Former Fermanagh and Down footballer Shane King will run for the SDLP in the Northern Ireland local elections on May 22.

The 38-year-old father-of-five will be standing in the Slieve Croob District Electoral Area in Co. Down. An SDLP spokesperson told the Mourne Observer: "Shane has worked very hard within cross-community projects through the medium of sport. He is from mixed religion parents so always had an awareness of balance, understanding and tolerance towards both traditions."

One of the leading forwards in Ulster during the 1990s, Shane was only 15 when he played his first senior match for his home club Lisnaskea Emmets in 1987. He played for the Fermanagh seniors for eight years and was a key figure for them in 1997 when, under the management of his father Pat, they won All-Ireland 'B' championship, McKenna Cup and National Football League Division 4 honours. He won an Ulster U21 championship medal in 1994 and also collected two Railway Cups with Ulster, winning his first as a 19-year-old.

He later played for Down for two years after transferring to Bryansford. Tweet

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