HE HAS TAKEN a few knocks along the way, but Kieran Sadlier finally feels like he’s on track to chase a dream that began to form at Upton Park in May 2007.
That afternoon, a West Ham United team featuring Carlos Tevez and Yossi Benayoun took a massive step towards preserving their Premier League status by defeating Bolton Wanderers.
Sadlier challenging Tottenham's Alexander McQueen during a 2013 FA Youth Cup game with West Ham. EMPICS Sport
EMPICS Sport
At half-time, a 12-year-old Sadlier — accompanied by his parents and grandfather — signed a four-year academy contract with West Ham on the pitch at the Boleyn Ground, having impressed as a schoolboy for the club he first linked up with two years earlier.
He ultimately spent a decade on the books at West Ham, where a first-team breakthrough eluded him. Launching a professional career wasn’t a straightforward process for a skilful but inexperienced youngster, who was then thrust into the deep end of relegation dog-fights with St Mirren and Halifax Town.
Sadlier describes the 2018 season with Cork City as the best of his career, yet this year brought its challenges too, particularly as he was restricted to a substitute’s role for some of the most important games of their campaign.
Nevertheless, by recently signing an 18-month deal with English Championship hopefuls Doncaster Rovers, he has completed the mission he set out to accomplish after opting for a make-or-break move to the League of Ireland nearly three years ago.
“I went over to the League of Ireland as a stepping stone to getting a good move back to England, because I knew the league had a good track record for that,” says Sadlier, who joined Sligo Rovers in January 2016 before his switch to Cork 18 months later.
“I loved my whole three years there and it has made me the player I am. I’m a lot more prepared this time to see how far I’m capable of going in England.
“I spent 10 years at West Ham. In an environment like that, everything is done for you. You can go into training every day with the most unbelievable facilities and you’re learning the game at a massive club. When you’re a young kid in that environment, you just automatically think to yourself that you’re on your way to playing in the Premier League.
“But when you get to a certain stage and you’ve just been playing for the U23s all the time, and the first-team manager doesn’t suit the way you play or he doesn’t give you a chance, it’s only then that you start to realise that you’ve got to get out there and try to make a career for yourself.
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Sadlier got his first taste of senior football at St Mirren in 2015. Jeff Holmes
Jeff Holmes
“Moving to Ireland was the best decision I’ve made. It was a gamble, but I backed myself and thankfully it paid off. I’m always willing to work hard, I’m always willing to learn, and I hope that’ll serve me well as I move forward.”
Although Cork City finished the 2018 season empty-handed, Sadlier was relatively satisfied with his personal contribution. While operating predominantly as a left-winger, he scored 26 goals in all competitions and was named in the PFAI Team of the Year.
However, the 24-year-old was left frustrated by being forced to watch from the bench at several key moments. He started just one of their four European fixtures, as John Caulfield’s side failed to score in either leg against both Legia Warsaw and Rosenborg.
“It’s funny because we didn’t win anything, but I’d say I probably had my best season, definitely in terms of goals and assists,” Sadlier says. “Obviously I’d love to have won trophies again, but I was really happy with how things went personally.
“Not being in the team for the European games was definitely tough. I was struggling to understand why I wasn’t picked. Against European teams who like to play football in a good style, I think that would really have suited me. It’s still a mystery to me now, even though it’s something I’ve put behind me.
“I’m not one to argue with a manager. I’ll never sulk about a manager’s decisions. That won’t get you back into the team. It was difficult because I felt I was doing really well and I thought I had more to give to the team. Maybe then we could have got something from those games. But that’s in the past now. I’m happy with how my season went anyway.”
When he swapped Sligo Rovers for Cork City in July 2017, Sadlier stated his ambition to eventually earn a senior Republic of Ireland call-up. The English-born player, who qualifies via his grandfather from Tipperary, has represented Ireland up as far as U21 level.
“During the season it seemed like it might be a possibility,” he recalls. “I think Martin O’Neill name-checked myself and Graham Burke in an interview. Graham got a call-up and then he got a good move to England, which was fantastic for him.
Sadlier celebrates after scoring for Cork City in the 2018 FAI Cup final. SIPA USA / PA Images
SIPA USA / PA Images / PA Images
“But I was wondering if that could have been me as well if I had played in the European games. There was a game against Dundalk too where Roy Keane came to watch me — which I was told — but then I didn’t play, which was very frustrating.”
Wearing the green shirt remains an objective, but his priority now is to make an impact for a Doncaster Rovers side who are in contention to bring the South Yorkshire club back to the Championship for the first time since 2014.
Sadlier had several options when his Cork City contract expired after their 2-1 defeat to Dundalk in November’s FAI Cup final, during which he converted from the penalty spot to become just the fourth player in history — and the first since Charlie Ferry of Finn Harps in 1974 — to score in every round of the competition in the same season.
The presence of Grant McCann in the manager’s office tipped the balance in Doncaster’s favour. The pair worked together during Sadlier’s brief stint at Peterborough United in 2015, with the Doncaster boss recently expressing the belief that the club will struggle to hold on to their newest recruit if he realises his potential.
Sadlier’s registration won’t be processed in time for him to make his debut against former Cork City team-mates Ryan Delaney and Stephen Dooley when Doncaster host Rochdale on New Year’s Day.
However, he’s hopeful of being involved for the FA Cup third-round clash on 6 January against Preston North End, for whom ex-City and West Ham colleague Sean Maguire remains sidelined due to injury.
“I had quite a bit of interest from clubs in League One and League Two, and from one or two in the Championship as well,” says Sadlier. “But as soon as Grant McCann picked up the phone to me, I wasn’t going to go anywhere else. Although I didn’t play much when he was the assistant manager at Peterborough, I knew that he liked me as a player and I like the way he plays.
“It was a no-brainer. I didn’t want to go to a club where I couldn’t be sure if the manager had even watched me, didn’t know my game and was just taking a gamble. I’m someone who likes encouragement. I’m a confidence player. When I’m working with a manager who I know rates me highly, that’s massive for my game.”
Sadlier, accompanied by manager Grant McCann, signing for Doncaster Rovers. Doncaster Rovers FC
Doncaster Rovers FC
Regarding his hopes for the future — at both club and international level — Sadlier says: “It’s still a target of mine to get into the national team at some point, but it’s not the main thing I’m thinking about right now.
“First of all I need to get into the Doncaster team because they’re obviously doing really well and it’s a side full of very talented players. Getting in is going to be hard work. If I can manage that, maybe I can think about playing for Ireland in the future.
“The big dream is obviously to play in the Premier League. It has been ever since I was at West Ham. It’s up to me to work hard enough to see if those rewards will come. It’s something I believe I’m capable of, but realistically I still have a lot to improve on before that can happen.”
One of Kieran Sadlier’s earliest social media offerings is a quote he shared on Instagram. An ambitious 18-year-old with lofty aspirations and a professional contract at a Premier League club, he posted: “One day, I want to honestly say: I made it.”
As he bids farewell to the League of Ireland, he’s not there just yet. But with three valuable years of senior experience now under his belt, he’s a lot closer than when he arrived.
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'I'm a lot more prepared this time to see how far I'm capable of going in England'
HE HAS TAKEN a few knocks along the way, but Kieran Sadlier finally feels like he’s on track to chase a dream that began to form at Upton Park in May 2007.
That afternoon, a West Ham United team featuring Carlos Tevez and Yossi Benayoun took a massive step towards preserving their Premier League status by defeating Bolton Wanderers.
At half-time, a 12-year-old Sadlier — accompanied by his parents and grandfather — signed a four-year academy contract with West Ham on the pitch at the Boleyn Ground, having impressed as a schoolboy for the club he first linked up with two years earlier.
He ultimately spent a decade on the books at West Ham, where a first-team breakthrough eluded him. Launching a professional career wasn’t a straightforward process for a skilful but inexperienced youngster, who was then thrust into the deep end of relegation dog-fights with St Mirren and Halifax Town.
Sadlier describes the 2018 season with Cork City as the best of his career, yet this year brought its challenges too, particularly as he was restricted to a substitute’s role for some of the most important games of their campaign.
Nevertheless, by recently signing an 18-month deal with English Championship hopefuls Doncaster Rovers, he has completed the mission he set out to accomplish after opting for a make-or-break move to the League of Ireland nearly three years ago.
“I went over to the League of Ireland as a stepping stone to getting a good move back to England, because I knew the league had a good track record for that,” says Sadlier, who joined Sligo Rovers in January 2016 before his switch to Cork 18 months later.
“I loved my whole three years there and it has made me the player I am. I’m a lot more prepared this time to see how far I’m capable of going in England.
“I spent 10 years at West Ham. In an environment like that, everything is done for you. You can go into training every day with the most unbelievable facilities and you’re learning the game at a massive club. When you’re a young kid in that environment, you just automatically think to yourself that you’re on your way to playing in the Premier League.
“But when you get to a certain stage and you’ve just been playing for the U23s all the time, and the first-team manager doesn’t suit the way you play or he doesn’t give you a chance, it’s only then that you start to realise that you’ve got to get out there and try to make a career for yourself.
“Moving to Ireland was the best decision I’ve made. It was a gamble, but I backed myself and thankfully it paid off. I’m always willing to work hard, I’m always willing to learn, and I hope that’ll serve me well as I move forward.”
Although Cork City finished the 2018 season empty-handed, Sadlier was relatively satisfied with his personal contribution. While operating predominantly as a left-winger, he scored 26 goals in all competitions and was named in the PFAI Team of the Year.
However, the 24-year-old was left frustrated by being forced to watch from the bench at several key moments. He started just one of their four European fixtures, as John Caulfield’s side failed to score in either leg against both Legia Warsaw and Rosenborg.
“It’s funny because we didn’t win anything, but I’d say I probably had my best season, definitely in terms of goals and assists,” Sadlier says. “Obviously I’d love to have won trophies again, but I was really happy with how things went personally.
“Not being in the team for the European games was definitely tough. I was struggling to understand why I wasn’t picked. Against European teams who like to play football in a good style, I think that would really have suited me. It’s still a mystery to me now, even though it’s something I’ve put behind me.
“I’m not one to argue with a manager. I’ll never sulk about a manager’s decisions. That won’t get you back into the team. It was difficult because I felt I was doing really well and I thought I had more to give to the team. Maybe then we could have got something from those games. But that’s in the past now. I’m happy with how my season went anyway.”
When he swapped Sligo Rovers for Cork City in July 2017, Sadlier stated his ambition to eventually earn a senior Republic of Ireland call-up. The English-born player, who qualifies via his grandfather from Tipperary, has represented Ireland up as far as U21 level.
“During the season it seemed like it might be a possibility,” he recalls. “I think Martin O’Neill name-checked myself and Graham Burke in an interview. Graham got a call-up and then he got a good move to England, which was fantastic for him.
“But I was wondering if that could have been me as well if I had played in the European games. There was a game against Dundalk too where Roy Keane came to watch me — which I was told — but then I didn’t play, which was very frustrating.”
Wearing the green shirt remains an objective, but his priority now is to make an impact for a Doncaster Rovers side who are in contention to bring the South Yorkshire club back to the Championship for the first time since 2014.
Sadlier had several options when his Cork City contract expired after their 2-1 defeat to Dundalk in November’s FAI Cup final, during which he converted from the penalty spot to become just the fourth player in history — and the first since Charlie Ferry of Finn Harps in 1974 — to score in every round of the competition in the same season.
The presence of Grant McCann in the manager’s office tipped the balance in Doncaster’s favour. The pair worked together during Sadlier’s brief stint at Peterborough United in 2015, with the Doncaster boss recently expressing the belief that the club will struggle to hold on to their newest recruit if he realises his potential.
Sadlier’s registration won’t be processed in time for him to make his debut against former Cork City team-mates Ryan Delaney and Stephen Dooley when Doncaster host Rochdale on New Year’s Day.
However, he’s hopeful of being involved for the FA Cup third-round clash on 6 January against Preston North End, for whom ex-City and West Ham colleague Sean Maguire remains sidelined due to injury.
“I had quite a bit of interest from clubs in League One and League Two, and from one or two in the Championship as well,” says Sadlier. “But as soon as Grant McCann picked up the phone to me, I wasn’t going to go anywhere else. Although I didn’t play much when he was the assistant manager at Peterborough, I knew that he liked me as a player and I like the way he plays.
“It was a no-brainer. I didn’t want to go to a club where I couldn’t be sure if the manager had even watched me, didn’t know my game and was just taking a gamble. I’m someone who likes encouragement. I’m a confidence player. When I’m working with a manager who I know rates me highly, that’s massive for my game.”
Regarding his hopes for the future — at both club and international level — Sadlier says: “It’s still a target of mine to get into the national team at some point, but it’s not the main thing I’m thinking about right now.
“First of all I need to get into the Doncaster team because they’re obviously doing really well and it’s a side full of very talented players. Getting in is going to be hard work. If I can manage that, maybe I can think about playing for Ireland in the future.
“The big dream is obviously to play in the Premier League. It has been ever since I was at West Ham. It’s up to me to work hard enough to see if those rewards will come. It’s something I believe I’m capable of, but realistically I still have a lot to improve on before that can happen.”
One of Kieran Sadlier’s earliest social media offerings is a quote he shared on Instagram. An ambitious 18-year-old with lofty aspirations and a professional contract at a Premier League club, he posted: “One day, I want to honestly say: I made it.”
As he bids farewell to the League of Ireland, he’s not there just yet. But with three valuable years of senior experience now under his belt, he’s a lot closer than when he arrived.
Subscribe to our new podcast, Heineken Rugby Weekly on The42, here:
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