Derry City stalwart 'Steady Eddie' McCallion proud to be inducted into FAI Hall of Fame

The popular 47-year-old right-back has been recognised for his unwavering loyalty and a staggering 15 unbroken seasons in the League of Ireland with his hometown club from 1998 to 2012 during which time he won two FAI Cups, the First Division title and six League Cups.

He was also part of the 2006 double-winning team that came close to emulating Jim McLaughlin's treble winners under Stephen Kenny, only to lose the league title to Shelbourne on goal difference on an agonising final day.

Eddie cherished every moment in a Derry shirt and every piece of silverware he captured with the club but his standout memory was leading the team out against European giants PSG at Brandywell in the Uefa Cup qualifier in 2006.

"Leading Derry out as captain against PSG at the Brandywell was a big occasion," reflected the Limewood Terrace native after learning he was to be honoured at Sunday's Cup Final between Derry and Waterford at Lansdowne Road.

"Somebody from close to the area [Brandywell] against a team of the stature of PSG and you're leading your hometown out. How many people can say they've done that?

"So personally, that's up there but obviously winning trophies and anything you won, you have to cherish it because you have to work for it. Nobody's going to give it to you so you have to remember the good times."

'Steady Eddie' as Derry fans affectionately knew him, made 537 senior appearances for the Candy Stripes, scoring three goals and is second only to club legend Peter Hutton's 663 total.

Twice he missed out on completing a hat-trick of FAI Cups to level with Liam Coyle, Hutton and Kevin Deery as he was part of the losing 2008 team to Bohemians at the RDS and controversially left the club to join Glenavon several months before Declan Devine's team won it in 2012.

Each year on FAI Cup Final day, the two finalists are invited to nominate a person associated with their club for induction into the hallowed halls of Fame. Eddie will be a popular choice for many.

Cup Final day will always be special for Eddie and he's honoured to have front row seats as Derry City attempts to make it lucky No.13 and capture a seventh FAI Cup.

He's played a key role in two of those triumphs: the 2002 win against Shamrock Rovers at Tolka Park and the famous last cup final at the old Lansdowne Road - the dramatic 4-3 win over St Pat's. Eddie admits those days will live long in his memory.

"Well, 2006 was the year we lost out on the treble on goal difference. To win anything is ranked highly for me. The first one [cup] we won, I won it with my brother Tommy. So it was a big occasion.

"That final, because there were so many Derry boys in the squad was such a big occasion. The fans could buy into it more. They tend to like seeing Derry boys do well. The majority of the squad was from Derry. It was such a great day. It might not have been a great spectacle but it's days you will never forget.

"The Lansdowne game [2006], leading up to the game I was going around delivering tickets to the primary schools. You were concentrating on making sure the schools that wanted tickets had them. Then it was in the back of your mind, the weather is awful, is the match going to be on? And people are going to be disappointed because the wind and the conditions were so bad.

"That game was unbelievable. To be losing three times and then get it to 4-3 to win the cup. Stephen [Kenny] leaving and coming back for the cup final. There was a lot going on. Derry always travels in numbers and they love a cup final. It always brings people out."

He travels to the capital with his wife Lou on Sunday to be inducted alongside some of the league's most iconic figures. He said he was both honoured and surprised when he received word last week from Derry City commercial director Robert Martin.

"I wasn't really believing it until I got the email from the FAI," he laughed. "I was waiting for confirmation after chatting to Bert. I was surprised because I, not one for the limelight. I was chatting to Harry McCourt and he was saying it's unusual for people that aren't headline grabbers to get it but he said it was well deserved which was nice to hear from ex players."

His longevity, ability to play at the top level in Ireland for almost two decades and of course his trophy cabinet made him a worthy nominee for the accolade won by Felix Healy, Coyle, the late Mark Farren and the Gang of Four: Eddie Mahon, Eamon McLaughlin, Terry Harkin and Tony O'Doherty down through the years.

"Maybe it was how long I was playing and maybe how I went about my business and what the club meant to me. The club had such a big impact in my life; it's been such a big part of my life.

"I enjoyed every minute of those appearances. It had its up and downs but the good you appreciate even more, especially coming from Derry. It means a lot. It's an award for myself but see for anyone who has had an input in my life and career, how proud they will be about it. Whether that's family or from the sport or people around me."

As mentioned, Eddie won the FAI Cup alongside his older brother Tommy in 2022 - the first set of brothers to win the cup for Derry City. They're often seen around town pounding the roads as running and keeping fit have clearly taken over the mantle from football since their respective retirements.

Tommy has always been Eddie's biggest supporter and he posted a heartfelt message on social media during the week to express how proud the McCallion family and friends are that he's finally being recognised for his dedication and contribution to the club's history.

"Your career was always about much more than the number of appearances you made or the honours you won," read Tommy's Facebook post. "It was about what you gave to Derry City Football Club, both on and off the pitch.

"A local boy who never forgot where he came from. Someone who always had time for others. Someone who kept going when plenty of others might have given up.

"The FAI Hall of Fame is a fitting recognition of an outstanding career but for us it's also recognition of years of loyalty, resilience, humility and commitment that went far beyond football.

"And we're sure there are many people throughout Derry and beyond, particularly those who shared the dressing room with you or followed your career over the years, who will take as much pleasure from this recognition as we do. Enjoy every minute of your day Ed. You've earned it!"

Regarded as one of the best right-backs in the League of Ireland during his time with Derry, Eddie has always been quietly unassuming in nature but tough as nails on the pitch. He's not one for fuss or fanfare but Sunday means so much to him and his family.

"I just be quiet about it," he said. "It will be nice come Sunday for my family, my wider circle, my friends and people who know me and who I work with. It is a big thing. There's not too many in Derry that get the opportunity so it does mean a lot. And it will mean a lot to my family as well. It is a big thing,

"I'm not one for that and I will be nervous but it is a big occasion and something I will really enjoy. It will be amazing to get down to the final and being around the atmosphere and soaking it up. It is a big thing. I don't take it lightly.

"For the older generation that's going to the match that know me or who seen me play and know what type of person I am, I think they will like to see it as well.

"There's so many other players and even people who were involved around the team, the likes of the kitmen, the likes of Philip Johnston who gave up all their time freely. The amount of people who gave their time to the club would also be deserving of this honour.

"So that recognition isn't lost on me, considering the amount of people who gave their time to the club. People might be thinking, 'What about this person and that person?'—that's not lost on me. That's why it means so much for me to get it." To be amongst some of the Derry greats in the Hall of Fame certainly sits well with the Derry man.

"Even the people that have fallen behind, the likes of Mark [Farren]. I played with Mark and saw what he went through. I played with him at Glenavon. I remember the time he told me and Ciaran Martyn on the way home that it [brain tumour] was back again," he reflected.

"I have a lot of happy memories playing with Mark. I played with Liam [Coyle]. I did ballboy for his testimonial against Newcastle and ended up playing alongside him. Felix had signed me for Derry as well so to be amongst that group, it's a really nice feeling."

Eddie's decision to leave Derry after 14 years and 15 unbroken seasons was, he claims, 'taken out of my hands' as contract talks failed to materialise before he took up an offer to join his former Blackburn Rovers teammate Gary Hamilton at Glenavon midway through 2012.

It's a decision he doesn't regret but one can't help but think there's a sense of what might've been had he remained on Foyleside.

Of course he returned as part of the first team coaching staff and his loyalty has never been questioned.

"I left in August after the Setanta Cup Final and before Derry played Pat's in the FAI Cup final. So that was another opportunity [to get the hat-trick] but it just wasn't to be.

"I was in and out and helping out within training and things like that but Decky only had a year left or was finished that year. He said as long as he was at the club I would be there but I couldn't let it go for the rest of the season not knowing. If you have nothing in place, you have a family and still want to play so the decision is sort of taken off your hands.

"No, not really," he answered when asked if he regretted his decision. "I don't think so because if they really wanted me to stay then it would've been sorted. That's just football. Time moves on and there's no ill will about it. I enjoyed my time at Derry and things do come to an end."

Eddie recalls being in a bad place when returning from his year at Ewood Park with Blackburn where injury cut short his promising cross-Channel career during his late teenage years. Derry boss Kevin Mahon told him in no uncertain terms he was 'an absolute disgrace' because his party lifestyle curtailed his debut campaign back home. Eddie learned quickly.

"I probably wasn't in the right frame of mind coming back from England. I was out partying too much. I'm not afraid to admit that. Kevin Mahon pulled me when he was managing at the end of the season and said to me; 'You're an absolute disgrace'. I just replied; 'I know'.

"I've always said I will always appreciate what he said. I thought, 'Right, that'll do.' That was the wake-up call. I took notice of what Kevin said. Other people might not have but it was true."

He's witnessed the good, the bad and the ugly at Derry during his time at the club from that famous 2006 European run to the double contract controversy when the club was stripped of its Premier Division status. Eddie remained at the club to help secure an immediate return to the top flight in 2010.

He watched ten managers come and go, but he was always the reassuring constant for Derry fans who regarded him as one of their own. His work in the community cemented that relationship.

"If anyone had asked for anything I would've been there. The youth club members always slagged that it was always me. Giving your time so young people can see you means a lot to them and it costs nothing to do that. I enjoyed doing that. You can see that with the players now, they enjoy going into the schools and they will feed off that as well. They get a sense of what playing for Derry is all about and what it means to the fans. I think it's very important.

"Going back to us during the European run and we were doing well, the atmosphere in the town you could feed off it. There was always a good buzz and I think that's important, the club and the community are all the one. It's a community club."

Since making his league debut away at Cork on September 6th 1998, he shared the dressing room with dozens of top players, so who made the biggest imprint on his stellar career?

"Probably everyone who I played with at the club," he answered diplomatically. "Without the players and the managers pushing you. Not every manager wanted me and if managers had the opportunity they could have gotten rid of me, but they didn't. It's easy enough to accept that. I just put my head down and trained hard. I trained how I played; I didn't mess about. I think that was key.

"Without the players and the managers and the staff you're not going to achieve anything. You need everyone pushing in the one direction and buying into what the manager is looking for.

"I think coming from Derry too meant a lot. For the Derry boys playing at the weekend too it will mean so much. Just to go out there and give your all. People in the stands would do anything to be in the players' position. For myself to be knowing that, just means more." As a former captain of Derry City, he's delighted for the current incumbent Michael Duffy who gets the chance to lift the trophy on Sunday - a moment he knows will, like Teenage Dreams, be so hard to beat.

"Mickey is well up there [amongst Derry City legends] if you're talking to any of the fans. I've seen that with what he's achieved. Looking at last year and this year, if Mickey wasn't there what sort of position would Derry be in?

"And he's a very grounded young fella as well. He takes time with people and because he's from the town as well it will mean a lot to win the cup final. You want to see that for all the team but for the locals you'd like to see that.

"It would be great for him to lift the trophy as captain. I remember when we came up with the cup in 2006, I had it and took it home to my grandfather. It was his birthday and we took it home when we beat St Pats. It's things like that you'll never forget. Taking the cup home and seeing the family. Going to the Guildhall, seeing the crowds and your family being there. Those are special occasions and ones you'll never forget."

A third FAI Cup win for Duffy would no doubt earn him a place, alongside Eddie, in Derry City folklore.