Experienced Cian O'Neill set to be appointed as coach of Cork hurling team

Cian O’Neill is set to be appointed as coach of the Cork senior hurling team for the 2027 season.

It is believed that the vastly-experienced Kildare native will be confirmed in the role later this week.

Earlier this week, it was revealed that selector Ronan Curran had decided to step down and Cork manager Ben O’Connor has moved quickly to finalise his set-up for next year. O’Neill will have the title of head coach – when O’Connor was appointed last year, Niall O’Halloran was on the ticket as the coach but he was not directly replaced following his departure at the beginning of December.

O’Neill is the head of the Department of Sport, Leisure and Childhood Studies at MTU Cork (previously Cork IT), where he has been based since 2013 and he has amassed a wealth of coaching experience, primarily in Gaelic games.

While the bulk of his expertise has been built up in football, there are a couple of notable hurling entries on his CV. Brought in by Liam Sheedy as fitness coach when he took charge of the Tipperary hurlers in 2008, O’Neill helped them to three Munster titles as well as the All-Ireland title of 2010. In tandem with that, he was coach and trainer as a Newtownshandrum team featuring Ben O’Connor achieved Cork and Munster glory in 2009.

Most recently, O’Neill was involved with the Kerry senior football team under Jack O’Connor, helping them to the 2025 All-Ireland SFC as well as reaching this year’s final. 

That was his second stint with the Kingdom, having also been on the ticket for the 2014 All-Ireland victory, masterminded by Eamonn Fitzmaurice.

Prior to the return to Kerry, O’Neill had been recruited by Pádraic Joyce for the Galway football team and was central to them reaching the All-Ireland finals of 2022 and 2024. 

That had followed a spell as Cork football coach under Ronan McCarthy, while he managed his native Kildare from 2016-2019, guiding them to promotion from Division 3 of the league in his first year in charge as well as a Leinster final in 2017; the county’s first in eight years.

Sojourns with Mayo and Limerick also form part of his resumé, as well as county football titles with his home club, Moorefield of Kildare, and Limerick’s Monaleen, while he also played a part in UL Huskies’ basketball double of the Women’s Superleague and National Cup in 2011.