Minor & under-21
Horgan first played for Cork as a member of the minor team. He was an unused substitute throughout the 2004 Munster Championship, but claimed a winners' medal from the bench after a 2-12 to 3-08 of Tipperary in the final. On 15 August, Horgan made his first championship appearance when he came on as a substitute for Eoghan Murphy in Cork's 2-15 to 1-13 All-Ireland semi-final defeat by Galway. [7]
Horgan became a regular member of the starting fifteen during the 2005 Munster Championship. On 26 June, he scored 1-02 from right corner-forward in Cork's 2-18 to 1-12 defeat of Limerick in the Munster Championship final. [8]
Horgan was appointed captain of the Cork minor team for the 2006 Munster Championship. On 25 June, he scored seven points from left corner-forward when Cork defeated Tipperary by 2-20 to 1-15 to win a third successive Munster Championship title. [9]
On 6 June 2007, Horgan made his first appearance for the Cork under-21 team. in a 1-14 to 2-10 defeat of Tipperary. On 1 August, he scored two points in Cork's 1-20 to 0-10 defeat of Waterford to win the Munster Championship. [10]
Horgan was in his final year with the Cork under-21 team when he was appointed captain for the 2009 Munster Championship. On 3 June, he scored 0-12 in his only championship game as captain in a 0-25 to 2-22 defeat by Tipperary.
Senior
Horgan made his first appearance for the Cork senior hurling team on 9 March 2008 in a 3-18 to 2-16 National Hurling League defeat of Dublin at Parnell Park. He was later included on Cork's panel for the 2008 Munster Championship and made his debut on 8 June as a 68th-minute substitute for Niall McCarthy in a 1-19 to 1-13 defeat by Tipperary. [11] Horgan made a number of appearances from the bench in Cork's All-Ireland Qualifiers before earning his first championship start at right corner-forward in Cork's All-Ireland quarter-final defeat of Clare on 27 July. [12]
On 2 May 2010, Horgan lined out at corner-forward in Cork's 2-22 to 1-17 defeat by Galway in the National League final. He scored three points, one of which was scored from a penalty which was deflected over the bar. [13] On 11 July, Horgan lined out in his first Munster Championship final when he was named at left corner-forward in Cork's 2-15 apiece draw with Waterford. [14] He was named in the same position for the replay a week later but was substituted at half-time after being held scoreless in the 1-16 to 1-13 defeat. [15] Horgan ended the season by being nominated for his first All-Star. [16]
Horgan was named vice-captain of the Cork senior team for the upcoming season on 29 October 2011. [17] He later assumed the captaincy after an injury to captain Donal Óg Cusack ruled him out of the latter staged of the league and the championship. On 6 May 2012, Horgan lined out in his second National League final. He scored nine points, including six frees, in the 3-21 to 0-16 defeat by Kilkenny. [18] He ended the league and championship as Cork's top scorer with 1-94, while Horgan was also nominated for a second All-Star. [19]
Horgan lined out in his second Munster Championship final on 14 July 2013. Just before half-time he was red-carded for a stroke to the head of Limerick’s Paudie O'Brien. [20] Cork eventually lost the game by 0-24 to 0-15. [21] Horgan's red card and one-match ban were later rescinded following a successful appeal to the Central Hearings Committee. [22] On 8 September, Horgan lined out at full-forward against Clare in the All-Ireland final. He top scored for Cork with ten points, including eight frees, in the 3-16 to 0-25 draw. [23] Horgan was again at full-forward for the replay on 28 September and scored nine points in the 5-16 to 3-16 defeat. [24] He ended the season by being named at full-forward on the All-Star team. [25]
On 3 July 2014, Horgan won a Munster Championship medal after scoring eight points in Cork's 2-24 to 0-24 defeat of Limerick in the last final to be played at the old Páirc Uí Chaoimh. [26] He ended the season by being nominated for a fourth All-Star. [27]
On 3 May 2015, Horgan was at left corner-forward in Cork's 1-24 to 0-17 defeat by Waterford in the National League final. [28] His seven points from placed-balls ensured he ended the league as joint-top scorer with 2-87.
Horgan won his second Munster Championship medal on 9 July 2017 after scoring thirteen points in the 1-25 to 1-20 defeat of Clare in the final. [29] During the game he surpassed Christy Ring to become Cork's all-time top championship scorer. [30] Horgan ended the season by being named in the left corner-forward position on the All-Star team. [31]
On 1 July 2018, Horgan won a third Munster Championship medal following a 2-24 to 3-19 defeat of Clare in the final. [32] On 17 July 2018, he was voted as the PwC GAA/GPA Player of the Month for June as a result of "his usual unerring accuracy from placed balls and crucial scores from play". [33] Horgan was later named in the left corner-forward position on the All-Star team. [34]
On 19 May 2019, Horgan became only the fifth player ever to score a cumulative total of 400 points in the championship after registering 1-09 in a 1-26 to 1-19 defeat of Limerick. He also became the all-time top points scorer in the Munster Championship. [35] Horgan ended the month by being named as the GAA/GPA Player of the Month for May. [36] On 6 August 2019, he became only the second player ever after Henry Shefflin to be presented with a third GAA/GPA Player of the Month award. [37] Horgan ended the year by receiving a fourth All-Star award while he was also shortlisted for the Hurler of the Year award. [38] [39]
On 16 November 2019, it was announced that Horgan would captain the Cork senior hurling team for the 2020 season. [40]
