John O'Flynn: 'It was only when Pat Dolan came in, that he instilled there was no ceiling to where we could go'

A natural goalscorer, John O'Flynn could have emulated some of his more illustrious former Cork City teammates had injuries not been a shadow throughout an otherwise commendable career.

Unable to penetrate the Peterborough United senior ranks, the young striker arrived home on Leeside in 2002, like others who Liam Murphy signed that year: returning from England with a point to prove, amongst the origins of a side that would go on to capture the Premier Division title three seasons later.

Recalling that time, O’Flynn told extratime.ie that “the first day I arrived, I'd have said: 'A great bunch of lads, who individually are brilliant.' It was only when Pat Dolan came in, that he instilled there was no ceiling to where we could go. You could play in the English Premier League and represent your country … If you did the right things.

"Some of the guys would have laughed, but he was right. The amount of lads who went on to do exactly those things was fantastic. As a team, it took us a couple of seasons to gel fully and then people started to flourish."

The 2007 FAI Cup was later secured before John signed for Barnet the following year, which saw him compared to club legend Giuliano Grazioli by then boss Paul Fairclough and voted as Bees fans' Player of the Year during his maiden season.

"I had a few days to decide if I wanted to stay with City or move to England. My then agent was from north London. He knew the Barnet chairman and they took a punt on me … I don't think they knew much about the League of Ireland. The week before, Barnet had lost 7-0 and I thought: 'What am I getting myself into?'  I decided not to think about it and just go. The playing style suited me.

"I had Albert Adomah, who later played for Middlesbrough and Aston Villa, and Yannick Bolasie, who played with Crystal Palace. They were my two wingers, so I got the ball wide and got in the box. I also ended up playing with Paul Furlong, ex-Chelsea, who was coming towards the end of his career. He was 42 and a top professional. Being able to play at 42 opened my eyes to if you looked after yourself and treated your body right, you could play until whenever you wanted."

Come transfer deadline day January 2010, Barnet and Shrewsbury Town agreed a fee for O'Flynn, but he refused to go.

"My contract was up at the end of that season, so I'd only a few months left, where I would have been a free agent or signing another deal. Barnet were down the bottom and struggling financially, so it suited them to sell me, try to stay up and rebuild for the next year, but I was happy in the end."

That summer John departed for Exeter City, where he went on to spend a rollercoaster four seasons.



"My first year we finished the highest league position in the club's history and then got relegated the next season, which was a lesson on resting on your laurels. Even halfway through that second season, we were in a difficult position and no-one ever saw relegation coming … That we'd get ourselves out of it and that didn't happen.

"The third year, I wanted to get the club back up into League One and after that I got a contract extension. My wife moved over, it's a lovely part of the world, but on the playing side, I would have liked to have featured more."

The Cobh native reappeared at Turner's Cross in 2014, preceding a move to Munster rivals Limerick, where he contributed important goals during their procession to obtain the 2016 First Division championship.

"All I needed to think about was holding the ball up, getting in the box and scoring goals. That second stint with Cork City was a relaxed period, getting my body in shape and Limerick got the benefits. 

"At the start of the season I came on as a sub against Cobh, scored a goal and then got 18 more. We'd almost won the league after a dozen games. We beat Sligo 5-1 at home the following season, so maybe fans and us got way ahead of ourselves. Things hit home soon after that (laughs), in how hard the Premier Division got.

"There was management upheaval, so that upset the apple cart. It was still fantastic to be back in the Premier Division and playing in Markets Field, which is a great place."



A parting of ways led the Cork man to give it at least one more year in the League of Ireland, making the unorthodox decision to join far-flung and recently relegated Finn Harps for what turned out to be his swansong season.

"Ollie Horgan wanted to meet me. I thought logistically, it was never going to work, but out of courtesy I'd never turn anybody down for a meeting or a chat, so I met him. The passion Ollie showed and the will to want me to go up and play for his club sparked something in me.

"Ollie was friendly with John Caulfield and put in place that if I wanted to go, I could train with Cork City midweek and go up for home games, stay overnight or meet them wherever if playing away.

"The following week, Ollie popped back down twice more and I thought: 'This fella has travelled from the opposite side of the country three times in two weeks just to see me.' We shook hands and decided to go for it. I could have relaxed and signed for a local club.

"It was the most miles I've ever clocked up for a home game, but ended up with another promotion medal on my CV."

    About Dan Lucey

    Dan Lucey is an interviewer for extraTime.com. He has penned articles for both Cork City and Luton Town’s official programmes.

    Dan has written numerous interviews and was a regular attendee at League … View Full Profile