Mal Donaghy

Malachy ("Mal") Martin Donaghy (born 13 September, 1957 in Belfast) was a Northern Irish football player.

Football career

The current Northern Ireland Under-19 coach, originally from West Belfast, amazingly began his football career as a goalkeeper with little-known Down and Connor League side team St. Agnes', before moving on to play as an outfield player for works team Post Office Social Club.

After barely six months, he was on the move again, this time joining Amateur League side Cromac Albion, where his blossoming talent was spotted by then Larne boss Brian Halliday.

Donaghy's rapid rise in the game continued when after just 20 matches with the Inver Park club he was transferred to Luton Town in June 1978 for a fee of £20,000.

After ten years of sterling service at Kenilworth Road, he earned a £650,000 move to his boyhood heroes Manchester United in October 1988. It was at the time a big risk for Alex Ferguson to pay out a large sum of money for a player who was then past 30, but Donaghy repaid the United manager’s faith in him with some consistent performances in not only his favoured central defensive position but also as a full-back.

His next move was in August 1992 when, just a month short of his 35th birthday, Chelsea paid £100,000 for his services. Donaghy called time on his club career at the end of the 1993-94 season and after 14 years on the international stage; he made his final appearance for Northern Ireland against Mexico in Miami in June 1994, at the ripe old age of 36.

Shortly after his playing career ended, Donaghy returned to the province with his family and after a brief spell as manager at Newry Town, he had stints as a coach with Cliftonville and as a Youth Development Officer back on his home patch with Donegal Celtic. In 2000, he was appointed to his present position as coach for the Northern Ireland Under-19 team.

Awards

The first of his 91 caps came in May 1980 at Windsor Park in the 1-0 Home International Championship victory over Scotland. He further enhanced his reputation during the 1982 and 1986 World Cup finals. In the former tournament, he played in four of Northern Ireland's five games. He was sent off after 60 minutes of the famous 1-0 win over Spain in Valencia, for the offence of shoving Spain's José Antonio Camacho, but returned for Northern Ireland's final match, the 4-1 defeat by France in Madrid.