2024: First Divsion Wrap (10th-6th)

As we looked at in our 2024: The Cork City Story, the First Division was won at a relative canter by Tim Clancy's charges, but  what of the chasing pack behind them? We'll look at the non contenders in Part One before exploring the Play Off contenders in Part Two. 

Kerry (10th)

Rooted to the bottom of the table in their inaugural League of Ireland season in 2023, Kerry saw previous chairman Brian Ainscough depart for Dundalk while ex-manager Billy Dennehy was replaced by Conor McCarthy. 

Despite taking the wooden spoon in the division for the second campaign in a row, the men from the Kingdom were streets ahead of their 2023 incarnation with several locals enhancing their reputations throughout the course of the season - not least in the narrow FAI Cup defeat to Premier Division Bohemians. 

Striker Ryan Kelliher reached double figures in consecutive seasons while defender Sean O’Connell impressed at left back alongside centre half American Ethan Kos, while in midfield Sean McGrath and Ronan Teahan continued their development with consistent performances. Daniel Okwute and Nathan Gleeson worked tirelessly in attack throughout the season to put opposing defences under pressure on the flanks.

In spite of the mid-season departures of the influential Kevin Williams and Daire McCarthy, Kerry FC recruited Oran Crowe from Cork City and continued to battle hard throughout, finished up with 17 points more than in 2023 – scoring five more goals and conceding 36 goals less.

While the win column moved from a single league victory in 2023 to five in 2024, all this season were on the Mounthawk Park astro. The number of clean sheets also extended to five with three at home and two away. (2023 saw two clean sheets- one home, one away)

Player wise, much like 2023, the Academy provided much of the team with Nathan Gleeson, Sam Aladesanusi, Kennedy Amechi, Finn Barrett, Cian Brosnan and Victor Udeze just some of those who featured with both Damien Locke’s Under 20s and McCarthy’s senior side throughout 2024. 

Highlights of the season included a seven game mid season unbeaten run, wins over Longford Town (x2), Finn Harps, Treaty United and Athlone Town on the final night of the campaign, as well as the fightback against Bohemians in the FAI Cup penalty shootout loss to the Premier Division outfit.

Longford Town (9th)

Two points ahead of the Munstermen were Longford Town in an ultimately dismal season for the men from Bishopsgate.

 With four points on the board from the opening eleven fixtures, De Town were already on their second manager of the season as Stephen Henderson departed in the wake of a 3-0 defeat to Bray Wanderers in week eight. 

Coach Wayne Groves stepped up to the plate for the rest of the season and picked up nine points in his first eight games at the helm. 

In fairness, injuries wreaked havoc with team selection for both Henderson and Groves - dominant centre half Jamie Egan, the experienced duo of Luke Wade Slater and Dean George and the injury enforced retirement of striker Chris Lyons all left a significant hole in the playing squad.

The mid-season break saw goalkeeper and skipper Jack Brady depart to the Premier Division to sit on the Galway United bench while ex UCD defender Eric Yoro arrived from Bolton alongside his former Belfield teammate Danny Norris. 

Turkish underage international Emre Topcu also arrived on the Strokestown Road on loan from Drogheda United. 

Two others arrived at the club on similar transfers – Shamrock Rovers' Carl Lennox and Chris Lotefa of Bohemians. 

Ex Cabinteely stopper Harry Halwax stepped up from the Leinster Senior League top-flight from Maynooth to fill Brady's place between the posts.

With such a turnover of players, consistent performances were always going to be a challenge and so it proved as the Town never won two games in a row - their season ending 5 points from an available 9 was their best run of the campaign. 

Standout performers throughout the season were left back Dean O'Shea who won the club's Player of the Season award while striker Jordan Adeyemo reached double figures and Danny Norris's end of season cameo – including three goals – saw him one of the first players re-signed for 2025.

Cobh Ramblers (8th)

15 points ahead of Longford Town were Munster rivals Cobh Ramblers and Treaty United - the Shannonsiders pipped Ramblers to seventh by virtue of a better goal difference.

Having reached the Playoffs in 2023 under the stewardship of Shane Keegan, hopes were high that they could repeat the feat under new boss Gary Hunt. 

Keegan's departure was not the only significant one from St Colman's Park with Lee Steacy heading to Shamrock Rovers, Jack Doherty and Charlie Lyons to Cork City, Wilson Waweru to Sligo Rovers, Mikie Rowe to Wexford and Alec Byrne to Treaty United.

The Rams were the third lowest goalscorers in the league (41), with only Kerry FC (34) and Finn Harps (39) scoring less. 

At the opposite end of the field, the 56 goals conceded was one more than Kerry but eight less than Longford Town, whose 64 was the most in the league.

In terms of losses, their 16 was only better than the 19 defeats incurred by both teams below them in the league – Longford Town and Kerry. 

Highlights during the season include nine clean sheets for keeper Darragh Burke, 21, while Jack Larkin reached double figures following his return to the club and skipper Jason Abbott rattled in four league goals in the final four games of the season. 

Alongside him in the engine room, former Cork City academy graduate Dale Holland notched up an extra 750 playing minutes (2879 v 2129) than his 2023 season – racking up five less yellow cards (11v16) and doubling his scoring record (2v1).

Treaty United (7th)

Pipping the St Colman's Park outfit to seventh were Treaty United. 

The Limerick men had finished sixth in 2023 with 44 points so finishing seventh with the same points total a year later is no major surprise.

However, peel back the covers a bit further and the losses of influential left back Marc Ludden, the attacking triumvirate of Success Edogun, Dean George and Conor Barry, defender Andy Spain and winger Adam Lennon plus the mid-season departure of the mercurial Willie Armshaw and the injuries suffered by promising defender Darren Nwankwo and Treaty United's seventh place doesn't seem too bad.

Having rattled off three successive victories to open the 2024 campaign, Treaty United then went another 14 games without a win, while talisman Enda Curran lined out for half the minutes he did in the previous season - racking up a full 90 minutes on only two occasions.

Highlights of the campaign included four draws with runaway league winners Cork City and a five game unbeaten run to finish off the league. 

Plenty of academy graduates were given chances across 2024 with Fionn Doherty, Michael Dike, Richkov Boevi, Robbie Lynch and Niko Kozlowski some of the most notable. 

Ex Galway United player Evan O’Connor was a fixture throughout, while the Tribesmen loaned David Tarmey and Steven Healy with both featuring heavily as the campaign drew to a close.

Outside those, the goals of Mark Byrne and Lee Devitt Molloy, the return of Lee-J Lynch as well as the emergence of ex Wexford winger Thomas Considine also brought some excitement to the Markets Field for the second half of the season.

Finn Harps (6th)

Two points above Treaty United were Finn Harps. 

The Ballybofey outfit lost only once in their opening nine league games before a run of four defeats in the next five dramatically slowed down promotion thoughts. 

Form picked up again with only two defeats in the next ten games, culminating in a tetchy 1-0 victory over Kerry which saw three red cards after the final whistle.

Defeat to Cork City in the league was the first of 5 consecutive defeats for the Donegal men before three wins on the spin raised hopes of a Play Off spot which ultimately didn't happen. 

Much like Treaty United, just behind them in the table, they didn't haemorrhage goals (only the top two of Cork City and UCD conceded less than their 43), however it was the 39 goals scored (only 5 more than bottom side Kerry) which left them short of Bray Wanderers at the season’s end. 

Indeed, they failed to score in 11 of their 36 games.

As per their club model of late, the first team squad saw a mixture of experienced League of Ireland stalwarts, a couple of overseas arrivals and a good number of academy/local players. 

Their defensive record was impressive and the consistency in selection here surely played a part with Noe Baba (33 apps), Matthew Makinson (34), Jamie Watson (35) featuring prominently. On loan teenage St Patrick's Athletic defender Luke O’Brien also racked up 25 appearances in his debut season in adult football.

Further out the field, 33 year old David Cawley racked up more league minutes in 2024 (2494) as he did in 2022 (1186) and 2023 (1107) combined while the goals of captain Tony McNamee (7), Patrick ‘Dixie’ Ferry (7) and Success Edogun (12) contributed to over half those scored by Darren Murphy’s men.

In terms of home grown players getting minutes, Harps featured very highly with promising netminder Oisin Cooney taking the number one jersey for the last eight games alongside selection for the Ireland under-19 squad. 

Max Johnston racked up 25 appearances while 16-year-olds Gavin McAteer and Aaron McLaughlin were also heavily involved with first team squads- Mc Laughlin earning an international U19 call up late in the season.

And with that, the second part of this season wrap contains those who made the Play Off spots and can be found here.