Cillian Lordan leaves Leeside
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Last season’s club captain Cillian Lordan has left Cork City to take up a promising work opportunity in Holland, team boss Tommy Dunne said earlier today.
Since making his debut for the club in 2004, the versatile Lordan was always an important asset to the club. Then, when the club were demoted for the 2010 season, he was named club captain – even signing a contract extension last November to keep him at the club for a further two years – while making 30 appearances despite a couple of niggling injuries.
“Cillian has been offered a job in Holland, which he has accepted, so he will not be back with us this season,” Dunne said earlier today. “He is a true professional and from my point of view, he will be badly missed. He’s a good player, but he is also a positive influence in the dressing room and on the training pitch. The fact that he played with a knee injury last season and never complained shows the character of the man for me.
“Although he was a full-time pro for a number of years, he continued with his studies and he is leaving to further his own career. There is a possibility that he may be transferred back to Ireland at some point in the future, and the door will always be open for him to return. On behalf of myself and everyone at the club, I would like to thank Cillian for his contribution to Cork City and wish him the very best of luck for the future.”
However, in some better news for City, the Dubliner does expect several new faces to link up with the squad – even as early as the end of this week – before they head back to pre-season training this Saturday after a major clean-up operation at their Bishopstown training ground went well last weekend.
“We have the basis of a very good squad, but we are always looking to improve on that. We are looking for quality and experience to bolster a squad that, in the circumstances, did well for us last season. Putting the squad together has been an ongoing process for the last few months, and we have spoken to a number of players; some work out, some don’t, that is the nature of the game.
“We all know the importance of this season, when we will be one of a number of teams with aspirations of promotion, but we have to be diligent and prudent in our dealings and remember that this is about the future of the club, not just one season. I am currently speaking to four or five players that I would like to bring in to the club, and it is now about trying to get those deals over the line, and I hope that I will have news on these later on in the week.”
The former league winner with Derry City also mentioned that he expects the players to be reasonably fit already after each player was set a fitness guide to work on over the off-season. “The purpose of giving programmes to the players over the off-season is to ensure that they come back to training in good physical condition. Obviously we will still be doing fitness work, but we will be working with the ball rather than just running guys up hills as you would have done in the past.
“Our aim is to have the players ready to perform at a certain level, technically, tactically and physically, and as a part-time club, I obviously don’t have as many training sessions with the players as I would like, so if they come back with a good level of fitness, it allows us to hit the ground running.”
“I believe our resources in terms of training facilities are as good as any club in this league, and we will be looking to make maximum use of these over the next six weeks. We have a couple of fitness coaches who will be working with the lads as well, and combined with their off-season programmes, I am confident we will be in good shape for the start of the season.”
It has also been confirmed that club will play Sporting Fingal and Cobh Ramblers in friendlies next month on consecutive weekend's at Bishopstown, with the possibility of facing Shamrock Rovers and St Patrick’s Athletic also rumoured to be in the offing.
“We’ve got some strong teams coming down to play us in pre-season, probably the best set of pre-season fixtures the club has had in a number of years, and it will be a help to us as we look to start the season well.”
Since making his debut for the club in 2004, the versatile Lordan was always an important asset to the club. Then, when the club were demoted for the 2010 season, he was named club captain – even signing a contract extension last November to keep him at the club for a further two years – while making 30 appearances despite a couple of niggling injuries.
“Cillian has been offered a job in Holland, which he has accepted, so he will not be back with us this season,” Dunne said earlier today. “He is a true professional and from my point of view, he will be badly missed. He’s a good player, but he is also a positive influence in the dressing room and on the training pitch. The fact that he played with a knee injury last season and never complained shows the character of the man for me.
“Although he was a full-time pro for a number of years, he continued with his studies and he is leaving to further his own career. There is a possibility that he may be transferred back to Ireland at some point in the future, and the door will always be open for him to return. On behalf of myself and everyone at the club, I would like to thank Cillian for his contribution to Cork City and wish him the very best of luck for the future.”
However, in some better news for City, the Dubliner does expect several new faces to link up with the squad – even as early as the end of this week – before they head back to pre-season training this Saturday after a major clean-up operation at their Bishopstown training ground went well last weekend.
“We have the basis of a very good squad, but we are always looking to improve on that. We are looking for quality and experience to bolster a squad that, in the circumstances, did well for us last season. Putting the squad together has been an ongoing process for the last few months, and we have spoken to a number of players; some work out, some don’t, that is the nature of the game.
“We all know the importance of this season, when we will be one of a number of teams with aspirations of promotion, but we have to be diligent and prudent in our dealings and remember that this is about the future of the club, not just one season. I am currently speaking to four or five players that I would like to bring in to the club, and it is now about trying to get those deals over the line, and I hope that I will have news on these later on in the week.”
The former league winner with Derry City also mentioned that he expects the players to be reasonably fit already after each player was set a fitness guide to work on over the off-season. “The purpose of giving programmes to the players over the off-season is to ensure that they come back to training in good physical condition. Obviously we will still be doing fitness work, but we will be working with the ball rather than just running guys up hills as you would have done in the past.
“Our aim is to have the players ready to perform at a certain level, technically, tactically and physically, and as a part-time club, I obviously don’t have as many training sessions with the players as I would like, so if they come back with a good level of fitness, it allows us to hit the ground running.”
“I believe our resources in terms of training facilities are as good as any club in this league, and we will be looking to make maximum use of these over the next six weeks. We have a couple of fitness coaches who will be working with the lads as well, and combined with their off-season programmes, I am confident we will be in good shape for the start of the season.”
It has also been confirmed that club will play Sporting Fingal and Cobh Ramblers in friendlies next month on consecutive weekend's at Bishopstown, with the possibility of facing Shamrock Rovers and St Patrick’s Athletic also rumoured to be in the offing.
“We’ve got some strong teams coming down to play us in pre-season, probably the best set of pre-season fixtures the club has had in a number of years, and it will be a help to us as we look to start the season well.”
About Alan Smith
Alan Smith works as a sub-editor for the Guardian newspaper in London. Originally from Cork, he freelances for several other newspapers and websites. Follow him on twitter @alansmith90. View Full Profile