Chairperson Steps Down

The Chairperson of Club, Michael Merrigan, has decided to step down at the end of the month. The following is a copy of the letter to the Company Secretary.


17. December 2009

Derek McAsey
Company Secretary
Dún Laoghaire Town Football Club Ltd.
121, Oliver Plunkett Road
Monkstown
Co. Dublin

c.c. Board of Directors.

Dear Derek,

I am writing to you as the Company Secretary of the Football Club to advise you of my decision to step down as Chairperson of the Board of Directors, and as a member thereof, with effect as and from Thursday December 31st 2009.

It is with sincere regret that I have made this decision, however, with an anticipated increase in the demand on my time in the New Year due to studies and research, I can no longer make even an adequate commitment to the administration of the Club and this would, in my opinion, fall very far short of what is required or expected of a Chairperson and a Director.

My decision to step down before the recommencement of the Season will permit the Club to elect a person with the time and dedication necessary to see the Club through its current short-term difficulties and possibly, to explore new horizons based on the Shanganagh Cliffs catchment area.

Whilst, many objectives that we set for the Club are yet to be realised, others were successfully achieved and the fruits of our labours in this respect are manifold. It is now up to others to take the Club further and to develop the potential afforded by the plans envisaged for the playing fields at Shanganagh Cliffs. These plans offer many exciting opportunities for the expansion of the Club's activities and the inclusion of schoolboy teams.

In conclusion, I wish to thank all my colleagues for their advice and support throughout the past eight years. I have most certainly enjoyed and valued my time with the Club and indeed, I was privileged to get to know and work with some exceptionally talented individuals over those years - they are the solid bedrock upon which the bright future of the Club can assuredly depend.

I wish the Board and the Club every possible success in the future on and off the field of play.

Kindest regards,

Michael

Michael Merrigan
Chairperson
Dún Laoghaire Town Football Club Ltd.

DLTFC 3 : PEAMOUNT Utd 2

Good result this afternoon in a rather scrappy game at home against Peamount United. A very foolish mistake on the part of three players resulted in the visitors obtaining an easy lead early in the first half as the ball rolled leisurely over the Dún Laoghaire goal-line. (FULL REPORT TO FOLLOW). After the match, Jonathon Corcoran (right) took individual photographs (head and shoulder shots) of each of the players for uploading to this blog. Each of the photographs will be accompanied by a biographical note on each player to include details on previous clubs, position, birth date, interests and, of course, ambitions. It is also hoped that a running score tally will be kept on each player. This type of information is published by most clubs with dedicated websites and as ours is still in its design stages with Bartosz Kozlowski, we will upload the details here. By the way, Bartosz would welcome any ideas that you may have for inclusion on the Club's new website. He can be contacted by e-mail at b.k.webdesigner@gmail.com

ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING - 12th October 2009

The Club held its Annual General Meeting on Monday 12th October 2009 in Park House, Library Road, Dún Laoghaire, Co. Dublin. The following were duly elected to serve on the Board of Directors of the Club for the coming year. Chairperson, Michael Merrigan (Dún Laoghaire); Vice-Chairperson, Alan Turner (Shankill); Club Secretary, Derek McAsey (Monkstown); Club Treasurer, Abrahim Abdul-Wahid (Bray); Public Relations Officer, Kevin Plunkett (Dún Laoghaire); Community Liaison Officer & Child Protection Officer, Anne Traynor (Shankill); Manager, Jay Kane (Ballybrack); Assistant Manager, Ian M. Kane (Dún Laoghaire) and the following currently without portfolio - John Paul Durkan (Leopardstown); Lorie Kelly (Dún Laoghaire); Sighle l'Estrange (Dún Laoghaire) and Noel Vaughan (Glenageary). The AGM also passed a vote of thanks to Maria Forsythe of the Bank of Ireland for the kind donation of €500.00 towards the proceeds of the Table Quiz. The AGM also thanked former members of the Board of Directors - Robbie Rogerson, Luke McMahon, Luke Martin, Denis Ryan and Jonathon Corcoran for their services to the Club. Immediately after the AGM the Board held its first meeting and amongst its decisions was to postpone the Overseas Trip until the early New Year.

TABLE QUIZ SUCCESS

The Club's fund-raising Table Quiz held on Arthur's Day at Weir's of Dún Laoghaire was a great success netting circa €800.00 in entry fees and proceeds from the raffle. A team from Glenageary came from behind to take the top prize followed by a team from the Dún Laoghaire Refugee Project with the Dunphy's Four coming third. Spot prizes were donated by Costello Flowers, Costello Jewellers, Dónal Farrell, Woodie's of Sallynoggin, Noel Vaughan, Tom Dunphy, Paul Keenan (Bus Átha Cliath) and Derek McAsey (Merril Lynch). Seán Barrett, TD sent a donation as did Pádraic Ingoldsby of the Genealogical Society of Ireland and the members of the Board of Directors of Park House. Maria Forsyth of the Bank of Ireland ensured that everybody in attendance was in possession of a handful of raffle tickets which greatly contributed to the proceeds. The Club Chairperson composed the questions and was the Quiz Master for the evening while Paul Durkan, Noel Vaughan and Abrahim Abdul-Wahid kept the scores. The team headed by former Club Chairperson, Robbie Rogerson, successfully raised a point of correction on one of the answers and this point was upheld. There are 13 and not 12 licenced premises (excluding clubs) in Dún Laoghaire between York Road and Lower Glenageary Road and Tivoli Road and the seafront. Well spotted Robbie!! So for a fund-raiser held on a night which competed with the celebration of Arthur's Day this Table Quiz was a great success. Ian Kane and his girlfriend Maria Forsyth are to be congratulated on the success of this initiative which will be further enhanced by a donation from the Bank of Ireland. (SEE AGM 12.10.09)

OVERSEAS TRIP [Postponed 12.Oct. 2009]

The Board of Directors of the Club has agreed to organise an Overseas Trip this year as a fund raising event for the Club. In the past the Club has visited Holyhead, North Wales; Turnhout and Antwerp in Belgium; and Eindhoven, Masstricht, Rotterdam and Amsterdam in The Netherlands. Each of these Weekend Trips was a great success and very enjoyable for all. The provisional plan is to fly from Dublin to Amsterdam on Nov. 13th, staying two nights and returning on the 15th November 2009. Costings are now being considered by the Club Secretary and will be published shortly. As usual a non-refundable deposit of €100.00 per person will be required to secure a place and indeed, places will be limited. As a fund raising event any monies remaining after the payment of flights and hotel etc will be donated to meet the Club's on-going development requirements. All persons travelling on this Overseas Trip will also be required, as before, to join the DLTFC Travel Club, however, as numbers are limited priority will be given to the current players, longstanding supporters and founder members of the Club. PLEASE NOTE: you will need a valid passport to travel - check your passport today. Persons wishing to travel should contact Derek McAsey on 086 077 3657 asap.

FUND RAISING TABLE QUIZ

The Club will host a fund raising Table Quiz on Thursday 24th September 2009 in Weir's of Dún Laoghaire, 88, Lower George's Street, Dún Laoghaire commencing at 20.00hrs. The proposal to organise a Table Quiz emanated from Ian Kane (right) and his girlfriend Maria Forsythe who has recruited a number of her colleagues from the Bank of Ireland to assist. Funds are required for new equipment and to cover the day-to-day costs of running the Club. Indeed, Ian Kane, as co-founder, is passionately committed to maintaining the services of the Club and its special ethos. This ethos is based on a 'youth diversionary' project that was especially successful in the central Dún Laoghaire area and now, with the help of Anne Traynor, is operative in the Shanganagh area of Shankill, Co. Dublin where we have our home ground. In order to keep the Club afloat in these recessionary times the proactive involvement of our players, players' families, supporters and our friends in our fund raising endeavours is vitally important. Teams of four are needed for the Table Quiz - €40 per team and, of course, donations of spot-prizes are most welcome. Please contact Ian Kane on 085 835 4617 or the Club Secretary, Derek McAsey on 086 077 3657 .

LEINSTER SENIOR LEAGUE NEW SEASON 2009/10

DIRECTIONS TO SHANGANAGH CLIFFS

The Club's home pitch of Shanganagh Cliffs is not far from Shankill Village in south Co. Dublin. Access by DART is the easiest public transport option arriving at Shankill Station, turn right on exit and walk back along the road next to the DART line until you reach the bridge and turn right into the Shanganagh Cliffs Estate. The parkland is directly ahead with the pitch to the left. By road travelling along the M50 southbound exit at Cherrywood on to the N11 southbound to exit at Shankill Village. Just before going into the village, there is a small roundabout at St. Anne's RC Church - KEEP LEFT around the front of the church travelling in the direction of Dún Laoghaire passing a shopping centre (on your right) take the SECOND RIGHT into Rathsallagh Estate. Drive to the end of this wide road and TURN LEFT (DART on your right). Continue on to the bridge over the DART and TURN RIGHT into the Shanganagh Cliffs Estate. The parkland is directly ahead, turn left at the end at you'll see the pitch.

CONTACT DETAILS:

Jay Kane: Mobile: 085 131 5624

Ian Kane: Mobile: 085 835 4617

Leinster Senior League Season 2008/9

A Chairde,

Please note the changes to the contact numbers at the foot of this blog and amend your records accordingly.

The date of the Annual General Meeting of the Club has been put back in order that the accounts may be finalised for presentation to the auditors and to the Companies Registration Office. Currently our Company Secretary, Derek McAsey and the Director of Finance, Abrahim Abdul-Wahid are putting the finishing touches to the documentation.

The issue of an Overseas Trip in 2009 has been raised many times since the beginning of the year, however, with the downturn in the economic climate it may be necessary to put off such a trip until the autumn in order that as many of the lads as possible have an opportunity to travel etc.

In the meantime, on behalf of the Board, may I extend our sincerest gratitude to Jay Kane and Ian Kane for all their hard work during the past season - good work lads!

Further information will be available shortly.

Mise le meas,

Michael Merrigan

Chairperson

michael_merrigan@hotmail.com

DLTFC v BRIGHTON CELTIC (08.11.08)

Well following the recent uncertainty with the numbers of players for each squad, the Board's decision to withdraw a squad from Division 3 to concentrate on Division 3A is already proving to be a more workable arrangement all round. The home game against Brighton Celtic was a very hard fought, though evenly balanced, match with the winning goal for the visitors coming only in the dieing minutes of the game. Ian Kane and Jay Kane, working together, fielded a team that has great potential and indeed, very much so, especially when those injured over the past few weeks return before the Christmas break. Final score: DLTFC 0 : Brighton Celtic 1. Next Saturday the squad travels to meet Palmerstown United - kick off 14.00hrs

Withdrawal of Team from Division 3

It is with sincere regret and considerable disappointment that, on behalf of this Club, we must advise the League and our fellow clubs that due to circumstances beyond our control, the Club has withdrawn its team from participating in Division 3 (Saturday).

The reasons that have impacted greatly on this most unfortunate decision include, an excessive number of injuries incurred over the past few weeks, the continued dispersal of the asylum / refugee community around the country resulting in the loss of key players and players being actively induced to join other clubs within the greater Dún Laoghaire area. Such losses to a small club like ours have serious and detrimental repercussions, of which, this decision to withdraw a team from Division 3 is an inevitable negative outcome.

The above decision will allow the Board of this Club and its management team to concentrate on Division 3A for the remainder of this season and to build towards restoring this Club’s level of participation in the Leinster Senior League for next season.

We most sincerely regret any inconvenience caused and thank all concerned for their kind assistance, advice and continued understanding on this matter.

Michael Merrigan
Chairman

04. November 2008

Review of Squads

At the next meeting of the Board which is scheduled for Monday 17th November, the recent problems in fielding full squads in both Division 3 and 3A will be considered by the Board. An investigation into the effectiveness of the current arrangements and structures will, no doubt, form a part of any review of the squads that may be ordered by the Board. Whilst, it is understood that a number of players are injured and indeed, a few others have been "poached" by other clubs, the remaining members of both squads have been sporadic in their commitment which is causing considerable difficulties for the managers. It will be with deep disappointment and regret that the the Board could be forced to reduce the squads in order to field an effective and strong team each week. But if this option is the only one available, the Board will have no choice but to advise the Leinster Senior League accordingly. However, in the run-up to the Board meeting on Monday 17th November, both managers will be expected to contact each member of their squad to ascertain their current commitment to the Club. This will allow the Board to review the position in the light of the information provided by the managers.

UP-DATING WEB-BLOG

The up-dating of the Club's web-blog has fallen somewhat behind schedule and therefore, match reports were missed, omitted or simply not filed by the Managers. Efforts to resolve this matter are currently in-hand and a marked improvement is earnestly anticipated. We can't allow the magnificent play, exceptional skill and tactics and, of course, spectacular goals scored by our players to go unreported any longer. Therefore, we require two match reporters, one home and the other away, to feed their exciting and eagerly awaited match reports to the webmaster to satisfy the hunger for news suffered by scores (or even, hundreds) of adoring fans. Anyone interested in becoming a match reporter, please contact Ian Kane or Jay Kane.

The "B" Squad Off to a Good Start

Ian Kane's "B" Squad playing in Division 3A was away to Clonee United on Saturday 23rd August 2008. The squad was in reasonable shape despite some notable absentees due to holidays. (Match Report to Follow). Final Score: Clonee United 0 : DLTFC 0

Bad Start of the Season for the "A" Squad"

The "A" Squad made its 2008/9 season debut in Division 3 against Laytown United away in the "Royal County" of Meath on Saturday 23rd August 2008. Already down vital players through injuries and holidays, Jay Kane, fielded a team that was far from match ready and very soon after kick off, the team's worst nightmare began to unfold. Readers can be spared the true awfulness of the occasion, suffice to say, with thirty minutes to the end of the match, a kind hearted referee put the lads out of their misery by sounding the full-time whistle. Never before in the history of the Club was such a disastrous performance delivered by "The Town". Final score: Laytown FC 10 : DLTFC 0. So along came Monday August 25th 2008 and a "surprise" fixture away to Whitechurch United with a kick off at 18.30hrs. There was some considerable confusion over this match as it was not listed on the Leinster Senior League website. Confirmation of the fixture only arrived late on Monday afternoon. The fielding of a team at such short notice had its inevitable consequences with lads unable to get off work early enough to play. The match went ahead with a much depleted squad on a pitch that was far from satisfactory. Final Score: Whitechurch United 7 : DLTFC 0. Well things can only get better lads!!!!

League Matches Cancelled - Sat. 16th August 2008

Rain, rain and more rain, followed by severe flooding left most of the public playing fields either under water or very soft indeed. Matches were cancelled throughout the agglomeration of Dublin and beyond on Saturday 16th August, so all hope for a much needed and long overdue improvement in the weather conditions to allow matches go ahead on Saturday 23rd August 2008.

New Season Starting Soon

The new Leinster Senior League season kicks off again on Saturday August 16th with our lads playing in two divisions 3 and 3A again this year. Jay Kane and Ian Kane, managers of the "A" and "B" squads respectively, are busy preparing the lads for the tough season ahead. A greater commitment is expected from each of the lads this year and therefore, training and fitness are of the utmost importance at this time. Tuesdays and Thursdays have been chosen for training sessions at Shanganagh Cliffs. Players are strongly urged to arrive on-time for the training sessions as a failure to do so may result in the offending players being dropped for games. The fixtures will be posted on this web-blog and on Monday nights in the "Evening Herald".

Long Tradition of Soccer in "The Town"

The lads of "The Town" are certainly following in the footsteps of a great footballing tradition in the town of Dún Laoghaire. A recently unearthed photograph of the British Railways staff football squad of nearly sixty years ago contains many of the grandfathers and great grandfathers of current and past players of Dún Laoghaire Town Football Club. Surprisingly in a wellknown publication about soccer in the Borough of Dún Laoghaire, British Railways FC didn't even receive a mention. British Railways (later known as Sealink) operated the mail-boat and later the ferry service between Dún Laoghaire and Caergybi (Holyhead) in North Wales. The photograph was taken on Sunday April 30th 1949 after the game between British Railways FC and St. Kevin's FC, in which, the gallant railway lads were between 4 : 1 by St. Kevin's FC. Pictured are from left to right: Back Row: M. Whelan, M. Cullen, S. Keane, M. McDonnell, M. Merrigan (23 yrs) and B. Smith; Front Row: M. Davit, J. Dwyer, F. Young, B. Kearns and J. Carden (?). In conclusion, this year marks the 90th anniversary of the sinking of the mail-boat RMS Leinster in October 1918 many locals lost the lives in this tragedy, indeed, quite a number of our current players have family connections to this disaster.

Ladies' Squad for 2008/9 Season

The decision by the Board of the Club at its June meeting to establish a Ladies' Team for the 2008/9 Season has been broadly welcomed as a step in the right direction for our Club. The Vice-Chairperson of the Club, Anne Traynor, (pictured right) has been appointed to the position of "Ladies' Squad Coordinator" to oversee the signing-up of the Squad and the appointment of a Manager and Deputy Manager. The Board had hoped that the positions of Manager and Deputy Manager of the Ladies' Squad would be filled from within the existing or former managerial and coaching personnel of the Club. However, this unfortunately now seems very unlikely and therefore, Anne will be examining a number of options in this regard. The Board, on advice, decided to initially recruit only persons aged eighteen years or over as members for the Ladies' Squad for the coming season. This position will be reviewed next year by the Board as and when more volunteers come forward to assist the Club's managerial team with this important and long overdue development in the Club.

Board Selects Managers for 2008/9 Season

At the Board meeting held on Monday 9th June 2008, the Managers for the "A" and "B" Squads were selected by the Board members by way of secret ballot, please see the explanation of the process below. The new Manager for the "A" Squad is Jay Kane (pictured right) who has chosen Dean McAfee as his Deputy Manager and for the "B" Squad the Board members selected Ian M. Kane who has chosen Abrahim Abdul-Wahid as his Deputy Manager on an interim basis depending on Abrahim's college commitments. Performance will be keenly monitored by the Board as major improvements are fully expected on the results achieved by both squads last season. Though, there were a number of factors involved, the commitment by both squads was far from consistent during the later half of the 2007/8 season and therefore, the Board is determined to push for considerable improvements all round in the coming year. Already many new players have signalled their intention of signing for "The Town" and indeed, quite a few of our former players are set to return to the fold. Voting Procedure: Each of the Board members present at the meeting, with the exception of the Chairperson, was entitled to vote. The Chairperson could only exercise a vote in the case of equity - "casting vote". Ballot Papers were distributed to each Board member by the Chairperson. There was no debate on the matter prior to the vote been taken. The Ballot Paper contained two questions, one regarding the position of the Manager of the "A" Squad and the second regarding the same for the "B" Squad. The names of the two existing managerial personnel for each squad were listed alphabetically and a further choice of "Neither" in each case was added. Therefore, each member of the Board was asked in this Secret Ballot to select a person to manage the "A" Squad and another to manage the "B" Squad, or if they so wished, they could indicate that they did not support any of the candidates on the Ballot Paper by ticking the "Neither" box. The reason for placing a "Neither" option on the Ballot Paper was to allow for the Board to be instructed to find other candidates for the either of the positions to be filled.

Preparing for the New Season

An informal training session in preparation for the new season will be held on Saturday 7th June 2008 at 13.00hrs at Shanganagh Cliffs. New players are always welcome as two teams will be entered into the Leinster Senior League for the 2008/2009 Season. Changes for the coming season include the abandonment of the separate training sessions for each squad as both will now be required to train together at Shanganagh and also it is planned to recruit more younger players between 16 and 18 years of age to be the backbone of the "B" Squad. The latter measure will allow the "B" Squad to act more effectively as a "feeder squad" for the "A" Squad which will compete in a higher league as before. All players will be required to sign for both the Club and the Leinster Senior League (http://www.lsl.ie/) and in signing for the Club, each player will receive a copy of the new Handbook and undertake to read it carefully. The Club's officers will also be available to clarify or explain any sections of the Handbook if requested. The management teams for each of the squads will be chosen at the Board meeting to be held on Monday 9th June 2008 in time for the first formal training session on the following Saturday. In the interim all enquiries regarding the training sessions should be directed to Ian M. Kane, Club Development Officer (pictured above) on 085 764 7900 or by e-mail on ian_m_kane@hotmail.com The Player Directors, listed in the panel to the right, represent the views of the player members at the meetings of the Board of Directors of the Club and therefore, these Player Directors always welcome suggestions from players aimed at improving the Club, its facilities or indeed, any aspect of the Club's activities.