Dundalk FC defeat Malahide United 3-1

Dundalk FC got their PTSB Leinster Senior Cup campaign off to a flyer on Sunday afternoon by defeating Malahide United 3-1 in blustery conditions at Gannon Park.

Ryan O’Kane, Hayden Muller and Archie Davies all got themselves on the scoresheet for The Lilywhites – with Alan O’Shaughnessy netting for the Leinster Senior League side, who were being player-coached on the day by former Cork City player Karl Sheppard.

Dundalk head coach Stephen O’Donnell handed competitive debuts to new signings Jamie Walker and Robbie Mahon, while Dutchman Koen Oostenbrink also emerged from the substitutes’ bench on the hour-mark to make his official Irish footballing bow.

With trialist Malcolm Barcola ineligible, 19-year-old goalkeeper Sean Molloy was also named in the starting line-up, as was fellow U19 call-up Tom McLoughlin, who partnered Mayowa Animasahun in defence from the off to make his first-team debut.

Fresh from a good display versus Longford Town in a friendly three days prior, Eoin Kenny was also introduced on 61 minutes alongside Luke Mulligan, who at 16 years and two months, became the youngest-ever player to play competitively for the club.

Monaghan native Mulligan, who notably played a friendly match against Larne at the age of 14 in 2022, signed his first professional contract at Oriel Park ahead of this season.

“For any good League of Ireland club, you need to be promoting your own up through the academy,” O’Donnell replied when prompted by The Democrat on utilising underage talent more frequently ahead of the 2024 campaign.

“I also think it’s big for a town like Dundalk to see players that have come through the youths. Ideally, we want to have a structure in place where they’re getting the best coaching up through the different age groups and we’re promoting a couple of really good ones each year.

“We’re only delighted when promising youngsters come in and train with us, and we’re looking to nurture them and work with them and improve them. That will be our template going forward – can we produce players from our youth academies?”

It was another academy product that opened the scoring for Dundalk inside the first two minutes at Gannon Park on Sunday, with O’Kane finishing neatly off the left side after being set up by Mahon, wearing the number 10 shirt vacated by free agent Greg Sloggett.

Dundalk made it 2-0 on 19 minutes, and it was O’Kane in the thick of the action again, exhibiting a nice bit of skill before Muller’s low drive from outside the box found the net.

The hosts pulled one back three minutes before half-time through O’Shaughnessy, but The Lilywhites almost restored their two-goal advantage straight from the next kick-off, only for Malahide goalkeeper Brian Kane foiling Cameron Elliott’s downward header.

In this, Dundalk’s first encounter with Malahide since a 4-0 FAI Cup success at the same venue in 2012, they made it 3-1 on 61 minutes through Davies, whose jinking run into the penalty area resulted in a first goal for the club for the Supporters’ Player of the Year.

The newly-formatted Leinster Senior Cup sees The Lilywhites continue their Group A pool at home to Drogheda United on Friday, February 2nd (kick-off, 7.45pm), a fixture that has been amalgamated with the annual Jim Malone Cup match, before then hosting Bohemians three days later on Bank Holiday Monday, February 5th (kick-off, 5pm).

Across four groups, each team plays each other once, with the top two then qualifying for the quarter-final stage, at which point the group winners are to take home advantage.

O’Donnell, who is in favour of the new format, added: “I don’t know if teams are playing their full teams et cetera in it, but from my point of view, I think it’s a good idea. You can get competitive matches in pre-season and an opportunity to play in a cup competition.”

Malahide United: Brian Kane; James Hendricken (Fionn Tighe 72), Thomas Lynch, Shane Carthy, Robbie Byrne; Philip Rusk (Shane Day 61), Mark Cassidy (Cormac Herlihy 81), Karl Sheppard, Alan O’Shaughnessy (Jack Sherry 84); Stephen Cleary, Jordan Briggs (Stephen Brady 72)

Subs not used: Marcus Fitzmaurice (gk), Gavin Murphy

Dundalk FC: Sean Molloy; Archie Davies (Luke Mulligan 61), Mayowa Animasahun, Tom McLoughlin (Andy Boyle 61), Jamie Walker; Hayden Muller, Paul Doyle (Koen Oostenbrink 61); Ryan O’Kane, Robbie Benson (Daryl Horgan 61), Robbie Mahon; Cameron Elliott (Eoin Kenny 61)

Subs not used: Samuel Safaei (gk), Sean Keogh

Referee: Owen Murphy (Dublin)