The death has taken place of former Kilkenny All-Ireland winning hurler, Pat Delaney after a long illness.

Born in 1944 and from the Fenians club in Johnstown, with whom he won five county medals, he made his senior debut with the county in 1969, winning both Leinster and All-Ireland medals in his first season.

His honours in a career that lasted until 1977 included four All-Irelands (1969, ’72, ’74 and ’75), six Leinsters, one NHL in 1976, five Railway Cups, including one as captain of Leinster in 1973 and two All Stars in 1972 and ’73.

A physically tough centre forward for most of his career, he devised the ‘Delaney bounce’ which involved tapping the sliotar off the ground while running through bunches of opponents.

His son PJ won an All-Ireland medal in 1993, scoring the decisive goal in the final against Galway whereas his nephew JJ has been a defensive mainstay of the outstanding Kilkenny team of recent years.