John Eddie Mullan
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Sport | Gaelic football | ||
| Position | Forward | ||
| Born |
27 April 1923 Galvin (outside Dungiven), County Londonderry, Northern Ireland | ||
| Died | 14 December 2008 (aged 85) | ||
| Club(s) | |||
| Years | Club | ||
| 1939–1942 1943 1944 1945–1957 |
Drumsurn Glenullin Magilligan Dungiven | ||
| Club titles | |||
| Derry titles | 2 | ||
| Inter-county(ies) | |||
| Years | County | ||
| 19xx–1955 | Derry | ||
| Inter-county titles | |||
| NFL | 1 | ||
John Eddie Mullan (27 April 1923 – 14 December 2008) was an Irish Gaelic footballer who played for Derry in the 1940s and 1950s.[1] He was part of the first Derry side to win the National Football League and also won two Dr. McKenna Cups and three Dr. Lagan Cups with the county.[1]
For most of his career he played club football for St. Canice's Dungiven and won two Derry Championships with the club.
Mullan has been described as "one of Derry's greatest forwards"[1] and one of Derry's best ever players.[2]
Personal life
Mullan was born in the townland of Galvin, between Dungiven and Drumsurn[1] on 27 April 1923. In the latter half of his life he was a publican in Portrush. He died peacefully on 14 December 2008 at his home in Portrush, County Antrim at the age of 85.[1]
Football career
Inter-county
John Eddie Mullan was a permanent feature on Derry teams throughout the 1940s and 1950s[1] and was full forward when Derry won the county's first National Football League title in 1947, defeating Clare in the final at Croke Park.[1] He scored 1-01 in that game (1 goals and 1 point—each goal equals 3 points; 1 x 3 + 1 = 4 points, see GAA scoring rules).[3]
He also won two Dr. McKenna Cup medals (1947 and 1954) and three Dr. Lagan Cup medals with Derry.[1] A particularly memorable game was a 1951 McKenna Cup game against Fermanaghable in which he scored 3-05.[4] His last county game was against Tyrone in the 1955 Ulster Senior Football Championship.[4]
Club
Mullan started out his football career with Drumsurn in 1939,[5] where he played for a couple of years.[1] He played for Glenullin in 1943 and Magilligan in 1944, before joining Dungiven in 1945, where he spent the rest of his career.[1] With Dungiven he won Derry Senior Football Championships in 1947 and 1951.[1] Mullan's last game for the club came in the 1957 North Derry Championship final against Ballerin.[4]
Honours
County
- National Football League:
- Winner (1): 1947
- Ulster Senior Football Championship:
- Runner up: 1955
- Dr. McKenna Cup:
- Winner (2): 1947, 1954
- Dr. Lagan Cup:
- Winner (3): 19xx, 19xx, 19xx
Club
- Derry Senior Football Championship:
- Winner (2): 1947, 1951
Note: The above lists may be incomplete. Please add any other honours you know of.
References
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 Young, Connla (30 December 2008). "Tributes paid to John Eddie Mullan". County Derry Post. p. 8.
- ↑ Mullan, Seamus (19 February 2009). "Pick of the mighty Oaks". The Irish News. pp. 60–61. Retrieved 18 March 2009.
- ↑ McCann, Chris. "Gribben and '47 greats were in a league of their own". County Derry Post. Retrieved 30 December 2008.
- 1 2 3 "Death Of Derry GAA Legend". Derry Journal. 16 December 2008. Retrieved 30 December 2008.
- ↑ "St. Matthew's Drumsurn History". St. Matthew's Drumsurn website. 13 June 2004. Retrieved 30 December 2008.