[1] English was, at the time of his retirement, the longest-serving midfielder the Tipperary senior hurling team ever had, and has been described as "one of Tipp[erary]'s finest hurlers".
[5][6] English, having won an All-Ireland Junior Championship with Tipperary in 1953, was immediately drafted onto the senior team as a left wing-forward but was later transferred to midfield.
After retiring from inter-county activity in 1967, English became a selector with Tipperary and was part of the All-Ireland Championship-winning management teams in the 1971 and 1989 Championships.
In retirement he came to be regarded as one of Tipperary's greatest-ever players and has been repeatedly voted onto teams made up of the sport's greats.
English was subsequently switched to midfield, and ended the league with his first senior silverware after Tipperary beat Kilkenny by 3-10 to 1-04 in the final.
English's performance in the 2-08 to 1-08 defeat by Cork in the subsequent final was described in the Irish Independent as being "head and shoulders over any of the other four midfielders."
The subsequent Munster Championship campaign saw English claim his second winners' medal after giving a "sound, without being spectacular" performance in the two-point win over Cork.
[12] A groin injury meant that he was a doubt for the 1960 All-Ireland final right up to the day of the match, however, according to the Cork Examiner reporter, he played the "greatest 30 minutes of his career" but ultimately ended up in the losing side after the 2-15 to 0-11 defeat.
Tipperary subsequently retained the Munster Championship, with English adding a third provincial medal to his collection after dominating midfield with his partner Liam Devaney in the 3-06 to 0-07 win over Cork.
[16] A defeat by Kilkenny in the group stage of the 1961-62 league ended Tipperary's hopes of a fourth successive title.
In spite if this, Tipperary secured a third successive Munster Championship title, with English claiming a fourth winners' medal after the 5-14 to 2-03 win over Waterford.
[18] In July 1965, English won the sixth provincial medal of his career after a 4-11 to 0-05 defeat of Cork in the 1965 Munster final.
The Irish Independent singled out the midfield pair of English and Mick Roche for particular praise in the 4-12 to 2-06 win over Clare.
In 2000 English was chosen, by popular opinion, to partner Mick Roche at midfield on the Tipperary Hurling Team of the Century.