Shero is a creative player and League of Ireland’s best ever

In the League of Ireland, Tony Sheridan will always be remembered to his majestic lob against St. Pats in the dying moments of the 1996 FAI Cup Final.

Shelbourne had played nearly the entire 90 minutes with just ten players following the dismissal of goalkeeper Alan Gough after just seven minutes. Trailing 1-0 until an almost impossibly bouncing ball landed in front of Sheridan on the edge of the box, in my eyes nobody could have done what “Shero” did that day. It’s my most viewed clip on YouTube.

Shero was born into football on the streets of Crumlin he first tried his hand in England with Coventry City, Ron Atkinson referred to him as “the best thing to come out of Ireland since George Best”.
He never settled in England and was in and out of the first team, so in August 1995 Shero returned home to Dublin, more specifically to his spiritual home of Tolka Park. It was Shero who spearheaded Shels’ mid-nineties rise, winning the FAI Cup twice in ’96 and ’97.

A creative and elegant footballer he slotted in perfectly with Damien Richardson’s attacking Shelbourne which featured the likes of Stephen Geoghegan and Dessie Baker. He was revolutionary in the League of Ireland, the first man to play “in the hole”, dropping off the strikers scoring absurd goals and setting up as many too.

Given the type of mercurial talent that he was he was always going to clash with stern new Shelbourne manager Dermot Keely. Despite his best ever season with Shels coming during Keely’s first season, the pair reportedly didn’t get on. So Shero, the God of Tolka Park left Shelbourne in 1999. Further pathos was added as the 1999/00 was the year in which Shels were to end the League title drought.

Shero went to play for Portadown in the Irish League and it quickly became clear he was a cut above so it was no surprise with Cardiff City snapped him up at the end of the 2000 season. It isn’t known exactly what happened to Shero at Cardiff but before getting the opportunity to play a league game he was let go by the club.

He returned to Tolka Park under a cloud, he never signed a full time contract and was in and out of the team. Soon after he dropped off the radar completely and into the depths of amateur football.
In 2005 he was given a lifeline by Roddy Collins and was brought back to senior football with the ill-fated Dublin City project, from there he also followed Collins to Shamrock Rovers.

His time at Rovers though merely solidified his position as a true Shelbourne man. Whilst playing against Shelbourne for Rovers, he was subbed off and rather than applaud the Rovers’ fans he ran the length of the pitch to clap the Shels’ fans who had been singing his name throughout the match. No matter what colours Shero wore he was always a red.

It is ironic that Shero played his best football during a period when the Irish international team were so bereft of creativity. Had the national team had a manager with the courage to select a League of Ireland player maybe Shero could have changed that. Still involved in football at junior level it is the dream that Shero returns to Shelbourne in some capacity.

Shero was born an entertainer, he was born and bred, he was born Shelbourne, born to be a red.