Dundalk must battle to stop slide as glory days now seem in distant past

Aglance at the League of Ireland tables makes uncomfortable viewing for two provincial clubs that share a former Ireland manager in common. Remarkably, both Dundalk and Longford Town now find themselves back where they started when Stephen Kenny entered their lives: Dundalk at the bottom of the Premier Division looking up at everyone else; Longford rooted at the foot of the second tier.

At least the appearance of Bishopsgate reflects the ambition that was instigated by Kenny’s arrival in 1998 to assume control of a club at its lowest ebb. He started work that was carried on by others; the idea that Longford Town could be playing in an all-seater stadium and winning trophies within a decade was fantasy stuff.

Similarly, Dundalk fans would have scarcely believed in the winter of 2012 – when Kenny was appointed in the aftermath of a relegation play-off success that was only made possible by Monaghan going out of business – that the next eight years would include five leagues, three FAI Cups and two qualifications for the Europa League group stages.

It’s hard to walk through the doors of Oriel Park now and believe that it happened. Kenny had departed when Dundalk won their last piece of silverware, the 2020 FAI Cup win that followed on from a closed-doors Europa Conference

League run under Filippo Giovagnoli, the unknown US-based Italian drafted in from nowhere by then owners Peak6.

A lot of money was squandered during that time; Dundalk was a place to go for big contracts, lucrative bonuses and agent fees. Peak6’s departure was necessary and it was celebrated with a local consortium consisting of former owner Andy Connolly and local sports tech Statsports taking the reins in late 2021.

This was flagged as a transition that would bring stability. The FAI were enthused by it, and there were even senior figures who viewed Statsports as prospective backers in their search for sponsors, given industry chatter about strategic plans the company had in mind.

Controversial

Stephen O’Donnell was recruited from St Patrick’s Athletic in controversial circumstances because of a belief that Dundalk would be a solid bet over a period of time. This didn’t turn out to be the case.

Locally, the consensus view now is that Statsports proved to be a major disappointment. Those strategic plans didn’t develop as anticipated because of changes in market habits which had a knock-on effect on their ability to invest time and money.

Critics of their tenure can understand that, but are less forgiving of their absentee status for long periods while staff and volunteers on the ground sought to piece together stories about rumoured third-party investment. Names were dropped without being delivered.

Relations between the two sides of the ownership became strained as it became clear exit strategies were being hatched. Financial agreements had to be thrashed out between the local consortium before a deal could be agreed to sell to Brian Ainscough in November, the Boston-based Irishman who switched horses from Kerry FC in a surprise move.

It is accepted that he inherited a difficult situation, much more difficult than he’d anticipated. While there may be disputes over the why and the how, and the details of certain stories, sources at the club have confirmed that reports of debts in the region of €750,000 are accurate.

This is a sobering state of affairs off the back of an era of stunning success which has left no real legacy bar the memories.

Oriel Park hasn’t been fit for purpose for years, and Ainscough has promised cosmetic improvements although pitch and floodlight upgrades are non-negotiable and more pressing. Ainscough said that other investors would be coming on board with him; this was framed as a bonus whereas the impression at this stage is that it’s a necessity.

In a relatively short space of time, chief operating officer Martin Connolly – a brother of Andy – and O’Donnell have left and Dundalk are bottom of the table searching for a win.

Head of operations Brian Gartland – a multiple league winner under Kenny – is on the interim management team and spoke last week of positive changes off the park that were overdue; Dundalk were complacent on the community front when they were at the top of the tree and have not experienced the surge in crowds that has been experienced around the country.

Gartland accepted, though, that a battle for Premier Division survival is the immediate priority. Name recognition from their European exploits has contributed to the volume of managerial applications the club has received from far and wide, although a preference for a candidate who knows the league narrows the field.

The squad is dominated by UK recruits, largely a product of an inability to win battles for players who now have a countless of options around the Dublin area, who were not signed with a relegation fight in mind. Dundalk played well in defeat to Bohemians on Monday but still didn’t register an effort on target. A result in Sligo tonight is essential.

Their rise under Kenny should rank high in the list of Irish sporting stories. The challenge now is to avoid a fall that would make it a case study of a different kind.