Finn ready to make his mark
Credit: Extratime Team (ETPhotos)
Ronan Finn is learning how to cope with the pressure of playing for a big club as he prepares for his fourth Premier Division clash with Sporting Fingal.
The 22-year-old had spent all of his career up to this season with UCD, where he got on with things away from the media spotlight. But his anonymity disappeared once he agreed to join the FAI Cup champions.
While he enjoyed a fine campaign last year by captaining The Students to the First Division title and scooping the PFAI First Division Player of the Year award he still kept a low profile.
That is all starting to change though as journalists are regularly pestering him for his views on Sporting’s chances of challenging for the Premier Division crown, of holding down a place in the starting eleven and coping with greater expectations.
And then there is Monday Night Soccer (MNS). The RTE programme is the ultimate showcase for Airtricity League players, but it focuses primarily on the top tier. That means that Finn’s outstanding performances last year were never given the coverage that they deserved.
He has a chance to rectify that this season and this Friday's clash with Drogheda United offers him the ideal platform to make his mark and maybe even squeeze his way onto the highlights reel.
"I definitely felt left out and a bit jealous when I watched MNS last year. You see all of the goals and the different teams, but never anything about UCD," Finn told Extratime.
"When playing in the First Division I didn’t really get to play in the big games. Obviously there were some important games, but we weren’t coming up against the likes of Bohemians and Shamrock Rovers.
"The First Division went well for me last year as I grew a lot as a player and won the league, but the Premier Division is where you want to be playing.
"All of the attention is focused on the Premier with MNS and the live games and everything else. It is exciting to be part of it."
Finn stood out in last week's victory over Bray Wanderers, but he will be hoping that the Ravens can collect their first home win of the new season as they line out at Morton Stadium for just a second time as a Premier Division side.
The box-to-box midfielder appears to have already settled into Sporting’s 4-3-3 system, which is hardly surprising as UCD played with a similar formation last year. But he knows that there is more competition for places at his new club and he will have to be at his best in each game.
That level of expectation would normally crush an average player, but Finn relishes the challenge that it poses. After all, he spent all of last season balancing his duties as a player with those of a full-time student as he completed a degree in Sports Management.
Education is quite important to the Dubliner and one of the main reasons why he opted to link up with Sporting was because they have established a scholarship scheme with DCU. He is excited about combining his football with studies yet again even though he is fully aware that it will be a tough juggling act now that he is playing in the top flight.
"I was at UCD for five years. I got my degree, did well for the club and I felt that I was ready to move on. When the chance to join Sporting came up I was happy to go with it," he explained.
"College was always going to be a big thing for me. Whether I was going to stay at UCD or move on to another club, I would have tried to make sure that I could still continue in college.
"Fingal are doing a scholarship scheme with DCU, so I’m going to be starting there with my Masters in September. It was a big factor in deciding to join Fingal.
"I spoke to a couple of the lads, like Stephen Paisley and Alan Kirby, about how they are combining the studying with the football. It won’t be easy and I know that I’ll have to work hard at it, but it will be worth it in the long-term."
He may be already planning ahead, but Finn knows that his immediate job is to help Sporting pick up their first home win of the season. Anything after that will be considered a bonus, including any sort of cameo appearance on MNS.
The 22-year-old had spent all of his career up to this season with UCD, where he got on with things away from the media spotlight. But his anonymity disappeared once he agreed to join the FAI Cup champions.
While he enjoyed a fine campaign last year by captaining The Students to the First Division title and scooping the PFAI First Division Player of the Year award he still kept a low profile.
That is all starting to change though as journalists are regularly pestering him for his views on Sporting’s chances of challenging for the Premier Division crown, of holding down a place in the starting eleven and coping with greater expectations.
And then there is Monday Night Soccer (MNS). The RTE programme is the ultimate showcase for Airtricity League players, but it focuses primarily on the top tier. That means that Finn’s outstanding performances last year were never given the coverage that they deserved.
He has a chance to rectify that this season and this Friday's clash with Drogheda United offers him the ideal platform to make his mark and maybe even squeeze his way onto the highlights reel.
"I definitely felt left out and a bit jealous when I watched MNS last year. You see all of the goals and the different teams, but never anything about UCD," Finn told Extratime.
"When playing in the First Division I didn’t really get to play in the big games. Obviously there were some important games, but we weren’t coming up against the likes of Bohemians and Shamrock Rovers.
"The First Division went well for me last year as I grew a lot as a player and won the league, but the Premier Division is where you want to be playing.
"All of the attention is focused on the Premier with MNS and the live games and everything else. It is exciting to be part of it."
Finn stood out in last week's victory over Bray Wanderers, but he will be hoping that the Ravens can collect their first home win of the new season as they line out at Morton Stadium for just a second time as a Premier Division side.
The box-to-box midfielder appears to have already settled into Sporting’s 4-3-3 system, which is hardly surprising as UCD played with a similar formation last year. But he knows that there is more competition for places at his new club and he will have to be at his best in each game.
That level of expectation would normally crush an average player, but Finn relishes the challenge that it poses. After all, he spent all of last season balancing his duties as a player with those of a full-time student as he completed a degree in Sports Management.
Education is quite important to the Dubliner and one of the main reasons why he opted to link up with Sporting was because they have established a scholarship scheme with DCU. He is excited about combining his football with studies yet again even though he is fully aware that it will be a tough juggling act now that he is playing in the top flight.
"I was at UCD for five years. I got my degree, did well for the club and I felt that I was ready to move on. When the chance to join Sporting came up I was happy to go with it," he explained.
"College was always going to be a big thing for me. Whether I was going to stay at UCD or move on to another club, I would have tried to make sure that I could still continue in college.
"Fingal are doing a scholarship scheme with DCU, so I’m going to be starting there with my Masters in September. It was a big factor in deciding to join Fingal.
"I spoke to a couple of the lads, like Stephen Paisley and Alan Kirby, about how they are combining the studying with the football. It won’t be easy and I know that I’ll have to work hard at it, but it will be worth it in the long-term."
He may be already planning ahead, but Finn knows that his immediate job is to help Sporting pick up their first home win of the season. Anything after that will be considered a bonus, including any sort of cameo appearance on MNS.
About Gareth Maher
Gareth Maher is an award-winning journalist who has covered domestic, international and women's football for the best part of a decade. Previously a columnist for the Irish Daily Mail and Football Editor for Setanta Sports, … View Full Profile