He played hurling with his local club Dungourney and was a member of the Cork senior inter-county team from 1902 until 1907.
Desmond played his club hurling with his local Dungourney team in Cork and enjoyed some success.
[citation needed] Desmond first tasted success on the inter-county scene with Cork in 1902 when he lined out in his first Munster final.
The campaign began well with Cork defeating Tipperary to secure a fourth consecutive Munster title.
Kilkenny won the game thanks to Dick Doyle’s first-half goal, while Pat ‘Fox’ Maher made great save at the end to help his team to a 1-9 to 1-8 defeat of Desmond’s side.