Paul McElroy

Name: Paul McElroy
Born: 7 July 1994, Dungannon
Height:
Weight:
Position: Midfielder / Forward

Representative Honours: Northern Ireland: Under-21, Under-19, Under-17, Under-16 Schoolboy.

Club Career:
Teams ... --Seasons-- Signed -Fee- League FA Cup FL Cup Other
Dungannon Swifts ........... Youth 0(0)/0
Hull City ........... May-13 Youth 0(0)/0
Sheffield Wednesday . Jun-14 .Free 0(0)/0
Linfield. 14/15 ..... Aug-14 .Free 0(0)/0 ...... 1(0)/0 0(2)/0
Portadown 14/15 ..... Jan-15 ..... 1(3)/0
Dungannon 15/16- date Aug-15 .Free 

Biography:
A left-sided attacking midfielder, Paul McElroy rose through the academy set-up at Hull City after arriving from Dungannon Swifts in 2010 and signed his first professional contract in May 2013. He has been a regular through the Northern Ireland age-group set-up, graduating to the Under-21 side in 2013. As a teenager he was also an accomplished Gaelic footballer with "The Clarkes" in his native Dungannon.

McElroy was released by Hull at the end of the 2013/14 season. He signed for Sheffield Wednesday, but stayed just a month before leaving for personal reasons. He then joined Linfield after a successful trial, but left mid-season for Portadown. He was on the move again at that summer, returning to Dungannon Swifts.

More to follow.

IrishFA

Northern Ireland Under-21 Cap Details:
09-09-2013 Belgium A L 0-1 ECQ
still active

Alex Bruce

Name: Alex Stephen Bruce
Born: 28 September 1984, Norwich (England)
Height: 5.09 ft (1.75 m)
Weight: 11.04 st (71.66 kg)
Position: Defender

Representative Honours: Northern Ireland: 2 Full Caps (2013-14); Republic of Ireland: 2 Full Caps, B, Under-21.
Club Honours: (with Hull) Football League Championship Runner-Up 2012/13 (promoted); FA Cup Runner-Up 2013/14.

Club Career:
Teams..... --Seasons-- Signed -Fee- -League- FA Cup FL Cup Other
Manchester United ........... Youth ..0(0)/0
Blackburn Rovers ............ Youth ..0(0)/0
Oldham Ath 04/05 ..... Dec-04 .Loan ..3(3)/0 1(0)/0 ...... 1(0)/0
Birmingham 04/05-06/07 Jan-05 .Free ..3(3)/0 4(2)/0
Oldham Ath 04/05 ..... Jan-05 .Loan ..5(1)/0 1(0)/0 ...... 1(0)/0
Sheff Wed..04/05 ..... Mar-05 .Loan ..8(1)/0 
Tranmere R 05/06 ..... Aug-05 .Loan .10(1)/0 ...... 0(1)/0
Ipswich T..06/07-09/10 Aug-06 .Free 112(3)/2 5(1)/1 6(0)/0
Leicester. 09/10 ..... Feb-10 .Loan ..2(1)/0 ............. 4(0)/0
Leeds Utd. 10/11-11/12 Aug-10 ...... 29(0)/1 2(0)/0 2(0)/0 
Hudd'field.11/12 ..... Nov-11 .Loan ..3(0)/0
Hull City .12/13-16/17 Jul-12 .Free 74(11)/1 7(1)/0 6(2)/0 2(1)/0
Wigan Ath. 16/17 ..... Jan-17 .Loan ..0(2)/0 
Bury ..... 17/18 ..... Aug-17 .Free ..2(0)/1 
Wigan Ath. 17/18- date Aug-17 .Free

Biography:

(courtesy of John Floyd)

Son of former Manchester United defender, Steve, Alex Bruce currently plays for Hull City where his father is manager.

A controversial selection for the Northern Ireland squad in October 2012, Bruce had previously rejected a Northern Ireland call-up, preferring instead to represent the Republic of Ireland. Having won two friendly caps for the south he became frustrated by his lack of opportunities and agreed a switch to the north with Nigel Worthington in the summer of 2011.

Northern Ireland Full Cap Details:
06-02-2013 Malta. A D 1-1 FR
05-03-2014 Cyprus A D 0-0 FR

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

Nathan Hanley

Name: Nathan Hanley

Born: 18 July 1990, Carrickfergus

Height: 5.09 ft

Weight: 11.02 st

Position: Midfielder / Left-Back

Representative Honours: Northern Ireland: Under-21, Under-19, Under-17, 1 Under-16 Schoolboy Cap (2006).
Club Honours: (with Linfield) IFA Premiership Champion 2011/12 ...; (with Crusaders) NIFL Premiership Champion 2014/15; Irish League Cup Runner-Up 2013/14.

Club Career:

Teams	Seasons	Signed	Fee	League	FA Cup	FL Cup	Europe	Other
St Andrews BC	-	-	Youth	-	-	-	-	-
Linfield	-	-	Youth	0 (0)/0	-	-	-	-
Hull City	-	-06	Youth	0 (0)/0	-	-	-	-
Ballymena United	10/11	c/s-10	Free	/3	-	-	-	-
Linfield	10/11-12/13	Jan-11	-	13 (4)/3	-	1(0)/0	2(0)/0	3(0)/0
Crusaders	13/14-14/15	-13	Free	14(16)/3	-	-	-	-
Ballymena United	15/16	-15	-	14 (-)/1	-	-	-	-
Carrick Rangers	16/17- date	Jul-16	-	-	-	-	-	-
TOTALS	-	£-		-	-	-	-	-

Biography:

Nathan Hanley won youth caps and played reserve team football with Hull City before being released in 2010. He joined Ballymena United where his impressive performances earned the attentions of Belfast's "Big Two". He joined Linfield, were he had played as a youth, shortly before the January 2011 transfer window closed and won his first Under-21 cap at the end of that season.

Northern Ireland Under-21 Cap Details:

31-05-2011 Faroe Islands A D 0-0 ECQ

still active

Joe Dudgeon

Name: Joseph Patrick Dudgeon
Born: 26 November 1990, Leeds (England)
Height: 5.09 ft / 1.75 m
Weight:
Position: Defender/Midfielder

Representative Honours: Northern Ireland: 4 Under-21 Caps (2009-2011).

Club Career:

Teams	Seasons	Signed	Fee	League	FA Cup	FL Cup	Other
Manchester Utd	-	-09	Youth	0(0)/0	-	-	-
Carlisle United	10/11	Jan-11	Loan	1(1)/0	-	-	-
Hull City	11/12-14/15	May-11	£300k	26(7)/0	2(0)/0	4(0)/0	-
Barnsley	14/15	Jul-14	Loan	15(0)/0	2(0)/0	-	2(0)/0
TOTALS	-	£300k		42(8)/0	4(0)/0	4(0)/0	2(0)/0

Biography:
An experienced Under-21 international and regular for Championship side Hull City, Joe Dudgeon received his first senior Northern Ireland call-up in October 2012.

Ultimately Dudgeon's career was blighted by injuries and he was released by Hull in 2015.

In November 2015 Dudgeon joined the youth coaching staff at Manchester City. He had begun to work towards his badges while still a young professional player. In 2016 he also began working with-in the Northern Ireland youth set-up.

To follow.


Wikipedia
ManUtd.com
Soccerbase

Northern Ireland Under-21 Cap Details:
13-10-2009 Iceland A L 1-2 ECQ
13-11-2009 Germany H D 1-1 ECQ 
10-08-2011 Faroe I H W 4-0 ECQ
15-11-2011 Serbia. H L 0-2 ECQ
 
Summary: 4/0. Won 1, Drew 1, Lost 2.

Picture courtesy of Roy Cathcart.

Dave Stewart

The "Next George Best" of 1977, like so many before and since, Dave Stewart failed to live up to the comparison...

Name: Charles David Stewart
Born: 20 May 1958, Belfast
Height: 5.08 ft
Weight: 9.03 st
Position: Left-Winger

Representative Honours: Northern Ireland: 1 Full Cap (1977).

Club Career:

Clubs	Seasons	Signed	Fee	League	FA Cup	FL Cup	Other
Bangor	-	-	Youth	-	-	-	-
Hull City	74/75-78/79	c/s-74	£20k	46 (5)/ 7	3(0)/0	5(0)/0	3(1)/0
Chelsea	79/80	May-79	-	0 (0)/ 0	-	-	-
Scunthorpe.United	79/80-81/82	Nov-79	-	88 (9)/19	7(0)/1	4(0)/0	-
Bridlington.Trinity	82/83	c/s-82	-	(Northern Counties East League)
Goole Town	82/83	Nov-82	-	(Northern Premier League)
Canberra	-	-	-	(Denmark)
Hartlepool United	82/83	Mar-83	-	6 (2)/ 0	-	-	-
Grantham	-	-	-	(Northern Premier League)
TOTALS		£20k		140(16)/26	10(0)/1	9(0)/0	3(1)/0

Biography:
A talented youth player with Bangor, Dave Stewart was taken to Hull City as an apprentice by Terry Neill in the summer of 1974. He made his League debut against Blackpool in April 1975 and the following August signed professional forms, netting his ex-club a £20,000 fee.

Stewart continue to progress with the Tigers, and drew the attentions of Northern Ireland manager, Danny Blanchflower. The sort of player Blanchflower really admired, exciting and adventurous, the nineteen year-old was included in the Irish side as deputy for George Best in a 3-0 World Cup win over Belgium.

Thereafter Stewart’s effectiveness faltered as he suffered a succession of injuries. He seemed too light-weight for Second Division football and he struggled to hold down a place at Boothferry Park. After just five League appearances in the 1978/79 campaign he sought a release from the club so he could spend time convalescing in Australia, however Hull promised him a new contract on his return.

The trip "down under" fell through and Stewart subsequently rejected Hull's contract offer. Blanchflower stepped in to take him to Chelsea as a free agent in May 1979. The Stamford Bridge club had been freshly relegated to Division Two, but Stewart had little time to make an impact with Blanchflower leaving in September. Stewart left Chelsea in November 1979 without making a first-team appearance.

Signed by Fourth Division Scunthorpe, Stewart toughened-up, gaining more than a stone in weight from his Hull days. An effective goalscorer from the wing, he couldn't help lift the Iron away from mediocrity and was released after the club finished second bottom of the League in 1982. He drifted into non-League circles and spent some time in Denmark before making his Football League swansong with Hartlepool in March 1983. He left full-time football behind at the age of just 25.

Northern Ireland Cap Details:
16-11-1977 Belgium.. H W 3-0 WCQ

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

Tommy Wright

Preceded by	Northern Ireland International Personality of the Year	Succeeded by
Gerry Taggart	1993	Jimmy Quinn
Steve Lomas	1997	Steve Lomas

The ‘Ballyclare Barman’ went a long way. From under-appreciated reserve at Linfield to international acclaim, it was a bumpy road…


Name: Thomas James Wright
Born: 28 September 1963, Ballyclare
Height:  6.01 ft / 1.85 m
Weight: 13.05 st / 85 kg
Position: Goalkeeper

Representative Honours: Northern Ireland: 31 Full Caps (1989-1999), 1 Junior Cap (1986); Irish League ‘B’ Division Representative; Football League: 1 Cap (1992).
Club Honours: (with Linfield Swifts) Irish League ‘B’ Division Champion; George Wilson Cup Winner; (with Newcastle) Football League Division One Champion 1992/93; (with Forest) Football League Division One Runner-Up 1993/94.

Awards: NI International Player of the Year 1993, 1997.

Club Career:

Clubs	Seasons	Signed	Fee	League	FA Cup	FL Cup	Europe	Others
Brantwood	-	-	-	(Irish League 'B' Division)
Linfield	83/84-87/88	Dec-83	-	7(0)/0	2(0)/0	-	-	1(0)/0
Newcastle U.	87/88-93/94	Jan-88	£30,000	72(1)/0	4(0)/0	6(0)/0	-	1(0)/0
Hull City	90/91	Feb-91	Loan	6(0)/0	-	-	-	-
Nott’m Forest	93/94-96/97	Sep-93	£450,000	11(0)/0	-	2(0)/0	-	-
Reading	96/97	Oct-96	Loan	17(0)/0	-	-	-	-
Man. City	96/97-00/01	Mar-97	£450,000	24(0)/0	2(0)/0	1(0)/0	-	1(0)/0
Wrexham	98/99	Feb-99	Loan	16(0)/0	-	-	-	-
Newcastle U.	99/00	Sep-99	Loan	3(0)/0	-	-	-	-
Bolton Wdrs	00/01	Jan-01	Free	3(1)/0	-	-	-	-
Ballymena U.	01/02	Aug-01	Free	6(0)/0	-	1(0)/0	-	-
Linfield	02/03	Aug-02	Free	-	-	-	-	-
TOTALS			£930,000	175(1)/0	8(0)/0	10(0)/0	0(0)/0	3(0)/0

Coaching Career:
Northern Ireland ............... Goalkeeping Coach
Irish FA/Ballyclare Comrades.... Youth Development Officer
Linfield........................ Goalkeeping Coach
Limavady United... Nov/03-May/05 Manager
Ballymena United.. May/05-Apr/08 Manager
Norwich City...... May/08-Feb/09 Goalkeeping Coach
Shamrock Rovers... Feb/09-Nov/09 Goalkeeping Coach

Lisburn Distillery Sep/09-Nov/11 Manager

..... Irish League Cup Winner 2010/11
St Johnstone ..... Nov/11-Jun/13 Assistant Manager
Northern Ireland ..Feb/12-Jun/13 Goalkeeping Coach
St Johnstone ..... Jun/13- date. Manager
..... Scottish Cup Winner 2013/14
..... Ladbrokes Premiership Manager of the Season 2015/16

Biography:
For a player who’s career in the Irish League was limited almost exclusively to Linfield Swifts and who’s experiences in England were severely blighted by injury, Tommy Wright ranks amongst the most popular ever Northern Ireland ‘keepers.

Wright will forever be remembered for his performance in Nuremburg in 1996 as Northern Ireland claimed a famous 1-1 draw against reigning European Champions, Germany. The circumstances surrounding it make that performance even more astounding. Wright hadn’t played an international match in almost two-and-a-half years to that point and had just returned to club action on loan at Reading after a prolonged injury nightmare. Germany’s Jurgen Klinsmann would later decry the wall built in front of Wright’s net, but truly this was the match of the ‘keeper’s life.

Thirty-one caps was scant reward for a player of Wright’s ability, but he remained much sought after until the end of his career in England. He returned to the Irish League in August 2001, rejecting an offer from Bolton, to join Ballymena. Injuries struck again and he played just seven times for the Sky Blues before hanging-up his gloves and joining the coaching staff at Linfield. At Windsor Park he briefly re-registered as a player during an injury crisis but was not called-upon for firstteam action.

Manager of Limavady United from 2003-2005 and Ballymena from May 2005 to April 2008, Wright has also worked for the Irish FA in Youth Development and was Northern Ireland goalkeeping-coach for a time under Sammy McIlroy. In May 2008 he took the job of goalkeeping coach at Norwich City having previously turned the position down. He left Carrow Road in February 2009 shortly after the departure of the manager that had hired him, Glenn Roeder. Linked with the management job at Glenavon, he instead joined ex-international teammate Michael O'Neill at Shamrock Rovers as goalkeeping coach.

In September 2009 Wright returned to Irish League management with struggling Lisburn Distillery. He combined his roles at New Grosvenor and Shamrock Rovers until the end of the 2009 League of Ireland season before taking the Whites to safety and on to a Co-Operative Insurance Cup final win the following season. He left Distillery in November 2011 to become assistant-manager to ex-Northern Ireland and Manchester City colleague Steve Lomas at St Johnstone.

In February 2012 Wright was announced as part of Michael O'Neill's Northern Ireland coaching staff. When Lomas left St Johnstone to manage Millwall in June 2013, Wright was promoted to the top job. He left his Northern Ireland post shortly thereafter. In his first season he led the Perth club to their first ever Scottish Cup final in which they defeated Dundee United. In 2016 he was named Scottish Premiership Manager of the Season having led the Saints to fourth place for a second consecutive campaign.

More to follow.


Northern Ireland Cap Details: 

1	26-04-1989	Malta	-A-	W 2-0	WCQ
2	26-05-1989	Chile	-H-	L 0-1	FR
3	06-09-1989	Hungary	-H-	L 1-2	WCQ
4	18-05-1990	Uruguay	-H-	W 1-0	FR
5	11-09-1991	Faroe Islands	-A-	W 5-0	ECQ
6	16-10-1991	Austria	-H-	W 2-1	ECQ
7	19-02-1992	Scotland	-A-	L 0-1	FR
8	02-06-1992	Germany	-A-	D 1-1	FR
9	09-09-1992	Albania	-H-	W 3-0	WCQ
10	14-10-1992	Spain	-H-	D 0-0	WCQ
11	17-02-1993	Albania	-A-	W 2-1	WCQ
12	31-03-1993	Republic of Ireland	-A-	L 0-3	WCQ
13	28-04-1993	Spain	-A-	L 1-3	WCQ
14	25-05-1993	Lithuania	-A-	W 1-0	WCQ
15	02-06-1993	Latvia	-A-	W 2-1	WCQ
16	08-09-1993	Latvia	-H-	W 2-0	WCQ
17	13-10-1993	Denmark	-A-	L 0-1	WCQ
18	17-11-1993	Republic of Ireland	-H-	D 1-1	WCQ
19	23-03-1994	Romania	-H-	W 2-0	FR
20	20-04-1994	Liechtenstein	-H-	W 4-1	ECQ
21	03-06-1994	Colombia	-N-	L 0-2	FR
22	11-06-1994	Mexico	-N-	L 0-3	FR	sub
23	09-11-1996	Germany	-A-	D 1-1	WCQ
24	14-12-1996	Albania	-H-	W 2-0	WCQ
25	22-01-1997	Italy	-A-	L 0-2	FR
26	11-02-1997	Belgium	-H-	W 3-0	FR
27	29-03-1997	Portugal	-H-	D 0-0	WCQ
28	02-04-1997	Ukraine	-A-	L 1-2	WCQ	capt
29	10-09-1997	Albania	-A-	L 1-2	WCQ
30	27-04-1999	Canada	-H-	D 1-1	FR	sub
31	18-08-1999	France	-H-	L 0-1	FR	sub

Summary: 28(3)/0. Won 13, Drew 6, Lost 12.

Picture by Roy Cathcart.