Damian Casey

Damian Casey (1993 – 17 June 2022) was an Irish hurler who played for the Eoghan Ruadh, Dungannon, club and at senior level for the Tyrone county team. Regarded as his county's greatest ever hurler who—at the time of his death—was "at the peak of his powers", Casey played as a full-forward.

He scored in every game he played for Tyrone at senior level. He was a former captain of his county, including for its first Nicky Rackard Cup win in 2014, when he was 21 years of age. He won the Nicky Rackard Cup again in 2022 in what was his final game for his county, shortly before his death at the age of 29.

Casey played hurling since he was "four or five". He was the son of Sean, a past chairman of the Dungannon Clarkes club. He was also the son of Susan and had two sisters.

Casey was educated at St Patrick's Academy in Dungannon. He attended, and graduated from, Ulster University, and represented it in the Fitzgibbon Cup. He later lived in the English city of Liverpool.

Casey first emerged as a hurler at juvenile and underage levels with the Eoghan Ruadh, Dungannon club in Dungannon. He advanced onto the club's senior team and was involved in four Tyrone SHC title-winning teams.

Casey made his first appearance on the inter-county scene when he was selected for the Tyrone under-16 hurling team. An All-Ireland medal winner in this grade, he later won an All-Ireland Minor Hurling Championship medal as a member of the Tyrone team. He then joined the under-21 team, before making his senior debut during the 2012 National League. He became a regular member of the starting fifteen and went on to win Nicky Rackard Cup and Lory Meagher Cup titles.

In 2014, Casey captained the first Tyrone team to win a Nicky Rackard Cup. In the final at Croke Park, he scored eight points against Fingal. He was 21 years of age.

In his last league game (2022 National Hurling League, 2 April), he scored 1–10 as part of a three-point win against Armagh that gave Tyrone promotion to Division 2B.