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Oisín Kiernan

Oisín Kiernan, wedding day.
Personal information
Irish name	Oisín Mac Thiarnáin
Sport	Gaelic Football
Position	Wing Back/Wing Forward
Born	(1992-10-01) 1 October 1992 (age 32)
Club(s)
Years	Club
2017–	St Brigid's Castlerahan
Club titles
Cavan titles	2
Inter-county(ies)
Years	County
2018–	Cavan
Inter-county titles
Ulster titles	1

Oisín Kiernan (born 1 October 1992) is an Irish Gaelic footballer who plays for the Cavan county team. He plays his club football with Castlerahan, having previously played for the St Brigid's club in Meath.

Playing career

Club

St Brigid's

Kiernan played with the St Brigid's club from a young age, and later joined the club's senior team. Kiernan played with the club up until he suffered a cruciate ligament injury at the age of 23, which kept him out for seven months.

Castlerahan

Kiernan transferred to Castlerahan for the 2017 season. On 8 October 2017, Kiernan was at full back for the county final against Cavan Gaels. Kiernan scored two points but for the third consecutive year, Castlerahan came out on the losing side.

In 2018, Castlerahan were in the county final once again where they faced Crosserlough. Castlerahan claimed their first championship, but Kiernan had been diagnosed with cancer and didn't feature. On 5 November, Kiernan started the Ulster Club loss to Derry champions Eoghan Rua.

Castlerahan reached the county final for the fifth consecutive year in 2019, facing Ramor United on 13 October. Kiernan scored one point as Castlerahan edged the final for their second title in a row.

After a surprise relegation from Senior in 2021, Castlerahan reached the final of the Intermediate Championship in 2022. On 9 October, Kiernan scored a point in the final against Ballyhaise as Castlerahan won by a goal.

Inter-county

Meath

Kiernan represented Meath at under-21 and junior level, but never represented his native county at senior level.

Cavan

Kiernan joined the Cavan panel ahead of the 2018 season. On 27 January 2018, Kiernan made his National League debut, scoring a point in a draw against Clare. On 1 April, Kiernan was in the half back line as Cavan faced Roscommon in the National League Division 2 Final. Roscommon were winners on a 4–16 to 4–12 scoreline. On 13 May, Kiernan made his championship debut in a loss to Donegal.

Kiernan didn't feature for Cavan in the early part of 2019 as he was going through cancer treatment. On 24 March 2019, Kiernan featured as a substitute against Dublin in the National League, and started the Ulster quarter-final win over Monaghan on 19 May. Kiernan started the Ulster final loss to Donegal on 23 June.

On 22 November 2020, Kiernan was in the half-forward line as Cavan faced Donegal in the Ulster Final for the second year in a row. Kiernan scored two points as Cavan bridged a 23-year gap with a 1–13 to 0–12 win. On 5 December, Kiernan started the All-Ireland semi-final, scoring two points in the loss to eventual champions Dublin.

On 9 July, Kiernan started at wing back in the inaugural Tailteann Cup decider against Westmeath. Kiernan scored a point but Westmeath were four-point winners.

Personal life

In September 2018, Kiernan was diagnosed with testicular cancer. He had found a lump a month earlier, but didn't get it looked at because he wanted to keep playing football, a decision he later regretted. Kiernan continued training through chemotherapy, and by March 2019, Kiernan was cancer-free.

Honours

Cavan

• Ulster Senior Football Championship (1): 2020
• National Football League Division 4 (1): 2022

Castlerahan

• Cavan Senior Football Championship (2): 2018, 2019
• Cavan Intermediate Football Championship (1): 2022

Individual

• Irish News Ulster All-Star (1): 2020

References

1. "Oisin Kiernan: 'The reason I didn't go to the GP was because I wanted to play football'". The Irish Times. 13 April 2019. Retrieved 6 August 2022.
2. "Cavan SFC final: Johnston inspires Gaels to 14th crown". Hogan Stand. 8 October 2017. Retrieved 10 October 2017.
3. "Castlerahan escape cycle of defeat to land maiden Cavan crown". Irish Independent. 22 October 2018. Retrieved 26 October 2018.
4. "View from the summit so sweet for resilient Castlerahan". The Irish Times. 3 November 2018. Retrieved 6 August 2022.
5. "Coleraine survive second half wobble against Castlerahan to clinch first Ulster senior championship victory". The Irish News. 5 November 2018. Retrieved 6 August 2022.
6. "Castlerahan edge Ramor to retain Cavan crown". RTÉ. 13 October 2019. Retrieved 14 October 2019.
7. "Gowna and Ramor into last four as Castlerahan suffer Cavan SFC relegation". Hogan Stand. 10 October 2021. Retrieved 13 November 2022.
8. "Castlerahan return to senior ranks". The Anglo-Celt. 9 October 2022. Retrieved 11 October 2022.
9. "Bryan Magee rescues draw for Cavan in Division 2 opener". RTÉ. 27 January 2018. Retrieved 6 August 2022.
10. "Roscommon lift Division 2 title with win over Cavan in eight-goal thriller". The42.ie. 1 April 2018. Retrieved 30 January 2022.
11. "Donegal prove too strong for wasteful Cavan". RTÉ. 13 May 2018. Retrieved 6 August 2022.
12. "'I was still very pale, I'd no hair... it was strange enough': Cavan's Oisin Kiernan ready to face Dubs again". The Irish News. 3 December 2020. Retrieved 6 August 2022.
13. "Cavan into Ulster semis after first championship win over Monaghan in 18 years". The42.ie. 18 May 2019. Retrieved 20 February 2021.
14. "Kiernan plays in win over All-Ireland semi-finalists just three months after chemotherapy". The42.ie. 19 May 2019. Retrieved 6 August 2022.
15. "Clinical Donegal dispatch Cavan to go back-to-back in Ulster". The42.ie. 23 June 2019. Retrieved 21 January 2021.
16. "Cavan shock Donegal to claim Ulster title". RTÉ. 22 November 2020. Retrieved 21 January 2021.
17. "Dublin beat Cavan at a canter to reach another final". RTÉ. 5 December 2020. Retrieved 21 January 2021.
18. "Westmeath crowned inaugural Tailteann Cup champions after late flurry against Cavan". The42.ie. 9 July 2022. Retrieved 11 July 2022.
19. "Oisin Kiernan: 'The reason I didn't go to the GP was because I wanted to play football'". The Irish Times. 13 April 2019. Retrieved 6 August 2022.
20. "Oisin Kiernan: 'I refused to let cancer stop me and trained on through chemotherapy'". Belfast Telegraph. 13 May 2020. Retrieved 6 August 2022.

• 1992 births
• Living people
• Cavan inter-county Gaelic footballers
• Castlerahan Gaelic footballers