Dick Grace (hurler)
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Irish name | Risteard Grás | ||
| Sport | Hurling | ||
| Position | Half-back | ||
| Born | Tullaroan, County Kilkenny | ||
| Club(s) | |||
| Years | Club | ||
| 1908-1929 | Tullaroan | ||
| Club titles | |||
| Kilkenny titles | 8 | ||
| Inter-county(ies) | |||
| Years | County | ||
| 1909-1926 | Kilkenny | ||
| Inter-county titles | |||
| Leinster titles | 8 | ||
| All-Irelands | 5 | ||
Dick Grace (1890–1974) was an Irish sportsperson. He played hurling with his local club Tullaroan and was a member of the Kilkenny senior inter-county team from 1909 until 1926. Grace is one of only a handful of players to have won All-Ireland medals in each of three decades.
Dick Grace was born in Tullaroan, County Kilkenny in 1891. He was educated at the local national school and, in time, would go on to become one of his county’s greatest-ever hurlers. The Graces of Tullaroan were synonymous with both hurling and Gaelic football. Between them the three brothers – Dick, Jack and Pierce - won a total of 15 All-Ireland senior medals – eight in hurling and seven in football.
Grace played his club hurling with his local Tullaroan club and enjoyed much success, winning his first county title in 1910. He added more county titles to his collection in 1911, 1915, 1924 and 1925. At the end of the 20th century Grace was chosen on the Tullaroan Hurling Team of the Century.
Grace first came to prominence on the inter-county scene for Kilkenny in 1909. That year he came on as a substitute in the All-Ireland final against Tipperary in Cork. The game was a high-scoring one as Tipperary suffered their first defeat in nine All-Ireland final appearances. A 4-6 to 0-12 victory gave Grace his first All-Ireland medal. Kilkenny surrendered their Leinster and All-Ireland crowns in 1910, however, 1911 saw Grace picking up his first Leinster winners’ medal. There was controversy in the All-Ireland final as Kilkenny were destined to play Limerick. On the first occasion the pitch in Cork was water-logged and the game was refixed for Thurles. Limerick pulled out of the replay and the title was awarded to Kilkenny. Limerick defeated Kilkenny in a challenge match later that same year; however, Grace was the one who had collected a second All-Ireland medal. The following year Grace collected a second Leinster medal before lining out in another All-Ireland final. Cork provided the opposition on that occasion in a low-scoring but close game. A 2-1 to 1-3 victory gave Grace a third All-Ireland medal. In 1913 Kilkenny were attempting to make history by capturing their third championship in-a-row. Kilkenny retained their provincial dominance with Walsh collecting a third Leinster title. The All-Ireland final saw ‘the Cats’ square up to Tipperary in the first fifteen-a-side final. Kilkenny had the lead at half-time and only scored a goal in the second-half. They won the game by 2-4 to 1-2 giving Grace a fourth All-Ireland winners’ medal.
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