DUNDALK FC CLUB DIRECTORY Honorary Club President Des Casey DFC MAGAZINE: ISSUE 01 Chairman Bill Hulsizer Board Bill Hulsizer, James Baboulas, David Samhat, Fred Spencer and Des 03: CONTENTS Dunleavy Sporting Director Jim Magilton Secretary Padraig McGowan 04: OPENING SHOT Finance Officer Elaine Duffy Commercial Manager Ronan Shields 06: COACHES CORNER Marketing Consultant Paddy Casey Stadium Manager Aaron Lawless Office Manager Ailish Kelly 08: PLAYER PREVIEW Media Officer Gavin McLaughlin Ground Staff John Moore, David Caldwell, Jimmy Fisher and Cyril Moore 11: OPPOSITION WATCH Player Liaison Officer Des Dunleavy Community Officer Liam Burns Press Officer Darren Crawley 14: PLAYER PROFILES Club Ambassadors Paul Brown and Andy Connolly Event Controller Regina O’Hare 16: POST-MATCH TALK Bar Manager Kevin Carthy Office Admin Karen Travers PA Announcer Michael Duffy 18: PLAYED FOR BOTH DUNDALK FC TEAM MANAGEMENT 20: ANDY BOYLE Q&A Team Manager Shane Keegan Coach Filippo Giovagnoli Coach Giuseppe Rossi 22: CENTRE SPREAD Goalkeeping Coach Graham Byas S&C Coach Graham Norton 26: BETREGAL Academy Manager Stephen McDonnell Doctor Dr Dualtach MacColgáin Physiotherapists Danny Miller and David 30: RETRO: PROGRAMMES Murphy Sports Science Lorcan Mason Video Analyst Dominic Corrigan 32: ROCKSALT Kit Manager Noel Walsh DUNDALK FC MAGAZINE 35: INSIDE ORIEL Editors Gavin McLaughlin and Paul Dunne, Contributors David Farrelly, Tom 38: PLAYER SPONSORS O’Connor, Sean De Loughry, Martyn Hindley, Padraig McGowan, Darren Crawley, Colm Murphy, Jim Murphy (RIP) 40: THE NUMBERS GAME Photography Sportsfile, Ciaran Culligan, Mick Slevin (RIP) Artwork Shane Doyle 42: 2021 STATISTICS Thanks to Ray McManus, Stephen McCarthy (Sportsfile) Programme of the Year 44: THE SPECTATOR 2008 | 2010 | 2011 | 2012 | 2013 | 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2019 46: THE QUIZ Note: The views expressed in this magazine are those of the individual 48: TEAMS & OFFICIALS contributors and are not necessarily shared by Dundalk FC...especially The Spectator! ©2021 Dundalk FC 3 | DFC MAGAZINE OPENING SHOT Han Jeongwoo poses for pictures at Oriel Park on Thursday afternoon. The 22-year-old winger, who will wear the number 77 shirt, is the first South Korean to sign for the Lilywhites. See www.dundalkfc.com for more. 4 | DFC MAGAZINE Dundalk v Finn Harps | Friday March 26th 2021 5 | DFC MAGAZINE COACHES CORNER SHANE KEEGAN I would like to welcome Ollie Horgan the familiarity of your surroundings could be dished out until then. We and his Finn Harps players and staff and sticking to your home timetable got word on Thursday night that he to Oriel Park for this evening’s game. were all huge factors outside of the was free for the Sligo game but was fans, but really it is all down to the hit with a two-game ban and the Finn Harps will come here on a high supporters and how much of a boost Harps game couldn’t be used as after a brilliant win over Bohemians they give to the players. Still, if we one of them as he is on international on the opening weekend of the can get back to a situation where the duty. I just can’t wrap my head season. On one hand, the result record at Oriel Park is even close to around it. Surely it has to be one or was surprising because you would what it was in 2019 then it would put the other? Either the Harps game expect Bohemians to be challenging us in a good position. gets called off because of it or, if the for the top three but, on the other, it game isn’t called off, then one of his wasn’t that big of a shock because We’re in something of a unique suspension games gets used up? everyone hates playing Harps in situation this week as two of our We don’t really have a problem with Ballybofey and, from a continuity players, Raivis Jurkovskis and Sonni him missing the Shamrock Rovers point of view, they have had the least Nattestad, are missing the game game; the problem is he will also amount of turnover to their starting because they are on international miss the game with Bohemians the 11. If you write out their starting 11 duty but we have the depth and following week which is a real kick from last weekend and their starting flexibility to cope without them. in the gut. 11 from the end of last year, I think When you look back at the Malone Conor Barry and Ethan Boyle were Cup game with Drogheda United in Finally, it’s well documented that the only two new names. That’s a pre-season, Sonni had to pull out we are trying to bring Han Jeongwoo big help. of the game late on which forced us and Wilfred Zahibo to the club. Han to have a look at Darragh Leahy in is an attacking player of real quality. They’re super organised, they a back three. Darragh played really He has great energy, he has pace work like Trojans and set pieces are well so that gives us the option to from a starting position, he likes a always a big thing with them. Unless stick with that if we feel that’s the trick and he gives us something a you match Finn Harps for desire, best way to go. We’re not married little bit different. He’s very similar to work rate and willingness to do the to any particular system, I think the likes of Michael Duffy and Junior nitty-gritty, you’re not going to get we’re married to a set of playing but he’s left-footed and that opens anything out of the game. There was principles, but we’re not married up other tactical ideas that we’ll a time two or three years ago where to any particular formation and be able to implement. His fitness you could try and blow them out of because we’ve got so many players levels and work rate have blown the water with quality but they’ve got of quality and players who are quite everybody out of the water and he’s to such a level now that you’ve got to flexible, I think we’ll quite easily someone that we’re already excited match their desire first before you try bounce between systems throughout about. With Wilfred, we’re pretty to put your stamp on it. the season. much there and now it’s just about trying to get everything boxed off. From our own point of view, it’s our News of Sonni’s two-game He is the complete central midfielder first home game of the campaign suspension for his red card in the and he would give us a tremendous and we definitely need to make FAI President’s Cup has also been presence. Some players have Oriel Park a fortress. I know it’d be made public in the last couple brilliant technical ability but might a lot easier to do that with the place of days. We’re obviously very not have the same physicality while packed but it’s the same situation for disappointed by the decision. The some have tremendous physicality everybody. We have to get back to initial communication from the FAI and aren’t quite as technical. Wilfred making it a place where teams just was that it would be an automatic ticks both boxes and is the complete dread coming to. That is no easy suspension for the next game but we midfielder so, hopefully, we can get it thing because football worldwide has told halfway through last week that finalised in the near future. shown there has been a massive that wasn’t the case and that there swing, more than I ever thought wouldn’t be a disciplinary hearing Enjoy the game, would exist. I thought things like until Thursday and no suspensions Shane Keegan 6 | DFC MAGAZINE Dundalk v Finn Harps | Friday March 26th 2021 7 | DFC MAGAZINE PLAYER PREVIEW PATRICK MCELENEY minutes now and the thinking is to build things up slowly. I feel really good and fit so fingers crossed. “I scored a goal against Sligo but I don’t think I’ve played overly well in the games. I’m my own biggest critic so I think I’ve been alright and it’ll probably be the next few weeks before you see the best of me. “It’s no secret that I had a bad year with injuries last year but I’ve come back really well and I’ve had nothing so I’ll be doing my best to stay injury free.” A fully fit McEleney would be a huge weapon in Dundalk’s arsenal. Appearance-wise, his best season in a white shirt came in 2017 when his performances, and catalogue of spectacular goals, saw him finish as runner-up to PFAI Player of the Year award winner Sean Maguire. “I had one injury that season,” he said. “Going into the next year I set the Player of the Year award as a target but that’s when I had all of the breakdowns and injuries and it atrick McEleney will lock said the Lilywhites attacker. was the same the following year. horns with a very familiar “Was it strange? No, not really,” “Winning the award is one of my face this evening when he added. “When you’re playing targets, though, and I know what Finn Harps come to town the game, you don’t really think I can do when I’m injury-free. I’m for Dundalk’s first home game about it.