2021 Dundalk F.C. season

Dundalk entered the 2021 season as the FAI Cup holders, and were still the League of Ireland Cup holders, having won it in 2019, because of the competition not running in 2020. Having qualified for European football for the eighth season in a row, they were entered in the new UEFA Europa Conference League. 2021 was Dundalk's 13th consecutive season in the top tier of Irish football, their 86th in all, and their 95th in the League of Ireland.

Dundalk
2021 season
Team ManagerShane Keegan (until 17 April)
Jim Magilton (Interim from 19 April)
Vinny Perth (from 16 June)
Premier Division6th
FAI CupSemi final
President's CupWinners
Conference LeagueQR3
Top goalscorerLeague: Patrick Hoban (12)
All: Patrick Hoban (20)
Highest home attendance3,600 (est) (Vs. Derry City, 19 November 2021)
← 2020
2022 →

Jim Magilton was the club's new Sporting Director going into the new term, having taken up the role at the end of the 2020 season. Shane Keegan was named the First Team Manager at the beginning of the season, replacing Interim Head Coach from 2020, Filippo Giovagnoli, who was retained as First Team Coach. Giovagnoli could not be named manager because he did not hold a UEFA Pro Licence.

Season summary edit

For the second season in a row, both the League of Ireland Cup and the Leinster Senior Cup were deferred because of delays and restrictions caused by the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.[1]

Having not been held in 2020, the President's Cup (the traditional season curtain-raiser) was played on 12 March between League Champions Shamrock Rovers and FAI Cup holders Dundalk. Dundalk won the match on penalties, 4–3, after it had finished 1–1 in 90 minutes.[2]

The league season started a week later on 19 March 2021 and after a run of defeats at the start of the league campaign, which saw Dundalk lie second from bottom after five matches, both Keegan and Giovagnoli resigned. Sporting Director Jim Magilton assumed a caretaker manager role, pending the appointment of a new manager.[3] On 16 June, Vinny Perth, who had been sacked midway through the previous season, returned to the club as manager.[4] They continued to struggle in the league and were briefly threatened with a promotion/relegation play-off,[5] before recovering somewhat to end the season in sixth place.[6]

In the FAI Cup, a run of six appearances in a row in the final (a joint record for the competition) was ended when they were knocked out at the semi-final stage by St Patrick's Athletic, managed by former captain Stephen O'Donnell.[7]

In Europe, they defeated Newtown A.F.C. of Wales in the first qualifying round of the new Europa Conference League 5–0 on aggregate, which included a club European record equaling 4–0 victory in the first leg.[8] In the second qualifying round, they overcame Levadia Tallinn 4–3 on aggregate with Will Patching scoring a stoppage time winner in the second leg in Estonia.[9] They were knocked out in the third qualifying round by Vitesse Arnhem, 4–3 on aggregate, after a 2–1 defeat in the second leg at 'home' in Tallaght Stadium, which saw a Michael Duffy goal after 40 seconds incorrectly disallowed for offside.[10]

Before the season ended, the club was returned to local ownership when a consortium led by former co-owner Andy Connolly and sports technology firm STATSports agreed a takeover with Peak6. Sporting Director Jim Magilton left the club in the aftermath of the takeover.[11]

First-Team Squad (2021) edit

Sources:[12][13][14] Note: Substitute appearances in brackets

No. Name DOB Pos. Debut League FAI Cup Europe Others Totals
Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
1   Alessio Abibi 4 December 1996 GK 2021 20 0 1 0 6 0 1 0 28 0
3   Brian Gartland 4 November 1986 DF 2013 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0
4   Andy Boyle 7 March 1991 DF 2013 35 1 4 0 6 0 1 0 46 1
5   Chris Shields[a] 27 December 1990 MF 2012 16 3 0 0 0 0 1 0 17 3
6   Sonni Nattestad 5 August 1994 DF 2021 8 (5) 0 1 (1) 0 6 0 1 1 22 1
7   Michael Duffy 28 July 1994 MF 2017 31 (3) 4 3 1 4 2 0 0 41 7
8   Sam Stanton 19 April 1994 MF 2021 25 (4) 1 4 0 6 0 1 0 40 1
9   Patrick Hoban 28 July 1991 FW 2013 26 (1) 12 4 7 1 (2) 1 0 (1) 0 35 20
10   Greg Sloggett 3 July 1996 MF 2020 21 (8) 1 4 (1) 0 3 (1) 0 0 (1) 0 39 1
11   Patrick McEleney 26 September 1992 MF 2016 17 (4) 2 0 (1) 1 6 2 1 0 29 5
12   Cameron Yates 14 February 1999 GK 2021 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 2 0
13   Raivis Jurkovskis 7 December 1996 DF 2021 26 (2) 0 4 (1) 0 5 (1) 0 1 0 40 0
14   Peter Cherrie 1 October 1983 GK 2009 15 0 3 0 0 0 0 0 18 0
15   Darragh Leahy 15 April 1998 DF 2020 18 (5) 0 3 (1) 0 6 0 1 0 34 0
16   Seán Murray 11 October 1993 MF 2019 17 (10) 6 4 2 0 (3) 0 0 0 34 8
17   Ole Erik Midtskogen[b] 12 April 1995 FW 2021 5 (7) 1 1 0 0 (3) 0 0 0 16 1
17   Sami Ben Amar[c] 2 March 1998 FW 2021 8 (6) 1 2 (1) 1 0 0 0 0 17 2
18   Will Patching[d] 18 October 1998 MF 2020 15 (1) 0 3 (1) 0 5 3 0 0 25 3
19   Wilfried Zahibo[e] 21 August 1993 MF 2021 6 (6) 0 1 (1) 0 1 (4) 0 0 0 19 0
20   Junior Ogedi-Uzokwe[f] 3 March 1994 FW 2021 5 (7) 2 0 0 0 0 1 0 13 2
21   Daniel Cleary 9 March 1996 DF 2018 24 1 2 0 0 0 1 0 27 1
23   Cameron Dummigan 2 June 1996 DF 2019 26 (3) 0 5 0 1 (1) 0 0 (1) 0 37 0
24   Mayowa Animasahun[g] 8 August 2003 DF 2021 0 (6) 0 1 (2) 0 0 0 0 0 9 0
25   Val Adedokun[h] 14 February 2003 MF 2020 4 (2) 0 0 (1) 0 0 (1) 0 0 0 8 0
27   Daniel Kelly 21 May 1996 MF 2019 12 (7) 3 1 (1) 0 5 (1) 0 0 0 27 3
28   Ryan O'Kane 16 August 2003 MF 2021 1 (7) 0 0 (1) 0 0 (1) 0 0 0 10 0
29   David McMillan 14 December 1988 FW 2015 9 (11) 4 1 (1) 0 5 (1) 3 1 0 29 7
77   Jeongwoo Han[i] 26 December 1998 FW 2021 6 (7) 1 2 1 0 (2) 1 0 0 17 3
90   Jesús Pérez[j] 1 October 1997 MF 2021 0 (2) 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 0
  1. ^ transferred to Linfield on 1 July 2021
  2. ^ departed club 13 August 2021
  3. ^ signed for the club 17 August 2021
  4. ^ on loan at Derry City until 1 July 2021
  5. ^ signed 17 April 2021
  6. ^ on loan to Derry City as of 1 July 2021
  7. ^ signed professional contract on 10 August 2021
  8. ^ transferred to Brentford on 24 August 2021
  9. ^ signed 25 March 2021
  10. ^ on loan to Forward Madison as of 1 July 2021

Out on loan edit

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player
12 DF   IRL Andrew Quinn (at Bray Wanderers until 31 December 2021)
20 FW   ENG Junior Ogedi-Uzokwe (at Derry City until 31 December 2021)
22 MF   USA Taner Dogan (at Forward Madison until 31 December 2021)
90 MF   USA Jesús Pérez (at Forward Madison until 31 December 2021)
DF   CAN Terique Mohammed (at York United until 31 December 2021)

Competitions edit

  Win   Draw   Loss

President's Cup edit

12 March 2021 Shamrock Rovers1–1
(3–4 p)
Dundalk Tallaght Stadium
19:45 GMT Danny Mandroiu   22'
Liam Scales   47'
Chris McCann   59'
Joey O'Brien   60'
Report Raivis Jurkovskis   26'
Daniel Cleary   32'
Sonni Nattestad   42'
Sonni Nattestad   59'
Chris Shields   60'
Attendance: 0
Referee: Damien MacGraith
Penalties
Dylan Watts  
Aaron Greene  
Joey O'Brien  
Rory Gaffney  
Graham Burke  
Roberto Lopes  
  Patrick Hoban
  Greg Sloggett
  Daniel Cleary
  Chris Shields
  Andy Boyle
  Darragh Leahy

Premier Division edit

20 March 2021 Round 1 Sligo Rovers 1–1 Dundalk The Showgrounds
18:00 Romeo Parkes   23' Report Patrick McEleney   16' Attendance: 0
Referee: Neil Doyle
26 March 2021 Round 2 Dundalk 1–2 Finn Harps Oriel Park
17:45 Patrick Hoban   48' Report Adam Foley   43', 63' Attendance: 0
Referee: Derek Tomney
2 April 2021 Round 3 Shamrock Rovers 2–1 Dundalk Tallaght Stadium
19:45 Danny Mandroiu   35'
Dylan Watts   76'
Report Patrick Hoban   89' Attendance: 0
Referee: Paul McLoughlin
9 April 2021 Round 4 Dundalk 0–1 Bohemians Oriel Park
19:45 Report Georgie Kelly   13' (pen.) Attendance: 0
Referee: Rob Harvey
17 April 2021 Round 5 Dundalk 1–1 St Patrick's Athletic Oriel Park
18:00 Junior Ogedi-Uzokwe   85' Report Sam Bone   59' Attendance: 0
Referee: Damien MacGraith
20 April 2021 Round 6 Derry City 1–1 Dundalk Ryan McBride Brandywell Stadium
19:45 Cameron McJannet   61' Report David McMillan   54' Attendance: 0
Referee: Rob Hennessy
24 April 2021 Round 7 Dundalk 2–1 Drogheda United Oriel Park
18:00 David McMillan   24'
Jeongwoo Han   71'
Report Chris Lyons   90' Attendance: 0
Referee: Adriano Reale
30 April 2021 Round 8 Waterford 0–3 Dundalk Waterford Regional Sports Centre
19:45 Report Andy Boyle   25'
Chris Shields   43' (pen.)
Michael Duffy   46'
Attendance: 0
Referee: Derek Tomney
3 May 2021 Round 9 Longford Town 2–2 Dundalk Bishopsgate
17:45 Dylan Grimes   6'
Rob Manley   14'
Report Junior   20'
Chris Shields   81'
Attendance: 0
Referee: Damien MacGraith
7 May 2021 Round 10 Dundalk 0–1 Sligo Rovers Oriel Park
19:45 Report Jordan Gibson   39'
Garry Buckley   53'
Attendance: 0
Referee: Robert Hennessy
14 May 2021 Round 11 Finn Harps 1–1 Dundalk Finn Park
17:45 Barry McNamee   19' Report Ole Erik Midstkogen   49' Attendance: 0
Referee: Neil Doyle
21 May 2021 Round 12 Dundalk 2–1 Shamrock Rovers Oriel Park
19:45 Patrick McEleney   11'
Daniel Kelly   59'
Report Joey O'Brien   13' Attendance: 0
Referee: Rob Harvey
24 May 2021 Round 13 Bohemians 5–1 Dundalk Dalymount Park
17:45 Georgie Kelly   5', 50', 64'
Tyreke Wilson   51'
Promise Omochere   90'
Tyreke Wilson   51'
Report Greg Sloggett   80'
Cameron Dummigan   74'
Attendance: 0
Referee: Ben Connolly
28 May 2021 Round 14 St Patrick's Athletic 0–2 Dundalk Richmond Park
19:45 Report Sam Bone o.g.   32'
David McMillan   51'
Attendance: 0
Referee: Neil Doyle
12 June 2021 Round 15 Dundalk 1–3 Waterford Oriel Park
19:45 Patrick Hoban   30' (pen.) Report John Martin   44', 75'
Shane Griffin   62'
Attendance: 100
Referee: John McLoughlin
19 June 2021 Round 16 Dundalk 1–1 Longford Town Oriel Park
19:45 Chris Shields   28' Report Aaron McNally   12' Attendance: 100
Referee: Robert Hennessy
21 June 2021 Round 17 Drogheda United 0–1 Dundalk Head In The Game Park
19:45 Report Michael Duffy   35' Attendance: 100
Referee: Graham Kelly
25 June 2021 Round 18 Dundalk 2–1 Derry City Oriel Park
19:45 Daniel Kelly   36'
Patrick Hoban   56' (pen.)
Report Eoin Toal   60' Attendance: 100
Referee: Rob Harvey
2 July 2021 Round 19 Shamrock Rovers 3–1 Dundalk Tallaght Stadium
19:45 Liam Scales   37'
Sean Gannon   45'
Aaron Greene   75'
Report Patrick Hoban   11' Attendance: 1000
Referee: Damien MacGraith
17 July 2021 Round 20 Dundalk 1–0 Finn Harps Oriel Park
16:00 David McMillan   33' Report Attendance: 200
Referee: Rob Harvey
8 August 2021 Round 21 Dundalk 1–4 St Patrick's Athletic Oriel Park
15:00 Patrick Hoban   25' Report Melvin-Lambert   11'
Smith   41', 79'
Forrester   71' (pen.)
Attendance: 200
Referee: Rob Harvey
15 August 2021 Round 22 Derry City 1–0 Dundalk Ryan McBride Brandywell Stadium
15:00 McGonigle   50' (pen.) Report Attendance: 1,150
Referee: Damien MacGraith
20 August 2021 Round 23 Dundalk 1–2 Drogheda United Oriel Park
19:45 Michael Duffy   58' Report Mark Doyle   35', 56' Attendance: 500
Referee: Ben Connolly
3 September 2021 Round 24 Waterford 1–1 Dundalk Waterford Regional Sports Centre
19:45 Wordsworth   77' Report Sean Murray   5' Attendance: 1,800 (est)
Referee: John McLoughlin
11 September 2021 Round 25 Longford Town 1–0 Dundalk Bishopsgate
19:30 O'Driscoll   45'
Robinson   56'
Manley   85'
Report Jeongwoo Han   90' Attendance: 1,000 (est)
Referee: Derek Tomney
15 September 2021 Round 26 Sligo Rovers 2–1 Dundalk The Showgrounds
19:45 Andre Wright   20'
Lewis Banks   52'
Report Patrick Hoban   18' Attendance: 1,650
Referee: Ben Connolly
24 September 2021 Round 27 Dundalk 4–1 Sligo Rovers Oriel Park
19:45 Sean Murray   12', 20'
Patrick Hoban   63', 90'
Report Johnny Kenny   14' Attendance: 1,800
Referee: Robert Harvey
27 September 2021 Round 28 Dundalk 2–1 Bohemians Oriel Park
19:45 Sam Stanton   44'
Patrick Hoban   58'
Report Tyreke Wilson   71' Attendance: 1,800
Referee: Neil Doyle
1 October 2021 Round 29 Finn Harps 2–2 Dundalk Finn Park
20:00 Tunde Owolabi   18', 68' Report Michael Duffy   59'
Patrick Hoban   62' (pen.)
Attendance: 1,500 (est)
Referee: Adriano Reale
8 October 2021 Round 30 Dundalk 1–0 Shamrock Rovers Oriel Park
19:45 Sean Murray   32' Report Attendance: 1,800
Referee: Rob Harvey
15 October 2021 Round 31 Bohemians 1–1 Dundalk Dalymount Park
19:45 Georgie Kelly   90' (pen.) Report Sami Ben Amar   30' Attendance: 2,400 (est)
Referee: Damien MacGraith
25 October 2021 Round 32 St Patrick's Athletic 1–0 Dundalk Richmond Park
19:45 Billy King   26' Report Attendance: 1,500 (est)
Referee: Graham Kelly
29 October 2021 Round 33 Dundalk 1–0 Waterford Oriel Park
19:45 Daniel Kelly   45' Report Attendance: 2,400 (est)
Referee: John McLoughlin
5 November 2021 Round 34 Drogheda United 0–1 Dundalk Head In The Game Park
19:45 Report Daniel Cleary   86' Attendance: 1,861
Referee: Rob Harvey
7 November 2021 Round 35 Dundalk 2–0 Longford Town Oriel Park
17:00 Patrick Hoban   46'
Sean Murray   53'
Report Attendance: 2,000 (est)
Referee: Adriano Reale
19 November 2021 Round 36 Dundalk 1–2 Derry City Oriel Park
19:45 Sean Murray   33' Report Ciaron Harkin   45'
Jamie McGonigle   52'
Attendance: 3,600 (est)
Referee: Neil Doyle

League table edit

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification or relegation
1 Shamrock Rovers (C) 36 24 6 6 59 28 +31 78 Qualification to Champions League first qualifying round
2 St Patrick's Athletic 36 18 8 10 56 42 +14 62 Qualification to Europa Conference League second qualifying round[a]
3 Sligo Rovers 36 16 9 11 43 32 +11 57 Qualification to Europa Conference League first qualifying round
4 Derry City 36 14 12 10 49 42 +7 54
5 Bohemians 36 14 10 12 60 46 +14 52
6 Dundalk 36 13 9 14 44 46 −2 48
7 Drogheda United 36 12 8 16 45 43 +2 44
8 Finn Harps 36 11 11 14 44 52 −8 44
9 Waterford (R) 36 12 6 18 36 56 −20 42 Qualification to Relegation play-offs
10 Longford Town (R) 36 2 9 25 22 71 −49 15 Relegation to League of Ireland First Division
Source: SSE Airtricity League, Soccerway
Rules for classification: 1) Points; 2) Goal difference; 3) Goals scored.[15]
(C) Champions; (R) Relegated
Notes:
  1. ^ Since the winners of the 2021 FAI Cup (St Patrick's Athletic) qualified for European competition based on their league position, the final spot awarded to the Cup winner passed to the next best-placed team i.e fourth-placed team.

FAI Cup edit

25 July 2021 Round 1Treaty United0–1 (a.e.t.) Dundalk Markets Field
14:00 Report Patrick McEleney   104' Attendance: 200
Referee: Neil Doyle
27 August 2021 Round 2 Dundalk 5–1St Mochta'sOriel Park
19:45 Sami Ben Amar   8'
Patrick Hoban   51' (pen.), 52', 61'
Jeongwoo Han   73'
Report McCaffrey   12' Attendance: 500
Referee: Graeham Kelly
17 September 2021 Quarter-finalFinn Harps3–3DundalkFinn Park
20:00 Tunde Owolabi   25'
Jordan Mustoe   28'
Sean Boyd   84', 90'
Report Patrick Hoban   29' (pen.), 65'
Sean Murray   39'
Attendance: 1,690
Referee: Damien MacGraith
21 September 2021 QF Replay Dundalk 3–1 (a.e.t.)Finn HarpsFinn Park
19:45 Sean Murray   39'
Patrick Hoban   97' (pen.)
Michael Duffy   105'
Report Sean Boyd   6' Attendance: 2,000 (est)
Referee: Ben Connolly
22 October 2021 Semi-final St Patrick's Athletic 3–1DundalkRichmond Park
19:45 Billy King   26'
Matty Smith   57'
Darragh Burns   86'
Report Patrick Hoban   41' Attendance: 4,000
Referee: Neil Doyle

Europa Conference League edit

First qualifying round
8 July 2021 1st Leg Dundalk 4–0   Newtown Oriel Park
17:45 Michael Duffy   32'
David McMillan   38'
Will Patching   62'
Jeongwoo Han   90'
Report Attendance: 120
Referee: Barbeno Luca (San Marino)
13 July 2021 2nd Leg   Newtown 0–1 Dundalk Park Hall, Oswestry
17:45 Michael Duffy   52' Report Attendance: 174
Referee: Andrei Chivulete (Romania)

Dundalk won 5–0 on aggregate.

Second qualifying round
22 July 2021 1st Leg Dundalk 2–2   Levadia Tallinn Tallaght Stadium
20:00 Will Patching   3'
David McMillan   27'
Report Bogdan Vaštšuk   2', 19' Attendance: 880
Referee: Miroslav Zelinka (Czechia)
29 July 2021 2nd Leg   Levadia Tallinn 1–2 Dundalk A. Le Coq Arena
17:30 Ernest Agyiri   17' Report David McMillan   44'
Will Patching   90'
Attendance: 1,875
Referee: Thorvaldur Árnason (Iceland)

Dundalk won 4–3 on aggregate.

Third qualifying round
5 August 2021 1st Leg   Vitesse Arnhem 2–2 Dundalk GelreDome
18:00 Bero   20'
Openda   89'
Openda   90'
Report McEleney   65', 76' Attendance: 8,756
Referee: Anastasios Papapetrou (Greece)
12 August 2021 2nd Leg Dundalk 1–2   Vitesse Arnhem Tallaght Stadium
20:00 Hoban   71' (pen.) Report Bero   28'
Gboho   38'
Attendance: 1,475
Referee: Alain Durieux (Luxembourg)

Dundalk lost 4–3 on aggregate.

Footnotes edit

References edit

  1. ^ "League of Ireland Fixtures Announced". breakingnews.ie. Retrieved 3 February 2021.
  2. ^ "ABIBI THE HERO IN THE SHOOTOUT". dundalkfc.com. Retrieved 13 March 2021.
  3. ^ "DUNDALK FC STATEMENT". dundalkfc.com. Retrieved 19 April 2021.
  4. ^ McLaughlin, Gavin. "VINNY RETURNS TO ORIEL PARK". dundalkfc.com. Retrieved 19 June 2021.
  5. ^ Rogers, James. "Dundalk climb out of relegation play-off spot with Bohs' win". The Argus. No. 27 September 2021. INM. Retrieved 20 November 2021.
  6. ^ "DUNDALK 1-2 DERRY CITY". dundalkfc.com. Retrieved 20 November 2021.
  7. ^ Ferris, Macdarra. "FAI Cup Report:". extratime.com. Retrieved 23 October 2021.
  8. ^ "Lilywhites Take Control". dundalkfc.com. Retrieved 13 August 2021.
  9. ^ "Lilywhites Through in Tallinn". dundalkfc.com. Retrieved 13 August 2021.
  10. ^ "European dream dies". dundalkfc.com. Retrieved 13 August 2021.
  11. ^ McDonnell, Daniel (11 November 2021). "Dundalk back in local hands". Irish Independent. Retrieved 11 November 2021.
  12. ^ "Dundalk FC Squad 2021". worldfootball.net. Retrieved 18 January 2021.
  13. ^ "First Team". dundalkfc.com. Retrieved 18 January 2021.
  14. ^ "Dundalk FC Squad". uefa.com. Retrieved 8 October 2020.
  15. ^ "Premier Division 2021". Soccerway. Retrieved 2 February 2021.