Dave Langan

Dave Francis Langan was born on 15 February 1957 in the Ringsend suburb of Dublin. He played for Bath Rangers and Cherry Orchard as a youth before moving England at the age of 16 after being signed by the legendary Brian Clough as an apprentice at Derby County. He spent six years at Derby County, winning their player of the year award for the 1977-78 season, before moving to Birmingham City, for a then club record fee of £350,000 in 1980. He spent four years at St Andrews; a period hampered by injuries before leaving the club on a free transfer to join Oxford United, then in the old Division Two. Despite being written off by managers, including his former manager at Birmingham, Langans move to Oxford saw him win the Division Two title and achieve his dream of playing at Wembley Stadium, helping the club to win the 1986 Milk Cup Final against QPR. He also played for Leicester City (on loan), Bournemouth and Peterborough before retiring from professional football in 1989 at the age of 32. Langan also won 26 caps for the Republic of Ireland, making his debut in 1978 and winning his last cap in 1988. Dave now works for Peterborough City Council. Limerick man Trevor Keane is editor and chief soccer writer for Sportsnewsireland.com, an online site dedicated to sport in Ireland and abroad. He is the author of Gaffers, 50 years of Irish football managers. He also works in the financial services sector and lives in Kilkenny. Alan Conway is a former Shelbourne youth player, whose career was cut short due to an injury sustained while on trial with Manchester United. He recovered to become a qualified journalist. He writes for many online publications as well as for sportsnewsireland.com and still manages to play some football.