Chris Bennion
Interviewed by Keith Wallace, 29th September 2008.
AS LAST LINES OF DEFENCES go, none comes much better than Dundalk’s own Scottish Braveheart, Chris Bennion. Now in his fifth straight season at Oriel Park, goalkeeper Bennion – probably the best thing ever to come out of Shelbourne’s existence – has proved to be one of the only positives from Trevor Anderson’s reign at the border club. Signed by the worst ever manager in the history of the Lilywhites, Bennion departed Shels and has been at Dundalk ever since, somehow surviving the dramatic rollercoaster ride that he has experienced since his arrival.
Scottish Roots
Bennion began his career at local Edinburgh Celtic, before signing for city giants, Heart of Midlothian, after turning down a move to Glasgow Celtic. “I was going to sign schoolboys with Celtic, but I obviously went to Hearts and spent two years there in schoolboys,” Benno explains to the DFC Magazine. “I used to go and train with the first-team when I was young, so it was a good experience there. Hearts wanted me to stay on for another year, but I wanted to leave and to go into scholarship. I got a phone call from Ron Bond, who asked me to go down to Middlesbrough. I went down for a week at first, trained with them and done well, and then I got invited back for a month. I went down for a month’s trial, trained with the first-team and then got offered a two-year deal. It was a good set-up, and when I joined them, they were on a high with a lot of decent players there. I was delighted to sign the deal. I left Edinburgh when I was sixteen, so it was a great experience.”
Shels Spell
Bennion’s time at Middlesbrough was mixed as he was sent out on two loan spells during his time there, including one to Shelbourne in the 1999-00 season. “I was actually heading out on holidays and I got a phone call telling me that the club were sending me to Ireland,” Chris recalls. “To be honest, I didn’t have much option! They had no back-up to Steve Williams, so I just came over for the European games and then I got called back. I think Pat Fenlon was a Middlesbrough scout at the time. He obviously phoned Ron Bond and Ron told Bryan Robson that they were going to send me out, so Bryan told me that I was leaving and that I had to report back down for a week’s training before I came over to Shels. I enjoyed it when I came over, it was a different culture and it was a good experience to come over and to get involved in Europe. It was nice to get away and to train with a different club. I played a couple of games when I was over, I think it was the Presidents Cup and that. I obviously done well enough because Nutsy (Fenlon) signed me later on. Alan Matthews (then Shels assistant) was on the phone to me every Monday when I was at Boro asking me to sign for Shels, but I was just looking to push on and see if I could make my mark at Boro. But, unfortunately, I injured my back and that set me back. There’s no point in looking back, though.”
Boro Bow
Chris soon returned to Boro after the club met with a ‘keeper crisis. And, with nobody else available, he took his place between the sticks for a League Cup tie with Macclesfield Town at the Riverside stadium. “I was in the squad quite a few times before I came over here,” the 28-year-old explains, “but I never made my debut. I got a phone call to go back to Boro and I was on the bench three or four times before that LC game. I remember it was torrential rain that day and I was thinking that the game was going to be called off. It was probably the worst conditions I’ve played in, bar the Finn Harps game! Mark Schwarzer got injured, so I had to play in the Carling Cup game and I done well. I didn’t have a lot to do in the game, but what I done, I done well. We came back from a goal behind and we won 2-1. It was nice just to read about yourself in the paper – I got a good write-up. Then Mark came back in and I was on the bench for a few Premier League games again. It was a good experience, but as I said, I unfortunately done my back in a reserve game just at the wrong time. I think it was against York. I was getting offered a two-year contract, but then that got put back from month to month to next year. Then I got fit and Steve McClaren came in and offered me a year extension, and I signed that, but I ended up going on-loan to Scunthorpe.”
Scunthorpe Exit
Bennion’s injury healed quicker than expected and he soon signed on for Glanford Park outfit, Scunthorpe United. However, his time there was cut short due to a difference of opinion with manager, Brian Laws, which left the door open for a permanent return to Shels. “I got injured in October I think it was and I was meant to be out for ten months,” the Scot recalls. “But I came back after four or five and done a bit of training, and then went to Scunthorpe. I think it was at the start of the season. I signed a three-month loan deal which took me up to Christmas. I actually enjoyed it and done well again, but I didn’t see eye-to-eye with Brian Laws. At the end of the year then, he didn’t want to keep me and I didn’t want to stay, so I’d say within ten minutes of having a meeting with Brian Laws, I got a phone call from Pat Fenlon. I don’t know how he knew, but he asked me to sign for Shels. I don’t know if it was just a coincidence, but he asked me to come over and I did. We had a discussion and I signed a two-year deal with them. At the time, I had just got engaged to my now wife, who was doing her exams then. Over in England, a lot of the clubs were struggling at the time, so I spoke to my agent, and he thought it would be a good move, and it has worked out well.”
No Justice
Once again, Bennion’s time on the playing field was hampered by the form of ex-Lilywhite legend, Steve Williams, as he struggled to break into the first-team. His chance finally came after Williams suffered a bad run of form, however, Chris believes that he didn’t perform to his capabilities when called upon. “Willo went through a little bit of a bad spell, we got knocked out of Europe and then Pat Fenlon put me in,” he explains. “Looking back, the only problem was, I was playing for the first-team on a Friday and then playing for the reserves on the Saturday because we didn’t have a fit goalkeeper. I ended up picking up a little ankle injury in one of those games. Willo came back in then, against Derry I think it was when we got beaten 1-0 up there. Nutsy dropped me for the cup game, and Willo, to be fair, done well and I just had to sit there then. It was very frustrating. I knew I had let myself down. I didn’t do myself justice at Shels, but Nutsy was offering me another new deal because he had seen enough of me, but I moved on.”
Anderson Era
After leaving Shels, Longford Town and Dundalk both sought Chris’ services. And, it was the offer of a full-time contract from the Lilywhites that swayed the netminder to Oriel. “I spoke to Alan Matthews (Longford manager) a few times,” he reveals. “I didn’t want to go part-time, to be honest, and looking back, I was probably a bit naïve. He said he definitely wanted to sign me, but I was over in England and I got a phone call from Dundalk, asking me to come over. I came back over and had a chat with Des Denning, obviously Trevor Anderson and Paul Curran was there as well. I liked what they were saying and I decided to come up here. I actually liked Trevor! I know the fans wouldn’t take to him, but he wasn’t a bad manager. I just think he really needed a good coach. He was an old style manager, he didn’t take any nonsense off the players and then he obviously signed a couple of bad players. We started that season well, but it all went downhill then unfortunately. I didn’t mind Trevor, but his face didn’t fit here and he moved on. Being here at that time, I found it very hard. Obviously, my first two years were full-time up here, and I was trying to plan a wedding. We weren’t getting paid for a while then. I didn’t get paid for 10-12 weeks at one stage I think, and being full-time, this is your livelihood and your life. It was difficult but we got through it, and at least Gerry Matthews has come in now and fair play to the Board. The whole place is steady now, and looking around at all the League of Ireland clubs that are in trouble, at least Dundalk are steady, they have their house in order and I think it’s paying off on the pitch now.”
Serious Setback
Benno’s first season was one of turmoil as Anderson was replaced by ex-Shels star Jim Gannon after only seven games, before the Scot suffered a serious back injury at the beginning of his second term at Oriel. “I didn’t mind Jim,” Chris admits. “He had ambitions but I knew he wasn’t staying on long. I wasn’t surprised when he left. I heard a few rumours that he was going to Stockport, and I knew that he was flying over and doing bits and bobs. Looking back, he had ambitions and he didn’t want to be in a part-time set-up. I didn’t see eye-to-eye with Jim all the time, that’s just the type of person he was. I just think some of the formations and techniques that he used in the team was bizarre at times. But, again, I didn’t mind Jim. Fair play to him, he’s doing well at Stockport and I’ve spoke to him a few times since he’s left, so I’m pleased for him. That season (2005), I was playing very well, but I took a bad knock against Dublin City. I took a heavy knock on my back and I had a bulging disk, which caused me to lose the feeling in my left leg. I had to go and get a couple of injections up my spine, but – touch wood – I haven’t had any problems with it since. I think if we had got a better medical set-up at the time, I wouldn’t have been out for the whole season. The medical set-up here now is fantastic, and if that injury was now, I reckon it would have only been a few weeks and I would have been back. That’s history now, though. That’s all looking back; at least everything is in order now.”
Status Switch
Following Gannon’s walkout near the end of the campaign, John Gill was appointed for the 2006 season, with Bennion agreeing to change to part-time status for the first time in his career. “John came in, we spoke and he told me that he wasn’t offering me a full-time contract,” Chris reveals. “He wanted me to go part-time, and that took a little bit of time to adjust to with training and trying to get my family life in order. To be fair to John, he was understanding and he knew that my family were here in Dublin. I’ve only got my wife and my daughter, they’ve got no family over here, so he was very lenient at times and obviously gave me the odd training session off to be with my family. I was very satisfied with that, and it has paid dividends, because obviously when I’m up here, we work well and we have a good relationship. The first season didn’t start great, but then we went on a run of just one loss in 37 games. We were just unfortunate, with politics denying us promotion. But maybe it was a blessing in disguise that we didn’t get promoted straight away. I think now would be the right time to go up. Looking back, even going up last year would have been difficult. But hopefully we’ll get promoted this year; we just have to take it a game at a time and keep pushing on. I think I was on holidays in the Dominican Republic when I found out about Galway going up instead of us. I left straight away after the season ended and I got a phone call when I was out there telling me that we weren’t getting promoted. I half expected it. We got told obviously that if we beat Waterford in the playoff that we’d go up. That was the rumour flying about, but I wasn’t surprised. I think it shows now that the FAI got it wrong, but again, we can’t look back, we just have to keep pushing on. Hopefully, we can go up this year, because I think we’re ready for it now as a club and as a team.”
Sitting Pretty
Currently sitting five points clear ahead of tonight’s crucial meeting with his former club, Bennion is content with Dundalk’s position at present. And, he admits that he prefers being in front rather than chasing somebody else, like the Lilywhites had to do with Shamrock Rovers two seasons ago. “If somebody had said to me at the start of the season that we’d be five points clear going into the final round of matches – I know other teams have games in hand – I would have probably taken it,” Benno says. “I think three or four teams have had opportunities to open up gaps and nobody has taken it, so it’s going to go right down to the wire. Again, it makes it interesting for the neutral, but hopefully it won’t be too nervy at the end. I’d say we’ll be fine. It’s hard when you’re chasing a team for the title. Two years ago, Rovers were doing well, they were keeping clean-sheets and people were constantly checking teletext and you’d see that Rovers had won 1-0 or had scored in the last minute, and that can get soul destroying, so it’s up to us to do our work properly. Our win last week put pressure on Waterford, so we’ve just got to keep looking after ourselves. We’ve got Shelbourne now, and, hopefully, we can drive on and get another three points tonight. Playing on a Thursday night does give you an advantage if you do your work right, but then if you don’t do your work, you’re giving a team an incentive to go and win.”
Coaching Class
Since Gill’s arrival at Oriel, Bennion has been lucky to work with three top class goalkeeping coaches – Dermot O’Neill, Paul Fagan and now Martin Connolly. Prior to that, under Anderson and Gannon, he trained with the rest of the team, and Chris believes that his game suffered as a result. “Martin is excellent,” he admits. “Dermot O’Neill was great when he came in, Paul Fagan was excellent and Martin is the same now. They all have different training methods. I have to give John credit. The one thing he promised me was that he would bring in a goalkeeping coach. Jim Gannon didn’t find it important and neither did Trevor Anderson, and I think my game suffered up here without proper training. The last three years, John kept his word and has always had a goalkeeping coach in. The three of them have been excellent and I have to give Martin credit as well. I have confidence in my own ability, but it’s nice just after a game to have someone who would point out little things that you maybe don’t see yourself and then you can work on that in training. John is probably the first to admit that he wouldn’t pick up on things that Martin would. You can analyse your game yourself, but, unfortunately, you don’t pick up on everything, and at least when you have a goalkeeping coach, they can work on it with you.”
Future Hopes
So, five seasons down…how many to go? “I think I’ll be here next year,” Benno says when speaking about his hopes for the future. “I love it up here. It just showed you last week; we had a couple of blips and most teams wouldn’t have a crowd like we did against Kildare. I think the fans are fantastic, I like it up here and I’m really enjoying it. I’ve got a good relationship with the manager and the coaching staff, and I think the fans appreciate me, so I like playing here. I’ve been through a rollercoaster ride with Dundalk, but there’s obviously light at the end of the tunnel, and I can see myself being here for the foreseeable future. I always think that I can step up to a higher level. I said to John that next year I want to be playing in the Premier, and hopefully that will be with Dundalk. If we don’t make it this year, it won’t be from the lack of trying, but I’ll hopefully still be up here next year.”
