Michael Synnott has today (Tuesday) signed a permanent deal with Dundalk FC. The 23-year-old defender returns to Oriel Park after spending the second half of last season on loan at Shelbourne. The Dublin native had previously spent time with Ipswich Town before making the move to Dundalk at the beginning of last term, making his debut in Derry last April, one of 12 appearances in all competitions until agreeing a loan deal with Shels in the July transfer window.

Get rolling
“It’s good to get it sorted and I’m looking forward to the season now,” Synnott told dundalkfc.com shortly after signing. “We’ve got Bray up first and hopefully if we get off to a winning start then things can get rolling from there.” Synnott has been back at the club for pre-season training since it started on 25 January and has continued the form shown by him last year. “I was just concentrating on doing my best out there and hoping things would come right,” he said, “and eventually it has sorted itself out and I can concentrate on the season now.

Positive pre-season
“Pre-season has been very good,” he said. “There have been very few injuries throughout the squad. We’ve been rested when we have needed to be, and we have been worked hard when we needed to be worked hard. Overall, I’ve really enjoyed it. It’s a good group of lads we have here. Pre-season results are pre-season results, they’re not the important ones, but in your mindset it’s good to get wins under your belt, and hopefully we can carry that on through the rest of the season.

‘Loved it’
“I loved it,” Synnott continued when commenting on his spell at the club last year. “It was a great atmosphere. Some of the home games were absolutely fantastic and the derby away at Drogheda. It was really enjoyable. It’s a club that can go places, and hopefully it will. I did well on loan (at Shels). Unfortunately, we missed out on promotion. We were pipped at the end by Fingal and UCD, but I enjoyed it. I wasn’t playing at the time here and I just needed to get a few games under my belt, and obviously it was good to refresh me and keep me going.”

Top flight hope
Synnott is also happy to be back in the Premier Division. “I’m delighted,” he said. “That’s where everyone playing in this country wants to be, and hopefully we can be pushing towards the top of the league.” The young full-back is also enjoying life under Dundalk’s new management team Ian Foster and Wayne Hatswell. “So far, they’ve been absolutely fantastic,” he said. “They’ve done everything they can for the boys. It’s very professional the way it’s being run, and hopefully that will be reflected in the results at the start of the season.”