| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Sport | Gaelic football | ||
| Position | Midfield / Full Forward | ||
| Occupation | Garda | ||
| Club(s) | |||
| Years | Club | ||
?–? ?–? ?–? | Drumbar Four Masters Civil Service | ||
| Club titles | |||
| Dublin titles | 1 | ||
| Inter-county(ies) | |||
| Years | County | Apps (scores) | |
1972–1985 | Donegal | 129 | |
| Inter-county titles | |||
| Ulster titles | 3 | ||
Seamus Bonner (6 November 1948 – 11 October 2012) was an IrishGaelic footballer who played for various clubs, as well as for theDonegal county team.
Bonner played 129 games for his county between 1972 and 1985, initially in midfield and later at full forward.[1] He made his championship debut againstDown at Ballybofey in 1972 and played his last Championship game againstMonaghan in 1985.[2] In 1974 he scored seven goals in four games, including one againstGalway in that year's All-Ireland semi-final.[3] WithMichael McLoone (1966), Bonner (1974) jointly holds the record for Donegal player with the highest score in the same match.[4] In 1983, he became the first Donegal player to win threeUlster Senior Football Championships.[5]
He played his club football for Drumbar, thenFour Masters, then Civil Service, captaining the last team to the 1980Dublin Senior Football Championship.[1]
He later won two more Ulster SFCs as aselector under the managerial reign ofBrian McEniff, and was there in1992 when Donegal won theAll-Ireland Senior Football Championship.[1] He was at the time a selector with the Civil Service club, as was one of the Dublin selectorsPat O'Neill.[6] He later managedLeitrim for a short while.[1][7] He was mentioned as a possible successor toP. J. McGowan as Donegal senior manager in 1997.[8]
Originally from Donegal town, he died after a short illness in 2012. A retired Garda, he was the father of St Brigid's and Dublin footballerKevin Bonner.[1]
Their third Ulster final victory with Seamus Bonnar making history picking up his third medal... There was also a good deal of experience with the aforementioned Seamus Bonnar involved in the 1972 and '74 wins...