Keith Fahey

Keith Fahey

Fahey during 2009 pre-season with Birmingham City
Personal information
Full name Keith Declan Fahey[1]
Date of birth (1983-01-15) 15 January 1983
Place of birth Dublin, Ireland
Height 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m)[2]
Playing position Midfielder
Youth career
0000–1998 Cherry Orchard
1998–2000 Arsenal
2000–2002 Aston Villa
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2002–2003 Aston Villa 0 (0)
2003 Bluebell United ? (?)
2003–2005 St Patrick's Athletic 76 (11)
2005–2006 Drogheda United 22 (2)
2006–2008 St Patrick's Athletic 77 (12)
2009–2013 Birmingham City 121 (9)
2014 St Patrick's Athletic 26 (2)
2015 Shamrock Rovers 12 (0)
National team‡
1999–2000 Republic of Ireland U16 11 (2)
2003 Republic of Ireland U20 2 (0)
2010–2012 Republic of Ireland 16 (3)

* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 11:00, 9 December 2015 (UTC).

‡ National team caps and goals correct as of 10:47, 18 November 2014 (UTC)

Keith Declan Fahey (born 15 January 1983 in Dublin)[2] is a retired ex-Republic of Ireland international footballer who played most of his career with League of Ireland side St Patrick's Athletic as well as English side Birmingham City. He played predominantly as a central midfielder, but also occasionally as a winger.

Fahey started his professional career as a trainee with Arsenal. He played for Aston Villa, Bluebell United, St Patrick's Athletic and Drogheda United before his transfer to Birmingham City. With Birmingham City he won the 2011 League Cup in England, as well as helping the club gain promotion from the Football League Championship to the Premier League during the 2008–09 season. He left the club at the end of the 2012–13 season, and returned to St Patrick's Athletic for a third spell with the club.

With Ireland, he was part of the team that secured qualification for UEFA Euro 2012. Manager Giovanni Trapattoni called Fahey into the Irish squad for the tournament, but he was later sent home due to injury.

Club career

Early career

Fahey started his professional career as a trainee with Arsenal before signing for Aston Villa in April 2000 for a fee of £250,000. He played for Villa's youth and reserve teams, but never made a first-team appearance.[3]

Return to Ireland

Having failed to settle in England, Fahey returned home in 2003. He initially played a few games in non-League football for Bluebell United, before a six-week trial at St Patrick's Athletic led to a contract.[4] He made his League of Ireland debut and had a goal disallowed at Waterford United on 21 April.

He contributed to St Pats's victory in the League of Ireland Cup and scored a "stunning" free kick in extra time of the semi-final replay against Bohemians to reach the FAI Cup final.[5] However the final turned out to be very disappointing for both team and player, who was sent off for a "two-footed lunge" on Longford Town's Sean Prunty after 77 minutes as the Saints lost 2–0.[6]

He joined Drogheda United in exchange for Alan Reilly and a cash adjustment in July 2005.[7] He was involved in Mark Leech's golden goal that won the Setanta Cup for Drogheda in April 2006,[8] but a few months later was released, following a disagreement with manager Paul Doolin,[9] and returned to St Pats.[10][11]

RTÉ reported that "Danger man Fahey was quieter than usual" as Pats lost 2–0 to Hertha BSC in the first round of the 2008–09 UEFA Cup, held at the Olympiastadion;[12] however, in the second leg, despite Pats' "excellent performance" failing to overturn the deficit,[13] an RTÉ feature picked out "Keith Fahey's control of the game, dictating almost every Pat's attack with that delicate but incisive right foot of his. Fahey stood head and shoulders above the many highly decorated full internationals in the Hertha team, showing the full range of his passing from deep and from close range, and generally showing a poise and guile on the ball that you would not expect from a League of Ireland player amongst such illustrious company."[14]

His performances for St Pats in 2008, in which he scored 11 goals in all competitions, earned Fahey the PFAI Player of the Year award.[15] He also won Monday Night Soccer's 2008 Goal of the Season.[16] After Pats were beaten by Bohemians in the FAI Cup, Fahey declared that he wished to move to an English club to further his career.[17]

Birmingham City

On 2 December 2008, Fahey signed a pre-contract agreement with Football League Championship side Birmingham City to join the club when the transfer window opened in January 2009.[18][19] The Irish season having finished, Fahey joined up with Birmingham in mid-December for training, though manager Alex McLeish suggested supporters should not "expect him to walk straight into the team" when he became eligible in January.[20]

Fahey celebrating Birmingham's promotion to the Premier League in May 2009

Fahey made his Birmingham debut on 17 January 2009, coming on as a late substitute in a 1–1 draw against Cardiff City.[21] He scored his first goal for the club, a "delicate lob"[22] which the player admitted was meant to be a cross,[23] to clinch a 2–0 home victory against Nottingham Forest on 14 February. His second goal gave the Blues a 1–0 home win over Southampton some weeks later.[24] Fahey retained his place in the side for the rest of the season (keeping loan signings Scott Sinclair and Hameur Bouazza out of the starting eleven), and was a key player for Birmingham in their successful bid for promotion to the Premier League, scoring a goal and making a goal in a vital 2–1 win at Reading on the last day of the campaign.[11][25]

Fahey made his Premier League debut in the opening game of the 2009–10 season at Old Trafford, in the 1–0 defeat against Manchester United.[26] He made 34 appearances in his first Premier League season (18 of which he started), but failed to score all season,[27] as Birmingham finished in ninth place, their highest ever position in the Premier League.[28] In July 2010, Fahey's contract was extended to 2013, in recognition of his having "proved to [McLeish] that he's a Premier League player".[29] He was part of the starting eleven as Birmingham won the 2011 League Cup, defeating favourites Arsenal 2–1 at Wembley Stadium.[30] However, the season would prove to be less successful for both player and club, with Fahey making only 24 appearances in the league (although he did score his first Premier League goal),[27] and Birmingham finishing 18th, and being relegated on the last day of the season, following a 2–1 defeat to Tottenham Hotspur.[31]

Following relegation from the Premier League at the end of the 2010–11 season, Barry Ferguson and Lee Bowyer left the club, giving Fahey the chance to establish himself in his preferred central position. After recovering from hernia surgery early in the 2011–12 season, he partnered Jonathan Spector in a solid midfield supporting two attacking wide players.[32] Later in the season, he played a defensive support role alongside the more attacking Jordon Mutch, and manager Chris Hughton suggested he was "enjoying playing in that central role and he's enjoying the development he's had there all season".[33] When he suffered a groin problem that caused him to miss the last few weeks of the season, Hughton called it "a real blow for us ... because he's a player that has been in really good form".[34] He scored four goals during the season, including "a venomous left-foot drive from 20 yards" at Barnsley[35] and a goal he "couldn't have hit ... any sweeter first time, or with any more power" at home to Crystal Palace that earned him the club's Goal of the Season award.[36]

Fahey returned to the team in mid-September, and made seven appearances, four of which were starts. In November, he returned home to Ireland on indefinite compassionate leave for personal and family reasons.[37] After two months away, Fahey took part in pre-season training with Shamrock Rovers,[38] ahead of a full fitness assessment which preceded his return to training with Birmingham in mid-February.[39] However, Fahey was ruled out for the rest of the season in April with a recurrence of a hip problem, having played just twice since his return from compassionate leave.[40] At the end of the season, Fahey announced he was leaving Birmingham as the club had decided not to take up their option to extend his contract.[41]

Return to St. Patrick's Athletic

After a few months out of the game, Fahey trained with Sheffield United in October 2013.[42] Following this, he returned to Ireland, where he rejoined his old club St Patrick's Athletic on 23 December 2013. Commenting on his move back to Richmond Park, he said "Both the fans and the club have always been great to me, and the stability of the club behind the scenes really made me want to come back and play my football in Inchicore again."[43] He made his third debut for the club in a 2–1 victory over Dundalk on 17 February 2014 in a Leinster Senior Cup match, scoring a free kick.[44] On 2 March 2014, Fahey scored the only goal as St. Patrick's Athletic became the first team to win the FAI President's Cup, defeating Sligo Rovers in the process.[45] His goal drew praise from Republic of Ireland manager Martin O'Neill and Sligo Rover's Alan Keane, the latter of whom stated "A wonder goal won it, it was a great strike. No keeper in the world could have saved that."[46]

Fahey started the first day of the season in the 1-1 away draw against Cork City.[47] Fahey started the famous 1-1 draw away to Legia Warsaw in the Second Qualifying Round of the UEFA Champions League, his sublime through ball found Ian Bermingham who assisted Christy Fagan who slotted home to make it 1-0 to the Inchicore side.[48] He started the return leg in Tallaght, Pats lost 5-0.[49] Fahey scored his first goal of the season against UCD in a 3-2 win.[50] Overall Fahey made 26 league appearances scoring two goals throughout the season.[51]

Shamrock Rovers

On 11 November 2014, Fahey switched to Shamrock Rovers.[52] He announced his retirement in August 2015 having failed to recover from knee surgery. His last ever game of professional football turned out to be the 2–1 FAI Cup loss to his old club St Patrick's Athletic at Richmond Park as he was substituted off with his knee injury for the last time in his career.[53]

International career

Fahey played for the Republic of Ireland at the 2000 UEFA European Under-16 Football Championship and scored against their English counterparts.[54]

He also played at the 2003 FIFA World Youth Championship, where he contributed to Ireland topping their group to reach the knockout stages.[55] In the second round match against Colombia under-20, he came on as a late substitute to assist Kevin Doyle's goal and help turn the game around, coming back from a two-goal deficit only to lose on the golden goal.[56][57]

On 25 May 2010, Fahey won his first senior cap for the Republic of Ireland in a 2–1 win against Paraguay at the RDS Arena, replacing Damien Duff in the 77th minute.[58] He made his first start against Argentina on 12 August, in the first international match at the new Aviva Stadium.[59] Fahey scored his first goal for the Republic of Ireland eight minutes into his competitive debut, coming off the bench to score the only goal in a Euro 2012 qualifying win over Armenia in Yerevan on 3 September 2010.[60] On his first competitive start, in a 1–1 draw against Slovakia in Zilina on 12 October, Fahey delivered the free kick that led to Ireland's goal, scored by Sean St. Ledger.[61] In February 2011, he scored his second goal for Ireland in a 3–0 defeat of Wales in the 2011 Nations Cup,[62] and his third came in March 2011, a penalty against Uruguay.[63]

Fahey was part of the squad that clinched victory in the inaugural Nations Cup with a 1–0 win over Scotland on 29 May 2011 at the Aviva Stadium.[64]

He was called into the UEFA Euro 2012 squad but withdrew due to injury before the tournament.[65]

International goals

# Date Venue Opponent Score Result Competition
1. 3 September 2010 Hanrapetakan Stadium, Yerevan, Armenia  Armenia 1–0 1–0 UEFA Euro 2012 qualifying
2. 8 February 2011 Aviva Stadium, Dublin, Ireland  Wales 3–0 3–0 2011 Nations Cup
3. 29 March 2011 Aviva Stadium, Dublin, Ireland  Uruguay 2–3 2–3 Friendly
As of match played 12 October 2012

Club statistics

Club statistics
Club Season League National Cup League Cup Europe Other Total
DivisionAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoals
Aston Villa 2002–03[3] English Premier League 000000000000
St Patrick's Athletic 2003[66] League of Ireland 2725110—00333
2004[66] League of Ireland 3351020—00365
2005[66] League of Ireland 1541031—00195
First spell total 75117161—008813
Drogheda United 2005[67] League of Ireland1420000—00142
2006[67] League of Ireland80 00 80
Drogheda United total 222 00 222
St Patrick's Athletic 2006[66] League of Ireland1430000—00143
2007[66] League of Ireland32132102[lower-alpha 1]05[lower-alpha 2]1434
2008[66] League of Ireland31831006[lower-alpha 1]06[lower-alpha 2]24611
Second spell total 771263108011310318
Birmingham City 2008–09[68] Football League Championship19400———194
2009–10[69] English Premier League3405010——400
2010–11[70] English Premier League2413050——321
2011–12[71] Football League Championship35430105[lower-alpha 3]000444
2012–13[72] Football League Championship900000—0090
Birmingham City total 12191107050001449
St Patrick's Athletic 2014[66][73] League of Ireland 26261002[lower-alpha 4]04[lower-alpha 5]2385
Third spell total 26261002042385
Shamrock Rovers 2015 League of Ireland 12010000000130
Career St Patrick's Athletic total 178251957110015522936
Career total 3333632514115015540647
  1. 1 2 Appearances in UEFA Cup
  2. 1 2 Appearances in Setanta Sports Cup
  3. ↑ Appearances in UEFA Europa League
  4. ↑ Appearances in UEFA Champions League
  5. ↑ Two appearances in Setanta Cup, one appearance one goal in Leinster Senior Cup, one appearance one goal in FAI President's Cup

Honours

Club

St Patrick's Athletic
Drogheda United
Birmingham City

International

Republic of Ireland

Individual

References

Infobox statistics

Specific

  1. ↑ "Premier League clubs submit squad lists". Premier League. 1 September 2010. Retrieved 10 September 2010.
  2. 1 2 "Player Profiles: Keith Fahey". Birmingham City F.C. Retrieved 10 September 2010.
  3. 1 2 "Stud Marks" (5 January 2009). "Fahey buries past at Villa" (reprint hosted at The Free Library (Farlex)). Birmingham Mail. Retrieved 17 April 2012. Various football stats sites on the internet credit Fahey as having made one first-team appearance for Villa, an Inter Toto Cup semi-final against Lille in 2002. ... Fahey was quick to set the record straight after admitting he had never played for Villa's first team. 'No, I've been asked that before,' he said. 'I never played for them. If I did I was asleep, I don't know. It's down in some record books but I never made an appearance.'
  4. ↑ McDonnell, Daniel (23 March 2009). "Fahey's second coming of age". Irish Independent. Retrieved 29 May 2010.
  5. ↑ Keane, Paul (9 October 2003). "Fahey really extra special" (reprint). The Mirror. The Free Library (Farlex). Retrieved 7 March 2011.
  6. ↑ McDermott, Gerry (27 October 2003). "Tears of joy as Town end drought in style". Irish Independent. Retrieved 7 March 2011.
  7. ↑ "Sunday's eircom League games previewed". RTÉ. 30 July 2005. Retrieved 7 March 2011.
  8. ↑ "Mark Leech produces golden goal for Drogheda in Setanta Sports Cup". Football Association of Ireland. 22 April 2006. Retrieved 7 March 2011.
  9. ↑ Ryan, Seán (10 August 2008). "Old boys fired up to test Drogheda's Euro resolve". Independent.ie. Retrieved 11 April 2013.
  10. ↑ Hytner, David (6 September 2010). "Keith Fahey adjusts to hero status on his return to Dublin". The Guardian. Retrieved 7 March 2011.
  11. 1 2 O'Brien, John (10 May 2009). "Fahey earns his promotion". Irish Independent. Retrieved 7 March 2011.
  12. ↑ Cummins, Mark (16 September 2008). "Hertha Berlin 2–0 St Patrick's Athletic". RTÉ. Retrieved 29 May 2010.
  13. ↑ Cummins, Mark (30 September 2008). "St Patrick's Athletic 0–0 Hertha Berlin". RTÉ. Retrieved 29 May 2010.
  14. ↑ Murray, Shane (2 October 2008). "Eircom League Special: St Patrick's Athletic". RTÉ. Retrieved 29 May 2010.
  15. ↑ "Fahey named PFAI Player of the Year". RTÉ. 17 November 2008. Retrieved 28 November 2008.
  16. ↑ "Goal Of The Season 2008". RTÉ. 24 November 2008. Retrieved 29 May 2010.
  17. ↑ McDonnell, Daniel (30 October 2008). "Saints' blow as Fahey plans move abroad". Irish Independent. Retrieved 24 February 2013.
  18. ↑ "Fahey signs Birmingham contract". BBC Sport. 2 December 2008. Retrieved 2 December 2008.
  19. ↑ "Fahey puts pen to paper". Birmingham City F.C. 2 December 2008. Retrieved 15 November 2012.
  20. ↑ "Fahey trains with new team mates". Birmingham City F.C. 19 December 2008. Retrieved 15 November 2012.
  21. ↑ "Lee Bowyer debut is a delight says Birmingham City boss Alex McLeish". Birmingham Mail. 19 January 2009. Retrieved 15 November 2012.
  22. ↑ "Birmingham 2–0 Nottm Forest". BBC Sport. 14 February 2009. Retrieved 15 February 2009.
  23. ↑ Walker, Andy (16 February 2009). "Birmingham City's Keith Fahey admits his wonder goal against Nottingham Forest had more than a slice of luck about it". Birmingham Mail. Retrieved 15 November 2012.
  24. ↑ Instone, David (8 March 2009). "Fahey aids rebirth of Blues". The Independent. Retrieved 25 April 2009.
  25. ↑ Walker, Andy (26 April 2009). "Surprise package Keith Fahey delighted with his first season at Blues". Sunday Mercury. Birmingham. Retrieved 15 November 2012.
  26. ↑ Soneji, Pranav (16 August 2009). "Man Utd 1–0 Birmingham". BBC Sport. Retrieved 15 April 2010.
  27. 1 2 "Keith Fahey Bio, Stats, News – Football/Soccer". ESPN FC. Retrieved 16 April 2013.
  28. ↑ "Barry Ferguson decision pleases City boss Alex McLeish". BBC. 13 July 2010. Retrieved 20 April 2013.
  29. ↑ "Irish eyes are smiling". Birmingham City F.C. 7 July 2010. Archived from the original on 30 March 2012.
  30. ↑ McNulty, Philip (27 February 2011). "Arsenal 1–2 Birmingham". BBC Sport. Retrieved 28 February 2011.
  31. ↑ Dawkes, Phil (22 May 2011). "Tottenham Hotspur 2–1 Birmingham City". BBC Sport. Retrieved 20 April 2013.
  32. ↑ Tattum, Colin (26 November 2011). "Boss praises Birmingham City midfield duo Keith Fahey and Jonathan Spector". Birmingham Mail. Retrieved 15 November 2012.
  33. ↑ Tattum, Colin (23 February 2012). "Chris Hughton praises Keith Fahey as Birmingham City are tipped for promotion". Birmingham Mail. Retrieved 15 November 2012.
  34. ↑ Tattum, Colin (30 March 2012). "Keith Fahey is a huge loss – Chris Hughton". Birmingham Mail. Retrieved 15 November 2012.
  35. ↑ Brookfield, Saul (22 February 2012). "Championship round-up: Fahey's fierce drive keeps Birmingham motoring". The Independent. Retrieved 23 May 2012.
  36. ↑ Tattum, Colin (1 May 2012). "Chris Burke cleans up at annual awards dinner at the ICC in Birmingham". Birmingham Mail. Retrieved 20 January 2013.
  37. ↑ "Compassionate leave for Keith". Birmingham City F.C. 15 November 2012. Retrieved 15 November 2012.
  38. ↑ Tattum, Colin (18 January 2013). "Keith Fahey links up with Shamrock Rovers". Birmingham Mail. Retrieved 20 January 2013.
  39. ↑ "Birmingham midfielder Keith Fahey has resumed training with the club". Sky Sports. 18 February 2013. Retrieved 24 February 2013.
  40. ↑ "Birmingham midfielder Keith Fahey out for rest of Championship season". Sky Sports. 5 April 2013. Retrieved 20 April 2013.
  41. ↑ "Keith Fahey leaves Birmingham City". The Score. 6 May 2013. Retrieved 6 May 2013.
  42. ↑ Evans, Greg (13 October 2013). "Former Blues star training with Sheffield United". Birmingham Mail. Retrieved 13 October 2013.
  43. ↑ "Fahey signs for Saints". St Patrick's Athletic F.C. 23 December 2013. Retrieved 23 December 2013.
  44. ↑ Crawley, Darren (17 February 2014). "St. Pats 2–1 Dundalk: Match Report!". Dundalk F.C. Retrieved 2 March 2014.
  45. ↑ Pollard, Stephen (2 March 2014). "St Patrick's Athletic 1-0 Sligo Rovers – Fahey goal sees Saints lift President's Cup". Goal.com. Retrieved 2 March 2014.
  46. ↑ Pollard, Stephen (2 March 2014). "Martin O'Neill praises Keith Fahey's President Cup winning goal". Goal.com. Retrieved 2 March 2014.
  47. ↑ "Cork City 1-1 St Pats".
  48. ↑ "Legia Warsaw 1-1 St Patrick's Athletic". RTÉ.
  49. ↑ "St Patrick's Athletic 0-5 Legia Warsaw (Legia Warsaw win 6-1 on aggregate)". RTÉ.
  50. ↑ "St Pats 3-2 UCD".
  51. ↑ http://inform.fai.ie/Statsportal/PlayerDetails.aspx?playerID=48503. Missing or empty |title= (help)
  52. ↑ "Keith Fahey signs for Shamrock Rovers". Irish Independent. 11 November 2014. Retrieved 11 November 2014.
  53. ↑ http://www.irishexaminer.com/sport/soccer/st-pats-claim-derby-spoils-over-shamrock-rovers-333762.html
  54. ↑ "Ireland get some reward". Irish Times. 6 May 2000. Retrieved 15 April 2010.
  55. ↑ "Referee makes Ireland count cost of victory". Irish Independent. 6 December 2003. Retrieved 15 April 2010.
  56. ↑ "FIFA World Youth Championship UAE 2003 Republic of Ireland – Colombia". FIFA. 9 December 2003. Retrieved 15 April 2010.
  57. ↑ Kelly, David (10 December 2003). "Golden grief shatters Irish comeback kids". Irish Independent. Retrieved 15 April 2010.
  58. ↑ "Republic of Ireland 2–1 Paraguay". BBC Sport. 25 May 2010. Retrieved 27 May 2010.
  59. ↑ "Rep of Ireland 0–1 Argentina". BBC Sport. 11 August 2010. Retrieved 9 February 2011.
  60. ↑ McDonnell, Daniel (4 September 2010). "Fahey strike gets Ireland out of sticky situation". Irish Independent. Retrieved 9 February 2011.
  61. ↑ Malone, Emmet (13 October 2010). "Ireland don't possess enough to win". Irish Times. Retrieved 9 February 2011.
  62. ↑ "Republic of Ireland 3–0 Wales". RTÉ Sport. 8 February 2011. Retrieved 9 February 2011.
  63. ↑ "Republic of Ireland 2–3 Uruguay". BBC Sport. 29 March 2011. Retrieved 3 April 2011.
  64. ↑ Mason, Glenn (29 May 2011). "Republic of Ireland 1–0 Scotland". RTÉ. Retrieved 30 May 2011.
  65. ↑ "Green called up after Fahey withdraws". RTÉ Sport. RTÉ. 27 May 2012. Retrieved 27 May 2012.
  66. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 "St Patrick's Athletic Media Guide 2014" (PDF). St Patrick's Athletic F.C. 17 March 2014. p. 36. Retrieved 1 April 2014.
  67. 1 2 "Keith Fahey bio, stats, news, video". Football.com. Retrieved 13 June 2013.
  68. ↑ "Games played by Keith Fahey in 2008/2009". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 13 June 2013.
  69. ↑ "Games played by Keith Fahey in 2009/2010". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 13 June 2013.
  70. ↑ "Games played by Keith Fahey in 2010/2011". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 13 June 2013.
  71. ↑ "Games played by Keith Fahey in 2011/2012". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 13 June 2013.
  72. ↑ "Games played by Keith Fahey in 2012/2013". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 13 June 2013.
  73. ↑ "#8 Keith Fahey". St Patrick's Athletic F.C. Retrieved 1 April 2014.
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