Niall McGinn

Name: Niall McGinn
Born: 20 July 1987, Donaghmore
Height: 5.08 ft (1.73m)
Weight: 11.08 st (73kg)
Position: Winger

Representative Honours: Northern Ireland: Full, 1 B Cap (2009), 1 Under-23 Cap (2007).
Club Honours: (with Derry) Football League of Ireland Cup Winner 2008; (with Aberdeen) Scottish Cup Runner-Up 2016/17; League Cup Winner 2013/14, Runner-Up 2016/17.
Awards: PFAI Young Player of the Year 2008; SPL Player of the Month October 2012.

Club Career:
Teams......--Seasons-- Signed -Fee- --League-- -FACup- -FLCup- Europe Other
Dungannon Swifts ........ -03 Youth .64 (-)/ 4*
Derry City 2008 ...... Jan-08 ..... .50 (-)/10* ............... 1(-)/0
Celtic ....08/09-11/12 Dec-08 £200k .12(16)/ 4 .1(1)/1 .1(1)/1 .1(4)/0 

Brentford. 11/12 ..... Jul-11..Loan .27(10)/ 5 .1(1)/0 ............... 1(4)/0 
Aberdeen.. 12/13-16/17 Jun-12 .Free 165(14)/58 12(2)/4 12(1)/1 17(-)/5
Gwangju .. 2017 ...... Jul-17 .Free ..4 (3)/ 0 (K League)
Aberdeen.. 17/18- date Jan-18 .Free
* all games

Biography:
A highly-rated winger with Derry City, Niall McGinn was linked with a move across the water, with Chelsea, Celtic and Swansea City among the potential suiters. An all-round sportsman, he also played Gaelic football for Donaghmore and Tyrone Under-21s.

A product of the successful Dungannon Swifts youth set-up, McGinn signed his first professional contract in 2007 after helping the reserves to successes in the Bob Radcliffe Cup, George Wilson Cup and Reserve League during the 2005/06 season. In January 2008 he transferred to Derry City and in September he scored twice in a 6-1 rout of Wexford Youths in the League Cup Final. His season was rounded off with the PFAI Young Player of the Year award.

McGinn's continued good form, primarily on the right-wing, saw him included in the Northern Ireland squad for an international friendly against Hungary in November 2008. McGinn was thus the first Derry player to earn a call-up to the Northern Ireland squad since Liam Coyle in 1989. He impressed during his second-half appearance despite a disappointing 2-0 defeat.

On 16 December 2008 McGinn sealed a move to Celtic for a fee in the region of £200,000. He joined up with ex-Candystripes teammate Pat McCourt at Parkhead. A match-day regular at Celtic Park through the 2009/10 and first half of 2010/11, McGinn appeared to fall from the firstteam picture due to injury. He joined League One side Brentford on a season-long loan deal for 2011/12 and was released the following summer.

McGinn remained in Scotland, signing for Aberdeen. Dons' manager Craig Brown stated that he saw McGinn as a forward, and his faith was rewarded with a good early-season goal scoring run. That form also transferred to the international stage as he scored his first Northern Ireland goal in a famous 1-1 draw in Portugal. His performances through the 2012/13 season saw him shortlisted for the SPFA Player of the Year award. In 2013/14 he won his first major honour in Scotland as Aberdeen defeated Inverness on penalties in the League Cup Final at Celtic Park.

2016/17 brought Aberdeen runners-up spots in the Scottish League, Cup and League Cup as McGinn was heavily linked with a move away from Pittodrie. He made a surprise move to Korean side, Gwangju, becoming the first Irish footballer to play in the country. His time in South Korea was ultimately frustrating as he struggled to settle with a club who were doomed to relegation from the K League. In December he agreed a three-and-a-half year deal to return to Aberdeen.

Irish FA

(courtesy of Roy Cathcart)

Northern Ireland Cap Details:
19-11-2008 Hungary....... H L 0-2 FR. sub
06-06-2009 Italy......... A L 0-3 FR. sub
12-08-2009 Israel........ H D 1-1 FR. sub
09-09-2009 Slovakia...... H L 0-2 WCQ sub
14-10-2009 Czech Republic A D 0-0 WCQ
14-11-2009 Serbia........ H L 0-1 FR
03-03-2010 Albania....... A L 0-1 FR
08-10-2010 Italy......... H D 0-0 ECQ sub
12-10-2010 Faroe Islands. A D 1-1 ECQ
17-11-2010 Morocco....... H D 1-1 FR
09-02-2011 Scotland...... N L 0-3 CNC
24-05-2011 Rep of Ireland A L 0-5 CNC sub
27-05-2011 Wales......... N L 0-2 CNC
10-08-2011 Faroe Island.. H W 4-0 ECQ sub
02-09-2011 Serbia........ H L 0-1 ECQ sub
06-09-2011 Estonia....... A L 1-5 ECQ
11-10-2011 Italy......... A L 0-3 ECQ sub
02-06-2012 Netherlands... A L 0-6 FR. sub
16-10-2012 Portugal...... A D 1-1 WCQ 1 Goal
14-11-2012 Azerbaijan.... H D 1-1 WCQ
06-02-2013 Malta......... A D 0-0 FR
26-03-2013 Israel........ H L 0-2 WCQ
14-08-2013 Russia........ H W 1-0 WCQ
06-09-2013 Portugal...... H L 2-4 WCQ
10-09-2013 Luxembourg.... A L 2-3 WCQ
11-10-2013 Azerbaijan.... A L 0-2 WCQ sub
15-10-2013 Israel........ A D 1-1 WCQ
15-11-2013 Turkey........ A L 0-1 FR
05-03-2014 Cyprus........ A D 0-0 FR
30-05-2014 Uruguay....... A L 0-1 FR
04-06-2014 Chile......... A L 0-2 FR. sub
07-09-2014 Hungary....... A W 2-1 ECQ sub 1 Goal
Still active.

Northern Ireland B Cap Details:
06-05-2009 Scotland A L 0-3 FR

Summary: 1/0. Won 0, Drew 0, Lost 1.

Northern Ireland Under-23 Cap Details:
11-12-2007 Belgium A L 1-2 ICT

Summary: 1/0. Won 0, Drew 0, Lost 1.

Gareth Graham

Name: Gareth Lee Graham
Born: 6 December 1978, Belfast
Height: 5.07 ft
Weight: 10.02 st
Position: Midfielder

Representative Honours: Northern Ireland: 5 Under-21 Caps (1999).
Club Honours: (with Palace) Southern Junior Floodlit Cup Winner 1996/97; (AFC Wimbledon) Combined Counties League Premier Division Champion 2003/04; Isthmian League Division One Champion 2004/05.

Club Career:

Clubs	Seasons	Signed	Fee	League	Cup	-
Crystal Palace	98/99-99/00	May-97	Youth	0 (1)/0	-	-
Brentford	99/00-00/01	Sep-99	-	5 (0)/0	-	-
Merthyr Tydfil	99/00	-	Loan	-	-	(Southern League)
Crawley Town	99/00	-	Loan	-	-	(Southern League)
Margate	01/02	Oct-01	-	22 (4)/1	8(-)/1	(Football Conference)
ÍBV Vestmannaeyjar	2002	-	-	-	-	(Iceland)
Whyteleafe	02/03	-	-	-	-	(Isthmian League)
AFC Wimbledon	02/03-04/05	Feb-03	-	23(13)/2	3(3)/1	(Combined Counties/Isthmian Leagues)
Whyteleafe	-	-	-	-	-	(Isthmian League)
Croydon Athletic	07/08	-	-	-	-	(Isthmian League)
Merstham	-	Mar-11	-	-	-	(Isthmian League)
Lingfield	-	Nov-11	-	-	-	(Sussex County League)
TOTALS		£-		-	-	-

Biography:
Gareth Graham came through the Crystal Palace youth set-up. A battling midfielder who could also slot into defence as required, he was part of the Palace team that reached the semi-final of the FA Youth Cup in 1996 and won the Southern Junior Floodlit Cup the following season. He was just beginning to establish himself in the reserve team when a broken leg ruled him out for a lengthy period. He recovered to make his firstteam debut against Watford in April 1999, but many felt he had lost his pre-injury dynamism and he was allowed to join Brentfoed in 1999. He spent two seasons with the Bees but struggled to make an impact and thereafter drifted into non-league football and for a couple of seasons featured for AFC Wimbledon as they marched through the lower leagues.

To follow.

Palace Reserve Team Profile
Palace Supporters' Website
AFC Wimbledon
Lingfield FC
Wikipedia
Soccerbase

Northern Ireland Under-21 Cap Details:

04-06-1999 Scotland A D 1-1 PT
17-08-1999 France.. H W 3-1 FR
03-09-1999 Turkey.. H L 1-2 ECQ
07-09-1999 Germany. A L 0-1 ECQ
08-10-1999 Finland. A L 1-2 ECQ

Summary: 5/0. Won 1, Drew 1, Lost 3.

Joshua "Paddy" Sloan

The first Irishman to play in Serie A, Paddy Sloan's career could be characterised as that of a footballing pioneer...

Name: Joshua Walter Sloan
Born: 30 April 1920, Lurgan
Died: April 1993
Height:
Weight:
Position: Right-Half/Inside-Right

Representative Honours: Ireland: 1 Full Cap (1947), 2 Victory International Caps / 1 Goal (1945-1946); Eire: 2 Full Caps / 1 Goal (1946).

Club Career:

Teams	Seasons	Signed	Fee	League	FA Cup	War-Time	Other
Glenavon	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
Manchester Utd	37/38	Sep-37	-	0/ 0	-	-	-
Tranmere Rvrs	39/40-45/46	May-39	-	3/ 2	-	19/13	-
New Brighton	40/41	-	Guest	-	-	1/ 0	-
Millwall	42/43	-	Guest	-	-	1/ 0	-
Manchester Utd	43/44-44/45	-	Guest	-	-	3/ 1	-
Fulham	44/45	-	Guest	-	-	11/ 6	-
Brentford	45/46	-	Guest	-	-	6/ 4	-
Bath City	-	-	Guest	-	-	-	-
Arsenal	46/47-47/48	May-46	-	33/ 1	3/0	-	-
Sheffield Utd	47/48	Feb-48	-	12/ 2	-	-	-
Brescia	48/49	Jul-48	-	-	(Italy)
AC Milan	48/49	Oct-48	-	30/ 9	(Italy Serie A)
Torino	49/50	Aug-49	-	-	(Italy Serie A)
Udinese	49/50	Dec-49	-	23/ 6	(Italy Serie B)
Brescia	50/51	-	-	19/ 7	(Italy Serie B)
Norwich City	51/52	Dec-51	£4,000	6/ 0	-	-	-
Peterborough Utd	-	-	-	-	(Midland League)
Rabat	54/55	Jul-54	-	-	(Malta)
Hastings Utd	55/56	Sep-55	-	-	(Southern League)
Lockheed Lemington	55/56	Mar-56	-	-	(Birmingham & District League)
Bath City	-	Aug-56	-	-	(Southern League)
TOTALS	-	£4,000		126/27	3/0	41/24	0/0

Coaching Career:
Rabat player-coach 1954
Hastings United player-coach 1955
Lockheed Leamington player-manager 1956
Bath City player-coach 1956
South Melbourne Hellas (Victorian State League - Australia) 1964
Juventus (Victorian State League - Australia) 1965

Biography:
One of just a handful of "Northern" born players to win caps from the FAI, Joshua "Paddy" Sloan was not just a versatile player, but also one of the most controversial characters of his era in football.

To follow.

Wikipedia Article
Tranmere Rovers Article
Calcio Serie A
Maglia Rossonera

Ireland Cap Details: (at right-half)
16-04-1947 Wales... H W 2-1 BC#

Summary: 1/0. Won 1, Drew 0, Lost 0.

Ireland Victory International Cap Details: (all at inside-right)
15-09-1945 England. H L 0-1 VI
13-04-1946 Wales... A w 1-0 VI 1 Goal

Summary: 2/1. Won 1, Drew 0, Lost 1.

Eire Cap Details: (all at inside-right)
16-06-1946 Portugal A L 0-3 FR
23-06-1946 Spain... A W 1-0 FR 1 Goal

Summary: 2/1. Won 1, Drew 0, Lost 1.