Pa Bourke

Infobox GAA player
code= Hurling
sport = Hurling


name = Pa Bourke
irish = Pádraig de Burca
fullname = Patrick Bourke
placeofbirth = Thurles
countryofbirth = County Tipperary
bday=18
bmonth=5
byear= 1988
height =
nickname =
county = Tipperary
province = Munster
club = Thurles Sarsfields
clposition = Forward
clubs =
clyears =
clapps(points) =
clcounty =
clprovince=
clallireland =
counties = Tipperary
icposition = Forward
icyears = 2007-
icapps(points) = 6 (0-1)
icprovince = 0
icallireland = 0
nhl = 1
clupdate =
icupdate = Pa Bourke (born 18 May, 1988 in Thurles, County Tipperary) is an Irish sportsperson. He plays hurling with his local club Thurles Sarsfields and with the Tipperary senior inter-county team.

Early life

Pa Bourke was born in Thurles, County Tipperary in 1988. He was born into a family steeped in hurling history as his grandfather, John Maher, captained Tipperary to the All-Ireland title in 1945. Bourke was educated locally at the the Christian Brothers secondary school in the town, where his hurling skills were first developed. He was a key member of the team in 2005 when his school were defeated by St. Flannans of Ennis in the final of the Dr. Harty Cup.

Playing career

Club

Bourke plays his club hurling with the famous Thurles Sarsfields club in his home town and has enjoyed some success. He first came to prominence as a dual player at minor level. Bourke had little success on the minor hurling field; however, he won back-to-back minor football titles in 2005 and 2006. His performance in the latter final earned him the Man of the Match title. Bourke has since moved onto the club’s under-21 and senior teams.

Inter-county

Bourke first came to prominence on the inter-county scene as a member of the Tipperary minor hurling team in 2005, however, he had little success in his first year. Cork defeated Tipp in the Munster final in 2006, however, Tipp still qualified for the All-Ireland final. On that occasion Tipp defeated Galway giving Bourke a coveted All-Ireland medal. Bourke also finished the championship as the top scorers after recording a respectable 3 goals and 35 points in only a handful of games. He made his senior debut in 2007, however, it was an unhappy year for Tipperary’s senior hurling team. Bourke returned to the substitute’s bench for Tipp’s National Hurling League triumph in 2008.

Teams

ources

* [http://www.tipperary.gaa.ie/seniorhurlingplayerprofiles.html Tipperary Player Profiles]