CIAN COLEMAN ISN’T particularly keen on interviews, Limerick FC’s media officer explains.
But he accommodates the request nevertheless. Coleman is the type of fella who prefers to do his talking on the pitch. To that end, he has certainly made himself heard in the SSE Airtricity League in 2018.
His move from Cobh Ramblers may not have been among the most high-profile transfers of the League of Ireland off-season, but the early indications are that the signing of the versatile youngster has been a major coup for Limerick.
“I’m really happy with how I’ve done personally,” says the midfielder, who can also operate in defence. “When I came in I knew it would be tough in my first season in the Premier Division, but I just have to keep my head down and keep pushing on.”
Coleman made 28 appearances last season for a young Cobh Ramblers side who were pipped to the First Division title by Waterford. However, he received his first taste of League of Ireland football at hometown club Cork City, who he joined at the age of 16.
A native of Hollyhill on the northside of the Lee, Coleman was given his Premier Division debut by City manager John Caulfield in August 2015. Then 18, he was sprung from the bench to replace Kevin O’Connor in a 3-1 victory over St Patrick’s Athletic.
He made a couple more appearances for Caulfield’s side in 2016, and despite captaining the club’s successful U19 team who overcame HJK Helsinki in the Uefa Youth League before falling short against AS Roma, Coleman reluctantly began to accept that opportunities to make an impression were likely to remain scarce.
Ahead of the 2017 season, Greg Bolger, Gearoid Morrissey and Garry Buckley were Caulfield’s main men in midfield. The arrivals of Conor McCormack from Derry City and Jimmy Keohane from Sligo Rovers would only serve to push Coleman further down the pecking order.
Having just turned 20, Coleman felt he was at an age where regular first-team football was essential. He was also pragmatic about his prospects of finding it at Turner’s Cross. Under pressure to bring a league title to Cork after being second-best to Dundalk for three consecutive seasons, Caulfield couldn’t afford to take a risk on an unproven youngster.
“I knew I needed to get game-time,” Coleman explains. “The season I left I had been captain of the U19s and we did well in the Uefa Youth League. I felt I did well too. I sat down with John Caulfield and we were honest with each other.
“There are a lot of quality midfielders there and I knew I wasn’t ready to start ahead of them. I just knew that I wouldn’t play, but I was at a stage where I had to play. I went down to Cobh last March and that worked out well for me.
“People will always say that young fellas should be given a chance, but you have to look at it from his [Caulfield's] side as well. It was his job to win the league and he had players who he was already loyal to, as every manager should be. They’re players who have been around the league for a long time and who he can trust.
“You’re not going to throw a young fella into the deep end when you need to win games. I was just being realistic. I knew I wasn’t going to play. It was good learning from those players every day in training, but you have to get out and play games eventually.”
He adds: “Leaving was very disappointing. I’m obviously from Cork and I was with the club since I was 16. The dream then was to play for Cork City. But as I got older I started to see how difficult that would be. I’m not for a second saying that I didn’t think I’d be able for it, but you have to be realistic as well when looking at your chances of getting into the team.”
Back in November, Limerick manager Neil McDonald signed Coleman from Cobh Ramblers after being impressed by his display when the teams met in the FAI Cup. New boss Tommy Barrett, who succeeded McDonald when he left for the assistant manager’s role at Scunthorpe United, has been the beneficiary of his predecessor’s recruitment.
An energetic midfielder who’s adept at shielding his defence and breaking up opposition play, Coleman doesn’t need encouragement to get forward and lend a hand in attack. It’s still early days, but his contribution to Limerick’s season so far belies his lack of Premier Division experience.
“I have belief in myself, but not in a cocky way,” says Coleman, when asked if he has been surprised by how seamlessly he has transitioned to life at the heart of a top-flight team.
“I knew it would be a step-up from the First Division. When you’re playing against teams like Cork City, you’re coming up against fellas like Gearoid Morrissey. You’re talking about the best players in the league. I’m nowhere near that level yet. Maybe I’m doing well at the moment, but I’ve a long way to go. All I can do is make sure that I’m learning every day.”
Coleman has delivered multiple man-of-the-match displays for his new club, most notably in the 1-1 draw with Cork City earlier this month. While insisting that there wasn’t an extra incentive to send a message to John Caulfield when the Premier Division champions visited Markets Field, he admits it was no ordinary game.
In addition to the fixture being a meeting of two Munster neighbours, Limerick started the game with six former City players in their team. Coleman may have once dreamt of representing Cork City, but his celebration after Billy Dennehy gave Limerick the lead left no doubt as to where his loyalties now lie.
Good performance from the boys tonight and a well earned point! Fans were unbelievable as always, onto Monday 🔵🔵 pic.twitter.com/qpI9nbNupf
— Cian Coleman (@ciancoleman) March 17, 2018
“We go into every game with the aim of beating the opposition, but that one was a bit different for us,” Coleman says, reflecting on a game in which Limerick thoroughly deserved a point against the Leesiders, who needed a Kieran Sadlier penalty to draw level.
“There was a bit of an edge there. From a personal point of view I wasn’t even thinking about proving a point or anything like that. It’s not like I was hard done by at Cork City. It was just another chance for me to improve and help the team to get a result.”
Although his football career is in its infancy, Coleman is in it for the long haul. His ultimate aim is to follow in the footsteps of two of his former Cork City U19 team-mates by earning a move to the UK. Having also left City in search of first-team football elsewhere in the League of Ireland, Chiedozie Ogbene and Aaron Drinan secured moves to Brentford (from Limerick) and Ipswich Town (from Waterford) respectively in January.
“I’m fully committed to this. I haven’t gone to college or anything else, which some people will say is wrong. Not going to college might not be the right thing to do, but I want to give this everything. I have so far. I’ve been talking about it since I was 11. I won’t stop until I get to where I want to be,” says Coleman.
“The two lads [Ogbene and Drinan] both deserve to be where they are. I know personally how much work they’ve put in to get there. People don’t see the sacrifices you’re making and the hours you’re putting in behind the scenes. They can go as far as they want if they keep their heads in the game. I have to do the same, but obviously in my own way.”
Coleman spent time with Aston Villa when he was 16. He also had a trial at Nottingham Forest prior to his move to Cobh. But he now says he’s glad to be in a position to play competitive senior football at home, at a time when there appears to be a growing appreciation among cross-channel clubs for the value of first-team experience in the League of Ireland.
“I personally think it’s better to have played first-team football instead of being in the academies or the reserves in England, because clubs seem to look more at how many first-team games you’ve played over anything else,” he says. “The standard of the league here is getting better and better as well, so that’s being recognised.”
For now, Coleman remains focused on his obligations to a Limerick team who were widely tipped as favourites for the drop following Neil McDonald’s untimely departure in January. It’s been a mixed bag so far for Tommy Barrett’s side, who are currently a point above relegation trouble following losses to Shamrock Rovers and St Patrick’s Athletic.
They also suffered heavy defeats to Dundalk (8-0) and Derry City (5-0) earlier in the campaign, but wins against Sligo Rovers and Bray Wanderers, as well as draws with Bohemians and Cork City, have provided proof of their potential.
“We’re not even thinking about relegation,” Coleman says ahead of tonight’s home game against third-placed Waterford. “We’ve had some disappointing results — including two bad blips — and we’ve taken points off good teams too. But we still expect better.
“People were writing us off from the start but we didn’t listen to any of it. This is a good squad of players who work hard. I believe we can have a good season.”
Limerick’s chances of doing so will be aided significantly by Coleman if he can maintain the high standards he has already set for himself. In that case, the only drawback for one of the league’s top performers so far in 2018 is that the interview requests will keep coming in.
Premier Division
First Division
