McFadden played
association football for
St Catherine's. At the age of "16 or 17" he signed for
League of Ireland team
Finn Harps. He then signed a one-year scholarship with another League of Ireland team,
Sligo Rovers, Rovers having won the
2012 League of Ireland Premier Division. According to McFadden, there was interest in him from other League of Ireland clubs too. But interest in Gaelic football was on the rise in his native county following the victorious
2012 All-Ireland Senior Football Championship Final. Donegal under-21 manager
Maxi Curran called McFadden, who expressed an interest in joining, and senior manager
Jim McGuinness called upon him around three months afterwards. "There are no regrets there. The way Gaelic football has taken off in Donegal — I wanted to be involved", McFadden said in 2015.[5]
McFadden's performances for his club in that 2013 championship run drew the attention of county manager
Jim McGuinness. In September 2013, McGuinness called McFadden into the senior inter-county team for winter training after McFadden scored 2–4 for his club in their 2013 Donegal Senior Football Championship quarter-final defeat of Sean Mac Cumhaills.[2][7][8] The
2014 season was his first on the county panel.[9] He appeared as a substitute in the
2014 National Football League.[10] McFadden also played in the under-21 team that lost to
Cavan in the 2014 Ulster final.[11] He remained as a panel member for the championship campaign, as Donegal won the
2014 Ulster Senior Football Championship and advanced to the
2014 All-Ireland Senior Football Championship Final. He did not play in the final.[4]
Following his appearance on the bench for 2014 All-Ireland Senior Football Championship Final, McFadden (still eligible for the competition) played in the 2015
Ulster Under-21 Football Championship final loss to
Tyrone, scoring five points (including four frees).[12]
McFadden started the opening fixture of the
2016 National Football League away to
Down.[26] He then started the second fixture against Cork, a ten-point win in Ballyshannon.[27] He also started the third, fourth, sixth and seventh fixtures against Mayo, Kerry,
Dublin and
Monaghan.[28][29][30][31]
McFadden started the opening fixture of the
2017 National Football League against Kerry.[38] He made substitute appearances in the second and third fixtures against
Roscommon and Dublin.[39][40] He started the fourth fixture against Cavan and scored 0–2.[41] He did likewise in the fifth fixture against Tyrone.[42] He then started the sixth and seventh fixtures against Monaghan and Mayo.[43][44]
McFadden again
captained Donegal during the
2019 National Football League in the absence of injured regular captain Murphy.[57] He started against
Clare in the opening fixture of the competition in
Ennis, scoring a point.[58] He also started the second, third, fourth and fifth fixtures against Meath,
Tipperary, Fermanagh and Armagh.[59][60][61][62] He started and scored a point in both the sixth and seventh fixtures against Cork and
Kildare.[63][64] Donegal qualified for the National Football League Division 2 final and McFadden started the game as Donegal defeated Meath to win the title.[65]
McFadden started each game of the
2019 Ulster Senior Football Championship, as Donegal defeated Fermanagh in the quarter-final, Tyrone in the semi-final and Cavan in the final (McFadden scored one point in the semi-final and one point in the final).[66][67][68]
McFadden made a substitute appearance in Donegal's opening fixture of the
2020 National Football League against Mayo.[69] He started the second game against Meath, scoring a point.[70] He did not feature in the third game against Galway, but started the fourth game against Dublin, scoring a goal and a point.[71][72] He scored a goal in the next league fixture against Monaghan.[73] Then the
COVID-19 pandemic brought
play to a halt. Play resumed
behind closed doors on 18 October with a home game against Tyrone; McFadden started that game.[74] He did not participate in the final league game away to Kerry as he and other senior players (such as
Michael Murphy,
Ryan McHugh and
Eoghan Bán Gallagher) were rested ahead of the
2020 Ulster Senior Football Championship quarter-final against Tyrone the following Sunday.[75] McFadden started that opening victory against Tyrone.[76] He also started the semi-final victory against Armagh, scoring a point from a mark.[77] He also started the final against Cavan, in what proved to be the season's concluding game for his team.[78]
He made his 101st appearance for Donegal against Monaghan in the
2023 National Football League, when he also captained the team.[94]
Coaching career
In 2022, McFadden became a member of his club's management team, under Shane Molloy and Antoine O'Hara.[95]
McFadden has also won two Cumman na mBunscols County Championships with Scoil an Linbh Íosa two years in a row (‘22 & ‘23 )
Personal life
Mr McFadden is a teacher at Scoil an Linbh Íosa, a primary school near Donegal Town.[96]
He attended college in Dublin, beginning in his first year playing for the county team.[9]
^"McFadden powers Killybegs into last four". Donegal Democrat. 15 September 2013. Retrieved 15 September 2013. The difference between the sides was full-forward Hugh McFadden, who caused havoc in the MacCumhaill's defence and finished with a tally of 2–4 to put himself in the shop window for Jim McGuinness.
^
abFerry, Ryan (24 June 2021). "McFadden and Donegal set to re-enter championship arena". Donegal News. p. 68. McFadden has been on the Donegal panel since 2014 and he is well-versed on how a normal season plays out… This is McFadden's eighth season and he is now firmly one of the leaders of the squad, and has captained the team in Michael Murphy's absence… There have been some positive changes over the years, but the big thing is that he is now living and working in Donegal, and that stops a lot of the hassle. 'I have moved back home. My first year in college was my first year on the county team… There was also the situation of travelling up and down to Dublin and organising training in Dublin so for me personally being at home the last two years it had been a lot easier'.
^Craig, Frank (29 April 2021).
"Eoghan Bán wants a tailored season". Gaelic Life. Retrieved 29 April 2021. 'Luckily, myself and Hugh McFadden were able to batter away together. We share a house in Donegal Town'. Also published as "Eoghan Bán Gallagher a big fan of tailored inter-county season" in the Donegal News of the same date, 29 April 2021: pp 60–61.