The cross-border movement of Republic of Ireland-born footballers to Northern Ireland clubs, 1922-2000

ABSTRACT

This article examines the movement of Republic of Ireland-born players to Northern Ireland for professional football purposes after the partition of Ireland in 1921. It traces how this continued after the formation of the Free State League in Dublin and shows how a number of players used Belfast clubs to move to those of a higher level in Britain. However, it primarily focuses on movement to Northern Ireland from Dublin during the Troubles (1968–1998). In doing so, it draws on interviews with five Republic of Ireland-born players who made the decision to sign for clubs in Northern Ireland in the 1980s and 1990s. It examines the reasons why they made these moves, their concerns over security issues and it explores their relationships with players, managers and supporters at their new clubs. It will be shown that there were mixed experiences but the players generally felt welcomed by their new clubs.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Notes

1. See, for example, Bardon, A History of Ulster; Bew, Gibbon and Patterson, Northern Ireland 1921-2001 and McKittrick and McVea, Making Sense of the Troubles; Kennedy and Ollerenshaw, Ulster Since 1600.

2. Bartlett, Ireland: A History, 505.

3. Ibid., 510.

4. New York Times, 4 October 2018.

5. See for example, Garnham, Association football and Society; Curran, Irish Soccer Migrants.

6. Curran, Irish Soccer Migrants, 26.

7. See for example Sugden and Bairner, Sport and Sectarianism.

8. Garnham, Association football and Society, 5.

9. Dodd, 100 Years: A History, 33-58.

10. Garnham, Association football and Society, 72-3.

11. Curran, Irish Soccer Migrants, 26 and 222.

12. Sunday Independent, 9 September 1956.

13. Joyce, Football League Players’ Records, 123.

14. Garnham, Association football and Society, 177-8.

15. Curran, Irish Soccer Migrants, 26.

16. Garnham, Association football and Society, 177-8.

17. Sunday Independent, 8 August 1956.

18. Moore, Birth of the Border, 5.

19. Ibid. 4-5.

20. Football Sports Weekly, 12 September 1925.

21. Irish Independent, 14 October 1929.

22. ‘NIFG-Jimmy Kelly’.

23. Irish Independent, 14 February 1957.

24. Ibid., 16 April 1959.

25. Northern Ireland Soccer Yearbook, 56-7.

26. Irish Independent, 23 April 1946.

27. Irish Examiner, 15 March 1949.

28. Hugman, The PFA Premier & Football League Players’ Records, 362, 470.

29. Irish Press, 22 August 1946.

30. Hugman, The PFA Premier & Football League Players’ Records, 344.

31. ‘Con Martin-Highly Versatile Irish footballer’.

32. Belfast Newsletter, 10 February 1947.

33. Hugman, The PFA Premier & Football League Players’ Records, 636.

34. Brodie, Linfield: 100 Years, 64. I am grateful to Tom Hunt for this reference.

35. Hugman, The PFA Premier & Football League Players’ Records, 642.

36. Curran, Irish Soccer Migrants, 7.

37. Northern Ireland Soccer Yearbook, 34-5.

38. Evening Herald, 27 Nov. and 11 December 1946. I am grateful to Gerry Farrell for drawing my attention to this.

39. Irish Examiner, 21 December 1946.

40. Belfast Newsletter, 21 December 1946.

41. Hugman, The PFA Premier & Football League Players’ Records, 445-6.

42. Irish Times, 22 November 1957.

43. Whelan, Who stole our game? 71-2.

44. Bardon, A History of Ulster, 605-8.

45. Irish Independent, 28 September 1966 and Hugman, The PFA Premier & Football League Players’ Records, 134.

46. Belfast Telegraph, 3 June 1997.

47. Irish Press, 13 April 1972.

48. Dickson, Dublin: The making of a capital city, 544.

49. Ibid.

50. McKittrick and McVea, Making sense of the Troubles, 317.

51. ‘1979-European Cup Linfield’.

52. Bartlett, Ireland: A History, 525.

53. Irish Press, 30 May 1981.

54. Ibid.

55. Irish Press, 12 September 1981.

56. Irish Independent, 30 May 1981.

57. Evening Herald, 25 October 1983.

58. Irish Press, 5 May 1982.

59. Ibid.,17 June 1983.

60. Irish Independent, 16 September 1983.

61. Irish Independent, 16 September 1983.

62. Interview with Harry McCue, 10 December 2019.

63. Irish Independent, 16 September 1983.

64. Ibid.

65. Interview with Harry McCue, 10 December 2019.

66. Ibid.

67. Ibid.

68. Ibid.

69. ‘Glentoran FC: The Managers: Ronnie McFall (part two)’.

70. Ibid.

71. Interview with Harry McCue, 10 December 2019.

72. Ibid.

73. The Soccer Magazine (February 1989), 5.

74. ‘Dundalk F.C. Who’s Who’.

75. Interview with Brian O’Shea, 21 November 2019.

76. Ibid.

77. Ibid.

78. Ibid.

79. Ibid.

80. Ibid.

81. Ibid.

82. Ibid.

83. Ibid.

84. Ibid.

85. Curran, Irish Soccer Migrants, 51 and Belfast Telegraph, 30 July 2015.

86. Interview with John Coady, 22 January 2020.

87. Ibid.

88. Ibid.

89. Ibid.

90. Ibid.

91. Ibid.

92. Belfast Telegraph, 2 August 1990.

93. Ibid., 12 December 1990.

94. Ibid., 14 January 1991.

95. Ibid., 13 November 1991.

96. Ibid., 23 Oct. and 12 December 1990.

97. Ibid., 13 November 1991.

98. Ibid., 16 February 1994.

99. Glentoran FC: The Managers: Ronnie McFall (part two).

100. Belfast Telegraph, 10 March 2016 and 3 January 2019.

101. Ibid.,14 August 1991.

102. Ibid., 18 November 1991.

103. Curran, Irish Soccer Migrants, 304.

104. Belfast Telegraph, 15 November 1991.

105. Interview with Paul Byrne, 26 February 2020.

106. Belfast Telegraph, 2 April 1993.

107. Interview with Paul Byrne, 26 February 2020.

108. Ibid.

109. Ibid.

110. Ibid.

111. Ibid.

112. Browne, ‘Linfield’s “Hawk of Peace”’, 90.

113. Ibid., 87.

114. Belfast Telegraph, 10 February 1993.

115. Browne, ‘Linfield’s “Hawk of Peace”’, 81.

116. Evening Herald, 7 October 1994.

117. Ibid.

118. Ibid.

119. Ibid.

120. Ibid.

121. Ibid.

122. Ibid.

123. Ibid.

124. Ibid.

125. Ibid.

126. Ibid.

127. Ibid.

128. Interview with Pat Fenlon, 7 February 2020.

129. Ibid.

130. Ibid.

131. Ibid.

132. Ibid.

133. Ibid.

134. Ibid.

135. Ibid.

136. Ibid.

137. Ibid.

138. ‘Dundalk F.C. Who’s Who’.

139. Belfast Telegraph, 14 August 1991 and Donegal Democrat, 3 September 1998.

140. Bartlett, Ireland: A History, 566.

141. Ibid., 552.