Paddy Neville

Patrick Augustine Neville (22 June 1920 – 16 July 1977) was an Irish sportsman who played cricket, hockey, football, and Gaelic football.

Neville was born at Donabate in County Dublin, and was educated at O'Connell School in Dublin.[1] He began playing club cricket for Leinster in 1941, before moving to Malahide, where he was to play the majority of his club cricket.[1] He made his debut in first-class cricket for Ireland against Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) in 1956 at Dublin.[2] After his debut, he played a number of minor matches against Sussex in 1956, as well as the touring New Zealanders and Worcestershire, both in 1959.[1][3] He made a second first-class appearance in 1959, against Leicestershire on Ireland's tour of England.[2] He made two further first-class appearances, both in 1960 against Scotland at Paisley, and the MCC at Dublin.[2] Across his four first-class matches, Neville scored a total of 143 runs at an average of 17.87, with a highest score of 38.[4]

Besides cricket, Neville also played several other sports to a high level. He played field hockey at international level for the Ireland national field hockey team,[1] as well as playing football for Drumcondra and Dundalk as a goalkeeper, also winning four caps for the League of Ireland XI.[1] He also played Gaelic football for Parnells in Dublin; however the 'Ban' resulted in Neville being banned from playing by the Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA), after the GAA discovered him playing hockey under his mother's maiden name.[1][5] Outside of sport, Neville worked as a psychiatric nurse.[1][5] He died unexpectedly at Dublin in July 1977.[5] The Neville Cup, contested annually by hockey clubs based in Leinster, is named after Neville and his brother, John.[5]