In our pre-season preview we asked 20 questions as a guide to the storylines to follow in the 2013 Airtricity League season. Let's see how they panned out.
1) Can Shamrock Rovers recover from last year’s debacle?
No, if anything things got worse. Rookie manager Trevor Croly did bring the 3 minor cups to the club but a 5th place finish simply isn’t good enough for a club with the resources that Shamrock Rovers do. They finished the season in front of 3 figure crowds in Tallaght and there’s undeniable tension between supporters and (elected) board about the manager’s position. Could be an interesting off-season for them.
2) Can Sligo Rovers push on from winning the league title?
Not really. Sligo Rovers did win the FAI Cup yesterday in dramatic fashion but finishing 3rd in the league is a disappointment. There had been rumours that manager Ian Baraclough was on his way out and his contract situation needs to be finalised pretty soon if Sligo wish to keep him on.
3) Are Drogheda United for real?
No, they weren't. Drogheda slipped from 2nd in 2012 to 8th in 2013 but did reach 3 Cup finals (eh, losing all 3...). Manager Mick Cooke has not had his contract renewed so it remains to be seen what the new man will bring to the table next season.
4) Can St Patrick’s Athletic win something?
Yes, emphatically, yes! St Pats pretty much led the league for 5 months and deservedly wrapped up the title with 2 games to spare. Manager Liam Buckley started the season by saying his goal was to win the league but very few believed it was possible. He’s already talking about retaining it.
5) Will Thomond Park inspire Limerick?
Not really. Limerick’s crowds did increase and they gave their home fans some great moments this season but a mid table finish was expected, and delivered. Limerick have made the first new signing of the season with the capture of Shane Duggan from Munster rivals Cork City. They’ll be looking to push towards a top 4 finish next season.
6) Will Cork City return to the top table of LOI football?
No. Cork sacked Tommy Dunne midway though the season after a disappointing start. They finished the season with 7 wins in the last 10 though, powered by loan signing Ciaran Kilduff. If they can keep Kilduff and the likes of Gearoid and Danny Morrissey, the new manager certainly has a lot of talent to work with. Cork legend John Caulfield is rumoured to be close to agreeing terms as new boss.
7) Will Derry City build on cup success?
No. Derry started the season well and were on top of the league (by goal difference) after the first series of games. They faded badly though and ended up in 4th 15 points behind the champions. That collapse saw manager Declan Devine lose his job. Whoever takes over will at least have European football to look forward to next season.
8) Will Stephen Kenny get redemption in Dundalk?
Absolutely. Kenny, with some investment, took the team that finished 11th last season to a brilliant 2nd place finish and to the semi final of the FAI Cup. Although they fell short late on, there can be no denying the magnificent job done by Kenny. He’s already signed back 12 of this season’s squad including the pivotal Richie Towell.
9) Will Shelbourne break records for red cards?
No. They were on course to early on but the dismissal of manager Alan Mathews saw his team’s crazy aggressiveness go with him. New man John McDonnell couldn’t quite pull off the miracle and keep Shels up but he should provide stability for them in the first division next season. Shels’ 8 red cards were a league high by the way.
10) Will Bohemians inspire more poetry?
Probably not. They did reach their season aim of staying up though, even if it took the mid-season firing of Aaron Callaghan. Owen Heary steadied the ship and Bohs just about did enough to avoid the drop. Whether or not Heary can apply for the job on a full time basis remains to be seen. If he an get on a pro-license course, he’d have to be the front runner.
11) Will the President of the UCD Supporters Club in Serbia get to see the team play?
No idea, but UCD did what UCD do. They played a load of young players showing glimpses of promise while suffering some heavy defeats along the way. Martin Russell is again being touted for other managerial jobs so we could have yet another club in transition over the winter break.
12) Will Bray Wanderers give sport writers a reason other than Katie Taylor to mention their town?
Yep. Jason Byrne’s mid-season flourish saw him hit the Bulgarian newspapers and receive the wrath of RTE’s Pat Morley. Apart from that Bray looked doomed for relegation but once again they avoided it with a late, late winner in the play off in Longford. Bray will never be relegated.
13) The League’s best interview, Roddy Collins, is back. Can he inspire Athlone Town?
Yes. Roddy’s Athlone won the first division title and promotion with a couple of games to spare. He’s made noises since about increasing his budget and even threatened to head elsewhere. We’ll see what happens but either way Athlone are in the premier division for the first time since 1996 and will look to enjoy themselves next season.
14) Who will win promotion and will there even be a First Division next year?
Athlone were the only team to earn promotion on the pitch. The answer to the 2nd part is still up in the air. With the Galway sides “merging” we currently have 7 teams looking to be in the first division next season. Surely that can’t happen, can it?
15) What’s going to happen the mess with Mervue United, Salthill Devon Galway United and GUST?
Some clarity last week as Galway FC announced, through the Galway FA, that they were applying for a place in the 2014 Airtricity League. The people behind Mervue, Salthill and GUST seem to be involved but nobody is too vocal about it. Let’s hope it works out as Terryland is a good ground in this league.
16) Will fans of League of Ireland clubs be as colourful as ever?
Absolutely. Great displays this year by Sligo, Pats, Dundalk, Rovers, Drogheda and many more.
17) Who’ll be the next player to join the likes of Doyle, Long, Coleman,Fahey, Hoolahan, Ward and McClean as regular internationals?
Not sure any of this year’s crop will be. Richie Towell is 22 and was the young player most in the spotlight. Cork striker Danny Morrissey is now tipped to move to England soon. During the season Chris Forrester, Daryl Horgan and Barry McNamee all played for the Ireland under 21s while Jake Caroll left St Pats for Huddersfield in the summer. They’re the most likely, even if none really look like obvious full internationals.
18) Will anybody score goals as good as these two from Mark Griffin and Chris Forrester?
Daryl Horgan’s is pretty damn good.
19) Will the FAI, the PFAI, the clubs and all of Irish football get its’ act together?
Off the field it has certainly been quieter than usual. That’s a good thing. The Galway mess threatened to erupt a couple of times but it seems to be coming close to resolution. The first division is still in limbo but we’ll see what happens there. The PFAI showed how they can contribute constructively to the league by rallying the players (and others) behind Gary O’Neill’s cancer diagnosis. They’ll also be happy to see plenty of players already signed up for 2014.
20) And finally, will any of our clubs find themselves falling in love on their European travels this year?
None were in Europe long enough to make friends this year but last week we had a reminder of the Hannover 96/Pats love fest.
Congrats to Liam Buckley and @stpatsfc for the first title in 14 years in Irish Football! We like to look back to the great EL games! #H96
— Hannover 96 (@Hannover96) October 29, 2013
@Hannover96 Danke! Wir wünschen Ihnen viel Glück in der Bundesliga!
— St Patrick's Ath (@stpatsfc) October 29, 2013
We’ll continue to bring you all the weird and wacky stories from the greatest league in the world throughout the off season. 2013 has been a cracking season!
