Celtic ready for League of Ireland Challenge

Celtic ready for League of Ireland challenge


Castlebar Celtic’s brave step into the Newstalk FAI League of Ireland A league is ready to roll this weekend when Derry City make the trip south to Celtic Park. Last Friday night Celtic launched their campaign in the TF Royal Hotel and Theatre. Declan Kilkelly, manager of the side, praised the club’s decision to enter the competition when he was called on to speak at the launch. “This is a brave, brave, decision by the club to enter this competition. The decision was proved right by just looking at the number of lads we have got back from clubs like Galway United, Mervue United, and Sligo Rovers who are ready to do their part for the club in this exciting venture.

Any players, whoever they are, want to play at the highest level they can and now we can offer our players who have come through our own underage system this chance to play League of Ireland football for Castlebar Celtic.” Kilkelly was in charge of the Celtic youth side who claimed the FAI Youth Cup in 2006, took over the club’s senior side midway through last season after the departure of former manager Gavin Dykes who had brought them to an FAI junior cup semi-final, and guided them in their first adventure in the FAI u20 league side in 2007 only to see the club excluded from the 2008 competition because they did not have an A league side.


Read more at www.advertiser.ie

It's very refreshing to see teams like Carlow and Castlebar getting excited about being involved in the league structure.

I think this is the main benefit of the A Championship - that it gives clubs a higher level to play at and narrows the gap with the First Division, without the relatively big cost and gamble of leaping straight into the senior leagues.

Hopefuly in a fews years we'll start to see progression from the A league and the beginnings of a proper pyramid structure.

Absolutely - I'd say a few clubs have taken note of what Mervue United have done and seen that they're not our of place in Division 1. It's also good for the the League of Ireland as a whole that there is now some sort of pressure on clubs at the bottom of Division 1 to perform.
The situation with Kildare is unfortunate but they were helping out the FAI by playing in Division 1 and hopefully they'll improve when the Kildare league finishes and they can sign up some better players.
In most European countries the structures are similar to this where the reserve sides play alongside other teams and it's good that the FAI are not just copying the Reserve Divisions in England.
Hopefully next season it will FC Carlow or Castlebar Celtic who have joined the 1st Division.