Frank McGuigan
Frank McGuigan was born on the 20th of November 1954 in Lurgyroe, Ardboe. The third oldest of a family of twelve and son of fisherman Tommy and Annie. Like any child he played football with his brothers and neighbouring families on the shores of the Lough while their fathers were fishing and at the age of six he began his playing career with Ardboe O'Donovan Rossa. After primary school, Frank moved to Rainey Endowed, Magherafelt where he became involved in the game of Rugby and was considered a fine player.

In 1968 after a long wait Ardboe O'Donovan Rossa won their first Tyrone Senior Championship defeating Coalisland. On that day Frank was a fourteen year old spectator who can still remember the celebrations which followed. This win brought Ardboe to the fore in Tyrone Football and over the next number of years the fortunes of Ardboe O'Donovan Rossa and the career of Frank McGuigan were inextricably linked.

The early seventies were the years of glory both for Frank McGuigan and Ardboe. In 1970 Ardboe won the Tyrone County league and Frank McGuigan received his first senior medal, having made his debut in senior football as a goalkeeper. It was in 1971, however, that Frank was to win his first of many inter county honours which were to adorn his career when Tyrone minors defeated Fermanagh in the Ulster final and in the same year Ardboe O'Donovan Rossa completed the fist of their three in a row county Championships in which Frank McGuigan played a pivotal role.

In 1972 Frank McGuigan captained Tyrone minors to another Ulster Title and played a part in the senior final when he came on as a sub. This was followed by Frank leading his side to an All-Ireland final where they were defeated by Cork. An Ulster U-21 medal and a Tyrone senior championship were also added to his medal haul that year, additionally he was awarded the most successful player in Tyrone by Mr Paddy Corry.

Aged nineteen, Frank McGuigan captained Tyrone seniors to the Ulster final where he held aloft the Anglo-Celt cup when Tyrone won their first Provincial final since 1957 and was selected for the first time for the Ulster Team. On the club Scene Ardboe retained the County title for a third consecutive year and again the name McGuigan was on the team sheet.

On the 8th of October, 1977 Frank McGuigan left Shannon Airport for New York as a member of the All-Star touring party. Then aged twenty three his selection was a tribute of his great playing ability and an honour for Tyrone and Ardboe O'Donovan Rossa. Frank never returned from America with his team mates, instead he found himself a job in the building trade, got married and started a family. Frank returned a few timeS to help Ardboe through relegation difficulties and fulfil County duties but it was not until 1983 that Frank returned to Ireland and despite Ardboe's defeat in the Tyrone senior championship in that year it was 1984, the GAA centenary year, which proved to be a momentous year in Frank's career.

Frank immediately returned to the county team and guided them to another Ulster final against Armagh and what happened that day is well known. Frank scored eleven points, all from play, in a display which in the eyes of many established him as one of the all time greats and gained him the title 'King'.

Frank finished the year by winning another County title with Ardboe but this was to be his last honour as on the 3rd of November in the same year, returning from a club game against Moy, Frank had a serious accident in which he suffered a broken leg, dislocated shoulder and multiple pelvic fractures. This tragic accident proved to be the end of his playing career and in February 1985 he collected his All-Star award for the previous year with the aid of crutches. Frank to this day is still involved with Ardboe O'Donovan Rossa and although we may never see him play again, the memory of his exploits on the playing field still bring pleasure to many and it is probably when he was at his best in the centenary year of the GAA. His performance in the 1984 Ulster Final was one of the best ever seen and a very fitting finale to his remarkable career.

Michael (Mick) Coney
Mick Coney, although not a member of the present day Ardboe O'Donovan Rossa, made a tremendous contribution to Gaelic games in Ardboe. Such was the impact this pioneer of football had in Ardboe that the playing pitch currently used was named in honour of him

Mick Coney was born in 1884, the same year the GAA was formed. He was part of a family of ten and the contribution made to the local GAA by his family first became apparent in 1908 when three of his brothers appeared in the first official Ardboe team. Although by the age of twenty three he had secured a job as a barman in Belfast, he still travelled to his native Ardboe to play football on Sundays. It was during this period that Mick helped form Ardboe's first official team, Owen Roes. His contribution as a secretary and a player were to prove a foretaste to his dedication to Gaelic sports at all levels. His importance really became apparent in 1910 when official football in the county ceased to exist. Mick organised inter Parish football to keep the interests of Gaelic sports alive in the area and in 1922 he formed a new Ardboe football team called the Pearses.

There still was no County football in Tyrone at this stage but on the 28th of April, 1923 Mick Coney and three other Tyrone representatives attended an Ulster Council meeting at which he was requested to convene a meeting of clubs in order to re-establish the GAA formally in the County. At that meeting he was made honorary secretary to the County board and he held that position of secretary until his resignation on the 30th of January, 1936.

1934 probably proved to be the peak of Mick Coney's Career in the GAA. Both he and the GAA celebrated their fiftieth birthday and he played an important role in the organisation of the Counties celebrations. By the end of 1934 Mick Coney's many responsibilities accumulated to result in his illness which lead to the postponement of the District Board's convention in 1934. He recovered sufficiently to resume his duties in 1935 but in 1935 his health again deteriorated and he resigned his seat as secretary of the Tyrone County Board.

With a reduced workload, Mick Coney continued as club secretary but on the 29th of September, 1936 the Gaels of Ireland lost one of their greatest men.

If there is anyone you think you made a considerable contribution to Ardboe O'Donovan Rossa Gaelic Football Club please write about them and E-mail us at info@ardboegaa.com -->