Scandinavians make move for Byrne

SHELBOURNE manager Pat Fenlon has made it clear that he doesn’t want to lose star striker Jason Byrne, but if the player is to leave Tolka Park the Shels boss insists that the deal has to be right for both the player and the club.

Byrne has been the subject of substantial bids from Djurgardens of Sweden and Lynn Oslo of Norway, which have been described as multiples of previous eircom League transfer records. One report puts the figures being offered at around €400,000.

However, Pat Fenlon has asked both clubs to return with higher bids for the under contract player who has already been the subject of interest from Championship side Brighton.

Said Fenlon: "I don't want to lose Jason as everyone knows how important he is to our team. However, it would be wrong to stand in his way if he wants to move but the deal has to be right for both him and the club."

Meanwhile, Greg O'Halloran has joined Shels from Cork City.

O'Halloran who played his last game for Cork in the FAI Cup final defeat by Drogheda can play in defence or midfield, and made a significant contribution to City's league title success.

Pat Fenlon has indicated that he is in the market for another defender and, should Jason Byrne leave Tolka Park, would also be anxious to add a new striker to his squad.

Meanwhile, figures released show that attendances and TV viewing figures were up for domestic football this season, with the 24,521 crowd and the television audience for last Sunday's FAI Carlsberg Cup Final bringing the total for the year to over 1.5 million.

Total attendance figures for the eircom League, FAI Carlsberg Cup, Setanta Cup, eircom League Cup and European Competitions were up by 6% to 520,000, with the Cork City v Derry City league decider at Turner's Cross drawing the highest League attendance of just over 8,000.

A total of 44 games were shown live on television while a further three had a deferred broadcast giving viewing figures of just over 1 million throughout the season.

The highest peak viewing at 355,000 was for that Cork City and Derry City title decider, while last Sunday's FAI Carlsberg Cup Final drew the highest peak viewing for the Cup at 285,000.