First-timers in place as Dundalk bid for quick return to top division

There’s a new broom at Oriel Park, and all with an interest in Dundalk FC are hoping it sweeps clean. Well, in fact, it has already done most of that.

There’s a new regime in the boardroom, Ciarán Kilduff is about to embark on his first season in charge, and the probability is the new manager will have a team bearing very little resemblance to the one that finished at the bottom of last season’s Premier League.

All want to see last season, the worst in over two decades, replaced by one in which the team succeeds in the second tier at the first time of asking.

Nothing would boost the club’s fortunes like a quick return to the Premier Division. Before it can happen, Oriel will be opening its gates to first-time visitors.

There’ll be ten teams vying for honours. Three of them, Kerry FC, Wexford and Limerick’s Treaty, have never been up this way before, but over the years Bray, Longford, Athlone, Cobh Ramblers, UCD and Finn Harps were visitors, some of them with regularity.

There’s been, however, a meeting with Wexford. A visit to Ferrycarrig Park a few years ago for an FAI Cup tie ended in an embarrassing defeat.

Dundalk will have a lot of travelling to do, not exactly what the new board would welcome given the parlous state of the club’s finances.

Contrast that with the situation of a few seasons ago, when, after Cork’s relegation, there was no team from south of Dublin operating in the Premier Division.

While Dundalk will be hoping for an instant return to the top, a repeat of what happened following a first-ever visit to the Second Division would do just fine.

The 1998’99 season produced just nine wins from 43 appearances over all competitions, leading to relegation, which was always the likely outcome from a long way out.

Nothing much happened in the first season in the lower division, and there were fears there could be an extended stay in the doldrums.

In circumstances similar to today, with the club in serious debt, a co-op was set up. Chaired by Des Denning, the new guardians couldn’t have hoped for much better luck on the field.

Under the captaincy of David Crawley, one of several home-grown players in the squad, the league was claimed with some ease, the final table showing the team four points clear of Monaghan.

Better was to come. Celebrating a return to the Premier League, Martin Murray-managed Dundalk kept their best for the FAI Cup.

Having reached the final, with a couple of replays wins along the way, they were rank outsiders to beat Bohemians.

But recent signing, Gary Haylock, was sharp around goals and having netted twice in the semi-final defeat of Shamrock Rovers, the much-travelled Englishman repeated the feat in a splendid 2-1 win.

There were some lean years after that. Promotion, yes, but that was minuscule when compared with what came following Stephen Kenny’s appointment.

It will be a while before the period overseen by Kenny and later, Vinny Perth, fades from followers’ memory. The battle to get anywhere near those halcyon days has a start-line at the very bottom.