DUNDALK FC HEAD coach Stephen O’Donnell has hit out at the “disgraceful” speculation and “negative narrative” around the Louth club.

O’Donnell launched a scathing tirade after last night’s 2-0 SSE Airtricity League Premier Division win over Bohemians at Oriel Park.

Speaking to local reporters, the outburst was originally sparked by questions about Pat Hoban’s rumoured departure and substitute role, to which he refused to comment.

“There’s too much nonsense about off the pitch stuff all throughout the season concerning this club,” the former Lilywhites captain began. “Just talk about stuff on the pitch.

“It’s the only club I see where there’s so much speculation and such a negative narrative on it constantly. Let’s talk about football because that’s the way it used to be here. ‘13, ’14, ‘15, ‘16, there was no rubbish talk. I don’t know how many podcasts, there was nothing talked about off the field stuff. It was on the field stuff. It was pure, so let’s keep it pure or let’s get the town back to it being pure and it being purely football. I’m sick of nonsense off the field stuff, headlining, because all we’re doing is dirtying our own club and our own town. I don’t see it with any other club in the league.”

Amidst an over-and-back, O’Donnell continued: “Put this all in, because the amount of speculation and negativity around this club – it’s disgraceful, alright?

“Non-football issues all the time and then when we win a game, it’s always a negative narrative: ‘The opposition were really poor.’ Then when we lose a game: ‘Dundalk were miles off it, the opposition were miles ahead.’ I’m sick of it.

“It goes from commentary, it goes right though. It’s terrible for trying to attract people to support Dundalk, trying to attract players to get to Dundalk. The narrative is always negative.

“I’m just telling you what I feel. There’s a negative slant of a lot of things at this football club. I don’t know what year it started but it seems to be that Dundalk is an easy punchbag now, the football club.”

When it was suggested that it was ‘confirmed’ on Thursday that Hoban was free to go, O’Donnell responded: “Confirmed by who? Who was it confirmed by? This is more nonsense. Who confirmed it? Nothing.

“This is what I’m talking about. We won 2-0. We’ve kept the season alive with a half a chance of Europe and what are we talking about? Does that prove my point? So any other club who has a convincing win, everyone would be coming in elated saying, ‘Really good performance’. You started off your first question or two in that regard but all you wanted to do was go down the rabbit hole of the other stuff.

“All you want to do is talk about non-football talking points. All you want to do is speculate negativity. All I want to do is talk about football. I’m a head coach of football but a lot of the questions I get asked are non-football related.”

But it overlaps, came the response.

“I don’t care,” O’Donnell bit back.

“How are they (the fans) going home tonight? Happy. Are we still in there pitching? How are Shelbourne fans going home tonight? It’s the same thing.

“Will Damien Duff have to be answering… and this is a constant theme. There seems to be a positive narrative with a lot of clubs then everything here is a negative slant. Never for once, and I can only speak personally, in two years since I’ve been here have I felt an upward trajectory from a mood point of view, from the sub-plots, from a positivity around the club and that’s a far cry from when I left as a player.”

“I think you need to look at the bigger picture,” he added. “Instead of going for sensationalist stuff, try and make Dundalk back to what it was – a positive football club, a working class town, like it’s all about football. Us against the rest. We seem to be the first to get the knives in ourselves.

“I’m just saying the vibe. The football side always gets skewed. Just keep it to football.”

- Additional reporting from Niall Newberry.