Mick Kearin

Michael Kearin (9 May 1943 – 27 July 2025) was an Irish footballer who mainly played as a wing-half, after starting his career as a forward.

Kearin was the first player from County Kildare to be capped by the international team and remained the only one until Mark Travers in September 2019.^[1]

Kearin started off with St Patrick's Athletic at 17 before joining Bohemians F.C. in 1963 as an amateur.^[1]

Bohemians struggled in the league, winning a handful of games, but the arrival of Seán Thomas as manager was soon to change things, "It was major news – Sean Thomas had managed Shamrock Rovers and brought them phenomenal success."

There were offers to turn professional and semi-professional by the likes of Derry and Glentoran and Waterford.

In the end he went to Rovers in May 1966 ^[2] for four times the amount they'd originally offered. The most memorable European tie Mick played in was against FC Bayern Munich in 1966. Rovers drew 1–1 at Dalymount Park but it was the return match played in below-freezing temperature in Munich that almost caused German hearts to crash. With a minute to the final whistle the score was 2–2, and qualification was beckoning for Rovers on the away goals rule (this was a Bayern team peppered with World Cup winners like Sepp Maier, Franz Beckenbauer, Gerd Müller – and their club had already sold 40,000 tickets for their next European game – that's how sure they were that Rovers would be a push-over). The silence of the crowd was deafening as they say, the relief palpable when Der Bomber netted the winner.

A six-week summer team to promote the advent of professional soccer in the US in 1967 saw Mick play against South American teams, and also against the likes of Sunderland, Wolves, Hearts and Stoke City amongst others. By now Mick was very well established and written often off in the national newspapers.

His seven-year stay at Glenmalure Park included scoring twice in eight appearances for Rovers in Europe.^[3]

Kearin earned one international cap for the Republic of Ireland national team on 10 October 1971 in a 6–0 defeat to Austria in a European Championship qualifier in the Linzer Stadion.^[4][1] Mick won three amateur caps for the Irish national team: against Scotland home and away, and Iceland away. He represented the League of Ireland XI four times while at Milltown.

He scored in the 1969 FAI Cup final replay.^[5]

He rejoined Bohs in January 1973 and later played for Athlone Town.

Kearin died on 27 July 2025, at the age of 82.^[6][1]

• Paul Doolan; Robert Goggins. The Hoops. ISBN 0-7171-2121-6.