He played hurling with his local club Causeway and with the Kerry senior inter-county team from 1977 until 1989.
Leahy later served as manager of the Kerry senior inter-county hurling team on six separate occasions.
He also spent a year with Newtownshandrum, with whom he won a Cork Intermediate Hurling Championship title in 1976.
1983 saw Leahy collect an All-Ireland 'B' medal as the men from 'the Kingdom' defeated London to take the title.
[citation needed] Two years later, in 1992, Leahy served as a selector when John Meyler took charge of Kerry's hurlers.
His fourth term in charge saw Kerry defeat Westmeath to take the National Hurling League division two title.