John Duffy (Gaelic footballer)
Irish Gaelic footballer
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
John Duffy is an Irish former Gaelic footballer who played for Aodh Ruadh and the Donegal county team.
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| Occupation | Physical therapist | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Sport | Gaelic football | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Position | Forward | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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His position was forward.[1] He twice contested the final of the Ulster Senior Football Championship, in 1993 and 1998, but never won the competition as a player.[1] He is a resident of Killygordon.[2]
Playing career
Club
P. J. Buggy and Josie Boyle mentored Duffy.[3] The Irish Times later described him as "improviser-in-chief [from age 12] on an Aodh Ruadh team that dominated at all grades through to senior."[3] In Autumn 1994, Duffy scored five points as Aodh Ruadh defeated reigning Ulster club champions Errigal Ciaran, featuring Peter Canavan. Eventual All-Ireland finalists Bellaghy defeated them by a point in the following match.[3] Duffy is also remembered for chipping goalkeeper Tony Blake with a penalty in the final of the 1999 Donegal Senior Football Championship.[3]
He won three Donegal Senior Football Championships, in 1994, 1997 and 1998.[2]
Inter-county
Duffy played at minor level for two years and played at under-21 level for four years.[3] He spent the summer of 1991 abroad, playing with Tir Chonaill Gaels and the London senior county team.[3][4] Brian McEniff drafted him into his team following the 1992 All-Ireland win.[4] Duffy scored 1–2 on his full debut, a substitute appearance against Armagh in that season's Ulster Championship.[3][1] He played 49 times for his county between 1993 and 1999, losing two Ulster finals (in 1993 and 1998), as well as two league finals.[3][4] He played for Civil Service GAA club as well.[4] He featured in Donegal's top 125 footballers in the 125-year history of the Gaelic Athletic Association in a poll carried out by the Donegal Democrat in 2009.[5]
After his playing career with Donegal, he went to Australia "for a couple of years".[3] After serving as assistant manager/coach of Aodh Ruadh in 2007, Duffy served as a selector and maor foirne (runner) under former Donegal teammate Jim McGuinness, as the county senior team progressed to the 2014 All-Ireland final.[4]
Personal life
Duffy works as a physical therapist in Killygordon and stood unsuccessfully for the Green Party in Donegal South-West at the 2011 general election. He has three children with his wife.[4][6][7] Kennedy has coached futsal, managed the Donegal Schoolboys Kennedy Cup team in 2021 and, — with Nikki Galvin — was appointed joint manager of the Killygordon-based Curragh Athletic soccer club in May 2022, succeeding Niall Fitzsimons.[8]