Gary Coleman (born 26 June 1972) is a

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 Derry county team in the 1990s and early 2000s. He still plays club football with St Trea's GFC Ballymaguigan. Coleman was part of Derry's 1993 All-Ireland Championship winning side, as well as the 1993 and 1998 Ulster Championship winning teams. For his performances in the 1993 Championship he won an All Star award. While usually playing in defence for Derry, he often played in attack for

Magherafelt Magherafelt (, �mˠaxəɾʲəˈfʲiːlt̪ˠə is a small town and civil parish in County Londonderry, Northern Ireland. It had a population of 8,805 at the 2011 Census. It is the biggest town in the south of the county and is the social, econo ...

and current club Ballymaguigan.

Personal life

Coleman attended school at

St Pius X College, Magherafelt Saint Pius X College is a Roman Catholic co-educational secondary school in Magherafelt, County Londonderry, Northern Ireland. History St Pius X Voluntary Intermediate School began in 1960 with the purchase of of land, at a cost of £5,000, ...

. His father Eamonn was manager of the 1993 Derry team that won the All-Ireland.

Inter-county career

Regarded as one of the best Derry

minor Minor may refer to: * Minor (law), a person under the age of certain legal activities. ** A person who has not reached the age of majority * Academic minor, a secondary field of study in undergraduate education Music theory *Minor chord ** Barb ...

players of all time, Coleman

captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police department, election precinct, e ...

ed Derry minors to two Ulster Minor Championships and an All-Ireland Minor Championship. He also won an Ulster Under-21 Championship medal in 1993. He was part of Derry's 1993 Ulster Championship and All-Ireland winning team, which beat

Cork Cork or CORK may refer to: Materials * Cork (material), an impermeable buoyant plant product ** Cork (plug), a cylindrical or conical object used to seal a container ***Wine cork Places Ireland * Cork (city) ** Metropolitan Cork, also known as G ...

in the final. Coleman added a second Ulster Championship medal in 1998. He won four

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the ...

medals with Derry in 1992, 1995, 1996 and 2000. Coleman and Derry finished runners-up to

Offaly County Offaly (; ga, Contae Uíbh Fhailí) is a county in Ireland. It is part of the Eastern and Midland Region and the province of Leinster. It is named after the ancient Kingdom of Uí Failghe. It was formerly known as King's County, in hono ...

in the 1998 National League decider.

Club career

Coleman started his career with O'Donovan Rossa GAC Magherafelt. After moving to his father's home townland of

Ballymaguigan Ballymaguigan () is a hamlet and townland in County Londonderry, Northern Ireland. It is near the northwest shore of Lough Neagh and close to Magherafelt. The hamlet forms one part of a parish named Ardtrea North. Ballymaguigan is part of the ...

a few years ago, Coleman transferred to St. Trea's GFC Ballymaguigan in 2002 and played

full forward Full-forward is a position in Australian rules football and Gaelic football with a key focus on kicking goals. The Coleman Medal is awarded to the player, often a full-forward, who has kicked the most goals in an Australian Football League seaso ...

for the side. He won a

Derry Intermediate Football Championship The Derry Intermediate Football Championship (currently also known for sponsorship reasons as the ''M&L Contracts Derry Intermediate Football Championship'') is an annual competition between the mid-tier Gaelic football clubs affiliated to Der ...

with the club in 2003 and says it as precious and meaningful to him as the All-Ireland medal he won in 1993.

Honours

* 4 National Football League Division 1 1992 1995 1996 1997 2000 * 2

Ulster Senior Football Championship The Ulster Senior Football Championship is an inter-county competition for Gaelic football teams in the province of Ulster. It is organised by the Ulster Council of the Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA) and begins in early May. The final is usu ...

1993 1998 * 2

Ulster Minor Football Championship The Ulster Minor Football Championship is the Minor "knockout" competition in the game of Gaelic football played in the province of Ulster in Ireland. The series of games are organised by the Ulster Council. The trophy for the winning side is Th ...

1989 1990 * 1

Ulster Under-21 Football Championship The Ulster GAA Football Under-20 Championship, known simply as the Ulster Under-20 Championship, is an annual inter-county Gaelic football competition organised by the Ulster Council of the Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA). It is the highest in ...

1993 * 1

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 ...

1993 * 1

All-Ireland Minor Football Championship The Electric Ireland All-Ireland Minor Football Championship is the premier under-17 "knockout" competition in Gaelic football played in Ireland. 2017 was the final year of the minor under 18 football championship as it were replaced by an under ...

1989 * 1 All-Star 1993 * 1 Irish News Ulster All-Star 2001

References

1972 births Living people Ballymaguigan Gaelic footballers Derry inter-county Gaelic footballers Magherafelt Gaelic footballers Winners of one All-Ireland medal (Gaelic football) {{Gaelic-football-bio-stub