Gerald McCarthy (born 12 September 1945) is an Irish former hurling manager and player. In his playing career he was known for his intelligent anticipation, his ability to find open space and his overhead striking of the ball. A versatile player who lined out in no less than eight different positions, McCarthy made his name as an attacking midfielder and as a centre-forward. He is widely regarded to be one of the most skilful and stylish players of his generation and as one of the greatest players in the history of the sport.
Raised in Cork city, McCarthy came to Gaelic games prominence as a schoolboy. He joined the St Finbarr's senior team at the age of 17 in 1963 and spent the next 16 years as one of the club's key players. McCarthy's association with Cork began as a member of the minor team in 1962. He progressed through the under-21 ranks before making his senior debut in 1964. McCarthy brought his 17-season association with the red jersey to an end when he announced his club and inter-county retirement in October 1979.
McCarthy is one of the most decorated players of his era. During his time with Cork, he won five All-Ireland Championship titles - including a three-in-a-row from 1976 to 1978, nine Munster Championship titles and three National Hurling League titles. McCarthy captained Cork on several occasions, particularly in 1966 when, as captain with the Cork under-21 team also, he became the only player in history to captain two All-Ireland-winning teams in the same season.
In retirement from playing, McCarthy enjoyed success as a trainer, coach, selector and manager at club and inter-county levels. After winning numerous Cork SHC titles with St Finbarr's, he became a highly sought-after coach at inter-county level. McCarthy had three spells as coach-manager of the Cork senior team, culminating with an All-Ireland title in 1990. He later managed the Waterford senior hurling team to a first All-Ireland semi-final appearance in 35 years.
Playing career St Finbarr's McCarthy was born and raised in the Bandon Road area on the southside of Cork. He first made an impression as a schoolboy dual player at Greenmount National School and in the local street leagues, before joining the St Finbarr's club. McCarthy progressed through the ranks with the club, winning juvenile hurling and minor football championship medals, before joining the senior hurling team as a 17-year-old in 1963. He quickly became a regular member of the starting fifteen and scored two points in the 1964 Cork SHC final, which St Finbarr's lost to Glen Rovers by eight points. St Finbarr's made amends the following year, with McCarthy scoring a goal in the 6–08 to 2–05 win over University College Cork in the 1965 final, before later scoring in all three game in the successful Munster Club Championship campaign.
McCarthy was described in the Irish Press as the best player on the St Finbarr's team in their 1967 Cork SHC final defeat by Glen Rovers. This defeat was reversed the following year, with McCarthy winning a second championship medal, just 24 hours after his wedding, after a 5–09 to 1–19 defeat of Imokilly in the 1968 final.
The next few seasons proved difficult for the St Finbarr's hurlers, with McCarthy also lining out with the St Finbarr's football team in the senior championship. St Finbarr's returned to the Cork SHC final in 1971; however, Blackrock won by 2–19 to 5-04. The game was not without incident for McCarthy who received a six-month suspension from the Cork County Board as a result of "all aspects of his conduct" in the game. A number of difficult seasons followed at club level, however, St Finbarr's returned to the summit of Cork hurling with a defeat of reigning champions Blackrock in the 1974 Cork SHC final. After collecting his third winners' medal, McCarthy again played a key role as a scoring midfielder in the successful annexation of the Munster Club Championship title. St Finbarr's ended the season with the All-Ireland Club Championship title, with McCarthy playing at midfield in the eight-point defeat of the Fenians.
In the 1976 Cork SFC final, McCarthy showed that he was just as adept as a high level Gaelic footballer. He became a dual county medal-winner after lining out at right wing-back in the three-point defeat of St Michael's. Back on the hurling front McCarthy won a fourth and final Cork SHC winners' medal after a record crowd of 34,151 saw St Finbarr's beat Glen Rovers by twelve points in the 1977 final. The subsequent club championship resulted in St Finbarr's claiming a third Munster Club Championship title. McCarthy later claimed a second All-Ireland club winners' medal after a 2–07 to 0–09 win over Rathnure.
McCarthy's attempt at winning a fifth Cork SHC medal ended with a 2–14 to 2–06 defeat by Blackrock in the 1979 final. Three weeks after this defeat he announced his retirement from club and inter-county hurling.
Cork Minor and under-21 McCarthy's form as a dual player at club level with St Finbarr's earned him a place on the Cork minor hurling and football teams for the respective Munster Minor Championships in 1962. His two seasons with the minor teams resulted in successive defeats by Kerry in football and by Tipperary in hurling. McCarthy ended his dual player status in 1964 by deciding to concentrate solely on hurling when he joined the Cork under-21 hurling team. His first two seasons in the grade, much like his minor days, ended with successive defeats by Tipperary. McCarthy took over the captaincy of the team in 1966 and won a Munster Under-21 Championship title in spite of arriving late for the 5–12 to 2–06 defeat of Limerick in the final. The subsequent All-Ireland final against Wexford went to two replays, however, McCarthy made history by becoming the first player to captain two All-Ireland-winning teams in a single year. with the 9–09 to 5–09 win over Wexford coming just 10 weeks after the senior success.
Senior Aged 18, McCarthy made his senior team debut on 26 April 1964 when he came on as a substitute for Mick McCarthy in the 1963–64 NHL semi-final against Wexford. McCarthy acquitted himself well in the defeat but was not included on the team for the 1964 Munster Championship. He lined out in a number of challenge, tournament and league games over the following two years, however, it was 1966 before he made his championship debut, coming on as a substitute in a Munster quarter-final draw with Clare. McCarthy remained on the starting fifteen for the rest of the campaign, while also taking over the team captaincy from Peter Doolan. After winning the Munster Championship title with a defeat of Waterford, he subsequently captained Cork to a first All-Ireland Championship in 12 years after a 3–09 to 1–10 defeat of Kilkenny in the 1966 All-Ireland final. McCarthy, who turned 21 a week later, became the youngest All-Ireland-winning Cork captain since Seán Condon in 1944 after accepting the Liam MacCarthy Cup.
Cork endured two unsuccessful years after winning the All-Ireland title; however, McCarthy's reputation as a midfielder of merit continued to grow. He was widely praised in the local newspapers as Cork's Hurler of the Year in 1967. McCarthy added to his medal collection with a National Hurling League title after a defeat of Wexford in the 1969 final. After winning the Munster Championship title after a first defeat of Tipperary in 12 years, Cork were denied a clean sweep of hurling titles following a six-point defeat by Kilkenny in the 1969 All-Ireland final. McCarthy's third appearance in an All-Ireland final in 1970 saw him claim a second winners' medal after the 6–21 to 5–10 win over Wexford. Having earlier won a third Munster Championship medal, he ended the season with a second successive National League title after a two-point aggregate win over New York in New York.
A six-month suspension resulted in McCarthy missing Cork's 1971–72 National League title success, however, he was reinstated to the team in time for the 1972 Munster final win iver Clare. For the third time in four years, Cork were presented with the possibility of making a clean sweep of all the available hurling titles, however, Cork suffered a 3–24 to 5–11 defeat by Kilkenny in the 1972 All-Ireland final, having led by eight points at one stage in the second half.
McCarthy won a third National League title after a 6–15 to 1–12 win over Limerick in the 1974 NHL final. He was selected as team captain for the second time in his career for the 1975 season. After winning a fifth Munster Championship title, McCarthy later captained Cork to their first ever All-Ireland semi-final defeat by Galway. He ended the season by being Cork's only recipient of an All-Star.
Cork consolidated their position as the top team in Munster by retaining the provincial title after a 3–15 to 4–05 defeat of Limerick in the 1975 Munster final. It was McCarthy's sixth winners' medal. After being caught at the semi-final stage the previous year, Cork's provincial title allowed the team to qualify automatically for the 1976 All-Ireland final. After conceding two goals to Wexford in the opening six minutes, Cork fought back to win the game by 2–21 to 4–11. Having collected his third All-Ireland medal, McCarthy was also named man of the match. Cork subsequently went through a period of dominance that they hadn't enjoyed in over 20 years. A third successive Munster Championship was followed by a second successive appearance against Wexford in the 1977 All-Ireland final. McCarthy, who had been switched from midfield to centre-forward earlier in the season, ended the 1–17 to 3–08 victory with a second successive man of the match award and a fourth All-Ireland winners' medal.
McCarthy was the longest-serving member of the Cork team when he began his 15th season in 1978. After securing a Munster Championship four-in-a-row, Cork turned their attention to the All-Ireland three-in-a-row when they qualified for the 1978 All-Ireland final against Kilkenny. McCarthy was once again at centre-forward and claimed his fifth All-Ireland medal following the 1–15 to 2–08 victory. The possibility of Cork winning a record-equalling fourth successive All-Ireland meant that McCarthy, who was approaching his 34th birthday, decided to remain with the team for one final season. His decision resulted in a ninth Munster Championship medal after an 11-point win over Limerick in the 1979 Munster final. Age and the exertions of the three previous campaigns finally caught up with Cork in the All-Ireland semi-final and a 2–14 to 1–13 defeat by Galway brought the four-in-a-row dream to an end. The following month McCarthy captained Cork against Tipperary in the Christy Ring Memorial Fund game, in what was his last game for Cork.
Inter-provincial McCarthy earned his first call-up to the Munster team during the 1968 Railway Cup. It was the first of four successive years with the inter-provincial team and yielded three successive Railway Cup medals after defeats of Leinster (1968, 1970) and Connacht as captain of the team. After a three-year hiatus, McCarthy earned inclusion on the Munster team once again. Defeats of Leinster in 1976 and Connacht in 1978 brought his medal tally to five.
Early coaching career St Finbarr's