A Family Query - Dan Feeney  by Billy Graham

Dan Feeney made his debut for Ards against Portadown on 4th February 1950 in a league game at Castlereagh Park and he scored the Ards goal in a 1-1 draw.

Former Belfast Celtic wing-half Harry Walker was the Ards player-coach. Team: M O'Connell, P O'Connor, T Hamill, H Walker, J Matthews, D Corbett, J Robinson, J Morgan, Fitzgerald, D Feenry, W Maginnis. Dan played ten times and scored six goals in that 1949/50 season.

The following season 1950/51 he played his last game for Ards in a league game at Windsor Park; Linfield won 3-0 on 30th December 1950. Team M O'Connell, J Moore, T Hamill, B Imrie, J Robinson, J Morgan, B Bogan, J White, W Orr, W Kirkpatrick, D Feeney. Twenty-one games and four goals in that season gave Dan a total of 31 played and 10 scored for Ards.

In the following season 1951/52 Ards won the Irish Cup beating Glentoran 1-0 in the final and Dan's brother Johnny was out-side left for Glentoran, but Dan was not with Ards at the time. In fact his brother played in four Irish Cup finals for Glentoran - he was a winner in 1951 against Ballymena, but lost the other three to Derry City (1949), Ards (1952) and Derry City, after two replays (1954).

Another query still unanswered is why was brother Johnny of Glentoran known as "Danno" (or "Dado" as some Glens fans say) when it was Dan who played for Ards?

This photo show the Ards team from an Ulster Cup game against Glentoran on 28th August 1950 when Dan Feeney scored both Ards goals and his brother Johnny was out-side left for Glentoran. Team: M O'Connell, D Savage, T Hamill, B Imrie, J Robinson, D Corbett, T Black, Parkes, W Orr, J White, D Feeney. Dan is seated on the front row, far right.

Billy Graham

Billy Graham is Ards' resident historian and statistician. If you have a query relating to a time in Ards' past or to a former player, then get in touch via this e-mail and we'll pass the questions on to Billy.

first published 1st October 2005