O’Donnell’s appointment as Dundalk head coach is confirmed

Following a period of intense speculation, former St Patrick’s Athletic boss Stephen O’Donnell was confirmed as Dundalk’s new head coach earlier today.

A former captain of the Co Louth outfit – who picked up nine winners’ medals under the guidance of current Republic of Ireland senior supremo Stephen Kenny – O’Donnell takes over from Tallaght native Vinny Perth in the Oriel Park hot seat.

Despite leading St Pat’s to an FAI Cup title at the expense of Dublin rivals Bohemians in the Aviva Stadium on 28 November, the Galway native announced he was stepping down as Saints head coach last Friday.

Working in unison with Alan Mathews, O’Donnell brought silverware back to Inchicore for the first time in five years.

He also guided Pat’s to second place in this season’s SSE Airtricity League Premier Division – their highest finish since winning the competition in 2013. The club appears to be on an upward trajectory, but the lure of his former side evidently proved too strong for O’Donnell.

In a similar vein to the arrangement he enjoyed at Pat’s with Mathews, the 35-year-old will assume the mantle of ‘head coach’ with Dave Mackey on board as first-team manager.

Although O’Donnell is the main man behind the scenes – as he was at Richmond Park – he doesn’t possess the UEFA Pro Licence that is required to become a League of Ireland manager.

While he will be the one steering the ship, O’Donnell will be ably assisted by Mackey and Patrick Cregg – who joins the ex-Shamrock Rovers midfielder in moving from Pat’s to Dundalk.

The St Patrick’s Athletic board made no secret of their disappointment at O’Donnell’s decision to depart after a successful 2021 campaign, but they moved quickly to fill the void left by his departure.

Even before news of O’Donnell’s resignation broke, the appointment of Tim Clancy to the first-team management set-up had been revealed.

After leading Drogheda United to the SSE Airtricity League First Division title in 2020, Clancy – who enjoyed a brief spell with Shamrock Rovers as a player in 2015 – achieved a respectable seventh-place finish with the Claret and Blue Army and thus secured their top-flight status for another year.

Like O’Donnell, he is regarded as one of the brightest young coaches in the league and will be aiming to develop a squad that are capable of challenging for major honours again in 2022.