Siblings, they’ve grown up together, they know each other inside-out, they regularly make history together on the GAA field.
Brothers Paul and Donie Kingston combined to score 3-5 to put opponents Longford to the sword on Sunday, as the Laois footballers coasted to victory in the counties’ Leinster Championship first round meeting.
We take a look back at the best sibling partnerships to have lined out alongside each other in the past.
The GAA is a family game, it’s all based on community, tradition and culture. Many families throughout the country are steeped in the GAA; the parents encourage it, the children are raised with it.
People lead by example. We strive to be like the people who inspire us and regularly the people who inspire us are our older brothers and sisters.
The McGraths (Tipperary) – The devastating Loughmore duo of Noel and John have created a deadly partnership in the Premier County’s forward line in recent years. Noel (26) is four years older than John and was a key member of Tipperary’s All-Ireland winning team of 2010. John was only 18 at this stage, but the example set by his older brother was soon to be followed. John was a dual All-Ireland winning minor and his progression to the senior side has been as smooth as it comes.
John had a breakthrough year last year for the Tipperary Seniors in a season that was capped off with a cool 1-3 from play in the All-Ireland final of 2010. The pair linked up well throughout the 2016 winning campaign for the Premier and will be hoping that they can progress this partnership even more in the years to come, perhaps welcoming another brother in 2016 All-Ireland winning captain Brian.
The Loughmore brothers have won County Senior hurling and football championships together with the mid-Tipperary club as well.
The Walshes (Kilkenny) – The terrific Tullaroan pair of Tommy and Pádraig have represented the Cats’ hurling teams with distinction in the last few years.
Their sister Grace has also donned the black and amber of Kilkenny in the past too.
Tommy’s energetic and blazing style from wing-back has been maintained by younger brother Pádraig’s progress in the Kilkenny jersey. The ironic thing is that it was Pádraig’s emergence that shifted Tommy to the bench under Brian Cody.
Tommy won nine All-Stars, nine All-Ireland medals and one Hurler of the Year accolade along the way with Kilkenny, and Pádraig is keeping the tradition going with two All-Irelands of his own and an All-Star to boot in his fine career so far.
The Spillanes (Kerry) – Pat, Mick, and Tom Spillane hold the honour of the most All-Ireland Senior Football titles won by a set of brothers with 19 in total. Pat won eight, Mick won seven, and youngest sibling Tom won four.
They have won five All-Ireland U-21 titles and two All-Ireland minor titles between them, and Pat’s nine football All-Stars remains a record.
The O Sés (Kerry) – The Kerry trio of Mark, Tomás and Darragh are the only set of three brothers to have ever adorned the same All-Stars team. When Marc Ó Sé made his 80th championship appearance in the 2014 All-Ireland Senior Football final, he joined his older brothers Tomás and Darragh as the only players in the history of the GAA to have made more than 80 Championship appearances. Colm Cooper has since joined the club.
Together, they hold 16 All-Ireland senior titles, 12 All-Stars, and a couple of Footballer of the Year awards. Enough said, really.
Joe’s breakthrough into the Tribesmen’s Senior Side in 2008 obviously reinvigorated Ollie’s enthusiasm for inter-county hurling, as he called short his retirement to recommence his Galway career during the same year. Ollie captained John McIntyre’s side in the 2008 and 2009 seasons in which Joe was beginning to make his name as one of the finest forwards in the country.
The pair are still teaming up for a Portumna side that is, in fact, backboned by brothers. There are two more Canning’s in it, in Davy and Ivan, who were also key members in the East-Galway club’s three All-Ireland triumphs. The Hayes brothers, Damian and Niall, were instrumental in these club triumphs and also both represented their county’s senior hurlers. Then you have the Smiths; Andy has captained Galway in the past and Leo was also central to the club’s success.
The O’Connors (Mayo) – They may not have bridged Mayo’s gap to win their long-awaited All-Ireland yet, but if there were a few more in the Yew County with the talent Ballintubber brothers Diarmuid and Cillian have, they would probably have lifted Sam Maguire already.
The O’Connors (Cork) – It’s hard to name a more iconic duo than Ben and Jerry O’Connor, they were so good they even had their own ice-cream named after them.
The Newtownshandrum twins teamed up to devastating effect throughout their careers. The speedy pair won All-Irelands together for both club and county and their brotherly connection was always evident on the field of play.
The pair shared five All-Stars between them during these illustrious and exciting careers.
The McGees (Donegal) – The Gaoth Dobhair men minded the house like a pair of pedigree guard-dogs during Donegal’s All-Ireland winning campaign in 2012.
The pair have very similar playing styles with both renowned for being as tough as nails.
The Gaeltacht men are two of the best man-markers in the game.
Eamon called his inter-county career to a half last year but the brothers are still manning the full back line for a youthful Gaoith Dobhair side in Donegal.
The Downeys (Kilkenny) – Angela and Ann won 24 camogie All-Irelands between them. Angela is considered as one of the greatest players ever to have played the game.
The Fennellys (Kilkenny) – Older brother Michael blazed a trail for Colin to follow and the younger Ballyhale brother has ignited the Fennelly flame even more.
Brian Cody obviously places a lot of value in the teak toughness of the pair. Michael is a workhouse that hoovers up breaking ball for the Cats in the midfield section when he’s not injured and army man Colin is one of the most physical forwards in the game.
The Ballyhale boys have won three All-Ireland Club titles and three All-Irelands with Kilkenny side by side.
The Dooleys (Offaly) – The Clareen brothers Joe, Johnny and Billy won seven All-Ireland medals between them. Joe was regarded as one of the greatest players of his generation and he remains the only Offaly player to have won three All-Ireland medals.
The Offaly half forward line of the 1990’s was regularly composed of the three Dooley brothers.
The Brogans (Dublin) – One of the most famous brotherly duos to have played the game. Alan made his inter-county debut in 2002 and his footsteps were followed into the Dublin set-up four years later by younger brother Bernard.
The St. Oliver Plunketts/Eoghan Ruadh clubmen have won numerous Leinster titles together with the Dubs and have lined out on three of Dublin’s All-Ireland winning senior sides.
Sometimes it’s in the genes and the brothers’ father, Bernard Senior, also won three All-Irelands with the Dubs.
The Lohans (Clare) – The pair spent a long time manning the full-back line for the Banner hurlers but Frank also liked to show up at the other end of the field. He once scored three points against Waterford in the hurlers’ forward line for Clare.
They lined out alongside each other in Clare’s All-Ireland Senior Hurling triumphs of 1995 and 1997.
The Mannions (Galway) – Younger brother Cathal was the first of the Ahascragh-Foghenagh pair to make an inter-county breakthrough.
Cathal carved out a reputation for himself in his 2014 debut season but it was in 2015, when joined by Pádraig, that he really marked his territory on the inter-county stage, winning an All-Star at the end of the season.
The brothers backboned their clubs Connacht Intermediate Championship triumph in 2016, and came up short in the All-Ireland of this competition.
The Connollys (Galway) – When Castlegar won the All-Ireland Club Hurling Championship final in 1980 they had seven Connolly brothers in the victorious panel. That year was an extremely successful year for the Connolly boys with three of the above brothers – John, Michael and Joe – proceeding to help end Galway’s 57-year famine with a victory over Limerick in the All-Ireland final a mere three months later.
That was a productive few months for the incredible brothers.
The O h’Ailpíns (Cork) – “Sean Og O h’Ailpin… his father’s from Fermanagh, his mother’s from Fiji, neither a hurling stronghold.” This classic Micheál O’Muircheartaigh line could also be related to Aisake and Setanta, Seán Óg’s younger brothers. The trio were some hurlers though.
Seán Óg attained legendary status in Cork after guiding the county to three SHC All-Irelands, and his younger brothers followed suit, despite their careers being cut short by their Aussie Rules ventures.
Setanta joined his older brother on the Cork team for the 2003 All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship, losing the final to Kilkenny. His contribution to the campaign earned him an All-Star award and the Young Hurler of the Year award.
Aisake wasn’t to buck the trend and he had his day in the sun in 2010 when he destroyed Pádraic Maher in the Rebels’ Munster Championship opening round defeat of Tipperary in 2010.
Honourable mentions: The Rackards and O’Connors of Wexford, the Hendersons of Kilkenny, the Farrell sisters of Kilkenny, the Cavanaghs of Tyrone, the Wileys and Hughes of Monaghan, the Shanahans of Waterford, the up-and-coming O’Callaghans of Dublin, the Kellys and Bonnars of Tipperary, the O’Connors of Mayo, the Pilkingtons, Lowrys and Troys of Offaly, the Mcnultys of Armagh, the Bradleys of Derry, and the McGraths of Galway.
