Anthony O'Sullivan (born 7 January 1963) is an Irish retired hurler and Gaelic footballer who played as a right wing-forward for the Cork senior hurling team.
Born in Farranree, Cork, O'Sullivan first played competitive Gaelic games during his schooling at the North Monastery. He arrived on the inter-county scene at the age of sixteen when he first linked up with the Cork minor teams as a dual player before later joining the under-21 sides. He made his senior hurling debut during the 1982 championship. O'Sullivan immediately became a regular member of the starting fifteen and won three All-Ireland medals, seven Munster medals and one National Hurling League medal. He was an All-Ireland runner-up on three occasions.
As a member of the Munster inter-provincial team on a number of occasions, O'Sullivan won one Railway Cup medal on the field of play. At club level he is a two-time championship medallist with Na Piarsaigh.
O'Sullivan's career tally of 1 goals and 143 points ranks him as one of Cork's highest championship scorers of all-time.
Throughout his career O'Sullivan made 39 championship appearances. His retirement came following the conclusion of the 1995 championship.
In retirement from playing O'Sullivan became involved in team management and coaching. He has served as a selector with the Cork under-21 and senior teams.
During his playing days, O'Sullivan won five All-Star awards as well as being named Texaco Hurler of the Year in 1990. O'Sullivan was also chosen as one of the 125 greatest hurlers of all-time in a 2009 poll, while he was also selected as one of Cork's greatest players of the era in a 2013 selection.
During his schooling at the North Monastery, O'Sullivan established himself as a key member of the senior hurling team. In 1980 he won a Harty Cup medal following a 2âÂÂ10 to 2âÂÂ5 replay defeat of St. Colman's College. On 27 April 1980 the North Mon faced St. Brendan's Community School in the All-Ireland decider. A 5âÂÂ11 to 3âÂÂ7 victory gave O'Sullivan an All-Ireland medal.
After enjoying championship success in the minor and under-21 grades with Na Piarsaigh, O'Sullivan subsequently joined the senior team. After losing the 1987 championship decider to Midleton, the club qualified for the final again in 1990. Southside kingpins St. Finbarr's provided the opposition, however, the game ended level. The replay was also a close affair, however, a narrow 2âÂÂ7 to 1âÂÂ8 victory gave O'Sullivan a Cork Senior Hurling Championship medal.
Na Piarsaigh failed to retain their title, while the club also faced defeat at the hands of Erin's Own in 1992. Three years later O'Sullivan lined out in a fourth championship decider as North Cork minnows Ballyhea provided the opposition. A 1âÂÂ12 to 3âÂÂ1 victory gave O'Sullivan a second championship medal.
O'Sullivan first played for Cork as a member of the minor hurling team on 9 July 1979 when he was introduced as a substitute in Cork's 3âÂÂ17 to 4âÂÂ4 provincial final defeat of Limerick. It was his first Munster medal. On 2 September 1979 Cork faced Kilkenny in the All-Ireland decider. O'Sullivan scored 0âÂÂ2 from right wing-forward and collected an All-Ireland medal as Cork recorded a 2âÂÂ11 to 1âÂÂ9 victory. This game marked the end of the most successful period for minor hurling in Cork.
After making his debut with the Cork minor football team on 3 May 1980, O'Sullivan won a Munster medal in that code in 1981 following a narrow 0âÂÂ9 to 1âÂÂ5 defeat of Kerry. On 20 September 1981 Cork faced Derry in the All-Ireland decider. A comfortable 4âÂÂ9 to 2âÂÂ7 victory gave O'Sullivan an All-Ireland medal in that code.
O'Sullivan's performances with the Cork minor footballers saw him added to the starting fifteen of the under-21 side for the All-Ireland final replay with Galway on 8 November 1981. That game failed to live up to the excitement of the replay, however, a 2âÂÂ9 to 1âÂÂ6 victory gave O'Sullivan an All-Ireland medal in the under-21 grade.
As a dual under-21 player in 1982, O'Sullivan enjoyed mixed fortunes. With the hurlers he won his first Munster medal following a 1âÂÂ14 to 1âÂÂ4 provincial decider defeat of Limerick. On 12 September 1982 Cork faced Galway in the All-Ireland decider. Cork came from behind in the closing stages to win by a single point scored from long range by Kevin Hennessy. The 0âÂÂ12 to 0âÂÂ11 victory gave O'Sullivan an All-Ireland medal. He had earlier won a Munster medal with the under-21 footballers following a 2âÂÂ12 to 0âÂÂ4 trouncing of old rivals Kerry.
In 1984 O'Sullivan was in his final year with the under-21 teams. He won a second Munster medal with the footballers as Limerick were accounted for by 1âÂÂ18 to 0âÂÂ4. On 26 August 1984 Cork faced Mayo in the All-Ireland decider. A narrow 0âÂÂ9 to 0âÂÂ6 victory gave O'Sullivan a second All-Ireland medal.
O'Sullivan made his senior hurling championship debut for Cork on 30 May 1982 when he scored 0âÂÂ7 in a 1âÂÂ19 to 2âÂÂ8 Munster quarter-final defeat of Tipperary. Cork powered their way through the provincial campaign and a massive 5âÂÂ21 to 3âÂÂ6 defeat of Waterford in the decider, with O'Sullivan scoring 0âÂÂ12, gave him a first Munster medal. On 5 September 1982 Cork faced Kilkenny in the All-Ireland decider. "The Cats", who many viewed as the underdogs, surprised all on the day, with Christy Heffernan scoring two goals in a forty-second spell just before the interval to take the wind out of Cork's sails. Ger Fennelly got a third goal within eight minutes of the restart, giving Kilkenny a 3âÂÂ18 to 1âÂÂ15 victory. In spite of this defeat O'Sullivan ended his debut year by claiming a first All-Star.
Illness limited O'Sullivan's involvement in Cork's 1983 championship campaign. In spite of this he won a second Munster medal after being introduced as a substitute in Cork's 3âÂÂ22 to 0âÂÂ12 defeat of Waterford. The All-Ireland final on 4 September 1983 was a replay of the previous year with Cork hoping to avenge the defeat by Kilkenny. O'Sullivan started the game on the bench but was introduced as a substitute. Billy Fitzpatrick was the star with ten points, giving Kilkenny a 2âÂÂ14 to 1âÂÂ9 lead with seventeen minutes left, however, they failed to score for the remainder of the game. A stunning comeback by Cork just fell short and they were defeated by 2âÂÂ14 to 2âÂÂ12.
Cork were the dominant force in Munster once again in 1984, with O'Sullivan winning a third successive Munster medal following a memorable 4âÂÂ15 to 3âÂÂ14 defeat of Tipperary in the provincial showpiece. The subsequent All-Ireland final on 2 September 1984, played at Semple Stadium in Thurles, saw Cork take on Offaly for the first time ever in championship history. The centenary-year final failed to live up to expectations and Cork recorded a relatively easy 3âÂÂ16 to 1âÂÂ12 victory. It was O'Sullivan's first All-Ireland medal.
In 1985 O'Sullivan added a fourth successive Munster medal to his collection as Cork defeated Tipperary by 4âÂÂ17 to 4âÂÂ11 in the provincial decider once again.
Cork made it five-in-a-row in Munster in 1986 as they defeated Clare by 2âÂÂ18 to 3âÂÂ12 to take the provincial title. It was O'Sullivan's fifth successive Munster medal. This victory paved the way for an All-Ireland final meeting with Galway on 7 September 1986. The men from the west were the red-hot favourites against a Cork team in decline, however, on the day a different story unfolded. Four Cork goals, one from John Fenton, two from Tomás Mulcahy and one from Kevin Hennessy, stymied the Galway attack and helped the Rebels to a 4âÂÂ13 to 2âÂÂ15 victory. It was O'Sullivan's second All-Ireland medal while a second All-Star quickly followed.
A controversial disallowed goal by O'Sullivan denied Cork a record-breaking sixth successive Munster medal in 1987, while Cork faced defeat by Tipperary once again in the 1988 decider. In spite of this O'Sullivan won a third All-Star at the end of that season.
In 1990 Cork bounced back after a period in decline. O'Sullivan won a sixth Munster medal that year following a 4âÂÂ16 to 2âÂÂ14 defeat of Tipperary. The subsequent All-Ireland final on 2 September 1990 pitted Cork against Galway for the second time in four years. Galway were once again the red-hot favourites and justified this tag by going seven points ahead in the opening thirty-five minutes thanks to a masterful display by Joe Cooney. Cork fought back with an equally expert display by captain Tomás Mulcahy. The game was effectively decided on an incident which occurred midway through the second half when Cork goalkeeper Ger Cunningham blocked a point-blank shot from Martin Naughton with his nose. The umpires gave no 65-metre free, even though he clearly deflected it out wide. Cork went on to win a high-scoring and open game of hurling by 5âÂÂ15 to 2âÂÂ21. It was a third All-Ireland medal for O'Sullivan. He finished off the year by winning a fourth All-Star before being named Texaco Hurler of the Year.
Cork surrendered their titles in 1991, however, O'Sullivan claimed his seventh and final Munster medal in 1992 following a 1âÂÂ22 to 3âÂÂ11 of Limerick. On 6 September 1992 Cork faced Kilkenny in the All-Ireland decider. At half-time Cork were two points ahead, however, two second-half goals by John Power and Michael "Titch" Phelan supplemented a first-half D. J. Carey penalty which gave Kilkenny a 3âÂÂ10 to 1âÂÂ12 victory.
O'Sullivan won a National Hurling League in 1993 following a 3âÂÂ11 to 1âÂÂ12 defeat of Wexford.
Cork's hurling fortunes took a downturn over the next few years and O'Sullivan retired from inter-county hurling following Cork's exit from the 1995 championship.
O'Sullivan was first chosen on the Munster inter-provincial team in 1983, however, the southern province lost out to Connacht in the semi-final.
After being omitted from the team in 1984, O'Sullivan was included at left corner-forward the following year as Munster faced Connacht in the decider. A narrow 3âÂÂ6 to 1âÂÂ11 victory gave O'Sullivan a Railway Cup medal.
Munster faced defeat over the course of the next four championships, however, the team bounced back in 1992. O'Sullivan was a non-playing substitute that year as Munster defeated Ulster by 3âÂÂ12 to 1âÂÂ8.