Brian Cody - Early Life

Early Life

Brian Cody was born in Sheestown, four miles outside Kilkenny city in 1954. The son of Thomastown natives Bill Cody and the former Annie Hoyne, he was born into a family that was heavily involved in the Gaelic Athletic Association. Hurling in particular was hugely important for Cody's father. He was a selector with both the Kilkenny minor and senior teams before later serving as chairman of the James Stephens club for seventeen years. His tenure coincided with the club’s most successful period ever. In her youth Cody’s mother played camogie with her local team.

Cody was educated at his local national school where his interest in the game of hurling was first developed. He later boarded at St. Kieran's College in Kilkenny, a virtual nursery for young, talented players. It was at St. Kieran's where Cody first tasted major hurling success. He was a key member of the college team in 1971 when St. Kieran's captured the Leinster colleges’ title. Cody later helped his school to the All-Ireland title following a win over St. Finbarr's College from Cork. He won a second consecutive Leinster colleges’ medal in 1972, however, St. Finbarr's gained their revenge and were victorious on this occasion. It was from these successes with St. Kieran’s that Cody’s inter-county career with Kilkenny evolved.

Cody later attended St. Patrick's College in Dublin where he studied to be a primary school teacher. Here he played on the college hurling team where one of his contemporaries was Ger Loughnane, a future hurling star and inter-county manager of Clare. Cody currently works at St. Patrick's De La Salle national school in Kilkenny, where he has been principal since 2009.