Viking fury as Roddy walks to Hoops

Dublin City chief executive Ronan Seery has described the surprise defection of manager Roddy Collins to relegation rivals Shamrock Rovers as “the lowest thing I have ever seen in football”.

Collins jumped ship from the eircom League premier division’s bottom club today on the morning of the Vikings’ crunch match with Drogheda United, a game the Dubliners must win if there are to have any hope of survival in the top flight.

"I'm absolutely shocked and stunned by this turn of events," Seery said. “This is potentially devastating from Dublin City's of view. We're at a hugely critical time in the season and our manager walks out to join our biggest rivals in our battle to avoid relegation.

"This has come completely out of the blue. We have the biggest game of the season this evening against Drogheda and the timing of this could not have been more damaging.”

While Seery claimed Collins had not given him a reason for quitting, the motive became quickly apparent as Shamrock Rovers announced they had found a new manager.

Seery reacted to that news by adding: “It's the lowest thing I have ever seen in football, I'm in shock.

"To come and take a manager from your rivals with three games to go is a terrible thing to do, it's unethical from Rovers.

“I have put so much into Dublin City and have given Roddy 100% backing, so to say this is a body blow is an understatement. I am very disappointed with the actions of Shamrock Rovers. They knew exactly what they were doing when they went after Roddy.”

Turning to tonight’s match at Tolka Park with Drogheda, Seery said: "We will act with dignity and prepare for this evening's game in as professional a way as possible.

"We have conducted our business in a very dignified and above board manner at all times and that it how we will continue to do our business.”

Former Bohemians and Carlisle United manager Collins had been appointed last July in the wake of John Gill’s resignation.

But despite overseeing a huge overhaul of the playing staff, including the high-profile signings of former Premiership players Carlton Palmer and Efan Ekoku, he failed to lift the Vikings off the foot of the table.

A 3-2 win over Derry City at the weekend, however, has given the Vikings a glimmer of hope they can beat the drop with four matches left to play, the final one of which will be a potentially bitter encounter against Collins’ new club Shamrock Rovers at Tolka Park.

Rovers, meanwhile, have announced that current manager Noel Synott will stay with the Hoops in a senior coaching capacity.