Donal Vaughan
Personal information
Irish name Dómhnall Mac Úachán
Sport Gaelic football
Position Centre Back
Born Cork, Ireland
Height 1.88 m (6 ft 2 in)
Nickname Shoes[1]
Occupation Shoe seller[1]
Club(s)
Years Club
  • 2006–2017
  • 2017–
Inter-county(ies)
Years County
2009–2021
 Mayo
Inter-county titles
Connacht titles 5
All-Irelands 0
NFL 1
All Stars 0

Donal Vaughan is a Gaelic footballer who played inter county football with Mayo. He plays club football for Castlebar Mitchels since 2017 after leaving Ballinrobe.[2][3][4]

Playing career

Vaughan started at centre back in two All-Ireland SFC finals: the 2012 decider, which Mayo lost by 0-13 to 2-11 against Donegal and the 2013 decider, which Mayo lost by 1-14 to 2-12 against.[5][6][7]

He was sent off in the 2017 All-Ireland Senior Football Championship Final after a reckless charge at John Small of Dublin after a free was awarded and Small was shown his second yellow of the match. Dublin would go on to win afterwards. He was playing a lower level of intermediate football that year until he requested for a transfer to Castlebar Mitchels, the county town and holder of the most senior county titles. Vaughan left Ballinrobe that year and joined Castlebar Mitchels where he was reformed and shown the winning mitchels mentality. Many Mayo fans blamed Vaughan's sending off as the main reason why Mayo lost the final. Since playing with Castlebar Mitchels, Vaughan has never been sent off since has improved as a player.[8]

A player often highly praised and admired in GAA circles, particularly outside his own county. Vaughan has been credited as an important influence in many of Mayo's more notable victories. While the appreciation of his style of play appeared to divide many within the Mayo GAA fan base, Vaughan has featured heavily in the latter stages of inter-county championship football in Mayo's finals era.

In December 2017, Vaughan moved from his home club Ballinrobe to rivals Castlebar Mitchels, a town where he lived and worked, following Ballinrobe's relegation to the Intermediate ranks, which caused much controversy. Vaughan has struggled for game time since the move.[9][10] He announced his retirement from the inter-county game in January 2021.[11]

Personal life

Vaughan owns his own shoe shop chain in his home county, which is named Vaughan Shoes.[1]

References

  1. 1 2 3 "The reason behind Donal Vaughan's nickname in Mayo makes so much sense". Joe.
  2. ↑ "Mayo's Donal Vaughan leaves his home club of 11 years to join rivals Castlebar Mitchels - Independent.ie".
  3. ↑ "Donal Vaughan transferring clubs 30 minutes apart is not what the GAA is about | SportsJOE.ie".
  4. ↑ "Vaughan transfers to Castlebar Mitchels".
  5. ↑ "Donegal 2-11 0-13 Mayo". BBC Sport. 23 September 2012. Retrieved 4 October 2012.
  6. ↑ "Murphy rocket sees Donegal strike gold". Irish Independent. 24 September 2012. Retrieved 4 October 2012.
  7. ↑ "Dublin 2-12 Mayo 1-14". RTÉ Sport. RTÉ. 22 September 2013. Retrieved 22 September 2013.
  8. ↑ "GAA fans point to Donal Vaughan's sending off as the big turning point in All-Ireland final - Irish Mirror Online".
  9. ↑ "Comment: Rural clubs are vanishing and Donal Vaughan's move only hastens their demise - Independent.ie".
  10. ↑ "Mayo's Donal Vaughan to leave relegated Ballinrobe for rivals Castlebar Mitchels - Irish Mirror Online".
  11. ↑ Quinn, Gavin. "Mayo veteran Donal Vaughan announces inter-county retirement". Irish Mirror. Retrieved 4 January 2021.
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