Paul Bannon
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Paul Anthony Bannon | ||
| Date of birth | 15 November 1956 | ||
| Place of birth | Dublin, Ireland | ||
| Date of death | 15 February 2016 (aged 59) | ||
| Playing position | Centre forward, centre half | ||
| Youth career | |||
| Nottingham Forest | |||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 1975–1976 | Nottingham Forest | 0 | (0) |
| 1977–1978 | Corby Town | ||
| 1978 | Ammanford Town | ||
| 1978–1979 | Bridgend Town | ||
| 1979–1983 | Carlisle United | 140 | (45) |
| 1983 | → Darlington (loan) | 2 | (0) |
| 1983–1986 | Bristol Rovers | 29 | (8) |
| 1984 | → Cardiff City (loan) | 4 | (0) |
| 1984 | → Plymouth Argyle (loan) | 2 | (0) |
| 1986–1987 | NAC Breda | 9 | (6) |
| 1987–1988 | PAOK | 20 | (9) |
| 1988–1989 | Larissa | 11 | (3) |
| 1989–1993 | Cork City | 106 | (9) |
| 1993–1995 | Cobh Ramblers | 60 | (4) |
| * Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only. |
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Paul Anthony Bannon (15 November 1956 – 15 February 2016) was an Irish professional footballer who played most of his career as a centre forward, moving to centre half for his last few years in the League of Ireland. Bannon played in England, Wales, the Netherlands, Greece and Ireland, making over 200 career appearances.
Bannon was born in Dublin, the son of Tipperary senior inter-county hurler, three-time All-Ireland title winner, Séamus Bannon.
Bannon began his career at Nottingham Forest, scoring consistently for the clubs reserve side, but never made a senior appearance for the club. Despite the offer of a trial at Swansea City, in July 1977, Bannon joined Southern Football League side Corby Town, making his debut in the first leg of a cup match, a 1–1 draw with Bedford Town. However, he failed to turn up to the second leg of the match which saw him handed a two-week suspension by the club and he would later be fined a weeks wages later in the season after failing to appear at a league match against Burton Albion. Bannon scored 11 goals in 38 matches for the club but, following a row with manager John Loughlan, was released in April 1978. Loughlan later stated: "On reflection it was probably the best thing I ever did for him [...] He was susceptible to any bad influence in the town and certain so-called friends did not help. They were forever trying to lead him astray". Loughlan would later send Bannon a congratulatory telegram on his return to the Football League in 1979.
Following his release, Bannon briefly played Gaelic football but soon returned to association football with Welsh club Ammanford Town and his impressive form in the opening months of the 1978–79 season, scoring 16 times by October, saw him join Bridgend Town. He again scored consistently and, in February 1979, he joined Football League Third Division side Carlisle United for a fee of £8,500. He spent four years with the Cumbrians, making his debut in a 2–1 defeat to Bury in February 1979, and won promotion to Division Two with the club during the 1981–82 season. In his final year with Carlisle, he spent a brief period on loan with Darlington in 1983 where he made three league appearances.
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