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Having achieved coaching qualifications to Uefa A Licence level and intending to go for his Pro Licence, Brian Donnelly has completed his second season as Coach of Dundalk Ladies senior squad. So how has he enjoyed the experience of coming on board at Dundalk FC?
Approached by the Club
Initially Brian was contacted by Dundalk FC following the unfortunate situation where some problems had lead to a split in the team. The Club were looking for somebody new to come in and steady the ship. Prior to the split, the Ladies team had achieved the great success of having qualified for Europe but then found themselves in a situation where approximately half of the team had left, so it was a big job to do and considering he hadn’t been involved in women’s football before this, it was a tough ask. “When you’re involved in women’s football you realise that it’s a different situation to men’s. You have to be aware of needing to use a different approach. I have found that generally speaking, women are probably technically better than men but your approach has to be a little bit different for example, how you speak”.
Current status of Dundalk Ladies
Dundalk Ladies have had a very challenging and sometimes tough season playing in the premier division of the Dublin League. But most importantly, they have retained their premier division status for the new season. “We were very unlucky with some league results in the season just past and they cost us dearly. We’ve also played in the National Cup and progressed to the quarter- finals. Witnesses on the day we were knocked out would tell you that we were very unlucky in that competition. We hit a bad run in a vital part of the season and unfortunately struggled somewhat to regain momentum. I must pay great credit to the girls because they have nothing but the will to win for the club, every one of them love the club, right to the core. Moral has been extremely high and if anything, it is their confidence and self-belief on the pitch that has been a bit lacking, but that is back now and I have absolutely no doubt they are going to be a cracking team”.
The level of the Ladies game
“The level that our senior team is at presently, we would regard as the highest level you can achieve in the country at present. We would be fully supportive of any re-structuring of a League of Ireland for women’s football. We would back such a move 100%. Unfortunately women’s football is still treated as second class, even by the organisers of under age international football. For example, decimation of the league fixture list was caused last season due to an acute lack of organisation. Under Uefa ruling, players must be released from their club if selected for an international fixture and if more than two players are called up from any one club, then the club may not play the previous weekend. This stipulation impacted heavily on the league fixture list so that we found ourselves in mid November with three fixtures from a summer league still to play”.
Positive signs
“On the positive side of things I have been very impressed and it is great to see Andy Lennon’s team, who started out with him as under-12s, progress so well in the time that I have been here as the senior Ladies coach. They finished the summer league this year very strong and are now playing in the winter league for the first time They are testimony to the fact that the future for Ladies football at Dundalk is very bright. In the space of twelve months we have
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brought six under-16s players into the senior team. Kate Flood is a junior international, Rachel Riordain at the start of the season lacked a bit of confidence but she has progressed through this season into a great player. Things are looking very good”.
Junior to senior level all part of one overall unit
“When the club asked me to get involved, I stepped back to see who we had and what was available to us. For the senior team I felt that in my first season if we stayed in the premier league we would have achieved a great deal and that’s what we did. To stay in it the following season i.e. the one just past, has also been an indicator that we are doing well. Personally, looking at the bigger picture, I wanted to start re-addressing the whole structure from the bottom up. In considering Andy’s young team, there are six or seven players in his under-14s side that you could add as quality players to an under-16s squad. They are really strong players and this aspect of the Ladies game for Dundalk is looking very promising for the future. As already mentioned we have brought some of the under-16s into the senior squad. So overall, we have strong plans to address problem areas and keep building on the success that is currently evident”.
So amidst this very positive outlook, have there been any particularly special highlights for Brian at Dundalk FC?
“The first victory with the team was special. We won 4-1 against Benfica of Waterford in Oriel Park. As any manager knows you set your team up, do all your training, send them out for a competitive match and sometimes you’re going to lose. But we don’t panic, we give everyone a chance and that first victory was brilliant. My personal highlight for this season is undoubtedly the progression of all the under-age girls’ teams at the club. I think it is looking really really good for the future”.
Being part of Dundalk FC
“Having been involved with senior teams as a player and some representative squads, I have been familiar with what facilities are available to men, who are generally looked after. Consequently, when I came here if I saw something that wasn’t right, I would have asked for it to be fixed. However, anything that my players could ever want is here. If it’s not, all they’ve got to do is ask and if it’s within reason we get it. The girls have dressing rooms, physios and good coaches! They have the backing of the club in any situation, for example, take last year’s European trip, the main pitch is available to us for our home games, if we choose, we are able to have as much use of it as the senior men, which is a great facility. In comparison to other teams in our league, the facilities we have at Dundalk FC are second to none. There are eight teams in our league and I think maybe six of them have their own grounds. As I said earlier the women’s game is not particularly well looked after throughout the country as a whole, but when you see the facilities available to us here there is no way anyone could question the club’s commitment to the women’s game”.
Standard of ladies football in Ireland
“In the two seasons I have been involved in women’s football, I believe the standard is good, I still wonder having seen so many good players in the country, how so many players from outside of the country are picked to play for the national team. To me the quality is there amongst the ladies playing in our league. I feel there should be a little bit more evidence in the selection of squads that the girls playing in Ireland are being considered for the national team. There is no correspondence between club and the national team. We are very proud that Kate Flood is involved but, there is no communication from the national squad to our club in terms of perhaps a player’s training programme and I find this situation both astonishing and disappointing. They don’t send scouts to watch our senior team’s league games and they don’t look for feedback from club coaches on players that they may feel should be considered or given a chance for the national team. For example, Kate was in a national competition in Limerick for under-age players where she performed very well and that is where she was spotted for the national team”.
FAI involvement in development of the Ladies game
“Any progression is positive and if the FAI is willing to even suggest the idea of having a national women’s league, I would expect there would be some form of communication to the clubs and that would be very welcome but to date, nothing new has been implemented. It would be great to develop a more professional approach to the Ladies game with better standards of refereeing etc.”.
Supporters of the Ladies teams
“I would like to see more advertising in general for the ladies games. Perhaps advertising by the Club could enhance support. I do believe that better promotion of the ladies game should be organised by the league itself, for example we should see advertising to the standard that there is for the Eircom League. A higher profile for the ladies game in local newspapers and on the radio stations would also be very welcome. Admission to all of the games is free so all we are asking for is support and encouragement from the sidelines”.
Word of thanks
Finally, Brian wished to express his thanks to John Brennan for the work he has carried out as assistant manager for the senior ladies team. “John has been a fantastic help to me with every aspect of managing the team over the last season. I am also very grateful to Larry Brennan who has done great work with the under-16s team. There are many other people whose support and efforts form an integral part of the successful running of the ladies’ teams.” He also paid tribute to Rosemary Pepper, Niall Gallagher and Kelly Donnelly for their good work.
Friday night – Ladies night
But as sure as one season draws to a close, the hard work and preparation for the next season gets under way pretty soon. In addition to the existing senior ladies team a senior intermediate Dundalk team will be operating for the new season. For the younger girls, there is going to be under-13, under-14 and under-16 teams. There are also plans to run a soccer programme at Oriel Park for under-12 girls who wish to play league football. It is anticipated that Friday nights should prove a very inspiring site for any girls or ladies interested in playing football. Friday nights are being scheduled as Ladies night when all of the Dundalk FC ladies and girls’ teams will train on the main pitch.
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