| Michael Collins | |
| Native Name: | Mícheál Ó Coileáin |
| Hometown: | Clonakilty |
| Occupation: | SuperValu employee |
| Years Active: | 1985–2013 |
| Employer: | GAA |
| Sport: | Gaelic football |
| Position: | Referee |
Michael Collins is a Gaelic football referee from County Cork. He is from Clonakilty.
Collins first took up refereeing in 1985 when he officiated a West Cork Junior B Football League game in Barryroe. After four years, he was part of the Cork GAA referees' panel.
He made his inter-county debut in 1994, overseeing a Munster MFC game between Waterford and Tipperary. His first involvement at senior inter-county level saw him referee Limerick against Tipperary in the 1998 Munster SFC. He later officiated the 2001 Ulster SFC final, an All-Ireland SFC quarter-final and the 2001 All-Ireland Senior Football Championship Final between Galway and Meath.[1] He also received a Celtic Ross Sports Star of the Year Award in 2001.
Collins's inter-county refereeing career concluded in 2013, after he officiated the Division 2 game between Longford and Laois. His last championship involvement was a Leinster SFC first round game between Wexford and Longford. He was replaced by David Gough, who would become an All-Ireland SFC final recipient himself, though there was space on the panel after Pádraig Hughes injured himself against Eamonn Doherty when he was officiating the Dublin game in Ballybofey.[2] [3]
Collins is married and has a son. As of 2018, he was working in SuperValu in Clonakilty.[4]