Sean Hargan (born 6 November 1974 in

Derry Derry, officially Londonderry (), is the second-largest city in Northern Ireland and the fifth-largest city on the island of Ireland. The name ''Derry'' is an anglicisation of the Old Irish name (modern Irish: ) meaning 'oak grove'. The ...

, Northern Ireland) was a veteran defender who played for Derry City and Crusaders, Hargan retired at the end of 2009 with Crusaders. One of the veterans of the Derry City 1996–97 league-winning side, Hargan continued to play an integral part for the Candystripes and had his testimonial year in 2005, before moving to

Crusaders The Crusades were a series of religious wars initiated, supported, and sometimes directed by the Latin Church in the medieval period. The best known of these Crusades are those to the Holy Land in the period between 1095 and 1291 that were in ...

at the end of 2008. Hargan is well renowned for his away goal against IFK Göteborg in the UEFA Cup in 2006, which sparked a magical European campaign for the Candystripes culminating in a tie against french giants, Paris Saint Germain.

Derry City

As a youngster Sean played for

Top of the Hill Celtic F.C. A spinning top, or simply a top, is a toy with a squat body and a sharp point at the bottom, designed to be spun on its vertical axis, balancing on the tip due to the gyroscopic effect. Once set in motion, a top will usually wobble for a few se ...

in the

Derry and District League The Derry and District League is an amateur football league in Derry. The league includes youth and senior football teams. The Senior Sunday league football, Sunday League has two divisions, the Premier and the First Division. The Youth Leagues ...

. As he got older he broke into the Derry City team in the position of striker and scored a

hat trick A hat is a head covering which is worn for various reasons, including protection against weather conditions, ceremonial reasons such as university graduation, religious reasons, safety, or as a fashion accessory. Hats which incorporate mecha ...

on his debut. Hargan later converted to left back, where he offers total commitment to the side. This has endeared him to the fans. Hargan has scored more than 50 competitive goals for the Candystripes, including a decisive header away to IFK Gothenburg in the 2006

UEFA Cup A cup is an open-top used to hold hot or cold liquids for pouring or drinking; while mainly used for drinking, it also can be used to store Solid, solids for pouring (e.g., sugar, flour, grains, salt). Cups may be made of glass, metal, porcela ...

qualifying round. Also during the 2006 league season, Derry City escaped punishment for fielding a banned Hargan due to the league failing informing Derry City in the correct timeframe. By the end of that season, Hargan had made a total of 393 appearances for the club - that makes him the club's third highest appearer ever. Hargan was described as a great servant for the club and is mostly remembered for the goal he scored in the Europa League against IFK Gothenburg which saw Derry to a 1–0 victory on the night. After Derry's City's European experience, Shelbourne were reported to have shown interest in the left back, but Hargan pledged his loyalty and stayed with the Candystripes until the end of the 2008 season. With the signing of Dave Rogers at the beginning of the 2007 season, Hargan's first-team place came under stiff competition. Nevertheless, due to his senior status in the team he was handed the role of vice-captain to Peter Hutton by

Pat Fenlon Patrick Fenlon (born 15 March 1969) is an Irish football coach and former player. Fenlon played as a midfielder for St Patrick's Athletic, Bohemians, Linfield, Shamrock Rovers and Shelbourne. As a manager he won five League of Ireland titles ...

for the season and Hargan seen off the completion of Rodgers until he sustained an injury that would keep him out for the rest of the season. Hargan signed for a Crusaders at the end of that season after departing the Brandywell club after 14 years at the club. Hargan was appointed the First Team Coach at Derry City following the appointment of Peter Hutton as manager in 2014.

Crusaders

At the end of December 2008, Irish League side Crusaders signed Hargan on an 18-month deal. Dungannon Swifts and Coleraine were also believed to be interested in the veteran full-back, but Hargan signed for the Crues and spent just under a year as his career was cut short due to injury. Hargan retired from professional football at the end of the 2009 season at the age of 37.

References

External links

Player Profile - Official Derry City site
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hargan, Sean 1974 births Living people Association footballers from Northern Ireland Derry City F.C. players League of Ireland players Crusaders F.C. players NIFL Premiership players Association football defenders