By Bartley Ramsay
A little under fourteen miles, by road, separates Finn Park, the home of Finn Harps FC, and the birthplace of Ipswich Town's most capped player Allan Hunter. Allan, hails from the village of Sion Mills and was born in Alexander Place or as it is known locally "The Front Row".
Allan came from a sporting family. His older brother, by nine years, Victor was a goalkeeper who played for Coleraine, joining the Bannsiders in 1956. He was to spend the best part of fifty years, as a manager, player and coach at the Showgrounds. Victor won two full caps for Northern Ireland, against England and Spain and also picked up four amateur international caps.
Allan, started his playing career with Sion Mills and Churchill United, playing at "The Braefield", the local soccer pitch. Willie Heaney recommended him to Bertie Peacock, the Coleraine manager, and Allan joined his older brother on the playing staff. Both players appeared in Coleraine's first Irish Cup success in 1965. As an eighteen year old Allan headed the winning goal in the Cup semi-final against Glentoran, which was his first goal in senior football.
On Saturday, April 24 1965, Coleraine defeated Glenavon by two goals to one in Windsor Park, Belfast in front of eighteen thousand spectators. The Coleraine goals were scored by Shaun Dunlop in the ninth minute and Derek Irwin after seventy minutes. Billy Johnston scored Glenavon's solitary goal after fifty six minutes. The Coleraine side was Victor Hunter, John McCurdy, Alan Campbell, Ivan Murray, Allan Hunter, Bertie Peacock, Tommy Kinsella, Tony Curley, Ken Halliday, Shaun Dunlop and Derek Irwin. The following season Allan played in the two European games against Dynamo Kiev, Coleraine becoming the first Irish League team to play behind the Iron Curtain. Sadly Coleraine were defeated heavily in both games.
Allan also represented his country at Amateur level winning two caps in 1965, against Wales and Scotland, before moving to England to join Oldham Athletic in 1966. He was signed by fellow Ulster man Jimmy McIlroy and he remained with the Latics for three seasons winning an Under 23 cap. He then move to Lancashire rivals Blackburn Rovers. It was at Blackburn that he made his debut for Northern Ireland in a two goal defeat at the hands of the old U.S.S.R. He remained with Blackburn for two seasons but following their relegation to the old third division he was signed by Bobby Robson for Ipswich Town in September 1971.
Hunter was to spend the vast majority of his career at the Suffolk based club and to this day still lives in Suffolk. He played over three hundred and fifty times for Ipswich and in the process amassed a further forty seven caps for his country. He also scored his only goal in the green in September 1975 against Sweden as an Ipswich player. Hunter in an interview in 1973 advised that his prfessional ambition was to win an F.A. Cup medal which he achieved five years later. In the F.A. Cup Final of 1978 Ipswich defeated a highly fancied Arsenal side that included Liam Brady and Frank Stapleton by a goal to nil. Apart from a Texaco Cup winners medal in 1972/73 this was the only major honour that he won in the game.
Hunter was rewarded for his service to Ipswich with a testimonial game against Glasgow Celtic which took place at Portman Road in November 1981. Celtic narrowly beat Ipswich by three goals to two, in a game that saw every goal scored by a Scotsman. George McCluskey, Charlie Nicholas and Frank McGarvey were the Celtic scores while Alan Brazil and John Wark replied for Ipswich.
Hunter then moved on briefly to Colchester United as player-manager in May 1982, before retiring from the professional game due to injury in January 1983.
