Daly happy to get back to work quickly with Dundalk after St Pat's exit

Despite losing out on a family holiday, the new Lilywhites boss is raring to go.

Dundalk manager Jon Daly. Pic: INPHO/Ciaran Culligan

Jon Daly could have been lying back soaking up the sun in Turkey this week with his family.

Instead he made a decision which went down like a “lead balloon” to take the Dundalk job, with the 41-year-old going into the heat of battle straight away having taken charge of the side in Galway last Friday, where a 2-0 defeat left the Co Louth side rooted to the foot of the table.

The Dubliner was appointed as Noel King’s successor 24 hours earlier, just 16 days after being sacked by St Patrick’s Athletic, where he will return next Monday.

Daly flew in from Scotland, where wife Linda and daughters Sophie (15) and Shannon (15) have resided since his playing days, just hours before the defeat in Eamonn Deacy Park but insists he wouldn’t have taken the job so soon after his departure from Inchicore if he didn’t believe he could help Dundalk avoid the drop and, crucially, if his family didn’t give it the green light.

“I was obviously disappointed to leave Pat’s,” he said.

“Nobody wants to lose their job but my silver lining was that I was going home to see my family and I’m going to spend time with my kids because I’ve lived away from them for the last three-and-a-half years. Then obviously this opportunity comes up.

“It probably went down like a lead balloon but if my wife and my kids weren’t supportive of it then I genuinely wouldn’t be here. They’re fully in support of it and they’re looking forward to it and looking forward to coming over to see the place.

“I think the biggest issue was probably was that we had booked a holiday for this Thursday and I’m obviously not going. I made them go. They weren’t going to go but I think it’s important that they still have that and I think we’ve managed to convince Linda’s sister to go with them with her kids as well so it’ll be nice for them to have that time with their cousins.

“If the kids weren’t at the ages that they’re at then they probably would have just come home with me but they’re in important years at school so it’s one of those things we just need to manage but I’m very fortunate that I have a very understanding wife and my kids are very resilient and resolute.

“When I looked at the opportunity for what it was and everything that’s around it, the club, the history of the club and what’s in the building and the chance to come in and help and try to get them out of the situation that they’re in, it was just a really exciting challenge and it was one that, with the support of my family, I was very, very keen to look at. If I didn’t believe that I’d be going to Turkey on Thursday,” he said.