David Parkhouse

Name: David Parkhouse
Born: 24 October 1999, Strabane
Height:
Weight:
Position: Forward

Representative Honours: Northern Ireland: Under-21, Under-18 Schools, Under-17, Under-16 schools.

Club Career:
Maiden City Soccer Academy
Sheffield United May-16 Youth

Biography:
A former pupil of St Joseph's in Derry and prolific goalscorer throughout his youth. He joined Sheffield United in September 2014 and this was followed by a three year scholarship deal.

A regular scorer for the Northern Ireland schools and youth teams, he was promoted to the Under-21 squad in June 2017 while still just 17, and marked his debut with a goal against Estonia.

More to follow.

Northern Ireland Under-21 Cap Details:
08-06-2017 Estonia A W 2-1 ECQ 1 goal
still active

Jamie McDonagh

Name: Jamie-Dean McDonagh
Born: 8 May 1996, Belfast
Height:
Weight:
Position: Forward

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

Club Career:
Clubs ...... --Seasons-- Signed -Fee- 
Sheffield U. .................. Youth
Matlock Town 14/15 ............. Loan
Chester City 15/16 ..... Oct-15 .Loan
Hartlepool U ........... Jan-16 Trial
Alfreton T. .15/16 ..... Mar-16 .Loan
Greenock Mtn 16/17 ..... Jul-16 .Free
Sligo Rovers 2017 ...... Jul-17 .Free
Derry City . 2018 - date Dec-17

Biography:
Joined Derry City for the 2018 season.

To follow.

IrishFA
UEFA

Northern Ireland Under-21 Cap Details:
17-11-2015 Ukraine H L 1-2 ECQ sub
still active

News: Billy Gillespie

Hi folks,

I would like to draw your attention to an event taking place in the village of Kerrykeel in Co Donegal on Saturday 7th September at 4pm when the village will pay tribute to Billy Gillespie, Sheffield United and Northern Ireland legend.

William Ballintrae Gillespie was born in the Village of Kerrykeel, Co. Donegal on 6th August 1891. The son of a policeman, he became simply known as “Billy”.  Showing talent from a young age in junior football ranks Gillespie was quickly signed up by Derry Institute when he was just 17 before making the move to Yorkshire to the then called Leeds City. Sheffield United obviously liked what they saw and in December 1912 he moved to the Blades for a fee of £400. It was money well spent as Billy Gillespie became the lynchpin of the side, making nearly 500 appearances’ and scoring over 130 goals, it’s no surprise that he is still revered around the streets of Bramell Lane. His finest hour however came when he captained the Blades to the 1925 FA Cup win over Cardiff and in turn became the first Irishman to captain an FA Cup winning team. The man from Kerrykeel was outstanding on the day with his performance described as follows by the local scribes of the day; “Sheffield United played wonderfully well but special praise is due to Gillespie, the man who waves a wand and whose influence has played such a vital part in United's capture of the Cup." To date this is still Sheffield United’s last major honour.

His career in the green shirt of Ireland was equally outstanding – Gillespie made his International bow on February 15th 1913 at Windsor Park and the Sheffield United marksman scored twice as Ireland recorded an historic first victory over England. It was the start of a remarkable run of goals for Gillespie against the English side. He repeated the feat the following year as the Irish side ran riot beating England 3-0 at Ayesome Park in Middlesbrough, as Ireland won the home international championship. Gillespie would go on to score seven of his thirteen international goals against the English in an international career that would span 25 Irish caps and would be Northern Ireland’s leadings marksman for a remarkable 78 years, before his goals tally was eventually overtaken in 2004 by David Healy, himself a thorn in the English side.

When leaving Bramell Lane in 1932, Gillespie would also have an effect on the local football scene. Returning to take charge of Irish League side Derry City, he took a Sheffield United strip with him and the Derry club adopted the red and white stripes they famously wear to this day. There’s no doubt Billy Gillespie was a proud Blade. He led Derry City to two City Cup triumphs and on four successive occasions they finished runners up in the Irish League. When Gillespie left Derry City in 1941 he relocated to Bexley in Kent, where he died a month short of his ninetieth birthday in July 1981.

Sadly in the modern era of wall to wall TV coverage and million pound contracts the extraordinary achievements of Billy Gillespie were in danger of being lost in time. This hit a nerve with a number of football enthusiasts within the Kerrykeel area and thanks to the help of funding from the local authorities in Donegal, Billy Gillespie’s name and football legacy will live on to another generation of young football fans across the North of Ireland.

The events on September 7th will begin at 4pm and included in the programme will be:

• A commemorative plaque will be unveiled by Jane Bull (Billy’s Grand-daughter who is traveling from the UK) at the local football club’s clubhouse at Rab’s Park Kerrykeel.
• Distribution of a commemorative brochure for the occasion
• A Billy Gillespie wall inside the clubhouse (newspaper cuttings, pictures, information on career etc)
• Refreshments afterwards in local Bar & Restaurant

Sheffield United, The Irish FA, The Football Association of Ireland, Derry City and Institute FC are sending representatives to Kerrykeel on the day in question and it is hoped football supporters across the North West and beyond will travel to what what promises to be a special day for the area and for the Gillespie family.

Donegal Now

Caolan Lavery

Name: Caolan Lavery
Born: 22 October 1992, Red Deer, Alberta (Canada)
Height: 5.11 ft
Weight:
Position: Forward

Representative Honours: Northern Ireland: Under-21, Youth; Canada: 3 Under-17 Caps (2009).
Club Honours: (with Leicester) Westerby Cup Winners' Cup Winner 2011.

Club Career:
Club ........ --Seasons-- Signed -Fee- -League- FACup FLCup Others 
Red Deer Renegades ............. Youth
South West United .............. Youth
Team Alberta ................... Youth
Ipswich Town ................... Youth .0 (0)/0
Leicester C. ............ Nov-11 Trial .0 (0)/0
Sunderland .............. Nov-11 Trial .0 (0)/0
Sheffield Wed 12/13-15/16 May-12 .Free 16(18)/6 1(2)/0 2(0)/0
Southend Utd..12/13 ..... Jan-13 .Loan .0 (3)/0 ............ 0(1)/0 
Plymouth Arg. 13/14 ..... Nov-13 .Loan .4 (4)/3
Chesterfield. 14/15 ..... Feb-15 .Loan .6 (2)/3
Portsmouth .. 15/16 ..... Oct-15 .Loan 11 (2)/4
Sheffield Utd 16/17- date Aug-16 Undis 
Rotherham Utd 17/18 ..... Jan-18 .Loan

Biography:
A goalscoring forward, Caolan Lavery had represented Canada at youth level, appearing in the 2009 CONCACAF Under-17 Qualification Tournament in Mexico, before electing to  play for the country of his parents' birth, Northern Ireland. He played for a number of teams in Canada before signing youth forms with Ipswich as a 16 year-old. Among his teammates at Portman Road were Rory McKeown and Josh Carson, and the trio appeared together for Northern Ireland Under-19s, including in the run to the 2011 Milk Cup final. That summer he attracted the interest of Tottenham, but an injury scuppered any potential move. He was offered a six-month professional contract by Ipswich in October 2011 but rejected it as he was unhappy with the terms and left Portman Road behind. In the following weeks he was linked with a move to Bradford and went on trial at Leicester.

After further interest from a number of other clubs, including Sunderland and Kilmarnock, Lavery joined Sheffield Wednesday's development squad in the summer of 2012. He was an unused substitute for several of the Owls' early season matches but it wasn't until a mid-season loan at Southend United that he made his senior debut, as a substitute, in a 1-0 win over Oxford. After four appearances, all from the bench, Lavery's loan spell was cut short by injury. He made his Wednesday debut early in the following season, again as a substitute, in a 2-1 home defeat by Burnley. He remained a match-day regular at Hillsborough while continuing to find the net for the reserves until loaned out to Plymouth Argyle in an effort to give him more intense firstteam experience. He netted his first senior goal in a 2-1 win for Argyle over Bury on 21 December 2013 and by the time he returned to Hillsborough he had scored three times in eight games.

Back at Wednesday in January 2014, Lavery came off the bench late on to score twice, his first goals for the club, in a 6-0 win over Leeds. He scored another brace in a 4-1 win over Birmingham in March. He was considered for Northern Ireland's summer tour to South America but was unable to attend due to a family wedding. Hopes of continuing his good form unto the 2014/15 season were scuppered as he suffered a cruciate injury in pre-season. After a brief mid-season loan spell with Chesterfield, Lavery re-established himself in the Owls' first team and earned a first official call-up to the Northern Ireland squad for the end-of-season games against Qatar and Romania. He remained an unused sub for both matches.

Lavery struggled to re-establish himself in the Wednesday team early in the 2015/16 season and he joined Portsmouth on a three-month loan deal. On his return to Hillsborough he was unable to agree a new deal and as his contract ran out he was free to talk to other clubs. After being linked with a permanent move to Portsmouth he eventually joined Wednesday's rivals, Sheffield United for an undisclosed compensation fee.



Soccerbase
Wikipedia

More to follow.

Northern Ireland Under-21 Cap Details:
17-11-2010 Scotland..... A L 1-3 FR. sub
15-11-2011 Serbia....... H L 0-2 ECQ sub
10-05-2012 FYR Macedonia A L 0-1 ECQ sub
14-08-2013 Denmark...... H L 1-4 FR. sub
14-11-2013 Italy........ A L 0-3 ECQ sub
19-11-2013 Cyprus....... H W 1-0 ECQ
05-03-2014 Italy........ H L 0-2 ECQ

Summary: 2(5)/0. Won 1, Drew 0, Lost 6.

Harry Orr

(c) Peterborough United

Name: Henry Orr
Born: 31 October 1936, Lisburn
Height: 5.07 ft
Weight: 11.07 st
Position: Right-Half

Representative Honours: Northern Ireland: 1 Amateur Cap (1958).
Club Honours: (with Distillery) Co. Antrim Shield Runner-Up 1957/58.

Club Career

Clubs	Seasons	Signed	Fee	League	FA.Cup	Other
Distillery	-	-	Amateur	-	-	-
Sheffield United	58/59-63/64	Nov-58	-	10(0)/1	-	-
Peterborough United	64/65-66/67	Jul-64	-	47(1)/0	-	-
TOTALS		-		-	-	-

Biography:
In November 1958 Harry Orr and Dennis Shiels signed for Second Division Sheffield United. The combined deal netted Distillery £9,000 and the Whites used this money to make an audacious bid for Glentoran's marksman, Sammy Hughes. The bid was rejected.

More to follow.

UpThePosh

Northern Ireland Amateur Cap Details:
27-09-1958 England A L 2-6

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

Daniel Lafferty

Name: Daniel Lafferty
Born: 1 April 1989, Londonderry
Height: 6.01 ft
Weight: 12.06 st
Position: Defender

Representative Honours: Northern Ireland: Full (2012-date), 1 B Cap (2009), 6 Under-21 Caps (2008-2009), 4 Under-19 Caps, 2 Under-17 Caps; League of Ireland Representative (2011).

Club Career:
Teams..... --Seasons-- Signed -Fee- -League- FA Cup FL Cup Europe Other
Oxford United Stars ......... Youth
Celtic ............... Jul-06 Youth .0(0)/ 0
Ayr United 09/10 ..... Feb-10 .Loan 12(2)/ 1
Derry City 2010 - 2011 Jul-10 .Free 47(-)/ 8
Derby Co. ............ Nov-11 Trial .0(0)/ 0
Brighton & HA ........ Dec-11 Trial .0(0)/ 0
Burnley .. 11/12- date Jan-12 £200k 34(6)/ 0 3(0)/0 2(0)/0
Rotherham. 14/15 ..... Mar-15 .Loan 11(0)/ 0
Oldham Ath 15/16 ..... Oct-15 .Loan 15(0)/ 1
Sheff. Utd 16/17 ..... Aug-16 Undis 

Biography:

A young defender on the fringes of the Celtic firstteam squad, Daniel Lafferty's favoured role is in the centre of defence, but he is also capable at left-back. A product of Derry-based Oxford United, Lafferty has represented Northern Ireland at Youth level and was a member of the Elite team that won the 2008 Milk Cup tournament. He made his Under-21 debut during a mini-tournament in Ukraine during August 2008 and started for an inexperienced B team that lost 3-0 to Scotland in May 2009. On 17th February 2010 he joined First Division side Ayr United on loan until the end of the season. He was released by Celtic at the end of the 2009/10 season and returned home to sign for Derry City.

In January 2012 Lafferty earned a much deserved move back across the water, joining the healthy Northern Ireland contingent at Burnley. He made his Football League debut in a 0-0 draw at Cardiff that March.

Lafferty struggled with injuries while at Burnley and never really enjoyed an extended run in the team. He spent a number of loan spells away from Turf Moor. At the start of the 2016/17 season he joined Sheffield United on another temporary deal, which became permanent mid-season for an undisclosed fee.

CelticFC.net
Wikipedia
IrishFA

Northern Ireland Cap Details:
02-06-2012 Netherlands A L 0-6 FR

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-21 Cap Details:
19-08-2008 Poland..... N L 0-1 MT
20-08-2008 Ukraine.... A L 1-4 MT
05-09-2008 Germany.... A L 0-3 FR
18-11-2008 Scotland... A W 3-1 FR
31-03-2009 Ukraine.... H D 1-1 FR
04-09-2009 Czech Rep.. A L 0-2 ECQ sub

Summary: 5(1)/0. Won 1, Drew 1, Lost 4.


League of Ireland Representative Match Details:
30-07-2011 Manchester City FC H L 0-3 DSC sub
31-07-2011 Celtic FC ........ H L 0-5 DSC

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

Adam Chapman

(by Roy Cathcart)

Name: Adam Henry Chapman
Born: 29 November 1989, Doncaster (ENG)
Height: 5.10 ft (1.78 m)
Weight: 11.00 st (70 kg)
Position: Midfielder/Defender

Representative Honours: Northern Ireland: 7 Under-21 Caps (2007-2009).
Club Honours: (with Mansfield) Football Conference Champion 2012/13.

Club Career:
Teams......... --Seasons-- Signed -Fee- -League-- FA Cup FL Cup Other
Sheffield United ................ Youth .0 (0)/ 0
Oxford United..08/09 ..... Jan-09..Loan 20 (0)/ 2
Oxford United..09/10-12/13 May-09 £ 15k 76(24)/ 7 4(1)/0 2(0)/0 3(0)/0
Newport County 11/12 ..... Jan-12. Loan .4 (1)/ 0 
Mansfield Town 12/13 ..... Mar-13. Loan .9 (2)/ 4
Newport County 13/14-14/15 Jun-13 Undis 62(13)/ 5 3(0)/0 3(0)/0 2(1)/1
Mansfield Town 15/16-16/17 May-15 .Free 41 (1)/ 2 2(0)/0 2(0)/0 2(0)/0
Gainsboro. Tr. 16/17 ..... Nov-16 .Free (National League North)
Boston United ............ Jan-17 .Free (National League North) 
Sheffield FC ............. Oct-17

Biography:
Adam Chapman's playing career was put on hold as he served a 15 months of a 30 month sentence in a young offenders institute for causing death by dangerous driving from June 2010 to September 2011. On his release he re-signed for Oxford United, returning to the firstteam for the first time that December.

More to follow.

Northern Ireland Under-21 Cap Details:
17-10-2007 Israel.. H L 1-3 FR

19-08-2008 Poland.. N L 0-1 MT

20-08-2008 Ukraine. A L 1-4 MT sub

05-09-2008 Germany. A L 0-3 ECQ

18-11-2008 Scotland A W 3-1 FR

31-03-2009 Ukraine. H D 1-1 FR

13-10-2009 Iceland. A L 1-2 ECQ

Summary: 6(1)/0. Won 1, Drew 1, Lost 5.

Jamie Ward

Name: Jamie Ward
Born: 12 May 1986, Birmingham (England)
Height: 5.05½ ft
Weight: 9.04 st
Position: Forward/Midfielder

Representative Honours: Northern Ireland: Full (2011-date); 7 Under-21 / 2 Goals (2006-2008), 2 Under-18 Caps.
Club Honours: (with Aston Villa) FA Youth Cup Runner-Up 2003/04.
Awards: League Two Player of the Month Oct-2008.

Club Career:
Teams........ --Seasons-- Signed -Fee- --League-- FA Cup FL Cup Other
Aston Villa ............. Jul-05 Youth ..0 (0)/ 0
Stockport Co. 05/06 ..... Mar-06 .Loan ..7 (2)/ 1
Torquay Utd.. 06/07 ..... Jul-06 .Free .21 (4)/ 9 2(0)/2 1(0)/0 0(1)/0
Chesterfield..06/07-08/09 Jan-07 Undi. .58 (9)/29 4(0)/0 2(0)/0 1(0)/0
Sheffield Utd 08/09-10/11 Jan-09 £333k .45(18)/ 9 2(2)/2 0(1)/0 1(2)/0
Derby County .10/11 ..... Feb-11 .Loan .12 (0)/ 4
Derby County .11/12-14/15 May-11 £350k 110(15)/29 5(2)/0 1(0)/0 3(0)/0
Nott'm Forest 15/16- date Jul-15 .Free
Burton Albion 16/17 ..... Aug-16 .Loan .15 (3)/ 4 0(1)/0
Cardiff City. 17/18 ..... Jan-18 .Loan

Biography:
A free-scoring attacking player in lower-league football, Birmingham-born Jamie Ward played in the FA Youth Cup final with Aston Villa and captained their reserves but was released in 2006.

Qualifying for Northern Ireland through his grandfather, Ward has played at Youth and Under-21 level and was long touted for Full international recognition.

In January 2008 Barnsley had a £400,000 bid for Ward accepted by Chesterfield. A move seemed likely as he was to become a free agent in the summer but personal terms could not be agreed. Derby County also showed an interest, but it was Sheffield United that claimed his signature.

After initial good form with the Blades Ward's goals dried up and mid-way through the 2010/11 season he joined Derby County on loan in a deal that became permanent at the end of the season.

Ward was awarded his first call-up to the senior Northern Ireland squad in March 2009. Despite good club form he was overlooked for two years, sparking rumours of a falling out with Nigel Worthington. He was re-called to the squad in August 2011, making his long-awaited international début as a late sub against the Faroe Islands.

Since the appointment of Michael O'Neill, Ward has been a regular in the Northern Ireland squad when not injured. He bundled home his first international goal from close range to give Northern Ireland the lead against Portugal in a pulsating World Cup Qualifier in September 2013, though sadly a Ronaldo hattrick saw the Portuguese leave Windsor Park victorious.

Northern Ireland Cap Details:
10-08-2011 Faroe Islands H W 4-0 ECQ sub
15-08-2012 Finland ..... H D 3-3 FR. sub
07-09-2012 Russia ...... A L 0-2 WCQ 
11-09-2012 Luxembourg .. H D 1-1 WCQ sub
14-08-2013 Russia ...... H W 1-0 WCQ 
06-09-2013 Portugal .... H L 2-4 WCQ 1 goal
10-09-2013 Luxembourg .. A L 2-3 WCQ 
11-10-2013 Azerbaijan .. A L 0-2 WCQ
15-10-2013 Israel ...... A D 1-1 WCQ sub
05-03-2014 Cyprus ...... A D 0-0 FR
07-09-2014 Hungary ..... A W 2-1 ECQ
11-10-2014 Faroe Islands H W 2-0 ECQ

Northern Ireland Under-21 Cap Details:
08-02-2006 Israel....... A W 1-0 FR
12-04-2006 Leichtenstein A W 4-1 ECQ sub
10-05-2006 Leichtenstein H W 4-0 ECQ sub
06-02-2007 Wales........ H L 0-4 FR. sub
16-11-2007 Luxembourg... H W 5-0 ECQ 1 goal
20-11-2007 Moldova...... H W 3-0 ECQ 1 goal
06-02-2008 Israel....... A L 1-2 ECQ

Summary: 4(3)/2. Won 5, Drew 0, Lost 2.

John Peden

Manchester United’s (well Newton Heath’s actually) first Irishman? John Peden’s career was long and distinguished on both sides of the Irish Sea…

Name: John Peden
Born: 12 July 1863, Maze, near Lisburn
Died: 15 September 1944, Belfast
Height:
Weight:
Position: Outside/Inside-Left

Representative Honours: Ireland: 24 Full Caps / 7 Goals (1887-1899), 1 Representative game / 1 Goal (1891); Irish League: 4 Caps / 1 Goal (1893-1899); Co. Antrim FA Representative.
Club Honours: (with Linfield) Irish League Champion 1890/91, 1891/92, 1892/93, 1901/02, Runner-Up 1893/94; Irish Cup Winner 1890/91, 1892/93, 1901/02; Co. Antrim Shield Winner 1889/90 (withheld), Runner-Up 1902/03, 1904/05; City Cup Winner 1900/01; Belfast Charity Cup Winner 1890/91, 1891/92, 1892/93, 1900/01, Runner-Up 1887/88; (with Distillery) Irish League Champion 1895/96, 1898/99; Irish Cup Winner 1895/96; Co. Antrim Shield Winner 1895/96, 1896/97; Belfast Charity Cup Runner-Up 1896/97.

Club Career: 

Teams	Seasons	Signed	Fee	League	FA Cup	Other
Distillery	85/86	-	-	-	-	-
Linfield	86/87-93/94	-1886	-	*130/108	-	-
Newton Heath	93/94	Feb-1893	-	28/  7	3/1	-
Sheffield United	94/95	Jul-1894	-	8/  0	2/0	-
Distillery	95/96-98/99	Jul-1895	-	*87/ 44	-	-
Linfield	99/00-05/06	-1899	-	*74/ 32	-	-
TOTALS	-	£-		327/191	5/1	-

Biography:
John Peden was born at the Maze, Lisburn on 12 July 1863, his father being employed at the nearby Maze Racecourse. John began playing football as a teenager and turned out for a number of junior clubs including Clarence, Prospect, Distillery Seconds and Innisfoil. He played at least once for the Distillery first team during the 1885/86 season, but subsequently became a founder member of Linfield Athletic when this club was formed and took part in their first match against Distillery at the Linfield Mill ground on the 11th September 1886. Surprisingly the junior team won 6-5. John was at outside left that day and scored two of the goals. In that first season Linfield defeated Mercantile Academy 10-2 in the Irish Cup with 4 goals from John.

On the 19th February 1887, John was selected to play for Ireland v Scotland. This was Linfield’s first season and John was the first of many Linfield players to play for Ireland. Thereafter, he was a regular in the national team, mostly featuring in the outside-left position.

Linfield decided to enter the English FA Cup in 1888-89 and after three qualifying rounds, including a 4-0 win over Bolton, succeeded in reaching the first round proper, where they travelled over to achieve a commendable 2-2 draw against Nottingham Forest, John attracting attention by virtue of his tremendous pace and the fact that he scored his side’s two goals. Linfield withdrew just before the replay*, playing Forest in a friendly, which they won 3-1. In all John played an Irish Record of 11 matches in the FA Cup and scored 9 goals. He also appeared for Newton Heath on 3 occasions scoring 1 goal.

John was a strong forceful winger and with 108 goals in 130 appearances for Linfield it was no surprise that English clubs were interested in him. In February 1893 John signed for Newton Heath, but was allowed to complete the season with Linfield. He made his debut for Newton Heath on the 2nd September 1893 and was an immediate “hit” with the supporters. As Newton Heath became Manchester United he was the first Irish signing for Manchester United. He also had the distinction of being the only Irishman to play for the “Heathens” the nickname for Newton Heath.

He made 32 appearances, scoring 8 goals for Newton Heath in 1893/4 season, signing for Sheffield United in July 1894 for whom he played on 9 occasions, before returning home. He was welcomed back to Belfast as a hero and signed for Linfield’s rivals Distillery in July 1895. Investing the money he had earned in England in a confectionary and tobacconists’ shop (‘The Forward’) on Sandy Row, close to the centre of Belfast. It was no surprise that he signed for Distillery and not Linfield, as Distillery offered a substantial wage of £1 a week, said to be the highest in Irish football.

John completed 1895/6 season by scoring 21 goals for Distillery. Emulating his achievements at Linfield where he had managed two seasons with 22 goals and one with 21. He also made three appearances for Ireland. In his first season with Distillery the club won the Irish League title for the first time, plus the Irish Cup and the County Antrim Shield for good measure.

He continued with Distillery for a further three seasons, making regular appearances for the International team. However his goal total for Distillery for those seasons was 20 as he had become more provider than scorer. He also continued to represent both the Irish League and Ireland at international level during this period, one of his many achievements being to score the goal that secured his country their first-ever victory in an away game, in the fixture against Wales in February 1898. He was presented with the match ball and for many years this was displayed in the window of his shop to which was attached a verse: “This is the ball that did the trick and I’m the man who gave it the kick.” Distillery won the title for a second time in 1898-99 but at the end of that season, John was released.

Now 37 years old, he re-joined Linfield and played regularly in various forward positions in 1900/1/2/3 seasons, remaining after this in a coaching capacity. I suppose the coach had some privileges as he picked himself to play inside left against Distillery in the County Antrim Shield Final on the 15th April 1905 which Linfield lost 2-0. The Linfield supporters were somewhat bemused at the appearance of the old man at inside left and rightly so, as John was approaching his 42nd birthday. The papers unkindly said Peden was “resurrected” in place of Roy. This however was not his last appearance for Linfield as he played outside left in the scoreless draw against Distillery in the Charity Cup semi-final on 21/04/1906 at the ripe old age of 42 years, 283 days. Unlike many of the players of that era John remained active and in good health until his death on the 15th September, 1944 at the age of 81.

There is no doubt that John was one of the Soccer Greats of the early days.

Peden's son, Jack, was also a gifted
footballer and his heroics evidently
went beyond the playing field

Peden's Grave

Ireland Cap Details:
18-02-1887 Scotland A L 1- 4 BC
12-03-1887 Wales... H W 4- 1 BC 1 Goal
03-03-1888 Wales... A L 0-11 BC
07-04-1888 England. H L 1- 5 BC
02-03-1889 England. A L 1- 6 BC
09-03-1889 Scotland A L 0- 7 BC
08-02-1890 Wales... A L 2- 5 BC
29-03-1890 Scotland H L 1- 4 BC 1 Goal
07-02-1891 Wales... H W 7- 2 BC
07-03-1891 England. A L 1- 6 BC
27-02-1892 Wales... A D 1- 1 BC
05-03-1892 England. H L 0- 2 BC
25-02-1893 England. A L 1- 6 BC
25-03-1893 Scotland A L 1- 6 BC
08-04-1893 Wales... H W 4- 3 BC 3 Goals
29-02-1896 Wales... A L 1- 6 BC
07-03-1896 England. H L 0- 2 BC
28-03-1896 Scotland H D 3- 3 BC
06-03-1897 Wales... H W 4- 3 BC 1 Goal
27-03-1897 Scotland A L 1- 5 BC
18-02-1898 Wales... A W 1- 0 BC 1 Goal
05-03-1898 England. H L 2- 3 BC
26-03-1898 Scotland H L 0- 3 BC
04-03-1899 Wales... H W 1- 0 BC

Summary: 24/7. Won 6, Drew 2, Lost 16.

Irish League Representative Match Details:
29-04-1893 Scottish League H W 3-0 1 Goal
07-11-1896 Football League H L 0-2
05-11-1898 Football League H L 1-5
11-02-1899 Scottish League H W 3-1

Summary: 4/1. Won 2, Drew 0, Lost 1.

Other Representative Match Details:
01-09-1888 Co Antrim FA - Canada H L 2-6 FR 1 Goal
12-09-1891 Ireland..... - Canada H W 5-2 FR 1 Goal

* Just before kick-off for this match the Chairman of Nottingham Forest presented Linfield Officials with an ultimatum - either they immediately withdrew from the F.A. Cup, in writing, or the match would not take place. With the crowd already gathered and faced with the prospect of heavy financial loss, Linfield had no choice but to agree and officials duly signed the prepared letter which the Forest Chairman produced. Unknown to the gathered crowd the match was then played as a friendly. Forest’s reason for this action was that Linfield had illegally played William Johnston of Oldpark an International full back in the 2-2 draw in Nottingham. In fact he was on Linfield’s books and F.A. Cup rules allowed such a substitution to replace a regular player who was injured i.e. Sam Close.

By George Glass, based on an article previously published in Soccer History.

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.