Folan was born in Lewisham, England.[2] Growing up in Galway, he was a classmate of Colin Hawkins at St. Joseph's Patrician College and played youth football at Galway Hibernians.[3] At the age of 14, he signed schoolboy terms at Crystal Palace.[4] He made steady progress through the ranks at the club, signing a professional contract in 1995 and appearing in the 1997 FA Youth Cup final against Leeds United.[4][5] With Palace's relegation from the Premiership already confirmed,[6] Folan made his first team debut in the final match of the 1997–98 season against Sheffield Wednesday, when he replaced Saša Ćurčić after 75 minutes.[7] Early in the 1998–99 season, he appeared in the first leg of Palace's Intertoto Cup third round match against Samsunspor, but was replaced by Simon Rodger after 63 minutes.[8] Folan subsequently injured his groin and was out for six weeks after undergoing surgery. He turned down the offer of a contract extension from new manager Terry Venables and departed Selhurst Park in September 1998.[2]
Brentford
Folan dropped down two divisions to sign for Third Division club Brentford for a £110,000 fee on 22 September 1998.[9] He enjoyed a solid first season, making 35 appearances, scoring six goals and being awarded a Third Division winner's medal as Brentford dramatically beat Cambridge United on the last day of the 1998–99 season.[10][11] A broken foot kept Folan out for six months of the 1999–00 season and he only made 12 appearances.[12] He managed 23 appearances and two goals during the 2000–01 season,[13] but missed four months of the season after being forced to undergo a cartilage operation in December 2000.[9] On 23 October 2001, Folan was made available for transfer and was released on 4 November,[14] after failing to make an appearance during the early months of the 2001–02 season.[15][16] He scored 9 goals in 70 appearances in just over three years at Griffin Park.[2]
Bohemians
In November 2001, Folan returned to Ireland and signed for League of Ireland Premier Division club Bohemians.[17] He made his debut for Bohemian in a televised Dublin derby against Shamrock Rovers on 9 November, but he ended up on the losing side as Rovers won 1–0.[18] Within weeks, manager Pete Mahon was sacked and Folan found appearances limited.[19] He scored in a 4–1 rout of Longford Town in the second round of the League of Ireland Cup, as Bohemian progressed to the semi-finals before being knocked out by Derry City.[20]
Return to Galway
Folan joined hometown club Galway United during the 2002 off-season and helped the club into the League of Ireland First Division play-off final in the 2002–03 season, which ended in defeat to Premier Division side Drogheda United.[21] In August 2004, Folan departed the club to join Galway & District League club Galway Hibernians, where he began his career. He won the title with he club during the 2005–06 season.
^ abCroxford, Mark; Lane, David; Waterman, Greville (2013). The Big Brentford Book Of The Nineties. Sunbury, Middlesex: Legends Publishing. p. 433. ISBN9781906796723.