PASCAL MILLIEN IS set to make his League of Ireland comeback next month after he was finally granted a work permit, two months after signing for Finn Harps.
The Ballybofey club confirmed today that the Haitian winger, 31, will be eligible for their Premier Division game against Shamrock Rovers on 16 June.
Millien initially signed for Harps on 11 March from Florida State club Fort Lauderdale Strikers, but could not feature until he was granted a work permit by the Department of Labour.
Harps club secretary John Campbell described the transfer as the most complex he had ever witnessed.
“First it took a number of weeks to get him signed and after that we then had to apply to the Department of Labour for Pascal’s work permit back in the middle of March. There were a lot of queries and hurdles that we had to clear to finally get the permit to allow him to play”, said Campbell.
“The amount of work involved in this signing dwarfed any other that I ever worked in my time as Harps secretary. There were 126 emails between myself and various agencies over the last eight weeks.
“It was just incredible the amount of backup material that was required to get Pascal registered as a Harps player. While it was a long saga I would just like to thank those people behind the scenes who helped me because it could have taken even longer without them.”
Speaking upon his signing for the club two months ago, Harps manager Ollie Horgan described Millien as a player with League of Ireland pedigree, having won both a Premier Division title and FAI Cup during two seasons at Sligo Rovers under Ian Baraclough.
“He will give us more options which will be needed for a long, tough season,” Horgan said in March.
“He’s a very experienced player and a big plus for us is that he knows the League of Ireland scene well. Pascal is an attacking midfielder who can score goals. He is good at linking up with front men so hopefully he can strike up a good understanding with our forwards.”
Campbell outlined the risks involved in signing a player pending a work permit. In cases such as Millien’s, even if the player’s application for a permit had failed the fee paid for his transfer would not have been returned.
“It’s money that has to be paid up front and is non-returnable even if the application fails. We’re just glad that we have been successful and that we now have Pascal for the second half of the season,” Campbell said.
Millien was born in Haiti but moved to Florida where he played college football for the University of Tampa, helping the side to the NCAA Division II Final Four in 2008. He turned professional two years later, signing a contract with FC Tampa Bray.
Following three years at the club, Millien signed for Sligo Rovers at the beginning of the 2012 Premier Division season. The player could not make his debut for the Bit O’Red until 20 April due to issues arising over obtaining a work permit.
He scored two goals in 17 appearances as he helped the club to the 2012 Premier Division title where he also won an FAI Cup title the following season.
Promoted to the first-tier in 2015, Finn Harps face the possibility of relegation to the First Division this season. The club currently sit bottom of the Premier Division after winning just three of their opening 13 league games.
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