Aaron Connolly: 'Last season we brought youth and energy to our games - that suits how we play'

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While Athlone Town finished towards the lower end of the First Division table last season – they showed many signs of improvement as the campaign wore on.

Against the odds, boss Dermot Lennon inspired Athlone to a number of positive results as they claimed scalps against Cork City, Galway United and local rivals Longford Town.

In doing so, a number of players shone for Lennon’s side.

Thomas Oluwa (now at Waterford), Oisin Duffy, Adam Lennon (Dermot’s son), Enda Minogue and Aaron Connolly all caught the eye.

And with a number of those players remaining at Lissywoolen for 2023, Connolly will be looking to enjoy a similarly productive year in the First Division.

“We finished the season well last year so I think the main goal for this year was to try and keep the same strong core group we had,” he told extratime.com.

“We did that even though we lost some players we wanted to keep. But we’ve added nicely to the squad.”

Connolly joined the Town last season from Shelbourne where he impressed at Under-19 level.

And while he was unable to make the breakthrough at Tolka Park under Ian Morris, he was able to learn from a host of stars such as Luke Byrne, Ryan Brennan and Ciaran Kilduff – especially in 2019.

“I saw what it took to win at Shels,” he explained. “Shels had a serious squad that year and you had to be on it every week.



"In training the standards were huge. You couldn’t be slacking at all.”

But after going under the radar at Shels, the Co. Kildare native – who is studying in DCU – he was given his real shot at senior first-team football last season under Martin Russell.

“I was in with Martin Russell last year and we had a very young side,” he said.

“But as we got closer to the season he brought in some lads from abroad. Some worked out and others didn’t.

“But since Dermot Lennon and the coaching staff came in, they stripped it back to basics and we worked from there.”

Crucial to Athlone’s resurgence has been their commitment to train in Athlone, having previously trained in Maynooth and other venues around Dublin in previous years.



Connolly admits: “When Dermot came in, he’s from Athlone and it gave us a sense of why we were there.

“It helped with the Longford derby games because you know what it meant to them. It bled through the squad and it was contagious.

“Oisin Duffy and Adam Lennon are both locals, plus a few of the Under-19s. You can tell straight away and it feeds into the other players and you can see what it means.”

While Athlone enjoyed a positive end to last season, they remain an unknown quantity heading into the new season.

But the 2020 Collingwood Cup winner Connolly is keen for his teammates to become household League of Ireland names – starting this term.

“That would be the plan to get familiar with our names very soon,” he explains.

“Last season you saw the youth and energy we brought to the games. That suits the way we play.”

And the former Shelbourne youngster is eyeing a charge towards making the First Division play-offs this season with Athlone.

He insists: “I think you have to put the pressure on to get into the play-offs.

“If not, what’s the point? We’re aiming for that.”

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