Dundalk boss Stephen O’Donnell breaks silence on Patrick Hoban’s move to Derry City

Pat Hoban is a big signing for Derry City.

Dundalk boss Stephen O’Donnell has said that the sale of Patrick Hoban to Derry City was the best outcome for all parties while suggesting that manager and player had a different interpretation of the chat that prompted his exit.

O’Donnell has confirmed that he met Hoban in October at a point where there was a degree of ‘uncertainty’ around the club’s future due to an imminent change in ownership.

It emerged in the aftermath that the Galwegian had been told he could leave the club even though he had a year remaining on his deal with the player stating as much in an interview on the matter.

Dundalk were duly taken over by Brian Ainscough who said there was no budgetary reason to let the club’s record goalscorer go, instead stating that the decision on his future hinged on the feelings of O’Donnell and Hoban.

After a protracted negotiation with Derry led to the completion of a transfer earlier this week, the front man said there was ‘no point’ in him staying at Dundalk. “I was told what I was told 11 weeks ago and that was it,” he said.

O’Donnell broke his silence on the matter this morning in an interview with the club website where he detailed that he did meet with Hoban prior to a league game with Bohemians.

“We had a sit down in person for a coffee before the game with Bohemians in October and had a chat about many different things,” said O’Donnell. “There was a lot of uncertainty at the time, and we talked about where the club was at, and where we felt the club was going.

“I felt it was an amicable and constructive meeting but from media reports in the days that followed, Pat came out of it and felt that it was the end of the line for him at Dundalk.

“Once a player has that