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Don't forget Uel Graham who kept for Distillery back in the 70's(only kidding Grahamers) - I mean the 80's.
Mark Patterson kept goal for Coleraine in the Irish league, he was a dual international, representing Ireland at Cricket and Irish Universities at Football. Down the club , Cliftonville had Stephen Collier (Linfield/Larne) Alan Huxley (Ballymena/Ballyclare),Willie McKee(Crusaders)and The Turk would kill me if i didn't mention that he played for Cliftonville Olympic and Ballymena Reserves.
Colin Russell who plays for Armagh was a top player with Glenavon before injury put an end to that. I also think Neil Fullerton played for Ballymena United in the Irish League and of course Decker Curry played for Coleraine. I'm not so sure that summer football wouldn't affect cricket. With the amount of rugby and hockey being played now those traditional winter sports have even taken away quite a few cricketers and certainly at schoolboy level which after all is the future.
Hello Northern Ireland,
Hope you guys are not being washed away over there.I am looking for a club for one of my top players. He is a righthanded batsmen, bowls offspin and is a very good keeper. He's got an ancestral UK visa. I will highly recommend him. Pieter van Niekerk. South Africa
Good to hear from you Pieter
Stevie,
Just for that,I'll make sure I get them all on the stumps when your in batting;he,he!!
Cheers,that's another interesting bit of triva,I did'nt know about Jackie,he certainly was a great sportsman indeed!
Sounds like there were quite a few good footballers at Dundrum C.C. over the years too?
Vic,
Someone told me your wicket keeper could take Maik Tylors place when he retires. Apparantly he has had plenty of practise - similar to Alan Gordon in Dundrum. Willie Quinn who plays regularly for us in Dundrum has represented NI Schoolboys and has played at Wembley.
I think Jackie also played in the infamous match between Celtic and Linfield when Celtic had to withdraw from the League.
Stevie,
You know more than me mate! made a call to one of our more mature players and indeed your right, Jackie Denver did indeed play for Belfast Celtic around 1948 I'm told,(pre-Glenavon). Although I was wrong about him playing for NI,though it was said that he should have had many caps !
And ofcourse his son,as Clarence says Alex Denver; followed in his dad's footsteps and was also a Glenavon & Victoria legend.
Wonder who will be the next one @ Victoria C.C. ? ? ?
oops - forgot to mention the legendary Ossie Bailie who seemed to play for everybody!
I recall that hazy day alright Michael -were Cliftonville & Glentoran mentioned? Don't forget to add Ballymena cricketers Jackie Fullerton, Davy Cairns & Jimmy Small who all played in the Irish League. And as for Glenavon players (and I know that he didn't play cricket) but I'm sure that the more mature Lurgan guys will be pleased to learn that Paddy Corr is still alive and doing well in Ballymena - I meet him most every day and the sickening thing is that he hasn't put on a pound of weight since the 1959 cup final - and I'm sure some of the Lurgan Park mafia will remember who they beat in the replay. It totally slips my mind!
What about Cecil Robinson the popular umpire? He played a bit of Irish League. Although going by the banter he was getting during the rain delays of the Ireland England ODI up at Stormont last year by the Woodvale lads he's trying to keep quiet about the teams he played for ??!!??
Vic,
Correct me if I'm wrong but I seem to remember someone telling me that Jackie Denver also played for Belfast Celtic? Is that correct?
Hi Vic and Jeff,
I wasn't trying to list all the football/cricketers but giving a taste and you have rightly identified some fine dual sportsmen. Alec Denver was a legend and there were plenty of others in the NCU and North-West. I doubt if there will be any Irish League summer football because most of these guys like to go on their holidays to Majorca while the Newry and Larne players go to martial arts summer camps. As for Gareth watching Glenavon, we're doing him a favour keeping him away from Mourneview Park in the summer! Long gone are the days when Jack Dugan from Comber and Wilbur Cush were the best wing halves in Irish football.
Think be disaster for lot junior clubs if football was played in the summer as they havnt big enough squads for both.Couple players that played both sports Noel Maguire Bangor /Banbridge Town & Dundrum cc. Davy Mills Glentoran /Portadown & Drumaness cc & Dundrum cc & think Alan Mills also played irish league possibly for Distillry or Crusaders
NI Cricket Job (Full time coaching)
http://www.nijobfinder.co.uk/jobs/job.php?j=83111&s=6931317&i=4&c=4
Ed.
On your resume of great footballers and their equal love for cricket,you forgot to include NI football international & Glenavon legend; Jackie Denver, no less.
He founded Victoria C.C. in 1954 with a group of mates consisting of fellow players and others, to keep themselves in trim during the summer season.
Coincidently his name appears in these score books I'm at, right up until the late 90's, I played a few times with him then and boy; he loved his cricket!
If he was playing for Glenavon now,I would even go myself to Mournview and take a look.(In disguise ofcourse!!).
