This time last year Dundalk had lost their best player after a brilliant season.
Richie Towell departed for Brighton after scoring 28 goals from midfield as Dundalk won the league and FAI Cup double.
However, not only did Stephen Kenny’s side cope just fine without their talisman, they had the best season any Irish club side has possibly ever had.
Dundalk won the league for a third consecutive season and made the Champions League play-off round, before holding their own in the group stages of the Europa League and becoming the first Irish side to win at that stage of European competition.
Losing to Cork City in the final minute of extra-time in the FAI Cup was a sour end to the season, but otherwise it had been an incredible year for the club.
The challenge now for Kenny’s team is to continue their domestic dominance and go one step further in Europe by making the group stages of the Champions League.
However, it won’t be easy.
The deal is donehttps://t.co/cNqXXSU5d7
— SportsJOE (@SportsJOEdotie) December 12, 2016
Daryl Horgan and Andy Boyle, two of Dundalk’s best players last season, have signed for Preston, and Ronan Finn will leave the league champions to sign for Shamrock Rovers, according to The Irish Sun.
The 28-year-old midfielder played for Rovers between 2011 and 2015, and will re-join the club on a two-year deal.
Finn was named the league’s player of the month back in April, and featured in all of Dundalk’s Europa League games.
The Dundalk manager sounds as though he expects more to follow Finn, Horgan and Boyle out of Oriel Park before the new season begins in March.
“We’re in negotiations with a few players but it’s a very strong possibility that we’ll lose players to other clubs, maybe in the UK and the League of Ireland. It’s something we’ll have to contend with,” Kenny told The Dundalk Democrat.
“This season took its toll on everyone. In terms of the workload, the players and staff were shattered when it came to an end.
“Everybody needed a breather and sometimes when you get a season like we had, where you’ve almost achieved everything you can possibly achieve, people reflect and think ‘what else is there to do?’
Dundalk's amazing season is recognisedhttps://t.co/B2P7C26sV6 pic.twitter.com/xMyi44yJhE
— SportsJOE (@SportsJOEdotie) December 16, 2016
“Success can change people. People start thinking about their jobs and their life outside of football and they start to look at other factors.”
Dundalk’s only signing since the end of last season has been central defender Sean Hoare from St Patrick’s Athletic.
Dylan Connolly had been linked with a €100,000 move, but has signed a new two-year deal with Bray Wanderers.
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