“I’ve had one reunion at Arsenal, none at Sunderland or Man City… I was delighted to support what the IPFBA are doing.”
Niall Quinn has opened up on the reasons behind his backing for a fund which aims to raise much-needed support for former footballers who have fallen on hard times.
He was speaking after being unveiled as one of three high-profile Patrons of the new Irish Professional Footballers Benevolent Association ahead of its hosting of an inaugural annual Golf Classic at Limerick Golf Club on Friday, September 27.
League of Ireland legend Jacko McDonagh suffered a stroke in May 2022 and efforts to raise money to fund the former Shamrock Rovers, Bohemians and Derry City defender’s long-term care sparked the initiative.
An old connection with McDonagh led to former Arsenal, Manchester City, Sunderland and Ireland striker Quinn coming on board as a patron.
“When Jacko went to Oxford I was at Arsenal and we used to meet up back in the day,” said Quinn, who scored a famous Wembley goal against England in 1991.
Former League of Ireland player and ex-Drogheda United manager Harry McCue is one of the founders and chairperson of the IPFBA and Quinn continued: “Harry has been brilliant, and all the guys around him. I was delighted to support what the guys are doing.
“Take the case of Jacko, a stalwart at the time, one of yesterday’s heroes who was forgotten about.
“Now we are really beginning to see the lack of investment in the League of Ireland when you see the need for something like this, for the players who made it what it was in the glory years, and who now find themselves with issues, and nothing was ever laid out to assist them.
“The PFAI (players’ union) do everything they can, but a bit like in England they are really charged with looking out for current players, and it is so difficult to spread the net to cover all the players, current and former, so there is a real gap.”
The fundraising element is just one of the positives that Quinn can see from the establishment of this new association.
“I think the beauty of this, and one of the things that will help, is that it will reintroduce people to each other, having events like the golf day,” he said.
“Yes, it makes money for the group and it helps in areas where it’s going to help, but it also rekindles relationships.
“I just know that every time I meet an ex-colleague, either from the Arsenal or Man City dressing room, it feels great.
“And particularly when the Irish lads meet up, there is a bond or a bit of electricity that doesn’t exist in your lives anymore that comes alive again.
“I think that, to me, is as important: putting networks in place where all of these ex-colleagues come together again. That is huge and I can’t wait to be a part of that.
“I would have known some League of Ireland players who came over (to England), like Jacko, like Johnny Coady; there were quite a few in our day.
“Although I never played in the League of Ireland myself, I look back and guys would tell you, it wasn’t that far away.
“Where the Premier League is now versus the League of Ireland is light years, but you saw Roy [Keane] coming over and doing what he did so quickly.
“The levels were closer and I think there was huge respect in the air for League of Ireland players that kind of drifted under the radar.
But now it’s about getting back and finding a network for them to congregate again and to maybe feel there is a supportive community around them.”
Surprisingly, Quinn has seen very little of his former teammates from a glittering spell in English football, which saw him score over 160 goals for Arsenal, City, and Sunderland.
“I’ve had one reunion at Arsenal, no reunion at Sunderland and no reunion at City. And I’m 57,” he revealed.
“We had one get-together with Ireland and one with Arsenal. That was it. It’s something that just wasn’t there.
“Looking back, the good that that team could have done around Irish football if we were still connected.
“Funny enough, he ended up going into the FAI afterwards [as chairman], but Roy Barrett, through his company, bringing the Irish team together with Jack, looking back it was one of the best things we could have done.
“Anybody who came for that, I think there were over 20 players, will say it was great, and they were glad we did that. And that was just one meeting.
“There is a value of rekindling that spirit among people that’s as important as all of the fundraising efforts.
“To be recognised again, to be brought back together and to be appreciated by the wider football community is absolutely huge.”
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