Irish Footballers that Played for Manchester Utd – Ashley Grimes

Ashley Grimes – Introduction

Ashley Grimes was born in Dublin on 2 August 1957 and he was a product of Dublin schoolboy club Stella Maris. As a fifteen year old he had spent some time at Old Trafford but he was rejected and returned to Ireland to play for League of Ireland club Bohemians. Following impressive performances for Bohs Tommy Docherty agreed to pay the £28,000 to sign the young Dubliner in 1977.

Ashley Grimes & Manchester United

Under new manager Dave Sexton Ashley Grimes made his Manchester United debut on 20 August 1977 against Birmingham City. Grimes came on as a substitute in a 1 – 4 win at St Andrews. He made his first start for United in a League Cup match on 30 August 1977 away to Arsenal in a 3-2 defeat.

During his Manchester United career Ashley Grimes scored 11 goals and he scored the first of these on 8 April 1978 in a League match against QPR at Old Trafford. Grimes scored the first United goal in a 3 – 1 victory. He scored again in his next appearance two weeks later in a 3 – 0 win over West Ham. Grimes scored at least one goal in each of his six seasons with Manchester United.

The Dubliner won an FA Cup winners medal in 1983 when United beat Brighton & Hove Albion 4-0 in a replay. Grimes was an unused substitute in the first match and the replay. Ron Atkinson was the Red Devils manager by now and he had brought new talent into the club, including Bryan Robson, and first team opportunities diminished for Grimes. His last match for the club was on 11 May 1983 against Spurs at White Hart Lane. Ashley Grimes left Manchester United at the end of the 1982/83 season transferring to Coventry City for a fee of £200,000.

Ashley Grimes – Republic of Ireland Career

Ashley Grimes made his debut for Ireland on 5 April 1978 in a friendly match against Turkey at Lansdowne Road (now Aviva Stadium). Grimes scored his only goal for Ireland against Spain at Lansdowne Road in a Euro 84 qualifier. He scored the first goal in a 3 – 3 draw. Eoin Hand was the Irish team manager at the time. Ashley Grimes played his last game for Ireland against Romania on 23 March 1988.

Ashley Grimes – Manchester United & Ireland Statistics

Trevor Anderson – Harry Baird – Billy Behan – George Best – Jackie Blanchflower – Robbie Brady
Derek Brazil Tommy Breen – Shay Brennan – Ronnie Briggs – David Byrne – Noel Cantwell
Johnny Carey Joe Carolan – Roy Carroll – Tom Connell – Gerry Daly – Bernard Donaghy – Mal Donaghy
Tony Dunne Pat Dunne – Jonny Evans – Sonny Feehan – Darron Gibson – John Giles – Keith Gillespie
Don Givens Harry Gregg – Ashley Grimes – Mickey Hamill – David Healy – Denis Irwin
Tommy Jackson Michael Keane – Roy Keane – Paddy Kennedy – Davy Lyner – Mick Martin
David McCreery Noel McFarlane – Pat McGibbon – Chris McGrath – Paul McGrath – Sammy McIlroy
Sammy McMillan Walter McMillen – Liam Miller – Kevin Moran – Tommy Morrison – Phil Mulryne
Jimmy Nicholl Jimmy Nicholson – Liam O’Brien – John O’Shea – Patrick O’Connell – John Peden
James Robinson Paddy Roche – Jackie Scott – Tom Sloan – Frank Stapleton – Billy Toms
Anthony Whelan Liam Whelan – Norman Whiteside

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