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Dundalk entered the 2020 season as the reigning League Champions and League of Ireland Cup holders from 2019. Having qualified for European football for the seventh season in a row, they were entered in the 2020–21 UEFA Champions League. It was manager Vinny Perth's second season as manager until his dismissal following Dundalk's exit from Europe in the first qualifying round of the Champions League. The 2020 season was Dundalk's 12th consecutive season in the top tier of Irish football, their 85th in all, and their 94th in the League of Ireland.
| 2020 season | |||
|---|---|---|---|
 Vinny Perth, former Dundalk manager, celebrating the 2019 league title success with supporters in Oriel Park | |||
| Manager | Vinny Perth (until 20 August) Filippo Giovagnoli (from 26 August as Interim Head Coach) | ||
| Premier Division | 3rd | ||
| FAI Cup | Winners | ||
| League Cup | Cancelled | ||
| President's Cup | Cancelled | ||
| Leinster Senior Cup | Abandoned | ||
| Champions League | First qualifying round | ||
| Europa League | Group stage | ||
| Top goalscorer | League: Patrick Hoban (10) All: Patrick Hoban & David McMillan (11) | ||
| Highest home attendance | 3,156 (Vs. Derry City 14 February 2020) | ||
|
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After the postponement of the President's Cup due to storm conditions,[1] the scheduled double-double round-robin 36 round League programme commenced on 14 February 2020 and was due to be completed on 23 October 2020. The season was predicted to be a two-horse race between Dundalk and Shamrock Rovers.[2] Both sides won their opening three matches before Rovers won their first encounter, 3–2, in Tallaght Stadium. That game was notable for a goal by Dundalk's Jordan Flores, which was subsequently nominated for the FIFA Puskás Award.[3]
Subsequently, the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic saw the cessation of football in line with other European countries ahead of the Round Six match at home to St Patrick's Athletic. The League of Ireland Cup, sponsored by EA Sports, was deferred for the season.[4] The Leinster Senior Cup was abandoned.[5] During the stoppage, assistant manager Ruaidhrí Higgins departed his role for a new role under former Dundalk manager Stephen Kenny with the Republic of Ireland national football team.[6] He was replaced by Alan Reynolds, who had earlier resigned as manager of Waterford.[7]
The league season resumed on 31 July 2020 with a reduced schedule of 18 matches in total. Matches were played behind closed doors for the remainder of the shortened season as part of the Irish government's response to the pandemic.[8] In Europe, Dundalk entered the 2020–21 UEFA Champions League as the seeded team in the first qualifying round. They were drawn away to Celje and defeated 3–0 in the single-leg tie, which was played at Szusza Ferenc Stadion, Budapest (Hungary) because of travel restrictions related to the COVID-19 pandemic between Slovenia and Ireland.[9] In the aftermath of that defeat, manager Vinny Perth was sacked by the club.[10]
On 26 August Filippo Giovagnoli was confirmed as the new manager of Dundalk, with nine league matches remaining.[11] John Gill and Alan Reynolds left the club the following week.[12] After being defeated in the Champions League first qualifying round, they drew Andorran champions Inter Club d'Escaldes in the Europa League second qualifying round, and won 1–0.[13] They were drawn away again in the second round, and defeated Sheriff Tiraspol in Moldova in a penalty shoot-out, following a 1–1 draw.[14] The victory gave Dundalk a chance to reach the group stage for the first time since 2016. In the play-off round, they faced KÍ of Klaksvík in the Faroe Islands at the Aviva Stadium, and won 3–1.[15][16] Meanwhile, they continued to struggle in the league and eventually finished third, thus qualifying for the new UEFA Europa Conference League.
Dundalk were seeded fourth for the group stage and were drawn in Group B alongside Arsenal, Rapid Wien, and Molde. In the first match at home to Molde, Dundalk took a first half lead through Sean Murray, before going down 2–1.[17] Matchday 2 was the first away match, which was against Arsenal at the Emirates Stadium. It finished 3–0 to the home side.[18] Matchday 3 away to Rapid in Vienna finished 4–3 to the home side after Dundalk had taken the lead.[19] They failed to pick up any points from the second set of matches, and finished bottom of the group on 0 points.[20] They also received a €50,000 fine from Uefa for 'shadow coaching', as interim head coach Filippo Giovagnoli did not hold a Uefa Pro Licence.[21]
In the FAI Cup, which also had a schedule change as a result of the pandemic, they reached the final after wins over Waterford, Cobh Ramblers, Bohemians, and Athlone Town. The 11–0 semi-final victory over Athlone Town saw Dundalk set a new record for the biggest win in the competition's history, and was also a new club record victory.[22] They followed that with a 4–2 extra time victory over the holders, Shamrock Rovers, with David McMillan scoring a hat-trick, to win the Cup for the twelfth time.[23]
First-Team Squad (2020)
Sources:[24][25] Note: Substitute appearances in brackets
| No. | Name | DOB | Pos. | Debut | League | FAI Cup | EA Cup | Europe | Others | Totals | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | |||||
| 1 |  Gary Rogers |
25 September 1981 | GK | 2015 | 13 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 9 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 27 | 0 |
| 2 | Seán Gannon |
11 July 1991 | DF | 2014 | 12 (3) | 0 | 2 (2) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 (2) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 28 | 0 |
| 3 | Brian Gartland |
4 November 1986 | DF | 2013 | 7 (1) | 1 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 (1) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 20 | 1 |
| 4 | Seán Hoare |
15 March 1994 | DF | 2017 | 9 (1) | 0 | 2 (2) | 2 | 0 | 0 | 8 (1) | 1 | 0 | 0 | 23 | 3 |
| 5 | Chris Shields |
27 December 1990 | MF | 2012 | 16 (1) | 0 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 9 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 31 | 2 |
| 6 |  Jordan Flores |
4 October 1995 | MF | 2019 | 11 (3) | 3 | 0 (3) | 1 | 0 | 0 | 4 (1) | 2 | 0 | 0 | 22 | 6 |
| 7 |  Michael Duffy |
28 July 1994 | MF | 2017 | 15 (1) | 4 | 5 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 9 (1) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 31 | 7 |
| 8 | John Mountney |
22 February 1993 | MF | 2012 | 4 (7) | 0 | 1 (4) | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 (6) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 24 | 1 |
| 9 | Patrick Hoban |
28 July 1991 | FW | 2013 | 13 (2) | 10 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 (1) | 1 | 0 | 0 | 23 | 11 |
| 10 | Greg Sloggett |
3 July 1996 | MF | 2020 | 10 (4) | 2 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 (1) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 26 | 2 |
| 11 | Patrick McEleney |
26 September 1992 | MF | 2016 | 4 (5) | 0 | 2 (2) | 1 | 0 | 0 | 4 (4) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 21 | 1 |
| 12 | Andrew Quinn[a] |
12 November 1996 | FW | 2018 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 14 | Dane Massey |
17 April 1988 | DF | 2013 | 7 (1) | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 9 | 2 |
| 15 | Darragh Leahy |
15 April 1998 | DF | 2020 | 5 (3) | 0 | 2 (1) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 (1) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 19 | 0 |
| 16 | Seán Murray |
11 October 1993 | MF | 2019 | 5 (3) | 1 | 1 (1) | 1 | 0 | 0 | 5 (3) | 3 | 0 | 0 | 18 | 5 |
| 17 |  Nathan Oduwa[b] |
5 March 1996 | FW | 2020 | 4 (6) | 0 | 0 (2) | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 (3) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 16 | 1 |
| 18 | Will Patching |
18 October 1998 | MF | 2020 | 2 (5) | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 9 | 0 |
| 20 | Aaron McCarey |
14 January 1992 | GK | 2019 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 0 |
| 21 | Daniel Cleary |
9 March 1996 | DF | 2018 | 12 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 (1) | 1 | 0 | 0 | 23 | 2 |
| 22 |  Stefan Čolović |
16 April 1994 | MF | 2020 | 8 (6) | 1 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 (4) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 25 | 1 |
| 23 |  Cammy Smith[c] |
24 August 1995 | FW | 2020 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0 |
| 23 | Cameron Dummigan[d] |
2 June 1996 | DF | 2019 | 5 (2) | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 (2) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 15 | 0 |
| 24 | Jamie Wynne[e] |
30 July 2001 | FW | 2020 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 (1) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 27 | Daniel Kelly |
21 May 1996 | MF | 2019 | 9 (4) | 0 | 0 (4) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 (4) | 1 | 0 | 0 | 22 | 1 |
| 29 | David McMillan[f] |
14 December 1988 | FW | 2015 | 5 (6) | 0 | 4 (1) | 8 | 0 | 0 | 4 (4) | 3 | 0 | 0 | 24 | 11 |
| 30 | Jimmy Corcoran |
1 February 2002 | GK | 2020 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 44 | Andy Boyle |
7 March 1991 | DF | 2013 | 11 (1) | 1 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 6 (1) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 22 | 2 |
| 45 |  Josh Gatt[g] |
29 August 1991 | MF | 2020 | 1 (1) | 0 | 0 (1) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 |
Out on loan
| No. | Name | DOB | Pos. | Debut | League | FAI Cup | EA Cup | Europe | Others | Totals | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | |||||
| 12 | Georgie Kelly[h] |
12 November 1996 | FW | 2018 | 0 (2) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| 28 |  Lido Lotefa[i] |
18 April 2000 | FW | 2019 | 0 (1) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 25 | Taner Dogan[j] |
30 May 1998 | DF | 2020 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
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Premier Division
| 14 February 2020 Round 1 | Dundalk | 1–0 | Derry City | Oriel Park |
| 19:45 | Dane Massey 79' |
Report | Attendance: 3,156 Referee: Neil Doyle |
| 21 February 2020 Round 2 | Shelbourne | 1–2 | Dundalk | Tolka Park |
| 19:45 | Gary Deegan 52' |
Report | Andy Boyle 18' Patrick Hoban 43' |
Attendance: 3,010 Referee: Damien McGraith |
| 24 February 2020 Round 3 | Dundalk | 3–0 | Cork City | Oriel Park |
| 19:45 | Michael Duffy 16' Patrick Hoban 63'Jordan Flores 66' |
Report | Attendance: 2,243 Referee: Paul McLoughlin |
| 28 February 2020 Round 4 | Shamrock Rovers | 3–2 | Dundalk | Tallaght Stadium |
| 19:45 | Dylan Watts 20' Roberto Lopes 71'Jack Byrne 83' |
Report | Jordan Flores 23' Patrick Hoban 63' |
Attendance: 7,522 Referee: Rob Hennessey |
| 6 March 2020 Round 5 | Finn Harps | 0–4 | Dundalk | Finn Park |
| 20:00 | Patrick Hoban 3', 52' Michael Duffy 37'Greg Sloggett 83' |
Report | Attendance: 1,582 Referee: Rob Harvey |
| 31 July 2020 Round 6 | Dundalk | 1–1 | St Patrick's Athletic | Oriel Park |
| 19:45 | Patrick Hoban 23' |
Report | Robbie Benson 23' |
Attendance: 0 Referee: Rob Harvey |
| 7 August 2020 Round 7 | Bohemians | 2–1 | Dundalk | Dalymount Park |
| 17:45 | Danny Grant 7' Keith Buckley 15' |
Report | Michael Duffy 42' |
Attendance: 0 Referee: Neil Doyle |
| 14 August 2020 Round 8 | Dundalk | 2–2 | Waterford | Oriel Park |
| 17:45 | Patrick Hoban 83' Daniel Cleary 90' |
Report | Matty Smith 24' Kurtis Byrne 50' |
Attendance: 0 Referee: Ray Matthews |
| 22 August 2020 Round 9 | Sligo Rovers | 3–1 | Dundalk | The Showgrounds |
| 17:00 | Donelan 12' De Vries 51'Junior 62' |
Report | Stefan Čolović 76' |
Attendance: 0 Referee: Robert Hennessy |
| 11 September 2020 Round 10 | Dundalk | 3–2 | Shelbourne | Oriel Park |
| 19:45 | Michael Duffy 3' Brian Gartland 11'Greg Sloggett 60' |
Report | Dan Byrne 20' Georgie Poynton 24' |
Attendance: 0 Referee: Paul McLaughlin |
| 27 September 2020 Round 11 | Dundalk | 0–4 | Shamrock Rovers | Oriel Park |
| 19:45 | Report | Jack Byrne 36', 85' Liam Scales 44'Aaron McEneff 45' (pen.) |
Attendance: 100 Referee: Rob Harvey |
| 4 October 2020 Round 12 | Dundalk | 0–0 | Finn Harps | Oriel Park |
| 17:30 | Report | Attendance: 100 Referee: Paul McLaughlin |
| 14 October 2020 Round 13 | Cork City | 0–2 | Dundalk | Turners Cross |
| 19:45 | Patrick Hoban 73' 75' |
Report | Attendance: 0 Referee: Neil Doyle |
| 16 October 2020 Round 14 | Dundalk | 0–0 | Bohemians | Oriel Park |
| 17:45 | Report | Attendance: 0 Referee: Damien McGraith |
| 19 October 2020 Round 15 | Derry City | 1–2 | Dundalk | Ryan McBride Brandywell Stadium |
| 17:45 | Darren Cole 18' |
Report | Murray 7' Jordan Flores 15' |
Attendance: 0 Referee: Rob Harvey |
| 25 October 2020 Round 16 | Waterford | 1–0 | Dundalk | Waterford Regional Sports Centre |
| 14:00 | John Martin 57' |
Report | Attendance: 0 Referee: Sean Grant |
| 1 November 2020 Round 17 | St Patrick's Athletic | 1–1 | Dundalk | Richmond Park |
| 17:45 | Robbie Benson 63' |
Report | Patrick Hoban 22' |
Attendance: 0 Referee: Paul McLaughlin |
| 9 November 2020 Round 18 | Dundalk | 0–2 | Sligo Rovers | Oriel Park |
| 19:30 | Report | Devers 10' Coughlan 90' |
Attendance: 0 Referee: Derek Tomney |
League table
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification or relegation |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Shamrock Rovers (C) | 18 | 15 | 3 | 0 | 44 | 7 | +37 | 48 | Qualification for Champions League first qualifying round |
| 2 | Bohemians | 18 | 12 | 1 | 5 | 23 | 12 | +11 | 37 | Qualification for Europa Conference League first qualifying round[k] |
| 3 | Dundalk | 18 | 7 | 5 | 6 | 25 | 23 | +2 | 26 | |
| 4 | Sligo Rovers | 18 | 8 | 1 | 9 | 19 | 23 | −4 | 25 | |
| 5 | Waterford | 18 | 7 | 3 | 8 | 17 | 22 | −5 | 24 | |
| 6 | St Patrick's Athletic | 18 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 14 | 17 | −3 | 21 | |
| 7 | Derry City | 18 | 5 | 5 | 8 | 18 | 18 | 0 | 20 | |
| 8 | Finn Harps | 18 | 5 | 5 | 8 | 15 | 24 | −9 | 20 | |
| 9 | Shelbourne (R) | 18 | 5 | 4 | 9 | 13 | 22 | −9 | 19 | Qualification for relegation play-offs |
| 10 | Cork City (R) | 18 | 2 | 5 | 11 | 10 | 30 | −20 | 11 | Relegation to League of Ireland First Division |
Source: SSE Airtricity League, Soccerway
Rules for classification: 1) Points; 2) Goal difference; 3) Goals scored.[26]
(C) Champions; (R) Relegated
Notes:
Rules for classification: 1) Points; 2) Goal difference; 3) Goals scored.[26]
(C) Champions; (R) Relegated
Notes:
- on loan from Dundee United until 30 June 2020
- on loan to Crusaders until 30 June 2020
- on loan to St Patrick's Athletic until end of 2020 season
- on loan to Longford Town until end of 2020 season
- on loan to Athlone Town until end of 2020 season
- Since the winners of the 2020 FAI Cup (Dundalk) qualified for European competition based on their league position, the final spot awarded to the Cup winner passed to the next best-placed team, i.e. fourth-placed team.
FAI Cup
| 11 August 2020 Round 1 | Dundalk | 1–0 | Waterford | Oriel Park |
| 19:45 | Seán Hoare 17' |
Report | Attendance: 50 Referee: Paul McLaughlin |
| 30 August 2020 Round 2 | Cobh Ramblers | 0–2 | Dundalk | St Colman's Park |
| 17:00 | Report | Dane Massey 29' David McMillan 75' (pen.) |
Attendance: 50 Referee: Alan Patchell |
| 21 November 2020 Quarter Final | Bohemians | 1–4 | Dundalk | Dalymount Park |
| 19:45 | Andre Wright 11' (pen.) |
Report | Michael Duffy 2' David McMillan 35' (pen.), 39'Nathan Oduwa 88' |
Attendance: 0 Referee: Rob Harvey |
| 29 November 2020 Semi Final | Athlone Town | 0–11 | Dundalk | Athlone Town Stadium |
| 19:05 | Report | Michael Duffy 4', 9' Andy Boyle 13'John Mountney 29'Patrick McEleney 36'David McMillan 39', 64'Chris Shields 55'Nathan Oduwa 60'Jordan Flores 74'Sean Murray 83' |
Attendance: 0 Referee: Rob Hennessy |
| 6 December 2020 Final | Shamrock Rovers | 2–4 (a.e.t.) | Dundalk | Ballsbridge, Dublin |
| 18:40 | Dylan Watts  16'Joey O'Brien 45+3'Aaron Greene 49'Liam Scales 71'Roberto Lopes 74'Graham Burke 98' |
Report |
|
Stadium: Aviva Stadium Attendance: 0 Referee: Rob Harvey |
| Note: Live coverage on RTÉ2 | ||||
League Cup
Competition cancelled due to COVID-19 pandemic.[4]
Leinster Senior Cup
Competition abandoned due to COVID-19 pandemic.[5]
Europe
Champions League
First qualifying round
Europa League
Second qualifying round
Inter Club d'Escaldes  | 0–1 | Dundalk |
|---|---|---|
| Report |
|
Third qualifying round
Referee: Aleksandar Stavrev (North Macedonia)
Group stage
The group stage draw was held on 2 October 2020.[27]
| 22 October 2020 1 | Dundalk | 1–2 |  Molde | Dublin, Ireland |
| 18:55 CEST |
|
Report |
|
Stadium: Tallaght Stadium Attendance: 0 Referee: Petri Viljanen (Finland) |
| 29 October 2020 2 | Arsenal | 3–0 | Dundalk | London, England |
| 20:00 GMT | Report | Stadium: Emirates Stadium Attendance: 0 Referee: Filip Glova (Slovakia) |
| 5 November 2020 3 | Rapid Wien  | 4–3 | Dundalk | Vienna, Austria |
| 18:55 CET | Report | Stadium: Allianz Stadion Attendance: 0 Referee: Trustin Farrugia Cann (Malta) |
| 26 November 2020 4 | Dundalk | 1–3 | Rapid Wien | Dublin, Ireland |
| 21:00 CET | Report |
|
Stadium: Aviva Stadium Attendance: 0 Referee: Tamás Bognár (Hungary) |
| 3 December 2020 5 | Molde | 3–1 | Dundalk | Molde, Norway |
| 21:00 CET |
|
Report |
|
Stadium: Aker Stadion Attendance: 600 Referee: Daniel Siebert (Germany) |
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Player of the Month
| Month | Player | Reference |
|---|---|---|
| October | Sean Murray |
[28] |
| November | David McMillan |
[29] |
FIFA Puskás Award (nomination)
| Rank | Player | Team | Opponent | Score | Competition | Goal |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jordan Flores[3] |
Dundalk |
Shamrock Rovers |
2–3 | 2020 League of Ireland Premier Division | nominated goal |
- Celje played their second qualifying round home match against Dundalk at Szusza Ferenc Stadion, Budapest (Hungary), instead of their regular stadium Stadion Z'dežele, Celje, due to travel restrictions related to the COVID-19 pandemic between Slovenia and Ireland.[9]
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