Patrick Joseph O'Connell (8 March 1887 – 27 February 1959), also known as Paddy O'Connell or Patricio O'Connell, was an Irish

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 ...

and manager. He played as a defender, most notably, for Belfast Celtic,

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 of ...

Hull City Hull City Association Football Club is a professional football club based in Hull, East Riding of Yorkshire, England, that compete in the . They have played home games at the MKM Stadium since moving from Boothferry Park in 2002. The club's t ...

and

Manchester United Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of City of Salford, Salford to ...

. He has the distinction of being the first player from what is now 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 the island of Ireland. The capital and largest city is Dublin, on the eastern side of the island. A ...

to play for Manchester United. As an international, he captained

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 ...

and was a member of the team that won the

1914 British Home Championship This year saw the beginning of what became known as World War I, after Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria, heir to the Austrian throne was assassinated by Serbian nationalist Gavrilo Princip. It also saw the first airline to provide schedu ...

. However, O'Connell is probably best remembered for managing several clubs in

La Liga The Campeonato Nacional de Liga de Primera División, commonly known simply as Primera División in Spain, and as La Liga in English-speaking countries and officially as LaLiga Santander for sponsorship reasons, stylized as LaLiga, is the men's ...

. In 1935 he led

Real Betis Real Betis Balompié, known as Real Betis () or just Betis, is a Spanish professional football club based in Seville in the autonomous community of Andalusia. Founded in 1907, it plays in La Liga. It holds home games at the Estadio Benito Vill ...

to their first La Liga title and during the

Spanish Civil War The Spanish Civil War ( es, Guerra Civil Española)) or The Revolution ( es, La Revolución, link=no) among Nationalists, the Fourth Carlist War ( es, Cuarta Guerra Carlista, link=no) among Carlists, and The Rebellion ( es, La Rebelión, lin ...

he took

FC Barcelona Futbol Club Barcelona (), commonly referred to as Barcelona and colloquially known as Barça (), is a professional football club based in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain, that competes in La Liga, the top flight of Spanish football. Founded ...

on a tour of

North America North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere and almost entirely within the Western Hemisphere. It is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South America and the Car ...

. Despite these successes, he died destitute in London in 1959.

Early life

O'Connell was born in 16 Mabel Street, Dublin, not far from the modern site of

Croke Park Croke Park ( ga, Páirc an Chrócaigh, ) is a Gaelic games stadium in Dublin, Ireland. Named after Archbishop Thomas Croke, it is referred to as Croker by GAA fans and locals. It serves as both the principal national stadium of Ireland and he ...

. From the age of 14, he worked at Boland's Mill and became a foreman at the age of 15. He also played junior football with several local Dublin clubs, including Frankfort, Stranville Rovers and Liffey Wanderers, before joining Belfast Celtic. In March 1909, O'Connell and left-back Peter Warren were transferred to

for a combined fee of £50.''The Men Who Made Sheffield Wednesday Football Club'' (2007) Tony Matthews

Playing career

Club

Sheffield Wednesday

A terrific performer in the heart of the defence, O'Connell made his

English First Division The Football League First Division was a division of the Football League in England from 1888 until 2004. It was the top division in the English football league system from the season 1888–89 until 1991–92, a century in which the First ...

debut for

against

Bury Bury may refer to: *The burial of human remains *-bury, a suffix in English placenames Places England * Bury, Cambridgeshire, a village * Bury, Greater Manchester, a town, historically in Lancashire ** Bury (UK Parliament constituency) (1832–19 ...

on the last day of the 1908–09 season. However, in subsequent seasons he was unable to establish himself as a regular in the Wednesday first team due to competition from English McConnell, Jimmy Spoors and Bob McSkimming. As a result, he made just 21 senior appearances, 18 in the league and 3 in the

FA Cup The Football Association Challenge Cup, more commonly known as the FA Cup, is an annual knockout football competition in men's domestic English football. First played during the 1871–72 season, it is the oldest national football competi ...

. However while with Wednesday, O'Connell made two of his six international appearances for Ireland.

Hull City

O'Connell left

for

in March 1912 and subsequently made 58

Second Division In sport, the Second Division, also called Division 2 or Division II is usually the second highest division of a league, and will often have promotion and relegation with divisions above and below. Following the rise of Premier League style compet ...

appearances for City during the 1912–13 and 1913–14 seasons. While with City he also made a further three appearances for Ireland.

Manchester United

O'Connell's impressive performances with Ireland attracted the attention of

whom he signed for in May 1914 for a fee of £1,000. During the 1914–15 season he served as United team captain, made 34 First Division appearances and scored twice. He also played one further game for the club in the

. He made his league debut and scored his first goal for the club on 2 September 1914 in a 3–1 home defeat against

Oldham Athletic Oldham Athletic Association Football Club is a professional football club in Oldham, Greater Manchester, England, which competes in the National League, the fifth tier of the English football league system. The history of Oldham Athletic ...

. He scored his second goal on 10 April 1915 in a 2–2 home draw with

Middlesbrough Middlesbrough ( ) is a town on the southern bank of the River Tees in North Yorkshire, England. It is near the North York Moors national park. It is the namesake and main town of its local borough council area. Until the early 1800s, the a ...

and made his final English League appearance for the club on 26 April in a 1–0 home win against

Aston Villa Aston Villa Football Club is a professional football club based in Aston, Birmingham, England. The club competes in the , the top tier of the English football league system. Founded in 1874, they have played at their home ground, Villa Park ...

. O'Connell's time at United saw the club finish third from bottom in the First Division, narrowly avoiding relegation by a single point. He also became embroiled in the infamous 1915 British football betting scandal. On 2 April 1915 relegation threatened United defeated mid-table

Liverpool Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the 10th largest English district by population and its metropolitan area is the fifth largest in the United Kingdom, with a popul ...

2–0 in a home league game. It subsequently emerged that the game was fixed by a small group of players from both sides. David Goldblatt argues that the players concern was not who went up or down the league, but due to the

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

, that there would be no league at all the following season. Believing they would soon be unemployed, the players arranged a

betting pool A betting pool, syndicate, sports lottery, sweep, or office pool if done at work, is a form of gambling, specifically a variant of parimutuel betting influenced by lotteries, where gamblers pay a fixed price into a ''pool'' (from which taxes and ...

and backed United to win 2–0. This was the score when O'Connell took a penalty which went well wide O'Connell escaped punishment but three of his teammates –

Sandy Turnbull Alexander Turnbull (30 July 1884 – 3 May 1917) was a Scottish footballer who played as a forward for both Manchester City and Manchester United in the early 20th century. Football career Born in Hurlford to James and Jessie Turnbull of 1 Gib ...

, Arthur Whalley and

Enoch West Enoch James West (31 March 1886 – September 1965), nicknamed Knocker, was an English footballer who played as a centre forward for Nottingham Forest and Manchester United before being banned for match fixing. West was born in Hucknall T ...

– and four Liverpool players later received lifetime suspensions from

The Football Association The Football Association (also known as The FA) is the Sports governing body, governing body of association football in England and the Crown Dependencies of Jersey, Bailiwick of Guernsey, Guernsey and the Isle of Man. Formed in 1863, it is the ...

. During the war, O'Connell remained a United player and also guested for

Clapton Orient Leyton Orient Football Club is a professional football club based in Leyton, East London, England, who compete in , the fourth tier of the English football league system. They are the second oldest football club in London to play at a profess ...

Rochdale Rochdale ( ) is a large town in Greater Manchester, England, at the foothills of the South Pennines in the dale on the River Roch, northwest of Oldham and northeast of Manchester. It is the administrative centre of the Metropolitan Borough ...

and

Chesterfield Chesterfield may refer to: Places Canada * Rural Municipality of Chesterfield No. 261, Saskatchewan * Chesterfield Inlet, Nunavut United Kingdom * Chesterfield, Derbyshire, a market town in England ** Chesterfield (UK Parliament constitue ...

Dumbarton

In August 1919 O'Connell moved to

Dumbarton Dumbarton (; also sco, Dumbairton; ) is a town in West Dunbartonshire, Scotland, on the north bank of the River Clyde where the River Leven flows into the Clyde estuary. In 2006, it had an estimated population of 19,990. Dumbarton was the ca ...

and during the 1919–20 season made 31 league appearances and played twice in the

Scottish Cup The Scottish Football Association Challenge Cup,Scottish League The Scottish Football League (SFL) was a league featuring professional and semi-professional football clubs mostly from Scotland.One club, Berwick Rangers, is based in the town of Berwick-upon-Tweed, which is located approximately 4 km sout ...

debut as a right-half in a 1–1 draw with

Ayr United Ayr United Football Club are a football club in Ayr, Scotland, who play in the Scottish Championship, the second tier of the Scottish Professional Football League. Formed in 1910 by the merger of Ayr Parkhouse and Ayr F.C., their nickname is ...

on 16 August 1919, the opening day of the season. His first three appearances for Dumbarton were at right-half while all the rest were at centre-half, with the exception of the home game against

Hamilton Academical Hamilton Academical Football Club, often known as Hamilton Accies, or The Accies, is a Scottish association football, football club from Hamilton, South Lanarkshire, Hamilton, South Lanarkshire who currently compete in the Scottish Championshi ...

on 27 September 1919 when he again played at right-half. He made his final appearance for Dumbarton in a 4–3 away defeat 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 ...

on 24 April 1920.

Ashington

O'Connell finished his playing career with

Ashington Ashington is a town and civil parish in Northumberland, England, with a population of 27,864 at the 2011 Census. It was once a centre of the coal mining industry. The town is north of Newcastle upon Tyne, west of the A189 and bordered to the ...

. During his first season with the club, 1920–21, they played in the

North Eastern League The North Eastern League was an association football league for teams in the North East of England. The league was founded in 1906 and was initially successful, with teams defecting from the rival Northern Football Alliance to play. Although so ...

and finished ninth out of twenty teams. The 1921–22 season saw O'Connell appointed player-coach and Ashington playing in the English Division Three North. O'Connell saw massive changes at Ashington with the club's league status having changed. Their home ground was upgraded from a typical non-league venue containing no more than a simple seated and covered stand to a stadium designed for 20,000. O'Connell played in the club's first ever English League fixture, a 1–0 win against

Grimsby Town Grimsby Town Football Club is a professional football club based in Cleethorpes, North East Lincolnshire, England, that in the 2022–23 season will compete in , the fourth tier of the English football league system, following the victory in t ...

in front of 9,000 supporters. Ashington eventually finished the season in a respectable tenth position with O'Connell making his last appearance for the club in a 2–2 home draw against

Southport Southport is a seaside town in the Metropolitan Borough of Sefton in Merseyside, England. At the 2001 census, it had a population of 90,336, making it the eleventh most populous settlement in North West England. Southport lies on the Irish ...

. In January 1921, while with Ashington, O'Connell also represented the

against the

Central League The or is one of the two professional baseball leagues that constitute Nippon Professional Baseball in Japan. The winner of the league championship plays against the winner of the Pacific League in the annual Japan Series. It currently consist ...

International

Between 1912 and 1919 O'Connell played 6 times for

. He made his international debut on 10 February, 1912 in a 6–1 defeat against

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

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 ...

. His teammates on the day included, among others, Billy Scott,

Val Harris Valentine Harris (Irish: ''Vailintín Ó hEarchaí''; 23 June 1884 in Ringsend, Dublin, Ireland – 9 November 1963), commonly referred to as Val Harris, was an Irish footballer who played Gaelic football for the Dublin county team and soccer f ...

and Bill Lacey. On 16 March 1912 he also played in the 4-1 defeat against

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the ...

Windsor Park Windsor Park is a football stadium in Belfast, Northern Ireland. It is the home ground of Linfield F.C. who own the land the stadium is built on, while the Irish Football Association own and operate the stadium and pay Linfield an annual renta ...

. In 1914 together with Harris, Lacey, Louis Bookman and

Billy Gillespie William Ballintrae Gillespie (6 August 1891 – 2 July 1981) was an Irish football player who played as a striker for Sheffield United over a twenty-year period from 1913 to 1932, scoring over 137 League and Cup goals in 492 games for the Sout ...

, he was a member of the Irish team that won the

. After beating

Wales Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the Wales–England border, east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the ...

2–1 away on 19 January, Ireland then beat England 3–0 at Ayresome Park on 14 February. O'Connell then captained the team, while playing with a broken arm, as a ten-man Ireland clinched the title with a 1–1 draw against Scotland at

on 14 March. He made his last appearance for Ireland in a 1919

Victory international The term Victory International or Victory Internationals refers to two series of international football matches played by the national football teams of England, Scotland, Ireland and Wales at the end of both the First and Second World Wars. The ...

against Scotland.

Managerial career

Racing de Santander

In 1922 O'Connell succeeded

Fred Pentland Frederick Beaconsfield Pentland (29 July 1883 – 16 March 1962) was an English football player and coach. Pentland played club football in the Football League for Blackpool, Blackburn Rovers and Middlesbrough, in the Southern Football League f ...

as the manager of

Racing de Santander Real Racing Club de Santander, S.A.D. (), also known as Racing de Santander () or simply Racing, is a football club based in Santander, Cantabria, Spain, that currently competes in Segunda División, the second tier of the Spanish league system ...

. He subsequently guided the team to five regional titles and in 1928 they became founding members of

. He would later return to Racing for a second spell as manager between 1948 and 1949. La Liga stats
/ref>''Don Patricio O'Connell: An Irishman and the Politics of Spanish Football'' (2008) Jimmy Burn

/ref>

Real Oviedo

From September 1929 until May 1931 O'Connell managed

Real Oviedo Real Oviedo is a Spanish football club based in Oviedo, Asturias. Founded on 26 March 1926 as a result of the merger of two clubs who had maintained a large sporting rivalry for years in the city: ''Real Stadium Club Ovetense'' and ''Real Club De ...

in the

Segunda División The Campeonato Nacional de Liga de Segunda División, commercially known as LaLiga SmartBank for sponsorship reasons, is the men's second professional association football division of the Spanish football league system. Administrated by the Lig ...

Real Betis

Between 1931 and 1935 O'Connell managed

, at the time known as ''Betis Balompie''. After leading them to the

title in 1932 he then guided Betis, with a team that included Lecue, to their one and only

title in 1935. Betis won the title on 28 April 1935 with a 5–0 win against O'Connell's former team

. The night before the game, which was played in Santander, O'Connell visited the Racing squad at a hotel where they were staying and allegedly tried to persuade them to lose the game. Betis had to beat Racing to overtake their rivals

Real Madrid Real Madrid Club de Fútbol (, meaning ''Royal Madrid Football Club''), commonly referred to as Real Madrid, is a Spanish professional football club based in Madrid. Founded in 1902 as Madrid Football Club, the club has traditionally wor ...

FC Barcelona

O'Connell's success with

attracted the interest of

who appointed him as successor to

Franz Platko Franz may refer to: People * Franz (given name) * Franz (surname) Places * Franz (crater), a lunar crater * Franz, Ontario, a railway junction and unorganized town in Canada * Franz Lake, in the state of Washington, United States – see Fran ...

for the 1935–36 season. With a squad that included Josep Escolà,

Domènec Balmanya Domènec Balmanya i Perera (; 29 December 1914 – 14 February 2002), also referred to as Domingo Balmaña, was a former Spanish football midfielder and manager who spent most of his playing career at FC Barcelona. As a manager, he guided CF Barc ...

, Joan Josep Nogués and Enrique Fernández, O'Connell guided Barça to the

Campionat de Catalunya The Catalan football championship ''(Campionat de Catalunya)'' was a football competition in Catalonia and the first football league in Spain before La Liga was established in 1929. In December 1900, Alfons Macaya, the president of Hispania AC, ...

and the Copa de España final. In the final they played

and with Real leading 2–1, Escolà was denied a late equaliser after a spectacular save by

Ricardo Zamora Ricardo Zamora Martínez (; 14 February 1901 – 8 September 1978) was a Spanish footballer and manager. He played as a goalkeeper for, among others, RCD Espanyol, FC Barcelona and Real Madrid. As an international he played for both the Cata ...

. During the 1936–37 season

was suspended because of the

. However clubs in the

Republican Republican can refer to: Political ideology * An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law. ** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...

area of Spain competed in the

Mediterranean League The Mediterranean League, also referred to as the Lliga Mediterrània ( ''Catalan''), the Liga Mediterránea ( ''Spanish'') or La Liga del Mediterráneo, was a football league played in the Republican area of Spain during the Spanish Civil War. The ...

. In early 1937, FC Barcelona received an offer from a businessman, Manuel Mas Serrano, via one of their players, Josep Iborra. Serrano proposed that the club travel to play a series of exhibition matches in

Mexico Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...

and the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

. According to the offer, the club would be paid $15,000 with all costs covered. An FC Barcelona party of 20 – 16 players plus O'Connell, Ángel Mur, Rossend Calvet, the club secretary and Modest Amorós, the club doctor. In Mexico they played against, among others,

Club América Club de Fútbol América S.A. de C.V., commonly known as Club América or simply América, is a professional football club based in Mexico City. Nicknamed ''Las Águilas'' (The Eagles), it competes in Liga MX, the top tier of Mexican football ...

Atlante F.C. Atlante Fútbol Club, is a professional football club based in Mexico City, Mexico. Founded in 1916, Atlante were original members of the Mexican Primera División when it began in 1943. Atlante has won three national league championships, t ...

, Necaxa and a Mexican XI. In the United States, they played against

Brooklyn Hispano The Brooklyn Hispano was an American soccer club based in Brooklyn, New York that was an inaugural member of the reformed American Soccer League. The club was named the Brooklyn Giants for the 1942/43 season only. The Hispano club competed in th ...

, Brooklyn St. Mary's Celtic and an American Soccer League XI. They finished the tour with a game against a Hebrew XI. Due to the financial success of this tour, FC Barcelona cleared their debts and saved the club, however O'Connell returned to Spain with only four players after the others chose to go into exile in Mexico and

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

. By the 1937–38 season the Republican area was reduced in size and a second Mediterranean League was impossible to organise. However a Lliga Catalana, featuring just Catalan teams, was organised. Despite a depleted squad, O'Connell and FC Barcelona won both the Lliga Catalana and the

Sevilla FC

O'Connell went on to manage

Sevilla FC Sevilla Fútbol Club () is a Spanish professional football club based in Seville, the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Andalusia, Spain. It plays in Spanish football's top flight, La Liga. Sevilla have won the UEFA Euro ...

between 1942 and 1945. During his first season in charge, 1942–43, he guided the club to second place in

Legacy

A bust commemorating O'Connell's league title achievement with Real Betis was installed at the club's

Estadio Benito Villamarín Estadio Benito Villamarín is a stadium in Seville, Spain, and the home of Real Betis since its completion in 1929. It has a capacity of 60,720. History Construction As early as 1912, the Spanish architect Aníbal González Álvarez-Ossorio had ...

in 2017. Organised by the Patrick O'Connell Memorial Fund Alan McLean, Fergus Dowd and Simon Needham. A documentary about Patrick and the Fund, by Michael Andersen was released in May 2018 with the support of the Memorial Fund. Patrick's new memorial was installed by the fund in April 2016.

Honours

''Player'' Ireland *

British Home Championship The British Home Championship * sco, Hame Internaitional Kemp * gd, Farpais lìg eadar-nàiseanta * cy, Pencampwriaeth y Pedair Gwlad, name=lang (historically known as the British International Championship or simply the International Champio ...

1914 This year saw the beginning of what became known as World War I, after Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria, heir to the Austrian throne was Assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand, assassinated by Serbian nationalist Gavrilo Princip. It als ...

: 1 ''Manager'' Racing Santander *Cantabrian Champions **''Winners'' 1923–24, 1924–25, 1925–26, 1926–27, 1928–29: 5 Real Betis *

**''Winners'' 1934–35: 1 *

**''Winners'' 1931–32: 1 FC Barcelona *

**''Winners'' 1937: 1 * Lliga Catalana **''Winners'' 1937–38: 1 *

**''Winners'' 1935–36, 1937–38: 2

References

External links

La increíble Liga de Mr. O'ConnellThe Ballad of Patrick O'Connell
{{DEFAULTSORT:Oconnell, Patrick 1887 births 1959 deaths Belfast Celtic F.C. players Chesterfield F.C. wartime guest players Clapton Orient F.C. wartime guest players FC Barcelona managers Association football wing halves Hull City A.F.C. players Irish association footballers (before 1923) Irish expatriate sportspeople in Spain Expatriate football managers in Spain Expatriate footballers in England Irish people of the Spanish Civil War La Liga managers Manchester United F.C. players People from County Westmeath Pre-1950 IFA international footballers Ashington A.F.C. managers Racing de Santander managers Real Betis managers Real Oviedo managers Republic of Ireland football managers Republic of Ireland expatriate football managers Rochdale A.F.C. wartime guest players Sevilla FC managers Sheffield Wednesday F.C. players Ashington A.F.C. players Dumbarton F.C. players Scottish Football League players Irish expatriate sportspeople in England Ireland (IFA) wartime international footballers