View source for Tommy Maher

{{short description|Irish Catholic priest,hurler and Hurling manager}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=October 2020}}
{{Use Hiberno-English|date=October 2020}}
{{Infobox Gaelic games player
| code= Hurling
| sport = Hurling
| image = 
| name = Tommy Maher
| irish = Tomás Ó Meachair
| fullname = Tommy Maher
| birth_date = {{birth date|df=y|1922|4|25}}
| death_date = {{Death date and age|df=y|2015|3|25|1922|4|25}}
| birth_place = [[Gowran]], [[County Kilkenny]], [[Republic of Ireland|Ireland]]
| occupation = Roman Catholic priest
| nickname = Fr. Tommy
| county = Kilkenny
| province = Leinster
| club = Castle Rovers (Gowran) <br>[[Thomastown GAA|Thomastown]]
| clubs = 
| clyears = 1944-1945<br>1946-1947
| clapps(points) = 
| clcounty = 0
| clprovince= 
| clallireland = 
| counties = [[Kilkenny GAA|Kilkenny]]
| icposition = Left wing-forward
| icyears = 1945-1946
| icapps(points) = 1 (1-1)
| icprovince = 1
| icallireland = 0
| nhl = 0
| clupdate = 
| icupdate = 19:06, 16 June 2025
}}
Fr '''Tommy Maher''' (25 April 1922 – 25 March 2015) was an Irish Catholic priest and [[Irish people|Irish]] [[hurling|Hurler]] who played as left wing-forward for the [[Kilkenny GAA|Kilkenny]] senior team.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.irishcatholic.ie/article/giant-his-day-lesson-today|title=A giant of his day with a lesson for today|publisher=The Irish Catholic|access-date=12 August 2014|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140812224018/http://www.irishcatholic.ie/article/giant-his-day-lesson-today|archive-date=12 August 2014}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.nationalist.ie/sport/gaelic-games/enda-mcevoy-s-biography-on-fr-tommy-maher-a-real-hurling-man-s-book-1-4554120|title=Enda McEvoy's biography on Fr Tommy Maher a real hurling man's book|publisher=The Nationalist|date=5 December 2012|access-date=12 August 2014|first=J. J.|last=Kennedy}}</ref>

Born in [[Gowran]], [[County Kilkenny]], Maher first played competitive hurling during his schooling at [[St. Kieran's College]]. He arrived on the inter-county scene at the age of twenty-three when he first linked up with the Kilkenny senior team.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.dib.ie/biography/maher-fr-tommy-a10271|title=Maher, Fr Tommy|publisher=dictionary of irish biography|date=15 July 2022|access-date=16 June 2025}}</ref>
He made his senior debut during the [[1945 All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship|1945 championship]]. Maher had a brief inter-county career and won one [[Leinster Senior Hurling Championship|Leinster]] medal as a non-playing substitute. He was an [[All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship|All-Ireland]] runner-up on one occasion.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.kilkennypeople.ie/news/home/258296/fr-tommy-s-legacy-honoured-at-kieran-s.html|title=Fr Tommy's Legacy honoured at Kieran's|publisher=Kilkenny People|date=5 July 2017|access-date=16 June 2025}}</ref>

At club level Maher had a brief career with Castle Rovers, Gowran and [[Thomastown GAA|Thomastown]]<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.irishtimes.com/sport/gaelic-games/hurling/former-kilkenny-coach-fr-tommy-maher-dies-aged-92-1.2153562|title=former kilkenny coach fr tommy maher dies aged 92|publisher=Irish Times|date=26 March 2015|access-date=16 June 2025|first=Sean|last=Moran}}</ref>

In retirement from playing Maher became involved in team management and coaching. As trainer and coach of the Kilkenny senior team for over twenty years he guided the team to seven All-Ireland titles, fourteen Leinster titles and three [[National Hurling League]] titles. Maher also found much success at club level with [[Mullinavat GAA|Mullinavat]] and at colleges' level with St. Kieran's College.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.independent.ie/sport/hurling/the-man-who-changed-everything-26870719.html|title=The man who changed everything|publisher=Irish independent|date=30 June 2012|access-date=12 August 2014|first=Vincent|last=Hogan}}</ref>

==Honours==
===Player===

;St. Kieran's College
*[[Leinster Colleges Senior Hurling Championship]] (3): 1939, 1940, 1941

;Kilkenny
*[[Leinster Senior Hurling Championship]] (1): [[1946 All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship#Leinster Senior Hurling Championship|1946]] (sub)

;Leinster
*All-Ireland Colleges Senior Hurling Inter-Provincial Championship (1): 1940

===Trainer===

;Mullinavat
*[[Kilkenny Junior Hurling Championship]] (1): 1984

;Kilkenny
*[[All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship]] (7): [[1957 All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship|1957]], [[1963 All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship|1963]], [[1967 All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship|1967]], [[1969 All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship|1969]], [[1972 All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship|1972]], [[1974 All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship|1974]], [[1975 All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship|1975]]

==Clerical career==
Monsignor Maher studied for the priesthood in [[Maynooth College]] and was ordained a Catholic priest  for the Diocese of Ossory in 1948, worked as a curate in Dublin before moving back to Kilkenny in 1955 and taught Mathematics, Physics and Chemistry at [[St Kieran's College]], Kilkenny, from 1963, and served as President of St Kieran’s College from 1973 to 1983. He left St Kieran’s to become parish priest of Mullinavat in South Kilkenny where he remained until he retired in 1998. He was awarded the church title of [[Monsignor]] from the Catholic church.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.crumlinwalkinstownhistory.ie/person/fr-tommy-maher/|title=Fr Tommy Maher|publisher=crumlin walkinstown history group|date=25 March 2015|access-date=16 June 2025}}</ref>

==References==
{{Reflist}}

{{Navboxes
|title=Tommy Maher navigation boxes
|list1=
{{Kilkenny Hurling Team 1945}}
{{Kilkenny Hurling Team 1946}}
{{Kilkenny Hurling Team 1957}}
{{Kilkenny Hurling Team 1959}}
{{Kilkenny Hurling Team 1963}}
{{Kilkenny Hurling Team 1964}}
{{Kilkenny Hurling Team 1966}}
{{Kilkenny Hurling Team 1967}}
{{Kilkenny Hurling Team 1969}}
{{Kilkenny Hurling Team 1971}}
{{Kilkenny Hurling Team 1972}}
{{Kilkenny Hurling Team 1973}}
{{Kilkenny Hurling Team 1974}}
{{Kilkenny Hurling Team 1975}}
{{Kilkenny Hurling Team 1978}}
{{Kilkenny county hurling team managers}}
}}

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Maher, Tommy}}
[[Category:1922 births]]
[[Category:2015 deaths]]
[[Category:Thomastown hurlers]]
[[Category:Kilkenny inter-county hurlers]]
[[Category:Leinster inter-provincial hurlers]]
[[Category:Kilkenny hurling managers]]
[[Category:20th-century Irish Roman Catholic priests]]
[[Category:Alumni of St Patrick's College, Maynooth]]
[[Category:21st-century Irish Roman Catholic priests]]
[[Category:People from Gowran]]
[[Category:Christian clergy from County Kilkenny]]
[[Category:Presidents of St Kieran's College, Kilkenny]]
[[Category:20th-century Irish sportsmen]]