2024 Season Preview: Finn Harps

Head Coach: Darren Murphy

Stadium: Finn Park

Players in: Mark Mbuli (Institute), Chris Lotefa (Bohemians - loan), David Cawley (Sligo Rovers), Conor Tourish (Letterkenny Rovers), Success Edogun (Treaty United)

Players out: BJ Banda (released), Damian Duffy (Dergview), Antonio Tuta (Kerry), Daithi McCallion (Derry City - loan expired), Caoimhin Porter (Derry City - loan expired)

Re-signed: Tim Heimer, Patrick Ferry, Ryan Rainey, Sean O’Donnell, Matty Makinson, Max Hutchison, Stephen Doherty, Jamie Watson, Oisin Cooney, Noe Baba, Max Johnston, Darragh Coyle, Shane McMonagle

extratime.com key player: Ryan Flood

In twelve months playing, Flood has already endeared himself as a firm fans’ favourite in Ballybofey. 

Primarily a left-back, Flood joined Harps amidst a severe squad shakeup post-relegation. Signed from Phoenix Rising, the American was one of the success stories to emerge from Harps’ otherwise disappointing 2023 season. 

Flood finished as Harps’ top goal scorer, across all competitions (twelve in the league and 2 in the FAI Cup) with fourteen goals.  Offensively, Flood always threatens on the left-hand side, his pace vital to his marauds up and down the pitch. 

His speed helps his defensive efforts, but Flood has shone going forwards in a Harps side that often struggled for creativity. 

Take the final home game of Finn Harps’ season in 2023:  That November afternoon, Flood scored a hattrick in a 4-1 thumping of Athlone Town. 

With the game delicately poised at 1-1 as half time approached, Flood put Harps 2-1 up as he collected possession outside the box on the left-hand side.  With space to attack, he thumped an unstoppable left-footed arrow into the top corner. 

As Athlone sought a way back, Flood twice kept his cool from the spot, icily dispatching two penalties in the second half, his favoured left foot again proving reliable under pressure. 

That came under the management of Darren Murphy too, the new boss will hope Flood’s game continues to grow. 

In his mid-twenties (25), Harps fans will hope that Flood is entering the prime of his career at Finn Park.  His game should be further strengthened by Harps’ recruitment drive in the transfer market which has seen them add striker, Success Edogun and winger, Mark Mbuli. 

Alongside them, several promising young attackers saw game time last year with the pacy Sean O’Donnell blossoming in the final stretch, teenager Aaron McLaughlin scoring on his Finn Harps debut and Patrick Ferry providing a long overdue goal threat from midfield. 

For when its not flowing from open play, though, Flood has another trick up his sleeve: Set pieces.  Flood registered six assists last season and was frequently assigned to corner, free kick and penalty duties. 

Renowned for his reliably wicked left foot, if Harps are playing well, the odds are that Flood is at the heart of their best moves. 

extratime.com one to watch: Sean O’Donnell

Born and bred in Donegal, O’Donnell is an exciting talent for Finn Harps.  Extremely pacy, versatile enough to play across the front three and an all-round menace for opposition defenders.

O’Donnell was involved in thirteen league goals last year, scoring three and assisting a commendable ten.  His holdup play has matured vastly in the First Division, his awareness and decision-making improving to bring his fellow attackers into moves whilst his speed and craft often distracts defences. 

Only nineteen, O’Donnell’s inexperience showed last season as he was sent off twice, twice as a result of two bookings and unnecessarily risky tackles.  If he can eradicate that rashness, Harps will be the beneficiaries. 

Given Harps’ acquisitions, O’Donnell will face stiff competition to maintain his status as a starter but if he can continue to channel his lung-busting runs and raw potential into goal contributions, he will only endorse his ‘local legend’ reputation amongst the Finn Harps fanbase.

How they did last season:

League: Ninth

In their first year back in the First Division since 2018, Harps started slowly, winning only one of their first eight games as a young side struggled to gel cohesively.   

In mid-March, the first victory finally arrived at the fifth time of asking as Longford Town were defeated at Bishopsgate. 

By the end of that month, a 7-1 thrashing away to Waterford instigated an unbeaten April with successive wins recorded over Treaty United and Wexford. 

Early summer, however, saw a considerable drop off as Finn Harps endured back-to-back 4-1 losses and another, four-goal hammering, by Waterford, sandwiched by defeat at Bray Wanderers. 

To their credit, Harps bounced back with their biggest win of the season, a 0-3 win at Treaty.  Champions Galway outclassed them 6-0 at Eamonn Deacy Park but Harps bounced back from that setback with victory, a second dramatic win at Bishopsgate the response. 

A good August where they gathered eight points, including a dramatic draw with Galway, raised hopes of crashing the playoffs but those were dashed by a 5-1 loss at Cobh Ramblers, Dave Rogers’ resigning in the aftermath. 

Under Murphy for the final five games, Harps collected seven points as several youngsters put their hands up for further involvement with promising displays. 

Maintaining consistency beyond two successive wins is another area requiring improvement to gain the necessary momentum to stay apace in the promotion and playoffs race.

With a meagre seven clean sheets all season, little surprise given the revolving-door of goalkeepers and defenders, one of Murphy’s priorities for this year will be to establish a settled backline so that if Harps’ forwards can’t open the door, the Donegal men can at least keep their own closed to keep picking up points.

FAI Cup: Quarterfinals

Sandwiched between two league wins, Harps’ FAI Cup campaign began in mid-July with the team keen to go further than 2022’s tame first round exit inflicted by Bohemians.  A trip to Dublin was first up, travelling to non-league, Kilbarrack United.  Young Max Hutchison netted the first half winner as Harps resiliently avoided a dreaded ‘Cupset’.

Next up was another non-league side in the shape of Skerries FC, who visited Ballybofey.  Harps were professionally clinical as they took a 2-0 lead inside eighteen minutes.  Flood bagged a brace, O’Donnell scored as a substitute, Hutchison doubled up his senior goals tally and Ferry shone in midfield on a fine Finn Park Friday evening.

Cup quarterfinals week came in mid-September with Harps desperately requiring a response after (another) league thrashing by Waterford the week prior. 

The opponents?  In-form Premier Division outfit St Patrick’s Athletic. 

In a performance full of tenacity, the searing O’Donnell showed his composure to slot Harps in front to the delight of the home faithful. 

Pat's found their groove in the second half, equalising early through Chris Forrester’s penalty. 

Rubbing salt in the wound was the identity of Pats’ late matchwinner: Substitute Tommy Lonergan, off the bench, to notch an eighty-fifth minute winner, the same scorer whose strike in a 3-1 UCD win in 2022 condemned Harps to their relegation.  

This time, Harps could at least reflect on a fine performance that severely rattled Pats’ despite the lingering feeling that the defeat, ultimately, was a rare opportunity spurned to reach the FAI Cup semi-finals.

What to expect this season:

What, indeed! 

For all their league woe, Harps finished ten points off of fifth placed, Athlone Town who snatched the final playoff berth.   Although they were second-bottom, most Harps fans will feel that a ten-point gap to close is achievable, especially with their recruitment. 

Then again, expectations were set high last year but proved to be spectacularly misjudged as Harps struggled.  This is Murphy’s first full-time managerial role, and the Donegal native will be keen to prove to us all that Harps’ strong finish to 2023 was not a mere honeymoon period. 

With many players also recommitting for the 2024 campaign, there seems to be a more equal balance of experienced nous and young legs in the Finn Harps squad. 

The appointment of Tony McNamee as captain with long-serving, Ryan Rainey named vice-captain crucial and wise leadership appointments.

Goalkeeper, Tim Heimer, who impressed before a season-ending injury, will enjoy the competition he faces from academy graduate, Oisin Cooney. 

Alongside Heimer, new arrival, Cawley has been named among Harps’ leadership group, an important use of his Premier Division experience, an invaluable trait in rare abundance in Harps’ dressing room.   

Harps should be pushing for the playoff positions, at least.  The gap is bridgeable.  With strong First Division teams, UCD and Cork City relegated last year, the scrap for automatic promotion may be a step too far, though.

But if Murphy eradicates the hammerings, especially with no trips to the RSC this year, Harps shouldn’t be anywhere near as far away from the promotion debate as they were last season.

First game: Longford Town (A)

Harps open 2024 with an intriguing trip to Bishopsgate, where they won twice last season, to face Longford Town on Saturday night.  In a tough opening at home, Cork City are the first visitors to Finn Park the Friday after.  But with trips to Cobh Ramblers and Wexford preceding a Ballybofey clash with Kerry FC, Harps may be cautiously hopeful of accruing a double-digit points tally after the first five matches.

Season Preview 2024: Cork City https://t.co/F6RwpHczGKpic.twitter.com/K1gxqogX80

— Extratime.com (@ExtratimeNews) February 13, 2024