Colin Healy (born 14 March 1980) is a former
midfield
Midfield is the part of a sports field that lies approximately in the center. In American football, association football (soccer) and field hockey, it is the area in and around the center circle, as well as the players who occupy that region. In ...
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 ...
from Ireland. He has been manager of
Cork City F.C.
Cork City Football Club ( ga, Cumann Peile Chathair Chorcaí) is an Irish association football club based in Cork. The club was founded and elected to the League of Ireland in 1984.
It was one of the first clubs in Ireland (and the first in ...
since late 2020.
He started his senior career at
Celtic, spending five years with the Scottish club before joining English side
Sunderland in 2003, where he spent three years. He returned to Scotland in 2006 to sign for
Livingston. After a short spell with Livingston he returned to England to join
Barnsley. After leaving Barnsley in 2007, he joined Irish side
Cork City
Cork ( , from , meaning 'marsh') is the second largest city in Ireland and third largest city by population on the island of Ireland. It is located in the south-west of Ireland, in the province of Munster. Following an extension to the city's ...
, where he spent two years before joining English side
Ipswich Town
Ipswich Town Football Club is a professional association football club based in Ipswich, Suffolk, England. They play in League One, the third tier of the English football league system.
The club was founded in 1878 but did not turn profession ...
. He spent two years with Ipswich before returning to the Republic of Ireland to sign for former club Cork City. Healy represented the
Republic of Ireland
Ireland ( ga, Éire ), also known as the Republic of Ireland (), is a country in north-western Europe consisting of 26 of the 32 Counties of Ireland, counties of the island of Ireland. The capital and largest city is Dublin, on the eastern ...
at youth and senior level. He made his senior debut for his country in 2002, going on to win 13 caps, scoring once.
Club career
Early career
Healy was born in Ballincollig,
County Cork
County Cork ( ga, Contae Chorcaí) is the largest and the southernmost county of Ireland, named after the city of Cork, the state's second-largest city. It is in the province of Munster and the Southern Region. Its largest market towns a ...
. He came from a sporting family, with his grandfather
Paddy Healy having been a
Gaelic footballer and
hurler who won
All-Ireland Senior Football Championship
The All-Ireland Senior Football Championship (SFC) ( ga, Craobh Shinsir Peile na hÉireann) is the premier competition in Gaelic football. An annual tournament organised by the Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA), it is contested by the county ...
and
All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship medals with the
Cork inter-county football and hurling teams respectively in 1945 and 1946. Healy played local soccer with Ballincollig and then Wilton United. He attended the FAS/
FAI course in Cork run by former
Celtic and
Cork City
Cork ( , from , meaning 'marsh') is the second largest city in Ireland and third largest city by population on the island of Ireland. It is located in the south-west of Ireland, in the province of Munster. Following an extension to the city's ...
midfielder
Mike Conroy and from here he was taken to
Celtic Park
Celtic Park is the home stadium of Celtic Football Club, in the Parkhead area of Glasgow, Scotland. With a capacity of 60,832, it is the largest football stadium in Scotland, and the eighth-largest stadium in the United Kingdom. It is al ...
. He would go on to score three goals for Celtic, his first coming in a league game against Dundee in February 2000. His other two goals came in
Scottish League Cup
The Scottish League Cup (also known as the Viaplay Cup for sponsorship reasons) is a football competition open to all Scottish Professional Football League (SPFL) clubs. First held in 1946–47, it is the oldest national League Cup in existen ...
ties against Hearts and Stirling Albion. With Celtic he won a Scottish League Cup medal, playing in the team that beat Kilmarnock 3–0 at Hampden on 18 March 2001.
Sunderland
Sunderland signed Healy from Celtic in 2003. In December 2003 he broke his leg in a match against a former loan club,
Coventry City
Coventry City Football Club is a professional association football club based in Coventry, West Midlands, England. The team currently compete in the Championship, the second tier of the English football league system. The club is nicknamed t ...
after a challenge by
Moroccan international Youssef Safri.
In October 2004, he broke his leg again soon after resuming training with Sunderland, after a tackle from then manager Mick McCarthy. In January 2006, it was announced that Healy's contract with Sunderland had expired, and the midfielder left the club.
Livingston and Barnsley
Healy joined
SPL
SPL may refer to:
Association football
* Saudi Professional League
* Scottish Premier League
* SportPesa Premier League, Kenya
* Singapore Premier League
* RoboCup Standard Platform League, matches between autonomous robots
Computing Program ...
club
Livingston on 10 March 2006 until the end of the season. On 10 August 2006 Healy signed a one-year contract with
Barnsley. Having made only 10 appearances for Barnsley, he had his contract cancelled by mutual consent.
Cork City and FIFA case
On 20 February 2007 he signed a two-year contract with hometown
League of Ireland
The League of Ireland ( ga, Sraith na hÉireann), together with the Football Association of Ireland, is one of the two main governing bodies responsible for organising association football in the Republic of Ireland. The term was originally use ...
club
Cork City
Cork ( , from , meaning 'marsh') is the second largest city in Ireland and third largest city by population on the island of Ireland. It is located in the south-west of Ireland, in the province of Munster. Following an extension to the city's ...
, alongside former international colleague
Gareth Farrelly
Gareth Farrelly (born 28 August 1975) is an Irish football manager and former professional footballer.
He played as a midfielder notably in the Premier League for Aston Villa, Bolton Wanderers and Everton. He also played in the Football Leagu ...
. FIFA ruled both players to be unable to play for the club, citing a rule forbidding players from transferring between clubs more than twice in a 12-month period between July and June.
FIFA rejected appeals made by both players. On 1 July 2007 both Healy and Gareth Farrelly became eligible to play for Cork City. On this date, they both played for the club's under-21 team against Lifford of Ennis, Co Clare, winning the game 2–0.
Healy made his full Cork City debut against
Bohemians when they were beaten in extra time in the Eircom League Cup Quarter Final held at
Dalymount Park
Dalymount Park (Irish: ''Páirc Cnocán Uí Dhálaigh'') is a football stadium in Phibsborough on the Northside of Dublin, Ireland.
It is the home of Bohemian F.C., who have played there since the early 20th century. Affectionately known ...
on 3 July 2007.
Healy signed a two-year contract for Cork in 2009. In April 2009, Healy scored his first goal for Cork at
Tallaght Stadium
Tallaght Stadium ( ga, Staid Thamhlachta) is an association football stadium in the Republic of Ireland based in Tallaght, South Dublin. The club Shamrock Rovers originally announced details of the stadium in July, 1996. The stadium is now o ...
.
Ipswich Town
On 16 July 2009, it was confirmed that Cork City had accepted a
£100,000 bid from
Hartlepool United
Hartlepool United Football Club is a professional association football club based in Hartlepool, County Durham, England. The team competes in EFL League Two, League Two, the fourth tier of the English football league system.
They were founded i ...
to take Healy and fellow
Cork City
Cork ( , from , meaning 'marsh') is the second largest city in Ireland and third largest city by population on the island of Ireland. It is located in the south-west of Ireland, in the province of Munster. Following an extension to the city's ...
teammate
Denis Behan to
Victoria Park, Hartlepool
Victoria Park is a football ground in Hartlepool, County Durham, England, which is the home of League Two club Hartlepool United.
The four sides of the ground are known as the Town End Terrace (official capacity 1,775), the Niramax Stan ...
. However, five days later,
Hartlepool United
Hartlepool United Football Club is a professional association football club based in Hartlepool, County Durham, England. The team competes in EFL League Two, League Two, the fourth tier of the English football league system.
They were founded i ...
manager
Chris Turner confirmed that the deal had not happened due to late interest from
Ipswich Town
Ipswich Town Football Club is a professional association football club based in Ipswich, Suffolk, England. They play in League One, the third tier of the English football league system.
The club was founded in 1878 but did not turn profession ...
. Healy subsequently signed for Ipswich for an undisclosed fee. In January 2010, he signed on-loan with
Scottish Premier League club
Falkirk. At Falkirk he scored once against
Aberdeen
Aberdeen (; sco, Aiberdeen ; gd, Obar Dheathain ; la, Aberdonia) is a city in North East Scotland, and is the third most populous city in the country. Aberdeen is one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas (as Aberdeen City), and ...
.
Returning to Ipswich from the on-loan spell in Scotland, during the League Cup Semi-Final 2011 first leg win by Ipswich Town over Arsenal, it was commented that "Colin Healy made Cesc Fabregas look like Colin Healy". In February 2011 Healy scored his first goal for Ipswich against
Doncaster Rovers
Doncaster Rovers Football Club is a professional association football club based in Doncaster, South Yorkshire, England. The team compete in League Two, the fourth tier of the English football league system. The club play their home games at ...
. His contract was terminated by mutual consent in November 2011.
Return to Cork City
In 2013, Healy returned to
Cork City
Cork ( , from , meaning 'marsh') is the second largest city in Ireland and third largest city by population on the island of Ireland. It is located in the south-west of Ireland, in the province of Munster. Following an extension to the city's ...
on a three-year deal. His most memorable moment came against
St Patrick's Athletic in 2014 when he scored a late over head kick against a fellow title rival. He and Cork finished runners up behind
Dundalk
Dundalk ( ; ga, Dún Dealgan ), meaning "the fort of Dealgan", is the county town (the administrative centre) of County Louth, Ireland. The town is on the Castletown River, which flows into Dundalk Bay on the east coast of Ireland. It is h ...
for three years in a row and Healy lost the 2015
FAI Cup to Dundalk before finally winning a trophy in March 2016 in the Presidents Cup and the 2016 FAI Cup final where he came off the bench. He retired from playing in April 2017.
After retirement from playing he was Cork City's "head of academy" for a number of seasons before being appointed "first team head coach" in December 2020.
International career
Healy played and scored a goal against Australia at the
FIFA World Youth Championship
The FIFA U-20 World Cup is the biennial football world championship tournament for FIFA members’ men's national teams with players under the age of 20. The competition has been staged every two years since the inaugural tournament in 1977 wh ...
finals in Nigeria in 1999.
He represented his country at the
UEFA U-19 Championship
The UEFA European Under-19 Championship, or simply UEFA Under-19 Championship or the UEFA Euro U-19, is an annual Association football, football competition contested by the European men's under-19 national teams of the member associations of UE ...
in Sweden in 1999, and won a bronze medal.
During the
Saipan incident
The Saipan incident was a public quarrel in May 2002 between Republic of Ireland national football team's captain Roy Keane and manager Mick McCarthy when the team was preparing in Saipan for its matches in Japan in the 2002 FIFA World Cup. It r ...
between
Mick McCarthy
Michael Joseph McCarthy (born 7 February 1959) is a professional football manager, pundit, and former player. He was last in charge of EFL Championship club Cardiff City.
McCarthy began his playing career at Barnsley in 1977, and he later had ...
and fellow Cork man
Roy Keane at the
2002 FIFA World Cup
The 2002 FIFA World Cup, also branded as Korea Japan 2002, was the 17th FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial football world championship for men's national teams organized by FIFA. It was held from 31 May to 30 June 2002 at sites in South Korea an ...
, Healy was called upon by McCarthy as the replacement should Keane be dropped from the squad. A succession of changes-of-heart by the
Manchester United player led to the call-up being delayed and the deadline passing, with Healy unable to join the
World Cup
A world cup is a global sporting competition in which the participant entities – usually international teams or individuals representing their countries – compete for the title of world champion. The event most associated with the concept i ...
squad.
Career statistics
Club
:Source:
International
:Source:
International goals
:Source:
[
''Republic of Ireland score listed first, score column indicates score after each Healy goal.''
]
Honours
;Celtic
* Scottish Premier League: 2000–01
*Scottish League Cup
The Scottish League Cup (also known as the Viaplay Cup for sponsorship reasons) is a football competition open to all Scottish Professional Football League (SPFL) clubs. First held in 1946–47, it is the oldest national League Cup in existen ...
: 2000–01
;Cork City
* FAI Cup: 2007, 2016
File:2016 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Bombed-out buildings in Ankara following the 2016 Turkish coup d'état attempt; the Impeachment of Dilma Rousseff, impeachment trial of Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff; Damaged houses duri ...
*Setanta Sports Cup
The Setanta Sports Cup was a club football competition featuring teams from both football associations on the island of Ireland. Inaugurated in 2005, it was a cross-border competition between clubs in the League of Ireland from the Republic of I ...
: 2008
File:2008 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Lehman Brothers went bankrupt following the Subprime mortgage crisis; Cyclone Nargis killed more than 138,000 in Myanmar; A scene from the opening ceremony of the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing; ...
* FAI President's Cup: 2016
File:2016 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Bombed-out buildings in Ankara following the 2016 Turkish coup d'état attempt; the Impeachment of Dilma Rousseff, impeachment trial of Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff; Damaged houses duri ...
;Individual
*PFAI Team of the Year
The Professional Footballers' Association of Ireland Team of the Year (often called the PFAI Team of the Year, or simply the Team of the Year) is an annual award given to the group of eleven players voted by their fellow players as having perform ...
: 2014 Premier Division
* League of Ireland Player of the Year: 2014
File:2014 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Stocking up supplies and personal protective equipment (PPE) for the Western African Ebola virus epidemic; Citizens examining the ruins after the Chibok schoolgirls kidnapping; Bundles of wat ...
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Healy, Colin
1980 births
Living people
Association footballers from Cork (city)
Republic of Ireland association footballers
Republic of Ireland youth international footballers
Republic of Ireland international footballers
Association football midfielders
Celtic F.C. players
Coventry City F.C. players
Sunderland A.F.C. players
Livingston F.C. players
Barnsley F.C. players
Bradford City A.F.C. players
Cork City F.C. players
Ipswich Town F.C. players
Falkirk F.C. players
Scottish Premier League players
English Football League players
League of Ireland players