Cowan still teaching the youngsters a thing or two

Asked to name the oldest player in the League of Ireland Premier Division this season most people may hesitate a little and possibly come up with Alan Mannus. Specify the oldest outfielder and the hesitation may become a little bit more pronounced and some headscratching may ensue.

The answer? Keith Cowan. Drogheda United's central defender turns 37 this week and is still operating at the highest level 17 years after first setting out on his journey as a Finn Harps player.

Cowan started with Swilly Rovers and moved to Letterkenny Rovers Under 14, but by his late teens hockey was his sport of choice and he netted a crucial promotion goal for local outfit Raphoe to take them to the Senior 1 Division.

However, in 2004, after impressing in a friendly against Harps seniors - for a Raphoe selection fundraising for a replacement hockey pitch - that the teenager caught the eye of Felix Healy who approached him to sign and he initially played with Eddie Seydak's Under 21 outfit. 

The then 19 year old made his debut on April 30th 2005 as a second half substitute for Thomas Bonnar as Felix Healy's Harps recorded a 0-0 draw with Longford Town. He went on to make three more cameo appearances as a substitute, however he suffered two serious knee injuries which curtailed the start of his career and he joined Ulster Senior League side Swilly Rovers following his return to fitness in 2008.

The Ramelton native, whose father Davy also spent time in the League of Ireland with Athlone Town, is a teacher at Coláiste Ailigh and spent time studying in Cardiff, playing with the college side and was invited to play with Aberystwyth Town during his time there. 

However, after finishing his studies, he returned to Donegal and signed for James Gallagher's Harps during the 2010 season- making his starting debut in a 3-1 win over a Mervue Utd side featuring Rory Gaffney

Having played his first minutes as a League of Ireland player against Longford Town in 2004, he opened his goalscoring account against the same opposition seven years later- knocking in the opener in a 3-2 defeat in the Midlands. Incidentally, the assist came from Mark Forker whom he linked up with off the field a number of years later for a podcast entitled 'Allergic to Silverware'.

Having made over 200 appearances for Harps, including two promotions - in 2015 and 2018, as skipper- he departed the club at the end of the 2019 season. His last game was the memorable 2-0 second leg Play Off victory over Drogheda United at Finn Park which ensured Premier Division survival.

Cowan signed for Glentoran in January 2020 and, after a memorable scoring debut versus Institute, he lifted his first piece of silverware as a player when the Glens won the Irish Cup. Despite only making 14 appearances for the Belfast outfit across his eighteen months there, two of these were European ties- another first for the 34 year old defender, dubbed the Ramelton Ramos during his time at the club. (https://donegalnews.com/2020/10/cowan-cherishes-irish-cup-triumph/)

However, gametime was limited at the Oval and at the end of the 2020/21 season former Northern Ireland international Dean Shiels sought out Cowan's experience for his Dungannon Swifts side who narrowly avoided relegation the previous season.

After 18 league appearances at the Stangmore Park outfit, the lure to return to the League of Ireland became too much to turn down and a contract was signed with Premier Division outfit Drogheda United - the same side he had denied promotion in his last Finn Harps game.

At the time of writing, Cowan has represented his new club on 20 occasions and, alongside 34 year old skipper Dane Massey, their experience in a young backline -  frequently appearing in a defence alongside the twenty year old pair Andrew Quinn and Evan Weir - has proved to be valuable as the Boynesiders lie eighth in the table with a decent gap back to UCD and Finn Harps.

However, his experience isn't restricted to the football field as, earlier this year he was on the coaching team which led Coláiste Ailigh to a national senior girls basketball title, four years after coaching the same team to U15 national success and leading his side to the FAI Schools Minor B Girls National Cup in 2019. Cowan himself is no stranger to teenagers excelling across a number of sports- as referenced earlier, as a teenager himself he was a promising hockey player in addition to his footballing skills. 

These days, his hockey exploits are well behind him, however his performances at Head in the Game Park suggest his playing days are not.

RTÉ to broadcast two more Premier Division games https://t.co/DOzDOICW4Bpic.twitter.com/cddAyTuU3U

— Extratime.com (@ExtratimeNews) August 23, 2022