Connolly moves to clarify finances and pitch
FOOTBALL has a habit of throwing up strange little quirks of fate.
And when Dundalk take the field at Tallaght Stadium on Thursday night to face Maccabi Tel Aviv in their first ever Europa League group stage game at home, it will be somewhat ironic that it falls almost exactly four years on from one of the club’s lowest ebbs.
It was September 28th 2012, with the threat of both relegation and extinction looming over them that Dundalk travelled to face Shamrock Rovers and suffered a 7-0 hammering.
Current Lilywhites players Ronan Finn and Ciaran Kilduff were amongst the goals on that forgetful night.
Exactly four years and one day on when Dundalk take to the field in Tallaght again, it will be another sign of how far the club have come that it’s on a grand stage with a chance of history there if they can beat the Israelis.
Dundalk general manager Martin Connolly will certainly never forget that Tallaght trashing but he is confident that far better times lie in store for Stephen Kenny’s side.
‘I was in the dugout so I do remember it,’ he grinned when asked about the game.
‘I was assistant manager to Darius Kierans that day so it’s one of those things that I’ll never forget. We’ve fairly moved on as a club since then. It’s one of those days that you don’t really want to remember but unfortunately it’s part of your history.
‘Now we start a new chapter on Thursday night and we’re looking forward to it.’
Regardless of the outcome on Thursday, Dundalk’s European exploits this season have opened up a plethora of possibilities. Around €5.82 million has been earned to date, around half of which has already been paid to the club to cover their expenses.
By the time those expenses on the likes of travel, wages, bonuses and the upgrade of Tallaght Stadium to meet UEFA requirements are all paid out, Dundalk expect their European campaign to cost them in the region of €3 million.
That leaves a similar amount to either invest in the ground, in the squad or on a range of other things.
As revealed by The Argus a fortnight ago, the lease issue remains an issue despite some improvement in the circumstances there. It’s understood that a deal in principle has been arranged with former owner Gerry Matthews for the transfer of the lease to the club but a sticking point remains over the development levies that remain outstanding to Louth County Council on the Youth Development Centre at Oriel Park.
A few rumours emerged online last week that a deal had been arranged for a grass pitch to be installed at the Carrick Road venue before the start of next season but speaking ahead of the Derry game on Friday night, Connolly poured cold water on those reports.
‘I can categorically state that there has not even been a discussion about that and I do not know where that came from.’ he said.
‘I’m not saying it’s not going to happen, what I am saying is that it hasn’t been discussed.’
In relation to the lease, he added: ‘There has been some slight movement and we hope it will go on further but as of yet there has been some discussion but we haven’t really made an awful lot of headway.’
Due to the hectic nature of Dundalk’s schedule on and off the field, little or no discussion has taken place in relation to how the club’s European winnings will be spent although Connolly revealed that a sizeable sum had gone towards getting Tallaght Stadium ready for this Thursday.
‘It’s fairly hectic to be honest with you. We’ve got a busy schedule between league games and the Europa League and seeing as we’re not playing at home that has its own problems.
‘There is a lot of organisation involved. Tallaght, to be fair, have been very helpful but it’s still not a high spec stadium so a lot of work has to be done prior to the game.
‘There are new dugouts and there has to be new media places put in, new WiFi, lots of extra stuff like a VIP area. The VIP area in Alkmaar last week was like a five star hotel but in Tallaght it will be a high-grade marquee.
‘It’s a time thing as well, especially when you’re in the middle of two live games in the one week here in Oriel Park and you’re also organising charter flights for Russia and Israel and all that sort of stuff. It is really hectic at the moment but we’re not complaining. Four years ago we were organising buses down to Waterford so it’s a nice problem to have,’ he said.
One thing that the club don’t need is another UEFA fine. Two years ago the board were hit with an €18,000 fine after a Palestinian flag was flown at their Europa League qualifier tie with Hajduk Split at Oriel Park.
A protest against Apartheid organised by the Ireland Palestine Solidarity Campaign is due to take place outside Tallaght Stadium from around 7pm this Thursday and while Connolly he insisted he had no problem with such a move, he asked that no political flags be displayed inside the ground.
‘We’d always appeal for that anyway,’ he said.
‘That’s the rules of UEFA. They don’t want you flying those sort
of flags. They’re the rules so we would hope supporters would abide with that.
‘We’re not particularly worried. People have the right to do what they like. We hope it won’t affect the sporting occasion that it is but that’s up to to the Gardaí to worry about public order and I’m sure people will behave sensible and wisely and that’s the main thing for us.’
Connolly also insisted that the club had little option but to sell tickets for the game through Ticketmaster, despite many fans being critical last week of the booking fee charged by the ticketing company.
‘People have been querying us about the Ticketmaster fees. We had to do that because of the quality of ticket and requirements that were needed on them and Ticketmaster was the best option that was out there.
‘We’ve tried to suit people as best we can by having the Ticketmaster van for two days at Oriel Park.
‘I know it’s not ideal. It’s one of those things we wish we didn’t have to do but unfortunately we do have to do. I would appeal to all supporters to enjoy this though. Remember where we were four years ago and look at where we are now. It’s a special time for every soccer follower in Dundalk and we’re grateful for their support and we hope they enjoy it.’ he said.