his tenth and final county championship winners' medal with Toomevara, this time as captain of the side. He subsequently captured his third Munster club title, however, his side lost in the All-Ireland club semi-final with Dunne being controversially sent off after a straightforward punch to the guts. This event became the spark which Ballyhale Shamrocks needed to ignite their passions and, coupled with the inability of the selectors to see what was happening in front of them, brought about Toomevara's downfall. Following this defeat Dunne decided to retire from club hurling. Minor and under-21 Dunne first came to prominence on the inter-county scene in the early 1990s as a member of the Tipperary minor hurling team. He won a Munster title in this grade in 1991 following a 3–13 to 1–5 demolition of Limerick. Dunne later lined out in the All-Ireland final with Kilkenny providing the opposition. 'The Cats' were superior on that occasion and won the game by 0–15 to 1–10. Dunne subsequently joined the Tipperary under-21 hurling team and enjoyed more success. He won a Munster title in this grade in 1995 after a 1–17 to 0–14 defeat of Clare. Once again, Dunne later lined out in the All-Ireland final and, once again, Kilkenny were the opponents. An exciting game developed with Dunne playing a key role in the 1–14 to 1–10 victory for Tipp. Not only did Dunne collect an All-Ireland under-21 medal but his performance in that game earned him the RTÉ Man of the Match award. Senior By this stage Dunne had already joined the Tipperary senior hurling team. He made his senior championship debut in a Munster semi-final victory over Kerry in 1993. Tipp later captured the Munster title, however, Dunne found it difficult to break onto the team. At the start of 1994 Dunne enjoyed his first success at senior level when he came on as a substitute in Tipp's National Hurling League victory over Galway. Tipperary, however, enjoyed little success in the championship. After defeat after a draw and a replay in the Munster final of 1996, Dunne lined out in a second consecutive provincial decider in 1997. Clare provided the opposition on that occasion, however, it was an occasion to forget for Dunne as Tipp lost a close and exciting game by 1–18 to 0–18. The introduction of the new 'back-door' system resulted in both Clare and Tipperary meeting for the