Laois county hurling team


The Laois county hurling team represents Laois in hurling and is governed by Laois GAA, the county board of the Gaelic Athletic Association. The team competes in the Joe McDonagh Cup and the National Hurling League.
Laois's home ground is O'Moore Park, Portlaoise. The team's manager is Tommy Fitzgerald.
The team last won the Leinster Senior Championship in 1949, the All-Ireland Senior Championship in 1915 and has never won the National League.

History

Laois won one All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship title, in 1915, when the day was so wet the team reportedly played the second half in their overcoats.
Laois has also won three All-Ireland Senior B Hurling Championship titles.
The hurlers reached National Hurling League semi-finals in 1981 and 1983. The team then lost the Centenary Cup hurling final to Cork in 1984.
Laois most recently contested the Leinster Senior Hurling Championship final in 1985, with the result a defeat to Offaly.
The hurlers were back in the NHL semi-final in 1996.
Laois won the Joe McDonagh Cup in 2019, and went on to shock Dublin in the preliminary quarter-final the next week and advance to the All-Ireland SHC quarter-final. This was considered one of the greatest shocks in the history of the championship. The manager departed amid controversy in November 2020 after his criticisms of county board officials appeared on a podcast.

Panel

INJ Player has had an injury which has affected recent involvement with the county team.
RET Player has since retired from the county team.
WD Player has since withdrawn from the county team due to a non-injury issue.

Management team

Managerial history

Laois has a history of appointing "foreign" managers, with Georgie Leahy the most successful.
Georgie Leahy 1979–1985
Jimmy Doyle 1985–1987
Paddy Kelly 1987–1989
Georgie Leahy 1989–1991
Paddy Doyle 1991–1993
Pat Critchley 1993–1995
Babs Keating 1995–1997
Pádraig Horan 1997–2000
Seán Cuddy 2000–2001
Pat Delaney 2001–2002
Paudie Butler 2002–2005
Dinny Cahill 2005–2006
Damien Fox 2006–2008
Niall Rigney 2008–2010
Brendan Fennelly 2010–2011
Teddy McCarthy 2011–2012
Séamus Plunkett 2012–2015
Ger Cunningham 2015**
Séamus Plunkett 2015–2016
Éamonn Kelly 2016–2018
Eddie Brennan 2018–2020
Séamus Plunkett 2020–2022
Willie Maher 2022–2024
Darren Gleeson 2024
Tommy Fitzgerald 2024–
**=In a caretaker role

Players

Records

  • James Duggan scored 5–2 in the first half of the 2025 Joe McDonagh Cup game against Kerry. On what was his championship debut, Duggan's first half total made him the county's first player to score five goals in the same championship match since a player named Delaney in 1939.

All Stars

Laois has 1 All Star.
1985: Pat Critchley

Competitive record

Laois's only All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship title win is from 1915.
Laois won three All-Ireland Senior B Hurling Championship titles, in 1977, 1979 and 2002.
Séamus Plunkett managed the team to its third title in 2002.
Subs used: Declan Conroy for M. Dunphy; Jack O'Shea for P. J. Peacock; Lar Mahon for O. Bergin; Brian Ferns for F. O'Sullivan; Eamon Jackman for T. Fitzgerald

Honours

National

Provincial