Seamus "Shay" Keogh (6 September 1934 – 13 April 2020) was an Irish

footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby lea ...

who played as a centre half. He was part of the great Shamrock Rovers teams of the 1950s in a side, popularly known as Coad's Colts, that enjoyed many memorable days during that decade. A former schoolboy and youth international, he joined Shamrock Rovers in 1952 and stayed for nearly a decade at

Glenmalure Park Glenmalure Park, often simply known as Milltown, was a football stadium on the Southside of Dublin city in Ireland. Located in the suburb of Milltown, it was home to Shamrock Rovers from 1926 to 1987, when it was sold to property developer ...

. As a Crumlin man, Shay played in the club's first four European games against

Manchester United Manchester United Football Club, commonly referred to as Man United (often stylised as Man Utd) or simply United, is a professional association football, football club based in Old Trafford (area), Old Trafford, Greater Manchester, Engl ...

and

OGC Nice Olympique Gymnaste Club de Nice (), commonly referred to as OGC Nice or simply Nice, is a French professional association football, football club based in Nice. The club was founded in 1904 and currently plays in Ligue 1, the top tier of Footb ...

in the European Champion Club's Cup.

Career

He captained his country in the first ever B international in October 1957. He won his second "B" cap the following year winning in Iceland. He won one cap for the

Republic of Ireland Ireland ( ), also known as the Republic of Ireland (), is a country in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe consisting of 26 of the 32 Counties of Ireland, counties of the island of Ireland, with a population of about 5.4 million. ...

in a 2–2 friendly against Poland at

Dalymount Park Dalymount Park (Irish language, Irish: ''Páirc Chnocán Uí Dhálaigh'') is a Association football, football stadium in Phibsborough on the Northside Dublin, Northside of Dublin, Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is the home of Bohemian F.C., ...

on 5 October 1958. Shay represented the League of Ireland XI nine times between 1955 and 1959. He shared a benefit game with Ronnie Nolan in May 1961. In September 1961 he signed for

Dundalk Dundalk ( ; ) is the county town of County Louth, Ireland. The town is situated on the Castletown River, which flows into Dundalk Bay on the north-east coast of Ireland, and is halfway between Dublin and Belfast, close to and south of the bor ...

and also had further spells at Jacobs F.C. and as player-manager at St Patrick's Athletic between 1963 and 1965. On 20 December 1973, Liam Tuohy resigned as Rovers manager. Shay, who was at that time the technical advisor to the club, was appointed manager, with Dougie Wood but resigned two days later.

Personal life

Keogh died in the

Rathfarnham Rathfarnham () is a Southside (Dublin), southside suburb of Dublin, Republic of Ireland, Ireland in County Dublin. It is south of Terenure, east of Templeogue, and is in the postal districts of Dublin 14 and Dublin 16, 16. It is between the Lo ...

suburb of

Dublin Dublin is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. Situated on Dublin Bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, and is bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, pa ...

on 13 April 2020 at the age of 86.

Honours

League of Ireland The League of Ireland is a national association football Sports league, league consisting of professional clubs in the Republic of Ireland and Derry, Derry City in Northern Ireland. It is governed by the Football Association of Ireland. It was ...

: 3 :: * Shamrock Rovers – 1953/54, 1956/57, 1958/59

FAI Cup The Football Association of Ireland Senior Challenge Cup (FAI Cup), known as the Sports Direct FAI Cup for sponsorship reasons, is a knock-out association football competition contested annually by teams from the Republic of Ireland (as well as D ...

: 2 :: * Shamrock Rovers – 1955, 1956 League of Ireland Shield: 3 :: * Shamrock Rovers – 1955/56, 1956/57, 1957/58 * Leinster Senior Cup: 5 * Shamrock Rovers – 1953, 1955, 1956, 1957, 1958 * Dublin City Cup: 5 * Shamrock Rovers – 1952/53, 1954/55, 1956/57, 1957/58, 1959/60 * Top Four Cup: 2 * Shamrock Rovers – 1956, 1958

References

General references * {{DEFAULTSORT:Keogh, Shay 1934 births 2020 deaths Association footballers from County Dublin Republic of Ireland men's association footballers Republic of Ireland men's international footballers Republic of Ireland men's B international footballers Shamrock Rovers F.C. players St Patrick's Athletic F.C. players Dundalk F.C. players League of Ireland players League of Ireland managers Shamrock Rovers F.C. managers St Patrick's Athletic F.C. managers Sligo Rovers F.C. managers League of Ireland XI players Men's association football central defenders Republic of Ireland association football managers 20th-century Irish sportsmen