DUNDALK MANAGER STEPHEN Kenny has added to his goalkeeping options ahead of the 2018 season, which begins when they contest the President’s Cup against Cork City at Oriel Park on Sunday afternoon.
The SSE Airtricity League Premier Division club have announced the signing of Ross Treacy. The 19-year-old former Ireland underage international joins the Lilywhites having left English Premier League club Swansea City last summer.
“I am happy to be at Dundalk,” Treacy told the club’s official website. “The club has done some big things in the last few years and it has been great to look from afar. I have been watching that and there’s always progression here. The club is on the up and I want to be part of that.
“I am looking forward to competing for places here and helping the team in whatever way I can. Stephen [Kenny] got in touch with me last summer but I missed the deadline. Lucky enough he got back in touch with me at the start of this pre-season. He asked me to come up and train. I feel it has gone well and I was delighted to be offered a deal.
“The lads have been good to me so far. A great group of people, I have known some of them from playing with them before so that helps. It has been good so far.”
Treacy played his underage football with Parkvilla in Navan, before joining St Kevin’s Boys. From there he was signed by Swansea. The Meath native will be competing with Gary Rogers and Gabriel Sava in his bid to experience first-team football at Dundalk.
“I was at Swansea City for three years and that was an eye-opener,” he said. “It taught me a lot about how football works. I got a better understanding of it. It helped me with my technical ability to compete here.
“I am in a good place. There isn’t much difference between football here and in the UK. The gap has certainly got smaller. The pace and the intensity in games and training, there isn’t a major difference now.”
Treacy added: “The plan is to get my head down and challenge both Gabby and Gary for the spots ahead of me. That’s what I want to do. I want to make sure that when an opportunity comes around, I am ready to come in for the team. I want to push the lads, hopefully they will push me too and it’ll be healthy competition.”
