From the age of ten it was obvious that Bernie Meade had a great hurling talent and as he progressed through the under-age ranks it became apparent that he had a gift which very few hurlers have. He had the ability to make the scoring of goals and points look very simple and became a prolific scorer for club and county for a period of thirty years.

In two years as a Cork minor hurler in 1965 and 1966 and two years on the Cork under-21 team Bernie amassed a remarkable total of 18 goals and 63 points which made an average score of over 8 points per game. It is safe to say that no other under-age Cork hurler ever matched this scoring achievement. He also of course still holds the record score of 1 goal and 12 points in an under-21 All-Ireland hurling final against Kilkenny in 1968.

It is a mystery to many followers of hurling in Passage and in Cork generally that Bernie was never afforded the chance to show his remarkable scoring ability at senior county level.

Although better known for his hurling achievements Bernie also had an amazing football career in the Passage colours where he starred with two different teams in two different era’s and in two very different styles of football.

In 1969 when Passage junior footballers made the breakthrough by winning the City Division championship Bernie captained the team and when a completely new team regained the City title in 1980 he was again the captain. During the following five years when Passage footballers had unprecedented success, winning county junior and intermediate titles, Bernie was a colossus against all-comers where he donned the No. 3 jersey with authority and class.

Bernie had the unusual distinction of winning six McSwiney Cup medals, three with the team of the late sixties and three with the team of the early eighties.