Kearns shines on Setanta Cup debut
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Dundalk FC hat-trick hero Daniel Kearns believes his side’s performance against Linfield is proof that they have the ability to “hurt anyone in the league”, as he reflected on an unforgettable night which saw the Lilywhites mark their Setanta Sports Cup debut in fairytale fashion.
Kearns, from Andersonstown in Belfast, and Quigley, who afterwards praised his team’s “work rate”, combined as Dundalk became the first side to net five goals against Linfield at Windsor Park in 17 years. However, the two goal heroes were cautious about prematurely planning on a quarter-final tie with Glentoran.
Kearns opened the scoring just past the half-hour mark as he found his first competitive goal for the club at the 14th attempt following a wonderful counterattack, and he added further strikes midway through the second half and deep in injury time to complete his treble.
“It was a great performance from us and a good win for us,” the 19-year-old former West Ham United youngster told dundalkfc.com afterwards. “It’s obviously the first hat-trick of my career; hopefully, there are many more to come. I only live ten minutes up the road and I had my family and friends here so it was nice to get it in front of them and help us get the win.”
Kearns, however, stated that there is still work to be done when Linfield visit Oriel Park on 28 February. “Anything can happen,” he said. “Football is a strange old game. It is only a two-goal lead but hopefully we can keep it nice and tight in Oriel and do the business and get into the next round. It is a nice platform to build on for the season. We have just beaten a team who have been champions up here for a number of years.”
“We look good. We have a very young team and we have got a bit of experience as well, so there is a decent balance there. Beno (Dean Bennett) was playing out of position tonight but I thought he done really well; he is a big, strong lad. If we can get another centre back in, sort of to tighten it up a bit, I think we’ll be really strong this season.
“Going forward, we can hurt anyone in the league,” Daniel added. “The Gaffer has talked about it a number of times; he gives us that freedom to go and play in the final third. We look really good going forward. We scored some well-worked goals tonight. We kept it quite tight but we caught them on the counterattack and we broke well; it was nice to score goals like that.”
In a thrilling game, Linfield pushed forward in numbers in the final moments in an attempt to salvage a draw. However, they were caught cold on 92 minutes when Kearns picked up possession on the halfway line before racing towards goal and finishing coolly under goalkeeper Alan Blayney. “I had 40 or 50 yards to run and I was thinking of a few different things,” Kearnsy revealed. “Jay (Byrne) was coming behind me as well and he was calling for it, but I was in for my hat-trick and I was never going to pass it. I was delighted that it went in.”
Adding his thoughts, two-goal hero Quigley, who struck on 54 and 75 minutes, said: “I think what stood out for me was the work rate. It’s our first game of the season and I thought the lads worked tirelessly. The two centre backs were smashing. The young lad at left-back, Nathan, was excellent. I could go through every player mentioning them and how hard they worked. It was one of those nights where we clicked. I think in the first half we stood off them a little bit. The manager told us what to do, what shape to take and that came to fruition in the second half.”
On his own performance, Quigley commented: “I’m happy enough. I think my fitness can be better but I’m obviously two weeks behind the lads, after spending a few days in hospital. I obviously got the full 90 minutes. I was happy with the manager keeping me on; that’s the only way I’m going to get my fitness, along with doing a little bit of extra training. I’m not where I want to be, but considering what I’ve been through in pre-season, I’m feeling decent.”
And, like Kearns, the 25-year-old striker, who has now recorded two wins and a draw in his three Setanta Sports Cup visits to Windsor Park, insisted that the tie is far from over. “You look at Arsenal, one of the best teams in the world, 4-0 up with a half-hour to go and they drew 4-4,” Mark pointed out. “The tie is certainly not dead. Linfield haven’t won as many trophies as they’ve won and aren't ten points clear for nothing. They are a really good side. I think we just clicked tonight.”
“I think with another two weeks of training and a couple of more games we’ll be even sharper, and hopefully we can push on. It was a great test for us to see where we are. I knew with the strikers and midfielders we have that we would be good going forward, and the boys at the back were immense. It will only get better when we start to gel and defend as a unit. Not many teams will come here and score five, so we’re really happy with the result and I’m just looking forward to the next game now.”
Kearns, from Andersonstown in Belfast, and Quigley, who afterwards praised his team’s “work rate”, combined as Dundalk became the first side to net five goals against Linfield at Windsor Park in 17 years. However, the two goal heroes were cautious about prematurely planning on a quarter-final tie with Glentoran.
Kearns opened the scoring just past the half-hour mark as he found his first competitive goal for the club at the 14th attempt following a wonderful counterattack, and he added further strikes midway through the second half and deep in injury time to complete his treble.
“It was a great performance from us and a good win for us,” the 19-year-old former West Ham United youngster told dundalkfc.com afterwards. “It’s obviously the first hat-trick of my career; hopefully, there are many more to come. I only live ten minutes up the road and I had my family and friends here so it was nice to get it in front of them and help us get the win.”
Kearns, however, stated that there is still work to be done when Linfield visit Oriel Park on 28 February. “Anything can happen,” he said. “Football is a strange old game. It is only a two-goal lead but hopefully we can keep it nice and tight in Oriel and do the business and get into the next round. It is a nice platform to build on for the season. We have just beaten a team who have been champions up here for a number of years.”
“We look good. We have a very young team and we have got a bit of experience as well, so there is a decent balance there. Beno (Dean Bennett) was playing out of position tonight but I thought he done really well; he is a big, strong lad. If we can get another centre back in, sort of to tighten it up a bit, I think we’ll be really strong this season.
“Going forward, we can hurt anyone in the league,” Daniel added. “The Gaffer has talked about it a number of times; he gives us that freedom to go and play in the final third. We look really good going forward. We scored some well-worked goals tonight. We kept it quite tight but we caught them on the counterattack and we broke well; it was nice to score goals like that.”
In a thrilling game, Linfield pushed forward in numbers in the final moments in an attempt to salvage a draw. However, they were caught cold on 92 minutes when Kearns picked up possession on the halfway line before racing towards goal and finishing coolly under goalkeeper Alan Blayney. “I had 40 or 50 yards to run and I was thinking of a few different things,” Kearnsy revealed. “Jay (Byrne) was coming behind me as well and he was calling for it, but I was in for my hat-trick and I was never going to pass it. I was delighted that it went in.”
Adding his thoughts, two-goal hero Quigley, who struck on 54 and 75 minutes, said: “I think what stood out for me was the work rate. It’s our first game of the season and I thought the lads worked tirelessly. The two centre backs were smashing. The young lad at left-back, Nathan, was excellent. I could go through every player mentioning them and how hard they worked. It was one of those nights where we clicked. I think in the first half we stood off them a little bit. The manager told us what to do, what shape to take and that came to fruition in the second half.”
On his own performance, Quigley commented: “I’m happy enough. I think my fitness can be better but I’m obviously two weeks behind the lads, after spending a few days in hospital. I obviously got the full 90 minutes. I was happy with the manager keeping me on; that’s the only way I’m going to get my fitness, along with doing a little bit of extra training. I’m not where I want to be, but considering what I’ve been through in pre-season, I’m feeling decent.”
And, like Kearns, the 25-year-old striker, who has now recorded two wins and a draw in his three Setanta Sports Cup visits to Windsor Park, insisted that the tie is far from over. “You look at Arsenal, one of the best teams in the world, 4-0 up with a half-hour to go and they drew 4-4,” Mark pointed out. “The tie is certainly not dead. Linfield haven’t won as many trophies as they’ve won and aren't ten points clear for nothing. They are a really good side. I think we just clicked tonight.”
“I think with another two weeks of training and a couple of more games we’ll be even sharper, and hopefully we can push on. It was a great test for us to see where we are. I knew with the strikers and midfielders we have that we would be good going forward, and the boys at the back were immense. It will only get better when we start to gel and defend as a unit. Not many teams will come here and score five, so we’re really happy with the result and I’m just looking forward to the next game now.”
