Brian "Beano" McDonald (born 7 June 1980) 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 ki ...

and former player for

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 medi ...

. He resides in Killeen, County Laois, his club is Arles–Killeen. Known as "Beano", McDonald was one of the top scorers in

2003 All-Ireland Senior Football Championship The 2003 All-Ireland Senior Football Championship was the 117th staging of the All-Ireland Senior Football Championship, the Gaelic Athletic Association's premier inter-county Gaelic football tournament. The championship began on 4 May 2003 and e ...

. He represented

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel, the Irish Sea, and St George's Channel. Ireland is the s ...

in the 2003 International Rules Series. He scored both goals and overs to win against

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands. With an area of , Australia is the largest country by ...

but Ireland ultimately lost the Series that year. In 2021

Billy Sheehan William Sheehan (born March 19, 1953) is an American musician. He is best known for playing the bass guitar with acts such as Talas, Steve Vai, David Lee Roth, Mr. Big, Niacin, and The Winery Dogs. He is also known for his "lead bass" playing ...

chose him as a Laois senior football selector.

Career

Brian has been a fan and fellow player favourite over the years both on and off the pitch, mentioned time and time again as a player with legendary status. Before reaching the age of 12, McDonald had won 5 county medals, playing for his club St Michael's (Arles–Killeen) and national school St Abban's N. S. , following his progression to

Knockbeg College St Mary's Knockbeg College ( ga, Coláiste Muire Cnoc Beag) is a Roman Catholic, all-boys secondary school located on the Laois/Carlow border in Ireland, approximately 3 km from both Carlow town and Graiguecullen, Co. Laois. A former sem ...

his football career equally progressed, playing in both schools, club and county championships. By 17 "Beano" was lining out for Club and County, winning two All Ireland Football Championship Minor titles , three minor Leinster Championship titles and making his senior championship debut while still playing minor in 1998. McDonald was one week off sitting his

leaving certificate A secondary school leaving qualification is a document signifying that the holder has fulfilled any secondary education requirements of their locality, often including the passage of a final qualification examination. For each leaving certifica ...

when called up to play his debut senior championship clash against

Westmeath "Noble above nobility" , image_map = Island of Ireland location map Westmeath.svg , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Ireland , subdivision_type1 = Province , subdivision_name1 = , subdivis ...

, scoring to help Laois secure a place in the semi-final 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 ce ...

. A month earlier in May 1998 McDonald lined out for

Under 21’s bringing them all the way to an All Ireland under 21’s final against Kerry and later in the same year lining out for Laois Minors against Tyrone in the All Ireland Minor championship final In 2003, Under the leadership of Kerry GAA legend

Mick O'Dwyer Michael O'Dwyer (born 9 June 1936) is an Irish retired Gaelic football manager and former player. He most famously managed the senior Kerry county team between 1974 and 1989, during which time he became the county's longest-serving manager an ...

McDonald enjoyed success again with his native

winning the

Leinster senior football championship The Leinster Senior Football Championship, known simply as the Leinster Championship and shortened to Leinster SFC, is an annual inter-county Gaelic football competition organised by the Leinster Council of the Gaelic Athletic Association (GA ...

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 ce ...

scoring 1-2. Since his days on the field McDonald has filled key selector roles with Laois Minors and Coaching selector role with Laois Senior football. Brian ‘Beano’ McDonald has been a firm favourite of players and fans over the years and most recently being mentioned in the 2022 Kerry V Galway All Ireland Match Day programme along with fellow Laois Legends Fergal Byron , Martin Dempsey, Joe Higgins, Tom Kelly ,

Colm Browne Colm Browne was a Gaelic footballer and manager with Laois. He also managed the Tipperary senior football team. Browne won numerous honours in the game including an All-Ireland Senior Club Football Championship with his club Portlaoise in 1983, ...

, Bobby Miller, John O’Loughlin , Mick Lawlor , Tom Prendergast and Ian Fitzgerald. Alan Costello on his favourite 15 players “''Brian Mc Donald'' ''UCD: Had balance,an awareness of space and a great eye for goal.'' ''Oozed class. Could kick well off both feet and was very good with his back to goal in bringing other teammates into the play. A really nice fella.'' ''An All-Ireland double Minor winner with Laois and played Senior for many years winning a Leinster championship under Mick O' Dwyer. Played a pivotal role in the defeat of our Mayo Minor team in the 1997 All-Ireland semi-final in Croke Park bagging two goals in that game.'' ''Played Minor for three years in a row with Laois, 96, 97 and 98. A rare achievement. Went on to play compromise rules for Ireland.”'' Laoistoday.ie In 2020 Select their 20 best players over the past 20 years ''Another of the certainties, Beano was a class act in a Laois jersey from the moment he arrived on the scene as a 16-year-old on the All Ireland minor winning team in 1996.'' ''Not the biggest, strongest or fastest but just an out an out forward, blessed with wonderful vision, timing and an eye for goal. At his peak in 2003 when he was Laois’s top scorer with 2-19 (with almost all of it from play), he was nominated for an All Star and played for Ireland in the International Rules that same season.'' ''He made his senior debut when still a minor in 1998 (in a season when he played in All Ireland minor and U-21 finals) and made a total of 36 appearances in the 2000s, the last coming as a sub in an All Ireland Qualifier loss to Down in Newry in 2009.'' ''Suffered an horrific leg break in the 2004 Qualifier defeat to Tyrone and though he recovered in time for the 2005 season, it wasn’t until 2006 that he was back to his best and enjoyed another fantastic spell of form in what was Micko’s final year.'' ''A firm favourite with the fans and one of the first names you think of when you recall that Leinster winning team of 2003.'' McDonald is one of the few players to obtain 3 All Ireland minor medals in 1996, 1997 and 1998 for his native county Laois. Brian McDonald was shortlisted for a Vodafone

All Star award All or ALL may refer to: Language * All, an indefinite pronoun in English * All, one of the English determiners * Allar language (ISO 639-3 code) * Allative case (abbreviated ALL) Music * All (band), an American punk rock band * ''All'' (All ...

in 2003 He joined the Laois backroom team as a coach (alongside Chris Conway) under

, who was appointed manager in October 2021.

Personal

Brian attended secondary school at

, in 2001 he went on to study for a Bachelor of Agricultural Science in UCD School of Agriculture and Food Science in

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 member institution of the National University of Ireland. With 33,284 student ...

. Brian is a farmer in County Laois, where he breeds thoroughbred race horses. Brian has one child; a daughter born in 2021.

Honours

;Club * 3

Laois Intermediate Football Championship The Laois Intermediate Football Championship is an annual Gaelic football competition contested by mid-tier Laois GAA clubs. The Laois County Board of the Gaelic Athletic Association has organised it since 1907. The Heath are the title holders ...

* 1

Dublin Senior Football Championship The Dublin Senior Football Championship (currently known for sponsorship reasons as the '' Go-Ahead'' Dublin Senior Football Championship) is an annual Gaelic Athletic Association competition between the top Dublin GAA clubs. The winners of th ...

Laois Senior Football Championship The Laois Senior Football Championship is an annual Gaelic football competition contested by top-tier Laois GAA clubs. The Laois County Board of the Gaelic Athletic Association has organised it since 1888. Portarlington are the title holders ...

final 2006 ;College While attending

, he played for UCD in the 2001

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. ...

championship, losing the final to

Ulster University sco, Ulstèr Universitie , image = Ulster University coat of arms.png , caption = , motto_lang = , mottoeng = , latin_name = Universitas Ulidiae , established = 1865 – Magee College 1953 - Magee Un ...

. ;Inter-county * 1

Leinster Senior Football Championship The Leinster Senior Football Championship, known simply as the Leinster Championship and shortened to Leinster SFC, is an annual inter-county Gaelic football competition organised by the Leinster Council of the Gaelic Athletic Association (GA ...

2003 * 1

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

1998 * 3 Leinster Minor Football Championship 1996, 1997, 1998 * 2

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 ...

1996, 1997 *

final 1998

References

External links

* Keane, Paul
"Beano McDonald: I struggled with hype of Laois glory days"
''

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. ...

''. 20 May 2020. * https://www.laoistoday.ie/2021/01/03/2020-remembered-our-selection-of-the-best-laois-football-team-of-the-past-20-years/ * https://www.irishexaminer.com/sport/gaa/arid-10075467.html * https://www.hoganstand.com/article/index/36334 * https://www.thefreelibrary.com/GAA%3A+BRADLEY+STARS+AS+UUJ%27S+WAIT+IS+OVER%3B+SIGERSON+CUP+FINAL+-...-a073099752 * David Clifford chasing 3 All Ireland Minor Medal, last achieved by Beano McDonald in 1998https://www.irishnews.com/sport/gaafootball/2017/08/31/news/dublin-stars-coule-perhaps-learn-off-david-clifford-1124561/ * https://www.balls.ie/gaa/gaa-players-unfulfilled-potential-383808 * All Star awards 2003 https://www.irishtimes.com/sport/2003-football-all-star-nominees-1.384196 {{DEFAULTSORT:McDonald, Brian 1980 births Living people Arles-Killeen Gaelic footballers Gaelic football coaches Gaelic football forwards Irish international rules football players Laois inter-county Gaelic footballers