David Norman Jr. departs St. Patrick’s Athletic and returns home to Canada

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After spending less than a year with the Dublin 8 outfit, the Canadian defender has signed a two-year deal with Vancouver FC.

The 25-year-old signed for the Saints in the summer of 2023 and became a regular starter under Jon Daly.

Norman chose to leave Canadian side, Cavalry FC in the winter of 2022 where he signed for then-English League Two club Northampton Town.

He arrived at the club early in 2023, during a close-fought promotion bid. It didn’t take him long to establish himself in the squad, making six appearances) out of the Cobblers’ last 9 games as they finished third, securing automatic promotion to League One.

Following his success in England, Norman set out in the summer for another challenge, this time crossing the Irish sea to sign with St. Patrick’s Athletic. 

He made his debut in the second leg of the UEFA Europa Conference League first round qualifying tie against Luxembourgish side F91 Dudelange which Pats lost 3-2, thus eliminating them from the competition. 

Despite struggling initially, Norman formed a strong partnership with Joe Redmond at the back end of the season played a pivotal role in the Inchicore side’s victory in the FAI Cup Final against Bohemians.  

Returning home to Canada, the Canadian Premier League will have high hopes for Norman as he will act as a leading light for Vancouver.

“When you look at those clubs that have been around for 70, 80, 90 years, it might not happen in my career which I’m okay with, but if I can play a part in being someone that helps grow the sport, so that maybe when I’m older I can watch Vancouver FC playing a final in front of 45,000 people, that really excited me,” Norman told CanPL.ca.

“It’s things you dream of as a kid, but also being able to play at home and be part of a club that really is growing, only in its second year, those opportunities are something now that I dream of as well.”



Earlier in the week, St. Pats announced the appointment of former Republic of Ireland international Stephen Elliott as Head of Academy Football on Wednesday evening.

About Rory Merriman

Rory Merriman is a St. Patrick’s Athletic fan who studied journalism in TU Dublin and has written for numerous publications both online and print. He joined the extratime.com team in 2023. View Full Profile