Fran was on my all time team, on the basis of one player from each Club. There was a period around 1982 when Fran McMahon was magnificent and I'm sure he won a Railway Cup medal around 83/84.
One of the things we used to take great pride in was a long unbeaten run at the Athletic Grounds which lasted for well over a decade from the early seventies. In the early eighties, that unbeaten record was often in peril, with Armagh staring down the barrel of a home defeat and on each occasion seeming to snatch victory from the jaws of defeat. One such game was at home to Cork in January 1982. We were down 2-3 to 3 points at half time, but summoned a firestorm of attacking play in the last quarter which seen us home by 1-13 to 2-6. Fran got 1-5 from midfield and was the absolute catalyst for the victory and in my mind's eye I can still see the fans euphorically greeting the players as they left the field at the bottom goals.
Living today in the modern age, where teams field weakened selections with an eye on the Championship, worrying about things like a home record seems somewhat innocent, and yet it meant so much back then. Some great times, memories and players, including Fran.
