Dundalk's Chris Shields has been recognised for his superb form. Seb Daly / SPORTSFILE
Seb Daly / SPORTSFILE / SPORTSFILE
CHRIS SHIELDS IS the SSE Airtricity League/Soccer Writers’ Association of Ireland Player of the Month for September.
After a series of outstanding displays, Shields becomes the fourth Dundalk player — following in the footsteps of Patrick Hoban, Sean Hoare and Michael Duffy (twice) — to win the award this season.
Although the likes of Duffy and Hoban have hogged the headlines en route to the Lilywhites’ fourth Premier Division title triumph in five seasons, the contribution of Shields was vital as they regained the title that was lost to Cork City in 2017.
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The imposing midfielder, who was also nominated in July and August, scored the only goal of last month’s clash with City as Dundalk ended a run of seven games without a victory at Turner’s Cross.
“I’m happy to win as it’s a well-respected award and picking up little personal things along the way is nice. I’ve been nominated for the past three months so third time’s a charm I suppose,” said Shields, who — along with John Mountney — is Dundalk’s joint-longest servant, having joined the club from Bray Wanderers ahead of the 2012 season.
“I’d definitely say I’m playing the best football of my career,” he added. “I’ve reached a good age now and we’ve got a lot of lads playing great stuff, like Pat [Hoban] and Mickey [Duffy]. We’ve really been able to pull together as a team and that has shown as we won the league as clinically as we did.”
Shields celebrates after scoring the winner against Cork City. Ryan Byrne / INPHO
Ryan Byrne / INPHO / INPHO
Shields pipped Bohemians pair Daniel Kelly and Darragh Leahy to win the award. He’ll be hoping to end the season by picking up another honour on 4 November when Dundalk and Cork City meet in the FAI Cup final for the fourth year in a row.
Stephen Kenny’s side were double winners in 2015 but have been beaten by their rivals from the south at the Aviva Stadium in the past two deciders.
Shields said: “Walking off the pitch at the Aviva Stadium last year was a tough one to take. It’s been bitterly disappointing to lose the cup by the skin of our teeth over the past two years, so we maybe have a small point to prove. To do the double in your career is a great achievement, so to win to would be extra special.
“I’ve seen a lot of neutrals giving out about us and Cork being in the cup final again, but what do they want us to do? We’ve been the best two teams in the league for a good while, and that’s why we’re there at the end of the season fighting for trophies.”
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Third time's a charm for outstanding Dundalk midfielder Chris Shields
CHRIS SHIELDS IS the SSE Airtricity League/Soccer Writers’ Association of Ireland Player of the Month for September.
After a series of outstanding displays, Shields becomes the fourth Dundalk player — following in the footsteps of Patrick Hoban, Sean Hoare and Michael Duffy (twice) — to win the award this season.
Although the likes of Duffy and Hoban have hogged the headlines en route to the Lilywhites’ fourth Premier Division title triumph in five seasons, the contribution of Shields was vital as they regained the title that was lost to Cork City in 2017.
The imposing midfielder, who was also nominated in July and August, scored the only goal of last month’s clash with City as Dundalk ended a run of seven games without a victory at Turner’s Cross.
“I’m happy to win as it’s a well-respected award and picking up little personal things along the way is nice. I’ve been nominated for the past three months so third time’s a charm I suppose,” said Shields, who — along with John Mountney — is Dundalk’s joint-longest servant, having joined the club from Bray Wanderers ahead of the 2012 season.
“I’d definitely say I’m playing the best football of my career,” he added. “I’ve reached a good age now and we’ve got a lot of lads playing great stuff, like Pat [Hoban] and Mickey [Duffy]. We’ve really been able to pull together as a team and that has shown as we won the league as clinically as we did.”
Shields pipped Bohemians pair Daniel Kelly and Darragh Leahy to win the award. He’ll be hoping to end the season by picking up another honour on 4 November when Dundalk and Cork City meet in the FAI Cup final for the fourth year in a row.
Stephen Kenny’s side were double winners in 2015 but have been beaten by their rivals from the south at the Aviva Stadium in the past two deciders.
Shields said: “Walking off the pitch at the Aviva Stadium last year was a tough one to take. It’s been bitterly disappointing to lose the cup by the skin of our teeth over the past two years, so we maybe have a small point to prove. To do the double in your career is a great achievement, so to win to would be extra special.
“I’ve seen a lot of neutrals giving out about us and Cork being in the cup final again, but what do they want us to do? We’ve been the best two teams in the league for a good while, and that’s why we’re there at the end of the season fighting for trophies.”
Subscribe to our new podcast, Heineken Rugby Weekly on The42, here:
To embed this post, copy the code below on your site
Chris Shields League of Ireland LOI Shields of Gold Dundalk