Now there’s two Michael Duffy’s

THERE’S only one Michael Duffy is no longer a chant you’ll hear around Oriel Park. For years now Mickey Duffy has been a fixture as the PA announcer at the Carrick Road venue and while he has a habit of stealing the show with his musical taste and quips on the mic, his namesake will be hoping he is the name on everyone’s lips at Oriel this season. It went right to the wire but Michael Duffy (pictured) finally completed his long talked about move from Celtic to Dundalk on February 1st after the Scottish champions recalled him from a loan spell at Dundee where the 22-year-old found himself more often than not on the subs bench. Speaking to The Argus following last Thursday’s victory over St Pat’s CY in the Leinster Senior Cup - a game he sat out with a ‘slight niggle’ - Duffy said he was delighted to be a Dundalk player. ‘It was good to get the move over and done with and just get playing again. ‘I’m enjoying it so far. I was able to get to know the boys over in Spain so that was good. ‘It’s a good set up. Tr aining has been good and I’m getting on well with all the boys so I’m really enjoying it. ‘I played with Patrick (McEleney) at Derry and I would have played against a few of them before so I feel I’m settling in well.’ While passing up SPL football for a return to the League of Ireland might seem like a step backwards to some, Duffy insists Dundalk is an excellent platform for a player to make a name for themselves - something he plans to do. ‘There have been a lot of players moving from here in the last few years and it’s a great setup. ‘When I was in Scotland I still always followed the league and every Friday I’d check the scores. I followed Dundalk last year then in the Europa and watched all those games. ‘I’m hoping we can do the same this year and maybe even better again.’ Handed Daryl Horgan’s number seven shirt, Duffy laughed that the ‘pressure is on’ to replace the PFAI Player of the Ye ar but insisted he is very much his own player. ‘I’ll just try and play and score as many as I can. I’ll be trying my best to do well here. ‘We’ve Cork on Friday in the President’s Cup and I’m looking forward to that. That’s the start of our season. ‘We’re just looking to be even better than last year. If we can do the same or even better then it’ll be great,’ he said.