Former Dundalk FC captain — and current Lilywhites opposition analyst — Stephen O’Donnell is expected to be confirmed as the new manager of St Patrick’s Athletic over the weekend.
The 33-year-old, who retired from playing in January, has emerged as the shock favourite to replace Harry Kenny in the Richmond Park hot seat. Kenny left Pat’s after their disappointing FAI Cup defeat to UCD last week.
Speaking to Dundalk Sport after Dundalk’s 5–0 win over UCD on Friday night, Lilywhites head coach Vinny Perth confirmed that the club had given O’Donnell the green light to speak to Pat’s and said that the matter was out of his hands.
“Stephen asked us for permission to speak to another club and we granted that,” said Perth. “It’s up to the two clubs to decide what happens now. I’ve been in game mode for the past four or five hours so something may have happened, I don’t know yet.
“Stephen came to us at a crossroads in his career and he has helped me no end in terms of my career and the two of us have both achieved a huge amount together,” he added.
“I’m very happy with him here but, ultimately, we all have ambitions. We’ll see where that one ends up. I’ve given him some time out to decide which way he wants to go.”
O’Donnell, who holds a UEFA A Licence, had a brief spell in charge of the DkIT first-team in 2016, guiding the local college to the CUFL Division One title.
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