James Andrew Walsh (hurler)

James Andrew Walsh (20 November 1908 - 17 May 1985) was a formidable hurler. He was born in Waterford City, Ireland, the son of James Walsh of New Ross, Co. Wexford, and Ellen Stafford of Carrick-on-Bannow, Co. Wexford. He attended Mount Sion in Waterford City, the first school founded and run by the Congregation of Christian Brothers. The Irish Christian Brothers were staunch champions of Irish nationalism, the Irish Language Revival and Irish sports. Mount Sion established a strong and enduring tradition of hurling, which filled the young and impressionable Jimmy with a lifelong enthusiasm. When he left Mount Sion, James took with him not only the skills, but a determination to excel, which eventually led to his participation in the All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship of 1934.

However, it would be wrong to think that Mount Sion was all sport and games. The ancient Greeks believed in a concept called arête, which means ‘to be the best you can be’. This demanded the equal development of body, mind and spirit. The founder of Mount Sion, Edmund Ignatius Rice, took this concept to heart and undertook to develop ‘the whole student’. James Walsh was the living embodiment of this ethos. When he sat the exams for the Leaving Certificate, he achieved the highest score for mathematics in the nation.

In the archives of the Leinster GAA (Gaelic Athletic Association), James is referred to as Jim Walsh (Civil Service). This was done to avoid confusing him with other hurlers of the same name, but it also signifies that Jim Walsh was among the first generation of civil servants to serve the fledgling and sovereign modern state of Ireland. Already fluent in the Irish language, he passed the challenging Civil Service Entrance Examination for Executive Officers, achieving 12th place out of the 250 candidates who took the test in 1926. His recruitment into the Civil Service meant moving from Waterford to Dublin. He first worked in the Department of Education, was seconded briefly to the Department of Finance, and eventually settled in the Department of Defence (Ireland).

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