McCart Signs at The Showgrounds

Newry City AFC are pleased to announce the signing of Odhran McCart upon expiration of his contract with Larne.

 

The 19-year-old centre-back arrives from Inver Park, following a successful loan spell with Ards in the second half of the 2023/24 season.

 

Having previously come through the Larne Youth Academy, Odhran has also captained Northern Ireland Under-18s in the Centenary Shield last year.

 

First Team Manager Barry Gray is pleased to have secured the signing of the promising young defender for the forthcoming campaign. 

 

It’s great to get Odhran on board. He’s a young central defender who likes to play with the ball at his feet,” said Gray.

Odhran has good pedigree and is a welcome addition to our defensive set up. I look forward to working with him in the season ahead.”

 

Odhran’s looking forward to getting started in the blue and white stripes.

 

“I’m delighted to get everything signed and confirmed with Newry,” he said.

 

I had a lot of options in the Championship, but after speaking to Barry I knew straight away his plans this year were something I wanted to be a part of.

“I’m now just looking forward to playing in front of the fans at The Showgrounds.”

 

Odhran will wear the Number 27 jersey for the club for the 2024/25 season.

NCAFC Manager Barry Gray with new signing Ryan McNickle. Brendan Monaghan Photography

McNickle Signs at The Showgrounds

Newry City AFC are pleased to announced the signing of Ryan McNickle upon expiration of his contract at Lisburn Distillery.

 

The 24-year-old centre-forward from Larne began his career at his hometown club, before moving to Wellington Rec.

 

After a number of successful goalscoring seasons with the Ballymena Intermediate League side, he earned a move to Lisburn Distillery in the NIFL Premier Intermediate League at the beginning of the last campaign.

The goals continued to flow for the tall striker, hitting the net 19 times in all competitions under Whites Manager Barry Johnston.

 

First Team Manager Barry Gray said: “In every window nearly every manager wants to sign an attacking player that scores goals, having Ryan on board is a brilliant boost for us as a team. A player that has a proven track record of scoring goals and a talented prospect building the team moving forward. Ryan is exactly the type of player we wanted to attract, he’s influential, motivated, and really excited about pushing forward.

“I can’t wait to get working with Ryan on the pitch as I really feel he’ll be a top player for us this season.”

Ryan McNickle. Brendan Monaghan Photography
Ryan McNickle. Brendan Monaghan Photography

 

Speaking about his move to The Showgrounds, McNickle said: “It’s a really exciting opportunity for me to come into a club that I’ve been told means so much to the community of Newry.

“I’m really looking forward to pushing for promotion and getting the club back to where it should be and that’s in the Premiership.”

 

Ryan will wear the Number 29 jersey for the forthcoming season.

 

 

 

Photographs courtesy of Brendan Monaghan Photography.

2024 Awards Night Winners

Many thanks to all that supported and attended our 2023/2024 Season Awards Night in the Canal Court Hotel and Congratulations to all of our winners:

UNDER-11s Newry City Colts

Top Goal Scorer: Charlie Henning

Players Player of the year: Charlie Henning

Coaches Player of the Year Award: Charlie O’Gorman

Outstanding Progress Award: Sean O’Hagan

 

UNDER-11s Newry City Wanderers

Top Goal Scorers: Leo Kehoe and Luke Dinsmore

Players Player of the year: Riley Dos Reis 

Coaches Player of the Year Award: Harry Berry 

Outstanding Progress Award: Conn McGivern

 

 

UNDER-14s

Top Goal Scorer: Jamie Toure Daniels

Players Player of the year: Frankie Bradley

Coaches Player of the Year Award: Tόmas Devlin

 

 

 

UNDER-15s

Top Goal Scorer: Alfie Brown

Players Player of the year: Alfie Brown 

Coaches Player of the Year Award: Conor Pearce 

 

UNDER-16s

Top Goal Scorer: Jonjo Woods

Players Player of the year: Ryan Lennon

Coaches Player of the Year Award: Finn Keenan Travers

 

UNDER-18s

Top Goal Scorer: Daniel O’Sullivan

Players Player of the year: Oisin Clarke 

Coaches Player of the Year Award: Calum O’Reilly

 

 

Under 20s

Top Goal Scorer: Daniel O’Sullivan

Players Player of the Year: Calum O’Reilly 

Managers Player of the Year Award: Pierce Patterson

 

Sam McCullough Memorial Young Player of the Year: Daniel O’Sullivan

 

First Team

 

Travel Club Player of the Year: Barney McKeown

Top Goal scorer: Adam Salley 

Players Player of the Year: Barney McKeown 

Tommy O’Hanlon Memorial Club Player of the Year: Barney McKeown

Managers Award: Barney McKeown

 

Supporter of the Year award: Daniel Murphy 

 

Photographs courtesy of Brendan Monaghan Photography

 

First Signing of the Summer Window

Newry City AFC are pleased to announce the signing of Seanna Foster upon expiration of his contract with Cliftonville.

 

The 27-year-old, who can operate on the right side of defence or in midfield, arrives at The Showgrounds following five years at Solitude.

 

Belfast native Foster has spent the last two seasons on loan with Bangor, having previously played for Warrenpoint Town, Carrick Rangers and Linfield and beginning his footballing journey at Sheffield Wednesday.

 

First Team Manager Barry Gray said: “I’m delighted to get Seanna on board for the coming season,” said First Team Manager Barry Gray.

“He’s a very experienced player that I know very well from his days at Cliftonville and Warrenpoint. He also comes with valuable Championship experience, following his recent loan spells at Bangor.

“That will no doubt be important for us in the coming months as we bed into life in the Championship.”

 

On joining the club, Foster said: ‘I’m delighted to sign for Newry City.

“I look forward to the challenge that lies ahead as there is a great squad of players and coaching staff here to help the club get back to where they belong, into the Premiership.”

 

Seanna will wear the Number 12 jersey for the club for the 2024/25 season.

Chairman Martin McLoughlin and Vice Chairman Gary Wilson with Damien Hillen new NCAFC Academy Manager. Brendan Monaghan Photography

Newry City AFC appoint new Academy Director

Newry City AFC are delighted to announce Damien Hillen as our new Newry City AFC Academy Director.

NCAFC Chairman Martin McLoughlin commented “The future of any club is its youth and in particular it’s Academy.  With a major project planned to install a new 3G facility behind our main pitch in the coming months we have decided to try a local angle for the academy and with that in mind we have recruited from within the first team coaching staff and are delighted to announce that Damien Hillen has agreed to take over the role of Academy Director. Damien comes with a wealth of experience and a great knowledge of the local soccer scene.
“We are excited for the future of our academy and look forward to building more locally sourced teams. In time we hope Newry City will be a hub for soccer and Damien we feel is the ideal candidate to help accomplish that goal.
“Our outgoing Academy Manager Francis Brennan has been instrumental in the building of our academy from its inception to what it is now and we thank him wholeheartedly for his efforts to date.  We wish Fra well in his coaching and soccer careers and look forward to welcoming him to The Showgrounds in the future.”

 

Damien Hillen NCAFC Academy Director. Brendan Monaghan Photography
Damien Hillen NCAFC Academy Director. Brendan Monaghan Photography

Damien Hillen commented “I am delighted to be appointed Academy Director at Newry City AFC. This is a significant role of real importance, and I look forward to building on the excellent foundations already in place.

“My focus is on making our Academy the number one choice for local players and their parents. We are building a culture of learning and development, where highly qualified coaches will provide a pathway for young players to progress into senior football at Newry or beyond.

“With the development of the new 3G pitch, it’s an exciting time to join the academy and together, we will create an environment where young talented players can flourish and achieve their full potential.”

 

 

Cover Photo: Chairman Martin McLoughlin and Vice Chairman Gary Wilson with Damien Hillen new NCAFC Academy Director.

Brendan Monaghan PhotographyPhotographs Courtesy of Brendan Monaghan Photography.