Saints sign Luke Turner from Cliftonville as David Odumosu travels in opposite direction

St Patrick’s Athletic have signed defender Luke Turner from Cliftonville in a move that sees goalkeeper David Odumosu go the other way.

Dublin-born Turner, 21, arrives at Richmond Park for an undisclosed fee, his profile furthered by his status as a Republic of Ireland underage international.  His addition will replenish manager Jon Daly’s defensive options following the recent sale of Sam Curtis to Premier League side, Sheffield United.

Odumosu, who spent last year on loan at Cliftonville, now joins the Belfast-based club permanently, having made seven league appearances for the Saints.

Speaking about making the move to the FAI Cup holders, Turner told the St Patricks’ Athletic FC website: “I used to come here to Richmond Park as a kid and watch the likes of Christy Fagan and Chris Forrester during his first spell, it feels brilliant to be a St Pat's player now.

“The club had a great season last year, winning the FAI Cup and finishing in the top three and qualifying for Europe, hopefully we can push for trophies again this year, we want to be a top team in the League of Ireland.

“Jon (Daly) has loads of experience as a player and as a coach and we've had some good conversations, how he wants to team to play I feel will be perfect for me and I'm really looking forward to getting going."

Turner was an underage player with Shamrock Rovers before signing for Aberdeen in 2019. He had loan spells with Wexford and then Cliftonville before making a permanent move to Solitude in 2022. 

On securing the services of Cliftonville’s most recently voted young player of the year, Daly told St Patrick’s Athletics’ website: “Luke is a player we have been monitoring over recent months and we've been really impressed with him.

“He's a local boy and understands what it means to play for Pats.

“It's (centre-back) a position we've been looking to strengthen and now we have great competition in that area with Joe Redmond, Conor Keeley, Alfie Taylor, Tom Grivosti and Luke.

“As the Inchicore based side continue preparations for the new season, there’s little doubt that Turner’s arrival is a tick in the transfer box with St Pats’ strengthening their squad ahead of what they hope will be another successful year.”

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— Extratime.com (@ExtratimeNews) January 30, 2024