Frank McGuigan is a former

Gaelic football Gaelic football ( ga, Peil Ghaelach; short name '), commonly known as simply Gaelic, GAA or Football is an Irish team sport. It is played between two teams of 15 players on a rectangular grass pitch. The objective of the sport is to score by kic ...

er who played for the Ardboe O'Donnovan Rossa club and the Tyrone county team. Despite his playing career being cut short by a car crash, which broke his leg, he is considered a legend in Tyrone football, alongside players such as

Frankie Donnelly Frankie Donnelly was a Gaelic footballer, who was part of Tyrone's breakthrough era in the mid-fifties, claiming two Ulster Championships in a row, with Donnelly being Ulster's top scorer in both those years. His prolific scoring has passed i ...

and

Peter Canavan Peter Canavan (born 9 April 1971) is an Irish former Gaelic footballer, manager and pundit. He played inter-county football for Tyrone, and is one of the most decorated players in the game's history, winning two All-Ireland Senior Football Ch ...

. He was known for his scoring ability, clocking up dozens of scores during his senior career, most of them from open play. His son

Brian Brian (sometimes spelled Bryan in English) is a male given name of Irish and Breton origin, as well as a surname of Occitan origin. It is common in the English-speaking world. It is possible that the name is derived from an Old Celtic word meani ...

later played for Tyrone.

Underage level

In 1971, he was part of the Tyrone minor (under 18) team that defeated

Fermanagh Historically, Fermanagh ( ga, Fir Manach), as opposed to the modern County Fermanagh, was a kingdom of Gaelic Ireland, associated geographically with present-day County Fermanagh. ''Fir Manach'' originally referred to a distinct kin group of al ...

in the Ulster minor final. The next year, 1972, McGuigan's inter-county contributions really started coming to the fore. He captained the minor team to another Ulster final victory, and eventually to the All-Ireland Minor Final. He also won the U-21 Ulster Championship, and came on as a substitute in the Tyrone Senior team in the Ulster Final.

Early senior career

McGuigan rose to the captaincy of the Tyrone Senior team, at the age of just nineteen leading the team to the 1973 Ulster Championship for the first time since 1957. He was also successful al club level, 1972 being Ardboe's third county Championship victory in a row. In 1977, McGuigan went to America as a representative of a touring Irish team, and decided to settle there after the tour was over, putting his playing career on temporary hiatus.

Later senior career

McGuigan returned from America in 1983, and got straight back into the Tyrone team and played in the Ulster Final of 1984. Against local rivals

Armagh Armagh ( ; ga, Ard Mhacha, , "Macha's height") is the county town of County Armagh and a city in Northern Ireland, as well as a civil parish. It is the ecclesiastical capital of Ireland – the seat of the Archbishops of Armagh, the Pri ...

, McGuigan scored eleven of Tyrone's points from open play - five on each foot, and one fisted over. This is considered "one of the greatest individual performances in the modern G.A.A. era". It was voted as one of the'' Top 20 GAA Moments'' of the previous forty years (i.e. since the dawn of televised matches). This tally helped McGuigan top the scorer's list in the Ulster Championship with a total of 0-19.

Career's premature end

McGuigan's Ulster Final display would prove to be his premature swansong. Days before receiving his All Star, McGuigan was involved in an horrific car crash that threatened, not only his playing career, but his life. He managed to get through the injuries, but his playing career was over. Tyrone fans consider this one of the great tragedies of Tyrone football, especially considering Tyrone reached the All-Ireland final in 1986 for the very first time, in which McGuigan's ability would have been an advantage. He has since rejected the All Star, due to his low esteem held for the accolade. He felt his own award was cheapened by accusations that it was a "sympathy vote," and after his son,

was overlooked in the 2005 honours, his opinion was strengthened.

Management

McGuigan entered his local club's management fold since the turn of the 21st century.

References

External links

(Streaming video - RealPlayer) Highlights of the 1986 Ulster Final, with contributions from experts and McGuigan himselfFurther biography from his local club, Ardboe's, website
{{DEFAULTSORT:McGuigan, Frank 1954 births Living people Tyrone inter-county Gaelic footballers