr and at inter-county level with the Offaly senior hurling team.
Career
Pilkington attended St Brendan's Community School in Birr and played hurling at all levels during his time there. He won back-to-back Leinster Colleges SAHC medals in 1985 and 1986. Pilkington was also part of the St Brendan's team that defeated North Monastery by four goals to win the All-Ireland Colleges SAHC title in 1986.[1][2]
At club level, Pilkington was a mainstay of the Birr team during their most successful era. He won nine Offaly SHC medals from twelve finals appearances between 1990 and 2005.[3] He also won seven Leinster Club SHC medal. Pilkington was also part of Birr's four All-Ireland Club SHC title-winning teams.[4]
At inter-county level, Pilkington first appeared for Offaly as part of the minor team that won back-to-back All-Ireland MHC titles in 1986 and 1987.[5] He later progressed to the under-21 team and was one of the team's top scorers during their run to a defeat by Tipperary in the 1989 All-Ireland U21HC final.
Pilkington made his senior team debut in a defeat by Galway in the 1988 All-Ireland SHC semi-final. He went on to win his first two Leinster SHC medals, alongside his brother Johnny, in 1989 and 1990.[6] Pilkington was also part of Offaly's sole National Hurling League title win in 1991.[7] He added further Leinster SHC medals to his collection in 1994 and 1995 and was at left corner-forward when Offaly beat Limerick by 3–16 to 2–13 in the 1994 All-Ireland SHC final.[8] Pilkington left the panel in 1996 after a dispute with manager Éamonn Cregan.[9] He was briefly recalled to the panel two years later.[10]
Honours
- St Brendan's Community School
- All-Ireland Colleges Senior Hurling Championship (1): 1986
- Leinster Colleges Senior Hurling Championship (2): 1985, 1986
- Birr
- All-Ireland Senior Club Hurling Championship (4): 1995, 1998, 2002, 2003
- Leinster Senior Club Hurling Championship (6): 1991, 1994, 1997, 1999, 2001, 2002
- Offaly Senior Hurling Championship (9): 1991, 1994, 1997, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2005
- Offaly
- All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship (1): 1994
- Leinster Senior Hurling Championship (4): 1989, 1990, 1994, 1995
- National Hurling League (1): 1990–91
- Leinster Under-21 Hurling Championship (1): 1989
- All-Ireland Minor Hurling Championship (2): 1986, 1987
- Leinster Minor Hurling Championship (2): 1986, 1987
References
- ↑ Hogan, Vincent (29 November 1999). "Birr's success vital to Offaly cause". Irish Independent. Retrieved 26 June 2023.
- ↑ "Soft goals prove costly as Westmeath lose out in championship debut". Westmeath Independent. 11 November 2009. Retrieved 26 June 2023.
- ↑ "Club history". Birr GAA website. Retrieved 12 April 2026.
- ↑ "FEATURE: Magnificent Birr were a real force of nature during their glorious heyday". Offaly Live. 15 January 2021. Retrieved 12 April 2026.
- ↑ "Tipperary and Offaly Minors meet for only the second time". The Nenagh Guardian. 2 July 2022. Retrieved 11 April 2026.
- ↑ "Leinster Senior Hurling Finalists" (PDF). Leinster GAA website. Retrieved 11 April 2026.
- ↑ "1991 National Hurling League success was important stepping stone for Offaly". Offaly Express. 8 May 2021. Retrieved 11 April 2026.
- ↑ "No-one in 1994 envisaged how far we would fall - Whelahan". Irish Independent. 17 June 2017. Retrieved 11 April 2026.
- ↑ "Goodbye Johnny, it was fun". Irish Independent. 17 June 2001. Retrieved 11 April 2026.
- ↑ "Faithful shock as elder Pilkington rejoins fold". Irish Independent. 31 July 1998. Retrieved 11 April 2026.