Soccer legend Quinn recounts hilarious tale about playing junior football in Kildare upon retirement

Having represented Ireland on the world stage and played for clubs such as Manchester City and Sunderland, you would think that playing a spot of Junior football in Kildare would be little challenge to Niall Quinn.

The Irish legend moved back to Naas upon his retirement from football and soon turned his attention back to GAA - having represented the Dublin hurlers at minor level - and lined out for Eadestown in a junior game. The match against Sallins saw Quinn win and convert three penalties, and of course his days playing soccer were brought into the context as he was accused by an umpire of diving, but the best zing came from the young goalkeeper who represented Sallins that day.

Speaking on the Second Captains podcast, Quinn recounted the brilliant tale.

“The night I played the first full game against Sallins. I got brought down for three penalties. And they were all three blatant penalties.

“I got brought down for the first penalty and everybody had gone back about 50 yards, so I knew I had to take the penalty. Anyway, I scored - it was a young lad in goal for Sallins, and I scored the three penalties.

“The last penalty, their umpire threw the green flag at me and told me to 'Get back to England ya divin' bastard!'

“And I got up and scored the third penalty, the final whistle went, and there was a little bit of pushing and fighting going on. I - as I would always do - swerved that, looked for somebody to say 'hard luck' to, and I saw their goalkeeper. And so I went over to him and I said: 'Listen, Jesus, hard luck, there, youngfella, I'd say you would have liked to have saved one of them'.

“And he went: 'Fuck off, ya prick. You wouldn't take one against Spain!'

“So I was brought back down to Earth. There was the retired hero, thinking he was coming home to this adulation that he'd become accustomed to, and good old Irish humour, wit, call it what you want... I was buried. Put in my place. And I've never forgotten that moment.”

That goalkeeper, whoever he is, has probably achieved cult hero status in Sallins by now.