John Feenan also referred to as Johnny Feenan, is a former Northern Irish footballer

Football (soccer)

Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a sport played between two teams of eleven players with a spherical ball...

 who played for Belfast Celtic, Sunderland

Sunderland A.F.C.

Sunderland Association Football Club is an English association football club based in Sunderland, Tyne and Wear who currently play in the Premier League...

 and Shelbourne

Shelbourne F.C.

Shelbourne Football Club is an Irish professional football club based in the Drumcondra area of Dublin, currently playing in the League of Ireland Premier Division....

. As an international he also played for Ireland. In the 1940s he served as manager of Shelbourne

Shelbourne F.C.

Shelbourne Football Club is an Irish professional football club based in the Drumcondra area of Dublin, currently playing in the League of Ireland Premier Division....

. He was born in Newry

Newry

Newry is a city in Northern Ireland. The River Clanrye, which runs through the city, formed the historic border between County Armagh and County Down. It is from Belfast and from Dublin. Newry had a population of 27,433 at the 2001 Census, while Newry and Mourne Council Area had a population...

, Ireland

Ireland

Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...

.

Early years

Feenan began his career with his local team, Newry Town, before moving to Belfast Celtic in 1932 in a transfer deal that also saw Tommy Breen

Tommy Breen

Tommy Breen is a former Irish footballer who played as a goalkeeper for, amongst others, Belfast Celtic, Manchester United, Linfield and Shamrock Rovers...

 moving from Town to Celtic.

Sunderland

Feenan made his English League debut for Sunderland

Sunderland A.F.C.

Sunderland Association Football Club is an English association football club based in Sunderland, Tyne and Wear who currently play in the Premier League...

 on September 19, 1936 in a 4-1 win against Brentford

Brentford F.C.

Brentford Football Club are a professional English football club based in Brentford in the London Borough of Hounslow. They are currently playing in Football League One....

 at Roker Park

Roker Park

Roker Park was an English football stadium situated in Roker, Sunderland. The stadium was the home of the English football club Sunderland A.F.C. from 1897 to 1997 before the club moved to the Stadium of Light. Near the end of the stadium's history, its capacity was around 22,500 with only a small...

. He made his final league appearance for the club on May 6, 1939 in an away game against Wolverhampton Wanderers

Wolverhampton Wanderers F.C.

Wolverhampton Wanderers Football Club is an English professional association football club that represents the city of Wolverhampton in the West Midlands region. They are members of the Premier League, the highest level of English football. The club was founded in 1877 and since 1889 has played at...

 which finished as a 0-0 draw. Feenan made 28 league appearances for Sunderland and played 1 further game for the club in the FA Cup

FA Cup

The Football Association Challenge Cup, commonly known as the FA Cup, is a knockout cup competition in English football and is the oldest association football competition in the world. The "FA Cup" is run by and named after The Football Association and usually refers to the English men's...

. Among his team mates at the club were Raich Carter

Raich Carter

Horatio Stratton "Raich" Carter was one of the greatest English footballers of the pre-war era...

 and Johnny Mapson

Johnny Mapson

John Mapson was an English professional football player.Born in Birkenhead on Merseyside, Mapson moved to Swindon in his youth and worked in a succession of jobs including grocer's boy, in a bakehouse and as a milk boy before signing for Reading F.C. in April 1935. In March 1936 he transferred...

.

Shelbourne

After leaving Sunderland

Sunderland A.F.C.

Sunderland Association Football Club is an English association football club based in Sunderland, Tyne and Wear who currently play in the Premier League...

, Feenan returned to Ireland and played for Shelbourne

Shelbourne F.C.

Shelbourne Football Club is an Irish professional football club based in the Drumcondra area of Dublin, currently playing in the League of Ireland Premier Division....

. On April 28, 1940, while at Shelbourne he played for a League of Ireland XI

League of Ireland XI

The League of Ireland XI, known as of 2010 as the Airtricity League XI for sponsorship reasons, is the representative select team for the League of Ireland which operates in the Republic of Ireland.The select first played the Scottish League XI in 1938....

, that also included Paddy Bradshaw

Paddy Bradshaw

Paddy Bradshaw is a former Irish footballer who played for St James's Gate and Shelbourne in the League of Ireland. Bradshaw was something of a late bloomer, making his League of Ireland debut at the age of 26, before then going onto enjoy a brief but meteoric career during the seasons approaching...

, Jimmy Dunne

Jimmy Dunne

James Dunne , commonly referred to as Jimmy Dunne, was an Irish footballer who played for, among others, Shamrock Rovers, Sheffield United, Arsenal and Southampton...

 and Johnny Carey

Johnny Carey

John Joseph "Johnny" Carey , also known as Jackie Carey, was an Irish footballer and manager. As a player Carey spent most of his career at Manchester United, where he was team captain from 1946 until he retired as a player in 1953...

, which lost 3-2 to a Scottish League XI

Scottish League XI

The Scottish League XI is a representative side of the Scottish Football League. The team regularly played against the Football League and other national league select teams between 1892 and 1980. For a long period the annual fixture between the English and Scottish leagues was only second in...

 at Dalymount Park

Dalymount Park

Dalymount Park is an Irish football stadium situated on Dublin's Northside. It is the home of Bohemian F.C., who have played there since the early 20th century. Affectionately known as 'Dalyer' by fans, it was also historically the "home of Irish football" holding Irish internationals and FAI Cup...

. Between 1942 and 1946 Feenan also served as Shels manager.

Ireland international

When Feenan played international football in 1937 there were, in effect, two Ireland teams, chosen by two rival associations. Both associations, the Northern Ireland

Northern Ireland

Northern Ireland is one of the four countries of the United Kingdom. Situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, it shares a border with the Republic of Ireland to the south and west...

 - based IFA

Irish Football Association

The Irish Football Association is the organising body for association football in Northern Ireland, and was historically the governing body for Ireland...

 and the Irish Free State

Irish Free State

The Irish Free State was the state established as a Dominion on 6 December 1922 under the Anglo-Irish Treaty, signed by the British government and Irish representatives exactly twelve months beforehand...

 - based FAI

Football Association of Ireland

The Football Association of Ireland is the governing body for the sport of association football in the Republic of Ireland. It should not to be confused with the Irish Football Association , which is the organising body for the sport in Northern Ireland.For the full history, statistics and records...

 claimed jurisdiction over the whole of Ireland

Ireland

Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...

 and selected players from the whole island. Feenan was one of several players born in Northern Ireland who benefited from the FAI’s attempts to establish an all-Ireland influence.

In 1937, while playing for Sunderland

Sunderland A.F.C.

Sunderland Association Football Club is an English association football club based in Sunderland, Tyne and Wear who currently play in the Premier League...

, Feenan won 2 caps for Ireland. In May of that year the FAI organised a European tour with a squad that included Feenan and two other Northerners, Jackie Brown

Jackie Brown (footballer)

Jackie Brown , also referred to as Johnny Brown or John Brown, was a dual internationalist who played football for both Ireland teams – the IFA XI and FAI XI...

 and Davy Jordan

Davy Jordan

Davy Jordan is a former footballer who played for Wolverhampton Wanderers and Ireland during the 1930s. He also played for Glentoran, Hull City and Crystal Palace.-Club career:...

. Feenan made his debut for the FAI XI on May 17 in a 1-0 win against Switzerland

Switzerland national football team

The Swiss national football team is the national football team of Switzerland...

. A week later, on May 23, he also helped the FAI XI defeat France

France national football team

The France national football team represents the nation of France in international football. It is fielded by the French Football Federation , the governing body of football in France, and competes as a member of UEFA, which encompasses the countries of Europe...

2-0. These would prove to be Feenan’s only international appearances.