Patrick McIlvenny (18 November 1900 – after 1931), known as Paddy or Patsy McIlvenny, was an Irish professional

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 ...

who played as a centre forward or

centre half In the sport of association football, a defender is an outfield position whose primary role is to stop attacks during the game and prevent the opposition from scoring. Centre-backs are usually positioned in pairs, with one full-back on either ...

Early years

Patrick was born in Belfast and attempted to join the War effort in 1917 by signing up for the 4th Battalion of The Royal Irish Rifles. Patrick had claimed to be 18 years old on his application, and was soon found out and dismissed.British Army Pension Records 1914-1920 At age 17, Patrick had his debut with Lisburn Distillery F.C. He did not stay for long and instead played for Falls League team, Highfield Simpson. D. The Whites- A History of Distillery Football Club 2004

Success with Distillery

He achieved success upon returning to Distillery for the 1922-23 season scoring 15 goals. On 19 May 1923 during a match with Glentoran, Mcilvenny scored a goal with such force that the ball smashed through the netting.

Move to the English League

In May 1924, Patrick accepted a transfer to Cardiff City for a fee of £500. Patrick did not see as much first team action as he had done at Distillery but on 28 February 1925, Patrick is noted as scoring a header against

Newcastle United F.C. Newcastle United Football Club is an English professional football club, based in Newcastle upon Tyne, that plays in the Premier League – the top flight of English football. The club was founded in 1892 by the merger of Newcastle East End ...

After his time at Cardiff, he moved to

Sheffield Wednesday Sheffield Wednesday Football Club is a professional association football club based in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England. The team competes in League One, the third tier of the English football league system. Formed in 1867 as an offshoot ...

and

Northampton Town Northampton Town Football Club is a professional association football club based in the town of Northampton, England. The team plays in , the fourth tier of the English football league system. Founded in 1897, the club competed in the Midland ...

in the 1920s, and was

capped In sport, a cap is a player's appearance in a game at international level. The term dates from the practice in the United Kingdom of awarding a cap to every player in an international match of rugby football and association football. In the ea ...

once for

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...

, against

Wales Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the Bristol Channel to the south. It had a population in ...

on 15 March 1924 in the 1923–24 British Home Championship. He also played domestically for Distillery and in English non-league football for

Boston Town Boston Town Football Club is a football club based in Boston, Lincolnshire, England. It is currently a member of the and plays at Tattershall Road. History The club was established as Boston Football Club in 1963 by former officials of Bosto ...

and Hinckley United. Two of his sons, Paddy and

Bobby Bobby or Bobbie may refer to: People * Bobby (given name), a list of names * Bobby (actress), from Bangladesh * Bobby (rapper) (born 1995), from South Korea * Bobby (screenwriter) (born 1983), Indian screenwriter * Bobby, old slang for a constabl ...

, also played in the Football League.

Later life and death

Patrick settled down and had a new family in the town of

Hinckley Hinckley is a market town in south-west Leicestershire, England. It is administered by Hinckley and Bosworth Borough Council. Hinckley is the third largest settlement in the administrative county of Leicestershire, after Leicester and Loughbo ...

and had two other sons, John and Peter. A newspaper article from 1 December 1953 states how Patrick wants to make it clear that his son John is not a Scot, and is native to Hinckley as John has recently been signed for

Bristol Rovers F.C. Bristol Rovers Football Club are a professional football club in Bristol, England. They compete in League One, the third tier of the English football league system. They play home matches at the Memorial Stadium in Horfield, they have been ...

Patrick's son John also played for West Bromwich Albion F.C. Patrick died in

Coventry Coventry ( or ) is a city in the West Midlands, England. It is on the River Sherbourne. Coventry has been a large settlement for centuries, although it was not founded and given its city status until the Middle Ages. The city is governed b ...

in 1955, he had spent his later years as a Millwright.

References

External links

1900 births Year of death missing Association footballers from Belfast Men's association footballers from Northern Ireland Irish association footballers (before 1923) Pre-1950 IFA men's international footballers Men's association football forwards Lisburn Distillery F.C. players Cardiff City F.C. players Sheffield Wednesday F.C. players Shelbourne F.C. players Northampton Town F.C. players Boston Town F.C. (1920s) players Hinckley United F.C. players NIFL Premiership players English Football League players Midland Football League players British Army personnel of World War I Royal Ulster Rifles soldiers Child soldiers in World War I Military personnel from Belfast {{NorthernIreland-footy-bio-stub