Conor Carty’s loan cut short after suffering serious injury

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The former St. Patrick’s Athletic striker has suffered a season ending injury, rupturing his anterior cruciate ligament in a EFL Trophy game for Doncaster Rovers. 

Carty was on loan with Doncaster Rovers from Bolton Wanderers when he suffered the ACL injury in an EFL Trophy encounter against Bradford City.

The Wicklow native joined the League Two side early in the January window following a year long spell in the League of Ireland with St Patrick’s Athletic.

Throughout his short stint with Doncaster, the 21-year-old made three appearances off the bench in the league for the Yorkshire outfit.

Doncaster Boss Grant McCann stated that it's “frustrating” both in terms of Carty’s individual development and what he brought to the team.

"We have had some bad news with Conor doing his ACL,” said the Northern Irishman.

“It will keep him out for some time and he will now go back to Bolton.

"It has not ended well, that little nudge at Bradford. He has twisted his knee in the grass, and it is so disappointing.

“It is really frustrating for Conor.”. 

Carty began his senior career at Bolton in the summer of 2022 where he transferred from Wolverhampton Wanderers, and scored on his first professional appearance, netting a late equaliser in the EFL Trophy at Tranmere.



The striker also had stints in the National League with Oldham and Gateshead before returning to home soil with St. Pats. 

The striker was first choice for most of the campaign and played a pivotal role in their 2023 FAI Cup success last November, lifting the trophy in front of 43,000 in the Aviva Stadium.

Carty has represented the Republic of Ireland at Under-21 level, with his first appearance coming last June against Ukraine in a 2-2 draw.

Doncaster find themselves 22nd in the table, having won eight league games since the start of the campaign. McCann's side are back in action this weekend when they head to Sutton.

Elsewhere, Derry City have been hit with an injury blow before the start of the season.

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