Felix Healy
Personal information | |||
---|---|---|---|
Full name | Patrick Joseph Healy[1] | ||
Date of birth | 27 September 1955 | ||
Place of birth | Derry, Northern Ireland | ||
Height | 5 ft 11 in (1.80 m)[2] | ||
Position(s) | Midfielder; forward | ||
Senior career* | |||
Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
1974–1976 | Sligo Rovers | 24 | (2) |
1976–1977 | Distillery | ||
1977–1978 | Finn Harps | 33 | (5) |
1978–1980 | Port Vale | 41 | (2) |
1980–1987 | Coleraine | ||
1987–1991 | Derry City | 114 | (23) |
1991–1992 | Coleraine | 26 | (1) |
International career | |||
1982 | Northern Ireland | 4 | (0) |
1982–1986 | Irish League XI | 3 | (1) |
1989 | League of Ireland XI | 1 | (1) |
Managerial career | |||
1993–1994 | Coleraine | ||
1994–1998 | Derry City | ||
2004–2005 | Finn Harps | ||
*Club domestic league appearances and goals |
Felix Healy (born 27 September 1955 as Patrick Joseph Healy) is a former
Starting his career at Sligo Rovers, he signed with Distillery in 1976. In 1978, he transferred to Finn Harps, before moving to England to play for Port Vale later that year. He returned to his homeland two years later to play for Coleraine. After seven years with the club he moved on to Derry City. In 1993, he returned to Coleraine as player-manager, before leaving his post and ending his playing career in 1994. He then four years in charge at Derry City. In 1982, he won four caps for Northern Ireland. Healy settled into a quiet retirement, becoming a very popular local musician around Derry City and Inishowen.
Club career
Healy began his career in the Sligo Rovers first-team as a teenager, before he transferred to Distillery in 1976. The club were suffering and without a ground and Healy did not even spend a full season with the club as results continually went against them. In March 1977 he was back in the League of Ireland with Finn Harps.
He matured as a player with Harps, his impressive performances helped to bring home runners-up medals in the League of Ireland and Tyler All-Ireland Cup. In October 1978, English club
During his time at Coleraine he played in eight European ties, scoring on two separate occasions in the
In 1987, Healy moved to his hometown club, Derry City, where he won a clean-sweep of League Championship, FAI Cup (where he scored the only goal in the final) and League of Ireland Cup, (a domestic treble) in 1988–89; the club's first major honours since their days in the Irish League, over twenty years earlier. He also scored Derry's first ever goal in the Premier Division on 20 September 1987. He scored 38 goals in 162 total appearances for his home town club.
International career
Healy made his international debut in an experimental line-up which drew with Scotland in the British Home Championship, and won his second cap the following month as Northern Ireland finished their World Cup preparations in the worst of fashions, with a 3–0 defeat by Wales. Healy did enough to impress Billy Bingham, who included him in the 1982 World Cup squad for Spain. He played once at the finals, coming on as substitute for Martin O'Neill in a 1–1 draw with Honduras. In doing so he became the first and so far only Irish League player to play in a World Cup Finals match. He won his fourth and final cap in the first post-World Cup game, Northern Ireland losing 2–0 in Austria.
He was a regular choice for the
Management career
In October 1993 Healy returned to Coleraine as
Other work
Whilst playing in Northern Ireland, Healy served a four-year apprenticeship as a butcher, and spent his nights as a club singer.[5] He appeared as a football pundit on Setanta Sports and as Station Manager for Drive105.3FM, also acting as a sports reporter for local network, Channel 9. He once starred in a local production of Grease and sang numerous club-songs for Derry during his time there.
Personal life
Healy has three children; Alan, Georgina and Patrick. Patrick was a mascot for Derry City in the 1989 FAI Cup final when Felix scored the winning goal.
Career statistics
Club | Season | Division | League | FA Cup | Other | Total | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | |||
Sligo Rovers[6] | 1974–75 | League of Ireland | 20 | 1 | ||||||
1975–76 | League of Ireland | 4 | 1 | |||||||
Total | 24 | 1 | ||||||||
Finn Harps[6] | 1978–79 | League of Ireland | 4 | 0 | ||||||
Port Vale[7] | 1978–79 | Fourth Division | 23 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 24 | 2 |
1979–80 | Fourth Division | 18 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 20 | 0 | |
Total | 41 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 44 | 2 | ||
Derry City[6] | 1987–88 | League of Ireland Premier Division | 29 | 3 | ||||||
1988–89 | League of Ireland Premier Division | |||||||||
1989–90 | League of Ireland Premier Division | |||||||||
1990–91 | League of Ireland Premier Division | 25 | 4 | |||||||
Coleraine[6] | 1991–92 | Irish League | 26 | 1 |
Honours
As a player
Individual
- Northern Ireland Football Writers' Association Player of the Year: 1981–82
- Ulster Footballer of the Year: 1981–82
Coleraine
- Ulster Cup: 1986, 1987
- Irish Cup runner-up: 1982, 1986
Derry City
- League of Ireland Premier Division: 1988–89
- FAI Cup: 1989; runner-up: 1989
- League of Ireland Cup: 1989, 1991; runner-up: 1990
As a manager
Derry City
Finn Harps
References
- ^ "Felix Healy". Barry Hugman's Footballers. Retrieved 9 March 2017.
- ISBN 0362020175. Retrieved 14 April 2020.
- ISBN 0-9529152-0-0.
- ^ M. Brodie (ed.), Northern Ireland Soccer Yearbook 2009–2010, p. 102. Healy also had the opportunity to sign for Luton Town after the World Cup in Spain but due to difficulties between Coleraine and Port Vale, who retained his registration in England, he decided to remain at home. Belfast:Ulster Tatler Publications
- ^ "Felix Healy: The wee fella from Derry who played in the World Cup". Irish Examiner. 4 June 2016. Retrieved 13 November 2016.
- ^ a b c d "Felix Healy". National Football Teams. Benjamin Strack-Zimmermann. Retrieved 10 July 2016.
- ^ Felix Healy at the English National Football Archive (subscription required)