Alan Francis McLoughlin (20 April 1967 – 4 May 2021)[1] was an Irish professional footballer and coach, who played as a midfielder for the Republic of Ireland and various English club sides, most notably Swindon Town and Portsmouth.
McLoughlin began his career as a trainee at Manchester United on leaving school in July 1983, turning professional at the start of the 1985–86 season.
He was then offered a one-week trial by Oldham Athletic but joined Swindon Town in August 1986, just after they had won promotion to the Football League Third Division.
However, he did not fit with then-manager Lou Macari's "long ball" style, and seven months and nine appearances later, he moved to Torquay United on loan.
He helped Portsmouth to the brink of the Premier League in 1992–93, but they were pipped to automatic promotion by West Ham United and lost to Leicester City in the play-offs.
[5] With his career winding down McLoughlin joined Forest Green as a player-coach for the 2002–03 season and also featured in Rovers FA Cup first round tie with Exeter City which was broadcast live on the BBC's Match of the Day programme.
McLoughlin's performances at club level won him international recognition, and he was named by Jack Charlton in the Ireland squad for the 1990 World Cup in Italy.
[8][9] [10][11] On 17 November 1993, McLoughlin came on as a substitute and scored a 76th minute equaliser against Northern Ireland in a 1–1 draw at Windsor Park in a critical 1994 World Cup qualifier; the draw, combined with Spain's defeat of Denmark, meant that the Republic of Ireland team qualified for the 1994 World Cup in the United States.
In July 2011, he joined Portsmouth as Senior Academy Coach, working alongside other club favourites Andy Awford and Paul Hardyman.
[16] Andy Awford then took charge for the rest of the season as along with Hardyman and McLoughlin, Portsmouth were unbeaten in their final seven matches, keeping in the league and finishing 13th.