Don Givens

Daniel Joseph Givens Date of Birth: Aug 9, 1949

Limerick born Don was one of the many boys who travelled over the Irish Sea to join Manchester United but despite making his Eire debut before reaching the United first team it soon became clear that the sheer size of the squad at Old Trafford would make a regular place difficult.

Luton scout Harry Haslam, using his United connections, managed to entice Don plus three other players to Kenilworth Road in 1970 just as the Hatters were promoted to Division Two. Don proved an excellent foil to the more forceful Malcolm Macdonald and it was a sad day when the clever inside-forward moved to QPR in 1972.

Don finally finished his football career with Neuchatel in Switzerland well into his 30’s before becoming manager of the Eire under-21 squad.