Brian Mullan -A Derry Senior star from 1955-1966 Part of a family synonymous with the famous Ballerin club Prior to this year, Derry's only other All-Ireland Senior Football Final appearance came in 1958. That was against Dublin, with the Derrymen going down on a scoreline of 2-12 to 1-9. there are names from that Derry team which are still mentioned fondly (and frequently in the Oak Leaf County, names which to this day evoke as much pride and sentiment as do this year's favourites - Scullion, Tohill, Gormley, Downey, Brolly et al. names such as Gribben, Mulholland, McKeever, O'Connell and Mullan from the class of '58 demand great respect in G.A.A. circles on Foyleside to this very day. The achievement of these veterans in guiding Derry to their first ever All-Ireland title will never be forgotten, always appreciated. Derry's centre half forward of that era Brian Mullan was played out of position, in the corner, that day, and in retrospect that may well have been one of their biggest undoings. But 35 years later Brian will tell you that the success of Eamon Coleman's charges in reaching the ultimate gaelic football goal has gone a long way towards softening the blow. Hailing from the townland of Tybern in the parish of Ballerin, Brian Mullan donned the intercounty jersey from 1955 - '66. I'm still very disappointed about losing in the '58 final but I'm very proud of the present team", he says. Indeed, the 1993 All-Ireland Championship victors got plenty of help from Mullan along the way. In his capacity on the present finance committee he did all in his power to make sure the county team wouldn't be financially hindered. Financing is very much the unseen side of Gaelic football, but good financial backing is essential for any intercounty team which is seriously bidding for All-Ireland honours. The finance committee are in their own right every bit as much of the overall team effort as are the selectors, the trainers or the psychologists. Needless to say, getting to the 1958 All-Ireland decider was one of the undisputed highlights of the Ballerin pivot man's long-serving career. His worst memory is a fractured knuckle sustained just prior to the '58 Ulster final - an injury which ruled him out of the provincial final and the All-Ireland semi-final triumph over Kerry. "I was always known as a centre half forward", he recalls. "When I picked up the knuckle injury Brendan Murray took over and he did well and kept his place for the final. The selectors kept their faith in me, however, and selected me at top of the right". Brain scored a point in the final but was unable to reach his usual dizzy heights in the unfamiliar corner forward position. To this day many amongst the Oak Leaf G.A.A. fraternity argue that the decision not to play Mullan on the forty was a major error on the part of the team selectors. A dogged player in the never-say-die mould, the Ballerin clubman was always a leader on the field. Not one to overcarry the ball, he always liked to release it first time and he was one of the best distributors of his time Mullan would never throw in the proverbial towel no matter how far his side were behind, and at this stage, one can only speculate as to how the 1958 All-Ireland final would have finished had he lined out in his customised role. Eight years later Brian made his last appearance in a Derry shirt when he lined out for a 1966 Dr. McKenna Cup match against Donegal. Brian Mullan made his Senior intercounty debut during the 1955 Dr. Lagan Cup campaign, Derry finishing second to Cavan in that year's final. The Oak Leaf men also reached that season's All-Ireland Junior final but were beaten by Cork. By the time the 1958 All-Ireland campaign came around the Ballerin man had established himself as a regular on the county team's and he was one of three Ballerin clubmen to line out in that year's final. That Derry team was led out by his clubmate Sean O'Connell. There were four Ballerin players on show when Derry took on Galway in an exhibition match at Wembley on Saturday 29th May, 1958. A crowd of 33,000 watched Brian Mullan, Seoirse McKinney, Michael Mullan (Brian's brother), Sean O'Connell and Derry contest the first ever Gaelic football match on Wembley soil. As it transpired, Derry lost by 3-9 to 2-5. Brian's brother, Father Michael, played full forward for Derry during the 1957-'58 season but he retired on the local bishop's advice at the start of the 1958 Championship campaign. The Mullan family are synonymous with the local Ballerin club which was formed in 1944 and first went into action in 1945. Brian's brother Patsy played Minor for Derry in 1946 and went on to play for the Senior intercounty team. Father Michael - another Mullan who played Senior for Derry - played for the county Minors in '47. Another brother, Colm, won an All-Ireland Minor medal with the Oak Leaf in 1965 and the young wing back was looked upon as probably the most promising of all the Mullans. He was meant to represent the Universities team against Ulster in the Railway Cup when an horrific accident left him paralysed and cut short his promising young career. Surprisingly, Brian's other brother, Sean, never played much but, needless to say, he follows the game in a big way. Adding to the strong sporting connections in Brian Mullan's family the fact that he is married to former Antrim camogie star Madge Rainey, who captained the Saffrons to All-Ireland success in 1956. Madge played for Antrim well into the 60's Brian first lined out for Ballerin's Senior team as a fresh faced fifteen year old against Dungiven in a Dr. Kerlin Cup tie. At one stage he held a record seven Dr. Kerlin Cup winners medals. Seven years after making his Senior club debut came the pinnacle of Brian's playing career as Ballerin beat Ballymaguigan in the final of the 1957 county Championship. A 3-8 to 2-6 scoreline saw the North Derry club win their first ever Senior county title. The former Derry intercounty player's association with Ballerin didn't end when he hung up his boots. He was active as club Chairman for a decade from 1966-'76 before a disagreement saw him sever his ties with the club permanently. Up until then Brian had been involved with the club all his life. He was one of the main men behind the opening of their new Shamrock Park pitch at a cost of £10,000 in 1970. Brian Mullan is currently Managing Director of B. Mullan and Sons Ltd., a road contractors business which boasts some one hundred employees. His father started the company off in 1908 and it remains a family run interest to this very day. Brian is co-director of the company along with his two brothers Patsy and Sean. He also dabbles in the farming end of things, single-handedly running some 800 acres. The Ballerin man boasts the most concrete connection between the Derry team of '58 and that of '93 - he is an uncle of Enda Gormley! Brian is full of praise for his nephew's performance in this year's All-Ireland final. "I thought he had a very good game", he reflects. "The slap in the jaw seemed to waken him up. He was slow in the first fifteen or twenty minutes but after that he was excellent". Derry's appearance this year in the All-Ireland decider came at the end of a long 35 year wait. The game has changed drastically since Brian Mullan &Co. visited Headquarters. "It's a much different game these days", he notes. "It is a lot faster and has become more of a running game. You had to be able to field the ball in our day, but running and carrying is more important now". The former Derry pivot man feels that Ulster football 'is out on it's own at the minute', and he believes that the introduction of the Open Draw would do the Ulster teams 'a very big favour'. He feels that either Donegal, Derry, Down or even Tyrone could go well in the Championship. Now that the Oak Leaf county have finally made the big breakthrough. Brian believes that they have what it takes to defend their titles successfully next year. "If they hold their heads and don't get too involved in the League then they could do very well again next year. They'd need to stay involved in the League up 'till the latter stages however". One of Brian's chief enterprises since 1970 has been the breeding of pedigree Charolais cattle. He has six daughters and one son, all of whom are into football and hurling in a big way. His daughter Teresa won an All-Ireland Scor solo singing contest in 1982 and the six daughters together won the group singing section the following year. Before signing off Brian points out that he feels the standard of refereeing in Gaelic games is going to have to be improved." They'll have to take a leaf out of Tommy Sugrue's book and get fit. They're just not fit enough and as a result can't keep up with the game and it's causing too much controversy. There's no consistency in refereeing these days", says the affable 1958 All-Ireland finalists who is undoubtedly one of the most respected G.A.A. veterans currently doing the rounds in the Oak Leaf County. Written by The Hogan Stand Magazine 08/10/93 Tweet

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