Alan Kelly was born in Dublin on July 5th 1936. He played for the League of Ireland side Drumcondra and won an FAI Cup winners' medal with them in 1957 before being transferred to Preston a year later in April 1958. By this stage in his career, Kelly had already won two international caps - against West Germany and he also played in goal for Ireland's 5-1 drubbing by England at Wembley in 1957. His first few seasons at Preston were not particularly brilliant; he eventually made his first team debut in February 1961 - almost three years after he joined!

A young Alan Kelly prior to Ireland's 5-1 defeat against England at Wembley in 1957.

Alan Kelly's record at Preston North End was to blossom considerably after that initially shaky start. He spent a total of thirteen seasons at Deepdale where he played over 400 games. Between 1966 and 1971 he played over 214 games, missing only five. His highly impressive and consistent form fro Preston brought him a much-deserved return to the Irish national side. In 1972, he enjoyed the honour of being the first goalkeeper to captain the side when they faced the USSR in a 2-1 defeat in Dublin. Between May 1966 and June 1973 he played in thirty-four of Ireland's matches and missed only three.

Alan Kelly (third from right, back row) lines up for Ireland prior to their 3-2 win over Austria in 1963.

However, disaster was to strike in September 1973 in a League match against Bristol City. Kelly went into a challenge for the ball and sustained a very serious injury to his right shoulder that would prevent him from playing any more football. The injury was so serious that he needed to learn to write with his other hand. Kelly soon began coaching with Preston and with the Irish national side. He managed Preston for a brief period and also took charge of the Ireland team for one game in 1980 when they beat Switzerland 2-0. In all, Alan Kelly won a total of 47 caps for Ireland - which is quite an achievement when you consider that his career was ended prematurely! He is still regarded as a legend at Preston and his status as one of Ireland's best ever goalkeepers was confirmed during the 1990s when he was inaugurated into the FAI's 'Hall of Fame'.