MOTIONS ELEVEN
Full team’s worth of players in and out the revolving door for Dundalk boss O’donnell
THEY say a change is as good as a rest and Stephen O’donnell insists new-look Dundalk are ready and raring to go.
With so many new faces through the door, all eyes are on Tallaght Stadium tomorrow to see how the Lilywhites shape up against champions Shamrock Rovers.
Arguably their most high profile arrival of the close season was new owner Brian Ainscough, who moved to Oriel Park in December after jumping ship from Kerry FC.
But on the pitch, there has been considerable turnover with 11 new players signed over the winter, 11 clearing out and another eight still under contract.
It’s a roll of the dice but one that O’donnell is embracing and on the eve of the new season, he told Mirror Sport: “There’s an excitement and freshness to it.”
O’donnell added: “It would be easier when you’re like Rovers, when you make incremental changes and have your shape and the core of your squad ready to go.
“But if training and the calibre of player is anything to go by, there’s an excitement to us.”
George Shelvey (Nottingham Forest), Koen Oostenbrink (FC Eindhoven), Robbie Mahon (Motherwell) and Ross Munro (Ross County) are among the permanent signings.
Dara Keane (UCD), Jamie Gullan (Raith Rovers) and Jamie Walker (Kelty Hearts) have also made the jump on a full-time basis.
Sunderland’s Zak Johnson arrived on loan yesterday and is one of three loanees at Dundalk.
Ciaran Mcguckin of Rotherham, Huddersfield’s Scott High and Zak Bradshaw of Lincoln City are the others.
Star striker and captain Pat Hoban (below) was the highest profile departure while Daniel Kelly, Keith
Ward, John Martin and
Robbie Mccourt have also left.
So too have
Darragh Leahy, Greg
Sloggett, Connor
Malley, Senan Mullen,
Darren Brownie and
Mark Byrne.
But O’donnell said: “It was always going to be this way with Brian [Ainscough] coming in in December and we were starting late. It was going to take time.”
Dara Keane is Dundalk’s only signing from within the league, with the other 10 all moving from Scotland or England.
It’s a path more and more clubs are taking but O’donnell acknowledges there can be pitfalls to shopping outside the league.
“We have an ideal world based on the profile of players we’re going after,” he continued.
“But sometimes you could be on track and then get gazumped at the last minute to stay in England or wherever, and you have to react as every deal is different.”
But O’donnell is clear on what Dundalk must improve on this season as they look to build on last year’s fifth-placed finish, missing out on Europe by only two points.
“Our away form needs to improve,” said O’donnell, without any hesitation – and he’s not wrong.
Only Shamrock Rovers had a better home record than Dundalk in 2023, but only Drogheda United, Sligo Rovers, Cork City and UCD fared worse on the road.
O’donnell added: “If we had an OK away record, we would have qualified for Europe and that would have been a great achievement.
“Our home form has been good for the last two years and we need to carry that on and make Oriel a fortress while improving our away form.
“We still have a lot of lads who were in their first year last season and should be more battle hardened and experienced this year.”