John Fallon: New dynamics in First Division make for deeper plotlines
SPOTLIGHT: The international break means that the League of Ireland First Division takes centre stage this Friday with table toppers Dundalk facing second placed Cobh Ramblers. Cobh captain Cian Coleman, pictured celebrating, is one of six Ramblers players who won the second tier title with Cork City last year. Picture: Michael P Ryan/Sportsfile
Within what was cruelly derided as a graveyard, there's a soul to this year's First Division.
The absence of Cork City, Waterford and Galway United from the second tier means it's the first time in six years that none of the 10 teams are full-time.
That's no bad thing in the eyes of Treaty United manager Tommy Barrett. "I feel it's a leveller for everyone, ensuring no side will run away with the title."
With the international break in full flow, the First Division can assume centre-stage for this week's series of fixtures on Friday night.
Dundalk and Cobh Ramblers are the pair to have begun fastest over the opening five games.
That their approaches have been different does again highlight the division's diversity.
Given Dundalk were on the brink of collapse in September, the fact that they've got a club at all to try to bounce straight back from relegation is a feat in itself.
Ciarán Kilduff at 36 is a young manager and his squad is similarly youthful.
New owner John Temple is still navigating the legacy debts of previous regimes but the club have managed to operate a weekly playing budget of around €10,000 for one-year contracts.
A boon towards majority funding that outlay came in the form of Uefa's vastly increased solidarity grants.
Dundalk slipping out of the top flight didn't prevent them from being entitled to the five-fold increased bounty of €365,000. No longer must it be spent on designated areas either.
While Dundalk have grizzled campaigners in captain Daryl Horgan, Aodh Dervin and Dean Ebbe, the backbone of their team are rookies.
Five teenagers started their last home game against Treaty United, with a further two introduced as substitutes.
Vinnie Leonard, a 16-year-old centre-half, and 18-year-old left-back Seán Keogh, are two standouts on duty with Ireland's underage teams in Euro qualifier action over the next week.
They're likely to develop into prized assets while simultaneously trying to contribute to promotion.
Contrasted with the difficulty for graduates to break into Premier Division teams, illustrated by last year's paltry portion of minutes for teens, the lower rung is a haven.
Kilduff said:
"All of these reasons fall into how we do things. That's the reality of where the club is right now but we're still very proud.
"We have a couple of experienced players who've been through it all but these young lads must be thrown in. We have complete faith that they have the talent and are the answer.
"Some are Irish internationals and they will be asked to stand up this year. Lads like Vinnie Leonard and Eoin Kenny have played five games in a row for the first time in their careers."
Dundalk's only blemish so far was two points dropped against Treaty by conceding twice late on. Clearly, Barrett's crew targeted the endurance and nous of the hosts' defence by launching deep crosses into the box.
"Sometimes we talk about a box midfield, diamonds or triangles but this division is about long throws and free kicks," stressed Kilduff, a stalwart of the domestic product from his playing days.
"It's easy after dropping two points against Treaty to question if they're too young. But they're not. It's about consistency of performance and these lads are learning quickly."
Cobh have deployed a strategy of relying on the tried and rested, complemented by some selected imports.
FC32 added the Rams to their international multi-club stable in the off-season with the aspiration of dining at the top table.
Captain Cian Coleman is one of six players who were part of Cork City's title-winning team from last year. Jonas Häkkinen did so in 2022 while Shane Griffin was a Premier Division winner with Shelbourne. Add in the guile of former Waterford pair Niall O'Keeffe along with Shane Griffin and it amounts to a dressing-room of seasoned campaigners.
Their ability to come from behind to win at a difficult venue like Finn Harps last week testifies to their status as genuine contenders for that coveted sole ticket to the 2026 Premier.
"We have a category of players from Cork City's title-winning team but got let go," explained new manager Mick McDermott about his squad's composition.
"They have something to prove, but so do our group of players who may have lost their way.
"We have Sam Bellis, who played for Manchester City and Southampton before coming to Waterford last season and is now here.
"It was a conscious decision of ours to have a group of players around the ages of 23/24 with something to prove. The question is are the players hungry to get back to where they are?"
Barrett knows the grind of the division well from his playing spell and four years at the helm of the Limerick club.
"I think Cobh have more experience and depth," was his take on the respective strengths of the two.
"If that team gel, Cobh are favourites in my eyes, despite Dundalk being down as favourites. That doesn't mean Dundalk can't win the league."
This may be the first year in a while we'll have to wait a long time to find out.
Email: john.fallon@examiner.ie
Former minister for sport Michael Ring has joined the FAI's National League Committee just as the crusade for academy funding had entered abeyance.
The veteran politician recently retired as a Mayo TD after 30 years, during which he served as minister of state for tourism and sport from 2011-2016.
The NLC is chaired by another former ex-minister, Dermot Ahern, since 2021 and oversees the running of the League of Ireland, both male and female.
It consists of club representatives, FAI board directors and independent members proposed by the board, including newcomer Ring.
All concerned hope his arrival breaks the deadlock on Government funding of the academy system.
Last year, Ring was instrumental in setting up a meeting hosted by his Fine Gael colleague Donohoe, where an FAI delegation outlined the case for State aid to the m inister for public expenditure.
That plea for €8m in annual grants was lodged late last year but since the election and change of Government, new minister Patrick O'Donovan has ruled out any monies being forthcoming as a matter of "urgency".
The stance has triggered alarm among the national clubs desperate to subsidise the coaches and facilities necessary to instigate a development system acutely lacking in the post-Brexit era.
World Cups may currently seem a pipedream – for male players anyway – but Ireland will today play the first of three games they hope leads them to the U17 spectacular in Qatar.
Colin O'Brien's side are in Poland, where they open against Belgium before facing the hosts on Saturday and Iceland next Tuesday.
Whichever of the four teams finishes top following the round-robin not only qualifies for the Euros in Albania from late May but also the World Cup. Four of the seven runners-up will also join them at next year's World Cup.
Victor Ozhianvuna, who featured in the Conference League for Shamrock Rovers, is among the squad.
"These games are huge," said former Cork City player O'Brien.
"Belgium are a really good side; unbeaten this year and they know what it takes to be successful around player development.
"Poland will be the host country, a lot of pressure on them, but some excellent teams down the years and then we play Iceland in game three, who, like so many countries around Europe, have improved massively over the years."
Ozhianvuna's Rovers teammate, Michael Noonan, spearheads the U19 team in Wolfsburg for their Euro elite phase. They have Finland today, Slovenia on Saturday before concluding against the mighty Germans next Tuesday.
