Gaelic games may be the Republic of Ireland’s favourite sports, but football has long been a popular past-time in the country.
Even before the Republic qualified for their first major tournament, the 1988 European Championship, the nation was represented by some fine players indeed.
Here, we run through the greatest of them all…
Niall Quinn
Named Irish Young Player of the Year in 1990, Niall Quinn enjoyed a long career in England with Arsenal, Manchester City and Sunderland.
The towering target man scored 20 top-flight goals for City in 1990/91 and later formed a classic little and large partnership with Kevin Phillips at Sunderland. He also netted 21 times for the Republic of Ireland, equalising against the Netherlands to send his country into the last 16 of the 1990 World Cup.
John Aldridge
Born in Liverpool but capped 69 times by the Republic of Ireland, owing to his ancestry, John Aldridge is one of the most prolific goalscorers in Football League history.
‘Aldo’ netted more than 300 times across the top four tiers, registering in the top flight for Oxford United – with whom he lifted the League Cup in 1986 – and Liverpool – who he helped to the First Division title and FA Cup, as well as notching 19 goals for the Boys in Green.
Damien Duff
An important member of Chelsea’s first two Premier League title-winning teams, Damien Duff regularly dazzled on the right wing.
Capped 100 times by the Republic of Ireland, starring at the 2002 World Cup, Duff, who started out at Blackburn and also turned out for Newcastle, later helped Fulham to the final of the Europa League.
Steve Staunton
A robust defender and a great leader, Steve Staunton captained the Republic of Ireland on 12 occasions, wearing the armband at the 2002 World Cup.
Capped 102 times overall, Staunton won major honours at Liverpool and Aston Villa – including the 1989/90 First Division title with the Reds – and scored a classic Premier League goal when he rattled one in off the stanchion for Villa against Manchester United at Old Trafford in 1993.
John O'Shea
A defender so versatile that he could even play in goal (ok, he only did that once when Edwin van der Sar went off injured), John O’Shea played a significant part in many Manchester United successes, winning all of the biggest trophies.
O’Shea made more than 250 Premier League appearances for United and almost 200 for Sunderland, helping the latter to the 2014 League Cup final, representing his country 118 times – 18 of them as captain.
Ray Houghton
Ray Houghton was born in Scotland, spent all of his club career in England – and earned 73 caps for the Republic of Ireland, for whom he was named Senior International Player of the Year in 1994.
A two-time First Division champion and FA Cup winner with Liverpool, the indefatigable midfielder scored one of the Republic’s most famous goals: the winner against England on their major tournament debut at Euro 1988.
Steve Heighway
A Liverpool legend whose name is still sung at Anfield to this day, Steve Heighway’s wing wizardry was integral to the Reds’ success throughout the 70s.
A winner of five First Division titles and two European Cups, among numerous other honours, the Dublin-born wide man represented his country on 26 occasions.
Frank Stapleton
One of the standout Irish players of the 70s and 80s, Frank Stapleton amassed 300 appearances for Arsenal and more than 200 for Manchester United, as well as playing on the continent for Ajax and Le Havre.
A striker who scored 20 international goals and captained the Boys in Green at Euro 1988, the two-time Arsenal Player of the Season lifted the FA Cup once with the Gunners and twice with United.
Shay Given
Long-time Republic of Ireland number one Shay Given won 134 caps during a 20-year international career, starring in the run to the last 16 of the 2002 World Cup.
Among the best goalkeepers of the Premier League era, Given turned out more than 450 times for Newcastle before stints at Manchester City – who he helped to FA Cup glory – Aston Villa and Stoke. He kept 113 Prem clean sheets, making the PFA Team of the Year twice.
Denis Irwin
Sir Alex Ferguson once claimed that Denis Irwin would be the only nailed-on member of his all-time Manchester United XI, calling the left-back an “unbelievable player”.
Part of the Republic of Ireland’s 1994 World Cup squad, Irwin, whose two-footedness allowed him to excel in either full-back position, was an exceptional crosser and free-kick and penalty taker who claimed 12 major honours with United and also played for Leeds, Oldham and Wolves.
David O'Leary
Arsenal’s record appearance-maker, turning out 772 times for the Gunners between 1975 and 1993, David O’Leary stood out for his classy and composed centre-back play and helped the North London giants to two league titles, two FA Cups and two League Cups.
On the international stage, his finest moment was perhaps the greatest moment in Irish football history: he dispatched the winning penalty in a shootout against Romania to send the Republic into the quarter-finals of the 1990 World Cup.
Robbie Keane
The cartwheeling striker who found the net more than 400 times, Robbie Keane is the Republic of Ireland’s all-time leading goalscorer by a country mile, registering 68 times in 146 caps (also a record).
Republic skipper for just over a decade, Keane bagged almost 100 Premier League goals for Tottenham, with whom he won the 2007/08 League Cup, and struck three times en route to the last 16 of the 2002 World Cup.
Paul McGrath
A colossus of a defender who shone at the heart of the backline for Manchester United, Aston Villa and the Republic of Ireland, Paul McGrath was one of the standout centre-backs of the late 80s and early 90s.
Villa’s Player of the Season four years running and the recipient of the first PFA Players’ Player of the Year award of the Premier League era, McGrath excelled despite crippling knee pain, producing a particularly memorable performance as the Irish shocked favourites Italy in their 1994 World Cup opener.
Roy Keane
Roy Keane’s exceptionally competitive nature made him one of the best midfielders of his era, and Sir Alex Ferguson could hardly have asked for a greater captain at Manchester United – who Keane helped to a total of seven Premier League titles, plus the treble in 1998/99.
His hardman reputation preceded him, and his career featured more than the off flashpoint (with opposition players and his own managers…), but there’s no denying that Keane – who captained the Republic of Ireland for much of his 67-cap international career – was a top, top player.
Liam Brady
An outstanding playmaker who claimed major honours with Arsenal and Juventus, Liam Brady’s standing within the game was such that he earned four Ballon d’Or nominations from 1979 to 1983.
The 72-cap Republic of Ireland international made teams of the year in England and Italy – where he won back-to-back Serie A titles with Juve at the start of the 80s – and was one of the first players inducted into the FAI (Football Association of Ireland) Hall of Fame, taking his place among his nation’s greatest in 2001.
Johnny Giles
At the 2004 UEFA Jubilee Awards, the FAI voted Johnny Giles as the greatest Irish player of the last 50 years – and we’re picking him as the best Irish player ever.
A masterful midfielder who possessed pinpoint passing ability with both feet, Giles won the 1962/63 FA Cup with Manchester United before joining Leeds – the club where he cemented true greatness, making 527 appearances, scoring 115 goals, and winning two First Division titles, the FA Cup and the League Cup, as well as reaching the 1975 European Cup final.
He earned 59 caps for the Republic of Ireland, breaking into the senior team as a teenager.
