Dundalk quartet shortlisted for awards as Crawley is named Press Officer of the Year

Dundalk FC manager Stephen Kenny and players Richie Towell and Pat Hoban have all been shortlisted for the 2014 SSE Airtricity / Soccer Writers’ Association of Ireland’s Personality of the Year award.

The prestigious awards will be presented at the SSE Airtricity / SWAI Annual Banquet in Dublin’s Conrad Hotel on Friday January 9th 2015 with the trio up against St Patrick’s Athletic manager Liam Buckley (last year’s winner), Cork City boss John Caulfield and Pat’s striker Christy Fagan.

Meanwhile, goalkeeper Peter Cherrie – who has since departed Oriel Park – has been shortlisted once again for the Goalkeeper of the Year award. He will be up against last year’s winner, Brendan Clarke of St Pat’s, and Cork City’s Mark McNulty.

The last Dundalk player or manager to win the Personality of the Year award was Peter Hanrahan in 1991 while no Lilywhites goalkeeper has ever won the Goalkeeper of the Year prize.

Dundalk have already scooped one award though with the club’s Media Officer Darren Crawley being named in the SSE Airtricity / SWAI Press Officer of the Year last night.

McConville honoured by Soccer Writers

Tommy McConville RIP

Dundalk legend Tommy McConville was posthumously honoured by the Soccer Writers’ Association of Ireland at their annual awards in Dublin on Friday.

McConville, who passed away in October following illness, received a special merit award on the night for his contribution to Irish football and support of the event over the years.

Tommy’s close friend Dermot Keely made a speech in his honour on the night while the award was collected on his half by his only son, Thomas. The remainder of the McConville family were in attendance on the night.

Meanwhile, former Argus editor Jim Smyth was honored for his contribution to journalism in a special presentation made by his close friend and former colleague, Kevin Mulligan.

There was no such luck on the night for Dundalk FC, with St Patrick’s Athletic manager Liam Buckley pipping Stephen Kenny and Richie Towell to the Personality of the Year award and Brendan Clarke beating Peter Cherrie to the Goalkeeper of the Year prize.

Two Dundalk players named in MNS Team of the Year

Patrick Hoban

Two Dundalk players were last night named on the MNS Airtricity Premier Division Team of the Year.

The team, as selected by pundits from the RTÉ show, featured eight players from league champions St Patrick’s Athletic, two from Dundalk and one from Derry City.

Richie Towell was selected in midfield for the Team of the Year with Pat Hoban up front.

Both players are nominated for the Player of the Year and Young Player of the Year awards at the PFAI Awards later this month.

The team in full is Brendan Clarke; Ger O’Brien, Conor Kenna, Kenny Browne, Ian Bermingham, Richie Towell, Greg Bolger, Killian Brennan, Conan Byrne, Rory Patterson and Pat Hoban.

Related articles

• Dundalk players named in team of the year as Hoban and Towell tussle it out for Player of the Year gong (talkofthetown.ie)
• Towell the only Dundalk player named in RTE’s Team of the Year (talkofthetown.ie)

Dundalk put themselves firmly in title race with win over Pat’s

Kurtis Byrne celebrates his equaliser for Dundalk last night

Dundalk 2

St Patrick’s Athletic 1

Dundalk FC put themselves firmly into contention to challenge for the Airtricity League Premier Division title at Oriel Park last night as John Sullivan’s goal seven minutes from time saw them inflict a first defeat in 15 matches on league leaders St Patrick’s Athletic.

It was the Lilywhites who last beat Liam Buckley’s side at Richmond Park back in early April and this result means that they are now just six points behind the Inchicore outfit with a game in hand.

A key turning point in the game came on 35 minutes when recently named SWAI Player of the Month for May, Killian Brennan, was shown a straight red card for a two footed lunge on Darren Meenan.

Despite that setback, it was Pat’s who took the lead on the hour mark with Christy Fagan applying the easiest of finishes after Greg Bolger’s cross was palmed invitingly into his path by Peter Cherrie.

The lead lasted just 10 minutes, however, with Kurtis Byrne levelling matters with a cool finish after twisting Ger O’Brien inside out inside the box.

It looked like Pat’s had rescued a point for themselves when goalkeeper Brendan Clarke saved a poor penalty from Byrne on 75 minutes after Shane McFaul had needlessly fouled Keith Ward in the area.

However, the 27-year-old goalkeeper went from hero to villain in the 83^rd minute when he spilled right back Sullivan’s low cross into the net at his near post to gift Stephen Kenny’s side a first home win over Pat’s since 1998.

The only downside to a great night at Oriel was a potentially serious cruciate injury to Ward and that a St Pat’s fan left the ground via an ambulance having suffered a fall in the stand.

Dundalk: Cherrie; Sullivan, Rossiter, Boyle, Massey; Meenan,Dillon (Ward, 56 mins), Towell, McDonnell (Mulvenna, 67 mins), Byrne; Hoban (Faherty, 79 mins). Subs not used: Osborne, Shields, O’Connor, Shanahan.

St Patrick’s Athletic: Clarke; O’Brien, Browne, Kenna, Bermingham; Forrester, Bolger, Brennan, McFaul (Russell, 77 mins), Byrne (Price, 85 mins); Fagan (Flood, 82 mins). Subs not used: Carroll, Kelly, Maher, Ryan.

Referee: Anthony Buttimer (Cork).

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