Brian Dooher
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Brian Dooher is an
Irish Irish may refer to: Common meanings * Someone or something of, from, or related to: ** Ireland, an island situated off the north-western coast of continental Europe ***Éire, Irish language name for the isle ** Northern Ireland, a constituent unit ...
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 was a member the senior Tyrone county team between 1995 and 2011. He was appointed co-manager of the Tyrone senior football team in November 2020 alongside
Feargal Logan Feargal Logan is a Gaelic football manager and former player, who was a starting member of the Tyrone county team that reached the 1995 All-Ireland Senior Football Championship Final. Legal career Since retiring from play, Logan's name has ...
, succeeding
Mickey Harte Mickey Harte (born 1952) is an Irish Gaelic football Manager (Gaelic games), manager and former player. He has been manager of the Louth county football team, Louth county team since 2020. Harte managed the Tyrone county football team, Tyrone ...
. He won three
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 ...
medals, five
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 ...
and two
National League The National League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the National League (NL), is the older of two leagues constituting Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada, and the world's oldest extant professional team s ...
titles with the county. He has also won three All Star Awards, and six Ulster All-Stars - the joint leader with
Kieran McGeeney Kieran McGeeney (born 18 October 1971) is an Irish people, Irish Gaelic football Manager (Gaelic games), manager and former player, who currently manages his native county, having previously managed the senior Kildare county football team, Kild ...
and Steven McDonnell. Dooher played his club football for
Clann na nGael A clan is a group of people united by actual or perceived kinship and descent. Even if lineage details are unknown, clans may claim descent from founding member or apical ancestor. Clans, in indigenous societies, tend to be endogamous, meanin ...
. Dooher was renowned for his hardworking playing style, often doing the gritty, unfashionable work, like picking up the ball in defence, to feed the forward players. He was also an accurate point scorer. Although he usually started in the half-forward line, his roaming nature meant he was rarely ever stationed there for very long. His contributions to the game did not go unnoticed by his teammates, as
Seán Cavanagh Seán Cavanagh (born 16 February 1983) is an Irish people, Irish former Gaelic footballer who played for the Moy Tír Na nÓg GAC, Moy Tír Na nÓg club and for the Tyrone county football team, Tyrone county team. He is a five-time GAA GPA All ...
remarked in 2003 how "I wouldn't be able to lay to my strengthswithout Brian's workrate." In the same article, the ''
Irish Examiner The ''Irish Examiner'', formerly ''The Cork Examiner'' and then ''The Examiner'', is an Irish national daily newspaper which primarily circulates in the Munster region surrounding its base in Cork, though it is available throughout the country. ...
'' said, "it would be no exaggeration to call him the hardest working footballer in Ireland." He is a father to Shea Dooher, Jack Dooher


Personal life

Dooher is a former pupil of Loughash Primary School (Co. Tyrone) and
St Columb's College St Columb's College ( ga, Coláiste Naomh Colum Cille) is a Roman Catholic boys' grammar school in Derry, Northern Ireland and, since 2008, a specialist school in mathematics. It is named after Saint Columba, the missionary monk from County Don ...
in Derry City. He later attended UCD in
Dublin Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of th ...
where he studied Veterinary Medicine. After initially working in private practice in Derry, he joined DAERA where he now holds his position.


Playing career


Inter-county

Dooher made his Senior debut for Tyrone in the
National League The National League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the National League (NL), is the older of two leagues constituting Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada, and the world's oldest extant professional team s ...
in 1995 against
Kildare Kildare () is a town in County Kildare, Ireland. , its population was 8,634 making it the 7th largest town in County Kildare. The town lies on the R445, some west of Dublin – near enough for it to have become, despite being a regional cen ...
. In
1996 File:1996 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: A Centennial Olympic Park bombing, bomb explodes at Centennial Olympic Park in Atlanta, set off by a radical Anti-abortion violence, anti-abortionist; The center fuel tank explodes on TWA Flight 8 ...
, his first full year as a Senior, Dooher helped Tyrone win the
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 ...
. Tyrone then advanced to play Meath in the All-Ireland semi-final, but were defeated. Dooher was one of several Tyrone players, along with Ciaran McBride, Jody Gormley,
Chris Lawn Chris Lawn is a former Gaelic footballer who played for the Tyrone county football team, Tyrone county team. He was on the substitutes bench for the entirety of the 2003 final, and came on as a substitute in the 2005 final, for the injured Joe ...
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 ...
who suffered injuries at the hands of what many Tyrone fans perceived as heavy-handed tactics by Meath. Meath defender, Martin O'Connell stood on Dooher's head while he had been felled. During the half-time interval, Dooher had to receive staples in his head, and played the rest of the game heavily bandaged. Despite this, he won the Ulster GAA Writers Player of the Year Award, at the age of just 20. In 2001 Tyrone won the Ulster Championship, with victory over
Cavan Cavan ( ; ) is the county town of County Cavan in Ireland. The town lies in Ulster, near the border with County Fermanagh in Northern Ireland. The town is bypassed by the main N3 road that links Dublin (to the south) with Enniskillen, Bally ...
in the final. In
2002 File:2002 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The 2002 Winter Olympics are held in Salt Lake City; Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother and her daughter Princess Margaret, Countess of Snowdon die; East Timor gains East Timor independence, indepe ...
Dooher helped Tyrone win the county's first ever National League title, beating Cavan in the final.
2003 File:2003 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The crew of STS-107 perished when the Space Shuttle Columbia disintegrated during reentry into Earth's atmosphere; SARS became an epidemic in China, and was a precursor to SARS-CoV-2; A des ...
proved to Tyrone' most successful year ever. The year began with Tyrone defending their National League crown, seeing off
Laois County Laois ( ; gle, Contae Laoise) is a county in Ireland. It is part of the Eastern and Midland Region and in the province of Leinster. It was known as Queen's County from 1556 to 1922. The modern county takes its name from Loígis, a medie ...
in the decider. They won the Ulster Championship beating Down in the final, after a replay.
RTÉ (RTÉ) (; Irish language, Irish for "Radio & Television of Ireland") is the Public broadcaster, national broadcaster of Republic of Ireland, Ireland headquartered in Dublin. It both produces and broadcasts programmes on RTÉ Television, telev ...
pundit and former player
Colm O'Rourke Colm O'Rourke (born 31 August 1957) is a Gaelic football manager, former player, retired secondary school principal, sports broadcaster and columnist. He has been manager of the Meath county team since 2022. O'Rourke's league and championship ...
claimed that year Dooher was one of the weak links in the Tyrone team, and that he would "eat his hat" if Tyrone won the All-Ireland with Dooher in the team. Dooher's response was modest, stating that O'Rourke was entitled to his opinion, but that he only cares what the Tyrone manager
Mickey Harte Mickey Harte (born 1952) is an Irish Gaelic football Manager (Gaelic games), manager and former player. He has been manager of the Louth county football team, Louth county team since 2020. Harte managed the Tyrone county football team, Tyrone ...
thinks. Tyrone did go on to win the All-Ireland (the county's first ever), and Dooher was included in the starting lineup throughout the season. Dooher received an All-Star award for his performances that year. Following the untimely death of Tyrone captain
Cormac McAnallen Cormac McAnallen ( ga, Cormac Mac An Ailín; 11 February 1980 – 2 March 2004) was an Irish Gaelic footballer who played for the Eglish St Patrick's club and the Tyrone county team. With Tyrone, McAnallen won the All-Ireland Senior Footbal ...
in
2004 2004 was designated as an International Year of Rice by the United Nations, and the International Year to Commemorate the Struggle Against Slavery and its Abolition (by UNESCO). Events January * January 3 – Flash Airlines Flight 6 ...
, Dooher was handed the Tyrone captaincy. The following year Tyrone won the All-Ireland for a second time, this time with Dooher as captain. As Dooher was making his acceptance speech after lifting the
Sam Maguire Cup The Sam Maguire Cup ( ga, Chorn Sam Mhic Uidhir), often referred to as Sam or The Sam , is a trophy awarded annually by the Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA) to the team that wins the All-Ireland Senior Football Championship, the main competiti ...
, he made an emotional eulogy to McAnallen, remarking how he knew Cormac was with him. There was also a hugely emotional moment between Dooher and manager Mickey Harte after the final whistle. Surrounded by dozens of photojournalists, and thousands of Tyrone fans, the two men embraced in tearful remembrance of their fallen captain. Dooher was once again honoured with an All Star. Dooher missed most of the 2006 campaign because of a shattered kneecap, but returned to Championship action in
2007 File:2007 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Steve Jobs unveils Apple's first iPhone; TAM Airlines Flight 3054 overruns a runway and crashes into a gas station, killing almost 200 people; Former Pakistani Prime Minister of Pakistan, Pr ...
. He helped Tyrone reach the Ulster final with a
man of the match In team sport, a player of the match or man of the match or woman of the match award is often given to the most outstanding player in a particular match. This can be a player from either team, although the player is generally chosen from the winn ...
display against
Donegal Donegal may refer to: County Donegal, Ireland * County Donegal, a county in the Republic of Ireland, part of the province of Ulster * Donegal (town), a town in County Donegal in Ulster, Ireland * Donegal Bay, an inlet in the northwest of Ireland b ...
in the semi-final in which he scored 0-05. Tyrone went on to defeat
Monaghan Monaghan ( ; ) is the county town of County Monaghan, Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It also provides the name of its Civil parishes in Ireland, civil parish and Monaghan (barony), barony. The population of the town as of the 2016 census was 7 ...
in the Ulster decider. Tyrone faced Kerry again in the 2008 All-Ireland final, with Tyrone again coming out on top. Dooher became one of only a small number of men to captain two All-Ireland winning teams. This followed a season where his commanding performances spurred the team on during their more difficult encounters. In Tyrone's emphatic quarter final victory over
Dublin Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of th ...
, Dooher was named man of the match. He received a third All Star that year. In September 2011, Dooher retired from inter-county football after 16 years.


School / college

Dooher won the
Sigerson Cup The Sigerson Cup is the trophy for the premier Gaelic football championship among Higher Education institutions (Universities, Colleges and Institutes of Technology) in Ireland. It traditionally begins in mid January and ends in late February. ...
with
University College Dublin University College Dublin (commonly referred to as UCD) ( ga, Coláiste na hOllscoile, Baile Átha Cliath) is a public research university in Dublin, Ireland, and a collegiate university, member institution of the National University of Ireland ...
in 1996.


International Rules

Dooher represented
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 ...
in the
International Rules Series The International Rules Series is a senior men's international rules football competition between the Australia international rules football team (selected by the Australian Football League) and the Ireland international rules football team (s ...
.


Province

Dooher played for
Ulster Ulster (; ga, Ulaidh or ''Cúige Uladh'' ; sco, label= Ulster Scots, Ulstèr or ''Ulster'') is one of the four traditional Irish provinces. It is made up of nine counties: six of these constitute Northern Ireland (a part of the United King ...
in the
Railway Cup The GAA Interprovincial Championship ( ga, An Corn Idir-Chúigeach) or Railway Cup (''Corn an Iarnróid'') is the name of two annual Gaelic football and hurling competitions held between the provinces of Ireland. The Connacht, Leinster, Munster ...
.


Managerial career

Dooher, with
Feargal Logan Feargal Logan is a Gaelic football manager and former player, who was a starting member of the Tyrone county team that reached the 1995 All-Ireland Senior Football Championship Final. Legal career Since retiring from play, Logan's name has ...
and later
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 ...
, was part of the Tyrone under-21 management team when they won the All-Ireland in 2015, defeating Tipperary in the final. In November 2020, Dooher and Logan were appointed co-managers of the Tyrone senior team, succeeding Mickey Harte.


References


External links


Brian Dooher's match by match profileOfficial Tyrone Website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Dooher, Brian 1975 births Living people All-Ireland-winning captains (football) Alumni of University College Dublin Clann na nGael (Tyrone) Gaelic footballers Irish international rules football players Irish veterinarians People educated at St Columb's College Tyrone inter-county Gaelic footballers UCD Gaelic footballers Winners of three All-Ireland medals (Gaelic football)