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Greyfriars Bobby · 03-30-2019, 01:22 PM

14 August 2015

After I decided not to sign Patrick Sheehan, I didn't look back. Young Alexander van der Steen was my goalkeeper until Darcy Bradford was ready to return to action.

In the remaining days of the transfer period, I made two moves in order to keep the defense in front of my young gloveman as hard to breach as possible. I confess I hadn't thought of bringing in Sean Glynn until Gareth Kelly, a local journo, asked me about it in an interview. I took a look at Glynn and told Gareth I'd be doing everything I could to make it happen.

Glynn is a natural right back, but he's also comfortable in the middle of the defense. He's on the books at Everton, but he's yet to make an appearance there, spending part of last season on loan at York City. He'll be doing a similar stint with us for the remainder of the year. Sean immediately moved into the starting lineup at center half, replacing the injured Aaron Sikumoya. Mark Molloy, unfortunately for him, played himself out of contention with a series of sub-par performances.

Our other new man fills a double role. David Brennan is not young (37) and he is not fast (4 Pace). He's nominally a left back, where he'd have to depend on his defensive instincts and his ability to read the game; he can also play more centrally, where his intelligence and technical skill could enable him to be an Irish Andrea Pirlo. The impact of David's professionalism and maturity could be immeasurable to a team in a title fight. He'll also take a role in the coaching staff for our Under 19s.

Glynn was in the lineup when we saw off Cork City, 4-1, at Eamonn Deacy Park. Brennan came on as a substitute and demonstrated another of his skills, converting a penalty for our fourth goal. Van der Steen was beaten once, but his performance was otherwise rock-solid.

Our defense was even better in each of the next two matches, 2-0 victories over Bohemians and Derry City. The Bohs didn't test our 'keeper once, as Roy Murphy led the defense with 19 interceptions. The Candystripes were a tougher foe, but Sean Glynn won nine headers, and Alexander van der Steen made two nifty saves. Unfortunately, though, striker Declan Nolan twisted his knee in the Derry City match, so we'd have to do without him for a few weeks.

When I took a look at the results from around the division, here is what I saw:

St. Pat's Athletic had beaten Dundalk, and now we're top of the league!

And, as fortune would have it, we play Dundalk at Oriel Park tonight.

But, first I wanted to enjoy some of the rewards of our outstanding play of late.

Sweeping the podium is lots of fun! Declan's injury came at a bad time, but hopefully one of our other forwards will pick up the slack. Russell and Murphy have been as good as anyone in the division at their positions, all season long.

I got a little love for myself, too.

It took Peter Johansson some time to settle in at Galway United. I wondered if we'd rated him too highly; perhaps he was a flat track bully who'd been dominating an inferior league. Still, his attributes were so good that I found it hard to believe there wasn't a player in there somewhere.

Sometime around the first of June, things clicked for him. Since then, he's played like The High King Peter. I'd love to bring him to Ireland for keeps, but so far he's not been interested. Maybe things will change soon. At least, he's saying good things about his time here.

03-30-2019, 01:22 PM	#33
Greyfriars Bobby College Prospect Join Date: Sep 2013	14 August 2015 After I decided not to sign Patrick Sheehan, I didn't look back. Young Alexander van der Steen was my goalkeeper until Darcy Bradford was ready to return to action. In the remaining days of the transfer period, I made two moves in order to keep the defense in front of my young gloveman as hard to breach as possible. I confess I hadn't thought of bringing in Sean Glynn until Gareth Kelly, a local journo, asked me about it in an interview. I took a look at Glynn and told Gareth I'd be doing everything I could to make it happen. Glynn is a natural right back, but he's also comfortable in the middle of the defense. He's on the books at Everton, but he's yet to make an appearance there, spending part of last season on loan at York City. He'll be doing a similar stint with us for the remainder of the year. Sean immediately moved into the starting lineup at center half, replacing the injured Aaron Sikumoya. Mark Molloy, unfortunately for him, played himself out of contention with a series of sub-par performances. Our other new man fills a double role. David Brennan is not young (37) and he is not fast (4 Pace). He's nominally a left back, where he'd have to depend on his defensive instincts and his ability to read the game; he can also play more centrally, where his intelligence and technical skill could enable him to be an Irish Andrea Pirlo. The impact of David's professionalism and maturity could be immeasurable to a team in a title fight. He'll also take a role in the coaching staff for our Under 19s. Glynn was in the lineup when we saw off Cork City, 4-1, at Eamonn Deacy Park. Brennan came on as a substitute and demonstrated another of his skills, converting a penalty for our fourth goal. Van der Steen was beaten once, but his performance was otherwise rock-solid. Our defense was even better in each of the next two matches, 2-0 victories over Bohemians and Derry City. The Bohs didn't test our 'keeper once, as Roy Murphy led the defense with 19 interceptions. The Candystripes were a tougher foe, but Sean Glynn won nine headers, and Alexander van der Steen made two nifty saves. Unfortunately, though, striker Declan Nolan twisted his knee in the Derry City match, so we'd have to do without him for a few weeks. When I took a look at the results from around the division, here is what I saw: St. Pat's Athletic had beaten Dundalk, and now we're top of the league! And, as fortune would have it, we play Dundalk at Oriel Park tonight. But, first I wanted to enjoy some of the rewards of our outstanding play of late. Sweeping the podium is lots of fun! Declan's injury came at a bad time, but hopefully one of our other forwards will pick up the slack. Russell and Murphy have been as good as anyone in the division at their positions, all season long. I got a little love for myself, too. It took Peter Johansson some time to settle in at Galway United. I wondered if we'd rated him too highly; perhaps he was a flat track bully who'd been dominating an inferior league. Still, his attributes were so good that I found it hard to believe there wasn't a player in there somewhere. Sometime around the first of June, things clicked for him. Since then, he's played like The High King Peter. I'd love to bring him to Ireland for keeps, but so far he's not been interested. Maybe things will change soon. At least, he's saying good things about his time here. Last edited by Greyfriars Bobby : 03-30-2019 at 01:25 PM.