Paul Fennessy

JAY MCGRATH already has one fond FA Cup memory and he is hoping to create another as his Doncaster side play Premier League outfit Crystal Palace on Monday night.

In 2019, alongside his Limerick-born dad John, he made history.

The pair became the first father and son to play together in an FA Cup match.

They helped non-league side Mickleover Sports beat Coventry Sphinx 3-0 in the competition’s preliminary round tie at the Don Amott Arena.

Jay was just starting in the game at 16 while his 39-year-old dad, who was also the team’s manager, was coming to the end of a career that included three Premier League appearances with Aston Villa.

That momentous occasion would never have happened had Jay not been released as a youngster by Doncaster, the club he plays for now.

John has naturally been a big influence on Jay’s career and knows what it takes to overcome setbacks.

Having not established himself as a regular in the Villa first team, the midfielder had short stints at Doncaster, Shrewsbury, Kidderminster Harriers, Limerick, Weymouth and Tamworth, before finally finding a footballing home, making over 200 appearances at Burton Albion between 2007 and 2013.

McGrath Sr’s feats were all the more extraordinary when you consider at age 25, he was struck down with a life-threatening bout of pneumonia and confined to a hospital bed for over two months, as he explained in a lengthy interview with The 42 in 2020.

Not many people would have predicted that John would still be playing football more than 13 years after that significant setback and he remains involved in the game to this day, managing National League North side Buxton.

Consequently, Jay has the perfect role model to emulate as he also seeks to defy the odds and achieve longevity in a notoriously ruthless industry.

“As a kid, I would go watch him play every weekend when I wasn’t in school, I’d go and watch him train,” McGrath Jr tells The 42. “So he was a huge part of my footballing journey growing up, and he still is to this day, a massive influence on the way I am as a person and the way I am as a player. 

“At 16, I was released, and playing Sunday League again. He just said to me: ‘Football is a funny game. Make sure you continue to work as hard as you can. If you work as hard as you can, at the end of it, you know you’ve done your most and you’ll end up where you’ll end up.’ He said: ‘Make sure you always put 100% in and that way you can never have any excuses or doubts.’”

The McGrath family grew up in Doncaster so getting released by his local club exacerbated the heartbreak of this predicament.

“Having setbacks at such a young age is difficult, especially when you have a lot of friends in the game in these teams, and as such a young kid, you don’t really understand it. You think that’s the end. It’s like football is over, but you have to jump back on the horse and keep going, keep practising, keep working at your craft.

“And you just hope that the opinion of one manager [will be positive], one club will take you, and then it’s up to you then, once you’re in the door, to put in the performances and put in the hard work to continue developing and improving.”

After McGrath’s release by Doncaster, he signed for Northern Premier League side Mickleover, who happened to be coached by his father.

The switch paved the way for that memorable FA Cup moment.

“It was a great achievement for us, especially as a family,” he recalls. “It was quite funny to be getting shouted at by Dad on the football pitch for the 90 minutes.”

Jay McGrath's father John pictured above during his time at Doncaster Rovers. Alamy Stock Photo Alamy Stock Photo

McGrath knew there would be accusations of nepotism, particularly if he had a couple of bad games.

“There was that added pressure because people would say: ‘Oh, he’s just playing because it’s his dad.’ Or ‘he’s just got a chance because of his dad.’ But then it’s up to you to make sure you play well. I only played maybe 10 times under him, because I was only a young kid. I was only 16.

“And he was right — as a manager, you can only play players that are ready and right to play. So it was up to me then to put the work in.”

Ultimately, McGrath proved his worth, with the youngster’s performances earning a move to Championship side Coventry City on a two-year deal in the summer of 2020, only a year after his release from Doncaster.

The teenage defender captained the Sky Blues’ U21 side but never broke through to the first team.

It was still a “great experience” however, particularly as he came into contact with many top pros, including Swedish international Viktor Gyökeres, who has since become one of the most in-demand strikers in Europe and has been linked with Man United and Arsenal, among others.

“I’d say he’s probably the best striker I’ve trained with and against,” McGrath says. “He’s just a specimen of an athlete and a very good finisher.

“I’d say players like Viktor, Gus Hamer, Kyle McFadzean, the centre half that was there, it’s all about the hard work every day in training. They’re making sure they’re at the levels they need to be at to perform.

“They’re always pushing themselves, pushing their limits, pushing their bodies. I think that’s where you have to be as a footballer if you want to push on and you want to play at the top levels, you always have to be striving to be better.”

There was a short-lived loan switch to non-league side Alfreton Town — another one of his father’s former clubs — but it was at St Patrick’s Athletic that McGrath found his feet at senior level.

The 21-year-old describes going across the water to play in the League of Ireland as “the most important move” of his young career.

“I went in and they had faith in me, having not seen a lot of me or playing a lot of men’s football at that point, so to go in there and play as many games I did [was great].”

Being part of the matchday squad that won the 2023 FAI Cup has been among the high points of McGrath’s career — not bad for someone playing his first proper year of senior football in which he made 27 appearances for the Dublin side.

McGrath is complimentary about the standard of the Premier Division comparing it to “the top end of League Two,” citing the ability of former teammates like Chris Forrester, Sam Curtis and Mason Melia as evidence of the talent that exists on these shores.

The memorable 3-1 victory over Bohemians at the Aviva Stadium proved the climax of his stint in Ireland, as McGrath returned to Doncaster in January of last year.

“When I came home, they just called and asked if I’d like to come in to train — to stay fit and have a look at the club. So I went in, and as soon as I went back, it felt right, almost like I was back home again. So it was a no-brainer when they offered me a contract.”

McGrath has since flourished for the side who are third in League Two, with his 32 appearances already eclipsing the 11 made by his dad more than 20 years ago.

He also followed in his father’s footsteps by obtaining a degree in professional sports writing and broadcasting from the University of Staffordshire, with journalism a viable route in the future.

But McGrath hopes he won’t have to put it to good use anytime soon, and the odds are certainly in his favour to continue thriving, as he appears to have inherited his father’s remarkable resilience.

“That’s something he has instilled in me since I was a young kid, you have to be resilient, not just in football, but in everyday life, the world throws you knockbacks all the time. So you have to be strong, you have to be strong minded, strong willed. And you just have to keep going and persevering no matter what.”