Damien Duff: ‘We are a full time team on very much a part-time budget’

Damien Duff

Damien Duff Credit: Eddie Lennon (ETPhotos)

Rónán MacNamara reports from Tolka Park

Damien Duff has rubbished talk that his Shelbourne side are underachieving and feels the club are on course to achieve their goal of staying in the SSE Airtricity League Premier Division and playing consecutive seasons in the top flight for the first time since 2012-13.

Speaking in the wake of a late defeat to Derry City at Tolka Park where Ryan Graydon’s deflected stoppage time effort was enough for a 1-0 win, Duff felt Shels are doing exceptionally well given the budget restrictions they operate under compared to the sides around them.

“Of course I'm never happy,” said Duff. “I was like that as a player. the remit when I came in was to stay in the league. I've said it many times here on a Friday night, I've heard people say we are underachieving along with Bohs, Sligo, it's absolute nonsense. 

“These teams, everyone above us, has triple, quadruple our budget, it's absolute crazy talk. Even the teams below us, Drogheda or whoever, saying we've this or that. We ain't. We are a full time environment, a full time team on very much a part-time budget. 

“The lads have been amazing. Where they are in the league is amazing. To bridge that gap, it's a big ask. Are we officially safe? No” said Duff although they are 14 points clear of Finn Harps.

“The lads have been amazing, I can't fault them. Like I said on a part-time budget, they've stepped up and decided, right, we want to go full time. Sacrificing jobs, whatever etc, I can't fault them.”

With contracts running down and discussions being had within clubs and between players and other clubs, Duff admits the landscape around transfers irks him but he is hopeful he will be given sufficient funds to strengthen his squad and push the Reds up the league next season.

“I hate that about the league, that a lot of opposition managers are speaking to players off other teams. You don't want to do it but that's the name of the game here. Everybody is at it. Listen, I love where we're at. Budget wise, I'm sure it will be bigger again but I can't fault where they are in the league, what they've given me. 

“They've been absolutely amazing and like I said from day one, the last time we've done two consecutive years in the Premier Division is 16/17 years ago. Absolutely the number one remit is to stay in the league. 



“We're still in the cup,” said Duff whose team were drawn at home to Bohs in the quarter-final. “We'll see what happens. The lads have been top class. There's going to be ups and downs, we know that, we just have to bounce back on Friday (away to Dundalk.”

 

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