Brendan Bradley

Derry City

Bradley signed for Derry City at the age of sixteen. Although a regular in the club's reserve team he only made a handful of first team appearances during his three seasons with the club; his route to the first team being blocked by the form of regular striker Danny Hale. He played four matches in the Irish League and scored in the North-West Cup final against Coleraine, but the lack of first team football left Bradley disillusioned at the club.

Finn Harps

Despite his limited appearances for Derry, Bradley had impressed Finn Harps manager Patsy McGowan. Harps were in their debut season of the League of Ireland and a fee of £100 secured Bradley's services. In his first season with Harps, Bradley scored his, and his club's, first hat-trick in senior football in an away fixture against Athlone Town, and his tally of 18 goals was the highest in the league. The following season saw Bradley top the list of leading scorers once more, this time with 20 league goals, whilst his goal in the 1971–72 Dublin City Cup was the difference as Finn Harps secured their first major honour with a 1–0 victory over Cork Hibernians. He finished his third season with another 18 goals.

Lincoln City

In July 1972, Bradley moved to the Football League with Lincoln City manager David Herd paying £6,000 for his services. He made his league debut for the club in the 1–1 away draw with Darlington on 19 August 1972. His first goals for the club came in his third league…

After retiring as a player, he decided against a career in football management, commenting that "it would never take the place of playing for me". Bradley resides in Derry, where he enjoys playing golf and walking. He is an occasional visitor to the Brandywell Stadium in Derry and, after 13 years at Finn Park, he retains "a soft spot for Harps". In 2019, Bradley was honoured at the FAI International Football Awards, with a Special Merit Award for his outstanding contributions to domestic club football in Ireland.

Brendan Bradley was born on 7 June 1949. He grew up on Malin Gardens road in the Creggan, Derry. A street footballer, he played his first organised match at school when a teacher, who had arranged a trial match, asked him to join. At the age of fifteen, Bradley began playing in the Derry and District League. The youngster started out as a defender before being moved into midfield.

Club

Derry City

League of Ireland First Division Shield: 1985–86 Finn Harps

FAI Cup: 1974 Dublin City Cup: 1971–72

Individual

Soccer Writers’ Association of Ireland (SWAI) Personality of the Year: 1976 Football Association of Ireland (FAI) Special Merit Award: 2018