{{Short description|Irish footballer (born 1964)}} {{Use British English|date=July 2013}} {{Use dmy dates|date=September 2023}} {{Infobox football biography | name = Joe Hanrahan | image = | caption = | fullname = | birth_date = {{Birth date and age|1964|3|21|df=y}} | birth_place = Limerick, Ireland | position = Forward | height = 5 ft 11 in<ref>{{cite book |title=Rothmans Football Yearbook 1987–88 |editor-first=Peter |editor-last=Dunk |publisher=Queen Anne Press |location=London |date=1987 |page=234 |isbn=978-0-356-14354-5}}</ref> | years1 = 1981–1985 |clubs1 = UCD |caps1 = 99 |goals1 = 11 | years2 = 1985–1987 |clubs2 = Manchester United |caps2 = 0 |goals2 = 0 | years3 = 1987–1988 |clubs3 = Shamrock Rovers |caps3 = 26 |goals3 = 5 | years4 = 1988–1990 |clubs4 = Limerick City |caps4 = 56 |goals4 = 10 | years5 = 1990–1992 |clubs5 = Derry City |caps5 = 50 |goals5 = 5 | years6 = 1992–1997 |clubs6 = Dundalk |caps6 = 126 |goals6 = 14 | years7 = 1997–1998 |clubs7 = Bohemians |caps7 = 9 |goals7 = 1 | years8 = 1998–1999 |clubs8 = Monaghan United |caps8 = 11 |goals8 = 1 | totalcaps = 377 | totalgoals = 47
| nationalyears1 = 1984 |nationalteam1 = League of Ireland XI |nationalcaps1 = 1 |nationalgoals1 = 0 | nationalyears2 = 1986 |nationalteam2 = Republic of Ireland U21 |nationalcaps2 = 1 |nationalgoals2 = 0 }} '''Joe Hanrahan''' (born 21 March 1964) is an Irish former footballer who played during the 1980s and 1990s.
He picked up many honours, including the FAI Cup in 1983–84 and was named PFAI Young Player of the Year in the same year. He played for UCD in the 1984–85 European Cup Winners' Cup narrowly being beaten by Everton in a two-legged tie as Everton went on to win the competition, with Hanrahan nearly scoring the equaliser in the second leg.
==Career== {{Tone|date=January 2026|section}} Hanrahan came from a sporting family – his father had played hurling for Limerick and three of his brothers (Peter, Gary and Dave) played in the League of Ireland. He played schoolboy football with local side Vereker Clements earning five schoolboy caps for Ireland and soon attracted interest from cross-channel in the shape of Wolverhampton Wanderers.
Despite this interest from Wolves, Hanrahan decided to sign for UCD where he spent four productive years. He made his League of Ireland debut on 10 September 1981 at Dundalk The highlight of his time at Belfield was the 1983–84 season where he picked up an FAI Cup winners medal, scoring "after a mazy dribble" in the replay as UCD beat Shamrock Rovers 2–1.<ref>[http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/archive/1984/0505/Pg003.html#Ar00300:2796EC2AF6FF42A3B344C3C64513B34653C644A46E46248046446E48248043847B47248E4526644816722576EC26A6FF ''The Irish Times'']</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.thefreelibrary.com/Football%3a+FLASHBACK...+1984+UCD+win+the+FAI+Cup%3a+The+Students...-a0132957941 |title=Flashback ... 1984 UCD win the FAI Cup |first=Owen |last=Cowzer |newspaper=The Mirror |format=reprint |publisher=The Free Library (Farlex) |date=3 June 2005 |accessdate=9 October 2010}}</ref> His form was noticed by his fellow professionals and he was voted PFAI Young Player of the Year.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.rsssf.org/miscellaneous/ierpoy.html |title=Ireland – Player of the Year and Other Awards |date=11 December 2009 |first=Sean |last=DeLoughry |publisher=Rec.Sport.Soccer Statistics Foundation |accessdate=16 February 2010}}</ref> He also gained Inter-League and Under-21 representative honours during that season. He captained the Ireland youth team that qualified for the 1982 European Championships in Finland, but was unavailable for the finals because of university examinations.<ref>{{cite news |title=Experienced Gorman boosts youth squad |newspaper=The Irish Times |date=8 May 1982 |author=Byrne, Peter |page=3}}</ref>
The FAI Cup win qualified UCD for the 1985 Cup Winners' Cup. Drawn against English club Everton in the first round, ''The Times''' match preview picked out Hanrahan as a player to watch.<ref>{{cite news |title=Academic interest for Everton |first=Eamon |last=Dunphy |newspaper=The Times |date=19 September 1984 |page=25 |quote=Rather more relevant to the real world will be the performances of Kevin Sheedy, Everton's Republic of Ireland international, and Joe Hanrahan, the best of the Students}}</ref> A goalless draw at Tolka Park was followed by Everton scraping through 1–0 in the return leg at Goodison Park; Everton "went on to win the competition but they wouldn't have done had a late Joe Hanrahan shot in the second leg been a few inches lower",<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.independent.ie/sport/other-sports/drogheda-click-to-join-good-company-1451381.html |title=Drogheda click to join good company |newspaper=Sunday Independent |date=10 August 2008 |accessdate=28 September 2013}}</ref> as Peter Reid, who played for Everton in that match, remembered 23 years later: "in the last minute a lad called Joe Hanrahan had a chance and if he'd have stuck it in we'd have been out" on the away goals rule.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.dailypost.co.uk/sport/football/football-news/can-euro-success-2874063 |title=We can be a Euro success |first=Chris |last=Beesley |newspaper=Daily Post |location=Liverpool |date=19 May 2007 |accessdate=28 September 2013}}</ref>
In August 1985, after scoring five goals in four trial games he signed for Manchester United. He played in friendlies ahead of the 1986–87 season, but never made the breakthrough. Unsettled after two years without a competitive appearance, and despite speculation about a £40,000 transfer to Port Vale,<ref>{{cite news |title=Bassett offers £300,000 for Hodges |url=http://docs.newsbank.com/openurl?ctx_ver=z39.88-2004&rft_id=info:sid/iw.newsbank.com:AWNB:LTIB&rft_val_format=info:ofi/fmt:kev:mtx:ctx&rft_dat=0F90F116D3489BCD&svc_dat=InfoWeb:aggregated5&req_dat=0D0CB57AB53DF815 |newspaper=The Times |date=23 September 1987 |accessdate=16 February 2010 }}</ref> Hanrahan's contract was cancelled and he returned to Ireland.<ref>{{cite news |title=Hanrahan interests Limerick City |newspaper=The Irish Times |date=19 September 1987 |page=13 }}</ref> He signed for Shamrock Rovers in 1987 and after five goals in 27 games in the clubs infamous reign at Tolka Park, he moved to his hometown club Limerick City in 1988 under the management of Billy Hamilton. They finished third in the league that season but Hamilton left during the 1989–90 season and Limerick never challenged.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.the42.ie/joe-hanrahan-loi-legend-3966849-Apr2018/ |title=I told Fergie to shove his Manchester United contract and he told me to get out of his office |date=22 April 2018 |work=The 42 |accessdate=8 January 2019 }}</ref>
Hanrahan was on the move again in 1990 where Jim McLaughlin took him up north to Derry City. His first Derry goal came in a friendly against Manchester United on the 8th of August when he netted a last minute equaliser.<ref>https://www.derryjournal.com/sport/football/paul-gascoigne-spurs-and-a-dream-derry-city-goal-against-man-united-2947595</ref> He won two League of Ireland Cup medals at the club, scoring in the 91 final against his old club Limerick. He played for Dundalk,<ref>[http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/sport/1997/0301/97030100176.html A one-horse race as Derry widen the gap]. ''The Irish Times''. 1 March 1997.</ref> until they released him in the summer of 1997. He then joined Bohemians alongside his brother Peter, a move which caused some surprise because of his age and reputation for being injury-prone, and also played for Monaghan United before retiring <ref>https://www.extratime.com/player/11134171/joe_hanrahan/</ref>
==Honours== ===Club=== ;UCD *FAI Cup: 1984 ;Derry City *League of Ireland Cup: 1990–91, 1991–92 ;Dundalk *League of Ireland: 1994–95
===Individual=== *PFAI Young Player of the Year: 1983–84
==References== {{reflist}}
==External links== *[http://www.limerickcity.ie/Library/LocalStudies/LocalStudiesFiles/S/Soccerplayers/ ''Joe Hanrahan in 'Soccer Players' file at Limerick City Library, Ireland''] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200218003123/http://www.limerickcity.ie/Library/LocalStudies/LocalStudiesFiles/S/Soccerplayers/ |date=18 February 2020 }}
{{PFAI Players' Young Player of the Year}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hanrahan, Joe}} Category:Association footballers from Limerick (city) Category:Republic of Ireland men's association footballers Category:Men's association football forwards Category:League of Ireland players Category:League of Ireland XI players Category:University College Dublin A.F.C. players Category:Bohemian F.C. players Category:Manchester United F.C. players Category:Shamrock Rovers F.C. players Category:Dundalk F.C. players Category:Limerick F.C. players Category:Derry City F.C. players Category:Republic of Ireland men's youth international footballers Category:Republic of Ireland men's under-21 international footballers Category:1964 births Category:Living people Category:Monaghan United F.C. players Category:20th-century Irish sportsmen