The Dubliner was one of the game's brightest prospects in the 1970s, making his name in England at Highfield Road with Coventry City and becoming the Republic of Ireland's youngest-ever capped player at the time of making his debut aged 17 years and 200 days old.

He actually made his senior debut for the Sky Blues in a derby match against Leicester in December 1971 and impressed enough to see Tottenham Hotspur fork out a six-figure sum for his services. It came in a desperate for time for Spurs, struggling at the wrong end of Division One, and Holmes couldn't stop his new side suffering relegation.

They bounced back at the first time of asking, however, with Holmes being a key component in their success. The Irishman's career was almost cut short when he suffered a broken leg. He returned to action with a spell in Canada, however, with the Vancouver Whitecaps, before returning to England to have trials with Leicester.

He wasn't successful in gaining a full deal and had another trial with Brentford before settling on a move to Torquay United. He did manage plenty more Football League appearances for other clubs before going into coaching and management.