ON JUNE 21, 1979 Sheffield Wednesday centre half Hugh O'Dowd was poised to make a come-back to Irish league soccer and to the club he left for the big time.
Glenavon officials were to begin negotiating with the former Mourneview Park pivot in an attempt to lure him back to the club.
O' dowd whose contract with Jack Charlton’s Sheffield Wednesday ran out at the end of July 1979 returned home for a shor
t stay and was met at Aldergrove Airport by club director at the time Paul Metcalfe.
Hugh was keen on returning to the province permanently when his contract ended to further his teaching career and to play part-time soccer.
Glenavon were sure that some sort of agreement between the club and player could be reached before he returned to England.
It was the opinion of many when Hugh left Glenavon for England that he had a promising career ahead of him.
Before long he had gained his first international cap and he seemed set to establish himself as the country’s first choice centre half until a series of nagging injuries blighted and virtually ended what might have been an illustrious international career.
When Metcalf met him at the airport he was said to have been looking extremley fit and well. Said the club director, “It would be a nice acquisition for the club at the beginning of the season particularly with our trip to Europe in mind.”
The full article contains 248 words and appears in Lurgan Mail newspaper.
