Ray Cummins - Biography

Biography

Ray Cummins was born in Ballinlough in Cork in 1948. He was born into a family that had a strong tradition on hurling excellence. His father, Willie Cummins, played hurling with the Cork minor team in the 1930s. He captured back-to-back All-Ireland minor titles in 1938 and 1939. Cummins's grandfather, William 'Bowler' Walsh, played hurling with the Cork senior team in the early part of the century. He lined out in two All-Ireland finals in 1912 and 1915, however, he ended up on the losing side on both occasions. In time Ray Cummins would come to be regarded as one of the great players of his generation and as one of the greatest dual players of all-time. He honed his hurling and football skills during street games in the 1950s on the Ballinlough Road, and later carried his skills to the nearby Blackrock and St. Michael's clubs. He attended Coláiste Chríost Rí where, along with his brothers Brendan and Kevin, he became part of the sporting success of the school. In the late 1960s Cummins attended University College Cork where he studied engineering. Here he played on the college hurling and football teams, winning a Fitzgibbon Cup hurling title in 1967 and back-to-back Sigerson Cup football titles in 1969 and 1970.

Cummins currently lives in Kinsale and works with the pharmaceutical Eli Lilly and Company. On February 20, 2007 he was profiled on the TG4 television programme Laochra Gael.