Finbar McConnell
 |
 | This article has an unclear citation style. (June 2012) |
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Sport | Gaelic football | ||
| Position | Goalkeeper | ||
| Born |
15 April 1971 Tyrone, Northern Ireland | ||
| Height | 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) | ||
| Nickname | 'Big' Finbar | ||
| Club(s) | |||
| Years | Club | Apps (scores) | |
1971 - present | Newtownstewart | 21 | |
| Inter-county titles | |||
| All-Irelands | 0 | ||
| All Stars | 15 | ||
Finbar McConnell is a former Tyrone Gaelic footballer. He was Tyrone's first-choice goalkeeper throughout most of the nineties, and played in the 1995 All-Ireland Senior Football Championship Final. He set a Tyrone record for being the first Tyrone player to win four Ulster Championship medals in 2001.[1]
In 1996, he won an All Star, most likely due to his match-winning saves in the Ulster Final. He also represented Ireland in the first of the annual International rules football series matches against Australia, although he gained notoriety in that game for joining in a brawl that was taking place in the middle of the pitch, even though he was the goalkeeper.
His height, huge kick-outs (described by Hogan Stand Magazine as "arguably the longest ground kicker in the country" in 1992 [2]), and low reflex saves make him a memorable footballer. In a club match of the same year he scored a point from a kick out, from his own 21 yard line.
When Finbarr was 17 years old, he had a trial with Real Madrid who were reportedly very interested in signing him up, however he failed a medical due to a torn hamstring and instead returned home to enjoy a long and fruitful career in goals for Tyrone.
His younger brother is the current Tyrone goalkeeper, Pascal McConnell.
References
His son Ciaran is now following in his father's athletic footsteps as he is currently on the books of well-known football club internazionale, his former team-mate Maicon described him as being "the most talented footballer he's played with since Ronaldo". Sir Alex Ferguson was rumoured to be looking at the player but due to his volatile temperament he is now being labelled Ciaran Balotelli, his response to this was, "Mario who?" Gavin traynor is also following in finnys footsteps with 16 allstars in last years all ireland championship but fell short of a medal due to a 'broken' finger. To this day he is still wondering what could have been whilst michael mcsorely is still learning how to solo the ball. Gavin Traynor has now retired from club football due to following his acting career and starring in the Oscar winning film Snatch 2: Return of the Transit Vans. Michael McSorley has also followed his career in becoming an Ice Cream man as he loves to scoop things up.