O'Connor first played hurling and Gaelic football with sister clubs Cappoquin and Affane. He won Waterford JHC titles with the former in 1944 and 1948. O'Connor transferred to the Sarsfields club in Cork in 1949 and was part of the club's first ever Cork SHC triumph in 1951. He captained Sarsfields to their second title in 1957.
