| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Irish name | Liam Ó Briain | ||
| Sport | Hurling | ||
| Position | Midfield | ||
| Born | 27 July 1949 Kilkenny,Ireland | ||
| Died | 23 August 2021 (aged 72)[1] Kilkenny, Ireland | ||
| Height | 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m) | ||
| Nickname | Chunky | ||
| Occupation | Barman | ||
| Club | |||
| Years | Club | ||
| Newpark Sarsfields James Stephens | |||
| Club titles | |||
| Kilkenny titles | 2 | ||
| Leinster titles | 1 | ||
| All-Ireland Titles | 1 | ||
| Inter-county | |||
| Years | County | Apps (scores) | |
1969–1980 | Kilkenny | 26 (4–73) | |
| Inter-county titles | |||
| Leinster titles | 7 | ||
| All-Irelands | 4 | ||
| NHL | 1 | ||
| All Stars | 4 | ||
Liam 'Chunky' O'Brien (27 July 1949 – 23 August 2021) was a formerIrish sportsperson. He played seniorhurling with theKilkenny inter-county team in the 1970s.[2][3][4]
Liam 'Chunky' O'Brien was born inKilkenny in 1949. He was educated locally at St. John's De La Salle, a school associated with theO'Loughlin Gaels hurling club. In spite of this, O'Brien would later become a star with the famousJames Stephens club.
O'Brien had much success with the James Stephens club and won his first Kilkenny Senior Hurling Championship medal in 1975 before later winning aLeinster club title. This was subsequently converted into anAll-Ireland club medal. In 1976 O'Brien won his second county senior medal to complete his collection.
Although never winning All-Ireland medals at minor or under-21 levels O'Brien established himself as one of the great players on the greatKilkenny seniorhurling team of the 1970s. In 1971 he won his firstLeinster title, however, in spite of an outstanding display byEddie Keher, Kilkenny lost toTipperary in the All-Ireland final. In 1972 he won a second Leinster title before helping Kilkenny to defeatCork in the subsequentfinal to win his firstAll-Ireland medal. 1973 saw O'Brien win another Leinster medal, however, Kilkenny were defeated byLimerick in the All-Ireland final. He won his firstAll-Star award in 1973.[4]
The Kilkenny team quickly regrouped to win back-to-back Leinster and All-Ireland titles in 1974 and 1975, with O'Brien winning back-to-back All-Star awards also. The 1975 championship saw him produce what many believe to have been his best ever display for Kilkenny, and he was subsequently presented with the 'Hurler of the Year' award. In 1976 O'Brien helped Kilkenny to aNational Hurling League title, however, the side later lost their provincial crown toWexford. In 1978 Kilkenny were back as Leinster champions with 'Chunky' winning his sixth provincial medal. Unfortunately for Kilkenny,Cork completed a three-in-a-row, winning the All-Ireland final by 1–15 to 2–8. In 1979 he won another provincial championship, before going on to claim his fourth All-Ireland medal. It was his last big occasion atCroke Park as he retired from inter-county hurling shortly afterwards.[5]
O'Brien died on 23 August 2021, aged 72.[4][5][6]
James Stephens
Kilkenny
Leinster
Individual