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. [9]
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. [10]
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. [11]
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. [12]
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 where he scored two points. 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. [13] 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. [14]
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. [15] 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. [16] 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. [17] Horgan ended the season by being nominated for his first All-Star. [18]
Horgan was named vice-captain of the Cork senior team for the upcoming season on 29 October 2011. [19] 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. [20] He ended the league and championship as Cork's top scorer with 1-94,while Horgan was also nominated for a second All-Star. [21]
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. [22] Cork eventually lost the game by 0–24 to 0–15. [23] Horgan's red card and one-match ban were later rescinded following a successful appeal to the Central Hearings Committee. [24] 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. [25] Horgan was again at full-forward for the replay on 28 September and scored nine points in the 5–16 to 3–16 defeat. [26] He ended the season by being named at full-forward on the All-Star team. [27]
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 UíChaoimh. [28] He ended the season by being nominated for a fourth All-Star. [29]
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. [30] 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. [31] During the game he surpassed Christy Ring to become Cork's all-time top championship scorer. [32] Horgan ended the season by being named in the left corner-forward position on the All-Star team. [33]
On 1 July 2018,Horgan won a third Munster Championship medal following a 2–24 to 3–19 defeat of Clare in the final. [34] 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". [35] Horgan was later named in the left corner-forward position on the All-Star team. [36]
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. [37] Horgan ended the month by being named as the GAA/GPA Player of the Month for May. [38] 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. [39] Horgan ended the year by receiving a fourth All-Star award while he was also shortlisted for the Hurler of the Year award. [40] [41]
On 16 November 2019,it was announced that Horgan would captain the Cork senior hurling team for the 2020 season. [42]
On 23 September 2025,Horgan announced his retirement from inter-county hurling after 18 seasons. He retired holding the record for points scored in both the championship,32-683,and league 26-674. [43]
