Dan O'Neill (Gaelic footballer)

Daniel O'Neill (1933 - 8 January 2015) was an Irish Gaelic footballer. His league and championship career at senior level with the Mayo and Louth county teams lasted a decade from 1953 until 1963.[1]

Dan O'Neill
Personal information
Irish name Dónall Ó Néill
Sport Gaelic football
Position Midfield
Born 1933
Castlebar, County Mayo, Ireland
Died 8 January 2015 (aged 81)
Kingston, Galway, Ireland
Occupation Garda
Calor Gas Area Manager
Regional Manager at Ireland West Tourism
Club(s)
Years Club
Castlebar Mitchels
Oliver Plunketts
St. Dominic's
Naomh Mhuire
Fr. Griffins
Club titles
Mayo titles 5
Inter-county(ies)
Years County
1953-1956
1957-1962
1963
Mayo
Louth
Mayo
Inter-county titles
Connacht titles 1
Leinster titles 1
All-Irelands 1
NFL 1

Born in Castlebar, County Mayo, O'Neill first played competitive Gaelic football with the Castlebar Mitchels club. He was just eighteen-years-old when he won the first of four successive county senior championship medals in 1951. O'Neill first appeared on the inter-county scene as a member of the Mayo junior team. He won a Connacht medal in that grade in 1953, before making his senior debut during the 1953-54 league. O'Neill won a Connacht and National League medals with the team, however a dispute with the County Board over expenses saw him walk away from the side in 1956.[2]

O'Neill played with several clubs in Drogheda, County Louth after moving there in 1954 to serve as a member of the Garda Síochána. After leaving the Mayo set-up, he was soon selected on the Louth senior team and won All-Ireland and Leinster medals in 1957, while playing club football with St Dominic's. In 1959, he joined south-side Drogheda club Naomh Mhuire and played in the 1961 Louth Senior Football Championship final, losing to Newtown Blues.

His last appearance for Louth came in a 1962 Leinster Championship defeat to Dublin. He subsequently returned to Mayo and played his final game for the county side in 1963. That same year he won a fifth county SFC medal after rejoining Castlebar Mitchels. By then he had resigned from the Garda Siochana to join Calor Gas as Area Manager.[3] He would later work in management positions with Ireland West Tourism.[4] O'Neill ended his club career with Fr. Griffins in Galway.

In 2008, his autobiography 'Divided Loyalties' was released.[5]

Honours

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Castlebar Mitchels
Mayo
Naomh Mhuire
Louth

References

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  1. ^ "Tributes paid to great Gael Dan O'Neill". The Mayo News. 13 January 2015. Retrieved 8 October 2017.
  2. ^ "A compelling read from Dan O'Neill". Galway Advertiser. 28 November 2008.
  3. ^ "O'Neill, Dan". Hogan Stand. 16 April 1993.
  4. ^ "Further adventures of our Dan". Galway Advertiser. 10 June 2010.
  5. ^ "Former regional tourism manager puts pen to paper". Sligo Champion. 5 November 2008.