Alexander 'Sandy' John Burns Fulton (1942–2001) was the first person from County Fermanagh to play representative football for

Northern Ireland Northern Ireland ( ; ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, part of the United Kingdom in the north-east of the island of Ireland. It has been #Descriptions, variously described as a country, province or region. Northern Ireland shares Repub ...

Football

Sandy Fulton made his debut in 1957 for Enniskillen Rangers at the age of 13 years and four months, scoring in the local derby against Enniskillen Corinthians. In 1958, Enniskillen Rangers won the Mulhern Cup and Mercer Cup. In the Mulhern Cup final, they defeated Enniskillen Corinthians 3–0 at the Broadmeadow. Three days earlier, Corinthians had become the first team from the Fermanagh and Western to win the Irish Junior Cup. In 1959, Fulton became the first player from th
Fermanagh and Western League
to make it to the Irish League when he signed for Coleraine F.C. and made his debut at the age of 15. A year later, he moved to Portadown F.C. and a three-year spell with Ballymena United followed. Fulton then played for

Linfield F.C. Linfield Football Club is a Northern Ireland, Northern Irish professional Association football, football club, based in south Belfast, which plays in the NIFL Premiership – the highest level of the Northern Ireland Football League. The four ...

before returning for a year with Enniskillen Rangers. Fulton returned to the Irish League where he played with Cliftonville F.C. until the end of his senior career. Fulton represented

during the 1960/61 season. Despite considerable interest from English clubs, he missed out on a trial with Wolverhampton Wanderers due to a boat strike and was deemed too old for Chelsea at the age of 21. Fulton returned to Enniskillen Rangers following his senior career. In 2007, he was selected as part of the Fermanagh & Western FA Team Of The Century. Honours * ''Representative Appearances'' *

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Racecourse Ground The Racecourse Ground (), is a football stadium in Wrexham, Wales. It is the home of Wrexham A.F.C., Wrexham AFC. It is the largest stadium in North Wales and the List of football stadiums in Wales, fifth-largest in Wales. It is the world's o ...

, Wrexham - Saturday, 11 February 1961 *

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, Grosvenor Park, Belfast - Saturday, 29 April 1961 *

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, Old Trafford, Manchester - Saturday, 13 May 1961 *

, Castlereagh Park, Newtownards - Saturday, 10 February 1962 * ''Fermanagh & Western Division One'' * 1956/57 Champions , Enniskillen Rangers * 1958/59 Champions , Enniskillen Rangers * ''Mulhern Cup'' * 1957 Winners , Enniskillen Rangers * 1958 Winners , Enniskillen Rangers * 1959 Winners , Enniskillen Rangers * ''Lowry-Corry Cup'' * 1951 Winners , Derrychara Swifts

Castlebar Ambush

On Sunday 2 September 1973, Fulton was one of three RUC officers ambushed by the IRA during a fishing trip in

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. The fishing party of ten, travelling in two unmarked cars, was ambushed on the road between Westport and Castlebar, near Islandeady. It was reported eight men, some armed with sub-machineguns, opened fire from both sides of the road. Fulton's car was hit six times and he was shot in the arm and leg. Neither driver was hit and after returning fire, the party escaped the ambush site. The injured men took shelter in a farmhouse and notified Gardai and emergency services. An ambulance conveyed Fulton to Castlebar hospital, where he was treated for his injuries. The injured men were transferred to the Erne Hospital,

Enniskillen Enniskillen ( , from , ' Ceithlenn's island') is the largest town in County Fermanagh, Northern Ireland. It is in the middle of the county, between the Upper and Lower sections of Lough Erne. It had a population of 14,086 at the 2011 censu ...

under heavy guard. The Gardai speculated the fishing party had been followed across the

border Borders are generally defined as geography, geographical boundaries, imposed either by features such as oceans and terrain, or by polity, political entities such as governments, sovereign states, federated states, and other administrative divisio ...

and shadowed during their weekend stay. On 5 September, two men, John Fadden and Richard McDonnell, appeared in Castlebar court on charges connected to the ambush.

References

External links

ObituaryLinfield Football Club Official WebsiteA Priest, a confession and a conscience
- BBC NEWS February 20, 2009
Time to take stock of the influence we have
- Denzil McDaniel, Impartial Reporter - 9 October 2015 {{DEFAULTSORT:Fulton, Sandy Association footballers from County Fermanagh Linfield F.C. players Coleraine F.C. players Cliftonville F.C. players NIFL Premiership players 2001 deaths 1942 births Men's association football players not categorized by position Ballymena United F.C. players Portadown F.C. players Northern Ireland men's youth international footballers