LEAGUE OF IRELAND Premier Division leaders Shamrock Rovers have confirmed the signing of striker John McGovern from NIFL Premiership club Dungannon Swifts, while highly rated youngster Leigh Kavanagh has extended his contract at Bohemians.
Rovers paid a fee to Dungannon, which will remain undisclosed, each club has confirmed, with the latter saying that McGovern departs Stangmore Park “with every blessing from everyone involved at DSFC”.
Former Down Gaelic footballer McGovern, 22, scored 20 goals in all competitions for Swifts last season, opening the scoring in their Irish Cup final against Cliftonville, which they eventually won on penalties.
The Ballyholland native won a Tailteann Cup and an Ulster U20 title with The Mourne County but chose to pursue soccer over Sam Maguire football this summer.
McGovern is also a former Northern Ireland U21 international.
Rovers boss Stephen Bradley, whose side are six points clear atop the Premier Division table and host Galway United on Friday night, said the Hoops had been monitoring striker McGovern for a year but had been unable to sign him while he completed his college degree in Business and IT studies.
“John will give us real depth in that forward area of the pitch and another dimension,” Bradley said.
“His age profile means he’s one for now, but also the future.
“We tried quite a bit over the last year to sign John, but it wasn’t possible. He was at University, and Dungannon weren’t ready to sell at that moment in time. So, it was a case of continuing to monitor John, and thankfully, we’ve got him in now.
“We could have moved in on other players in the previous window, but we wanted to wait on John as he was someone we’d monitored for quite some time.”
McGovern’s transfer is subject to subject to international and domestic clearance, which, when approved, would allow the Down native to be available for selection from 1 July.
Meanwhile, Kavanagh has committed to Bohs until the end of the 2027 season.
The 21-year-old centre-back signed from Brighton last July and has swiftly established himself as a first-team regular, starting 11 of their opening 12 games before a hamstring injury suffered against St Patrick’s Athletic put him out of action.
This development follows news last week that another promising Bohs youngster, James McManus, has signed a contract extension until the conclusion of the 2027 campaign.
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Shamrock Rovers sign ex-Down GAA player, highly rated youngster commits to Bohs
Updated at 18.22
LEAGUE OF IRELAND Premier Division leaders Shamrock Rovers have confirmed the signing of striker John McGovern from NIFL Premiership club Dungannon Swifts, while highly rated youngster Leigh Kavanagh has extended his contract at Bohemians.
Rovers paid a fee to Dungannon, which will remain undisclosed, each club has confirmed, with the latter saying that McGovern departs Stangmore Park “with every blessing from everyone involved at DSFC”.
Former Down Gaelic footballer McGovern, 22, scored 20 goals in all competitions for Swifts last season, opening the scoring in their Irish Cup final against Cliftonville, which they eventually won on penalties.
The Ballyholland native won a Tailteann Cup and an Ulster U20 title with The Mourne County but chose to pursue soccer over Sam Maguire football this summer.
McGovern is also a former Northern Ireland U21 international.
Rovers boss Stephen Bradley, whose side are six points clear atop the Premier Division table and host Galway United on Friday night, said the Hoops had been monitoring striker McGovern for a year but had been unable to sign him while he completed his college degree in Business and IT studies.
“John will give us real depth in that forward area of the pitch and another dimension,” Bradley said.
“His age profile means he’s one for now, but also the future.
“We tried quite a bit over the last year to sign John, but it wasn’t possible. He was at University, and Dungannon weren’t ready to sell at that moment in time. So, it was a case of continuing to monitor John, and thankfully, we’ve got him in now.
“We could have moved in on other players in the previous window, but we wanted to wait on John as he was someone we’d monitored for quite some time.”
McGovern’s transfer is subject to subject to international and domestic clearance, which, when approved, would allow the Down native to be available for selection from 1 July.
Meanwhile, Kavanagh has committed to Bohs until the end of the 2027 season.
The 21-year-old centre-back signed from Brighton last July and has swiftly established himself as a first-team regular, starting 11 of their opening 12 games before a hamstring injury suffered against St Patrick’s Athletic put him out of action.
This development follows news last week that another promising Bohs youngster, James McManus, has signed a contract extension until the conclusion of the 2027 campaign.
Additional reporting by Paul Fennessy
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