General

Tuesday November 11th, 2014 @ 18:29

Saints Sign Trio!

2014 FAI Cup champions St Patrick's Athletic are pleased to announce the signings of Lee Desmond, Ciaran Kilduff and Jason McGuinness ahead of the 2015 SSE Airtricity League season.



19 year old Desmond joins from First Division side Shelbourne, while striker Kilduff (26) and defender McGuinness (32) join the Saints from Shamrock Rovers.



Commenting on his new signings, Saints' manager Liam Buckley declared his delight at securing the signatures of the trio who he believes will boost the Saints' ranks going into the 2015 season.



“I'm delighted to sign the three lads," Buckley told stpatsfc.com. "I've tried to sign both Jason and Ciarán in the past and it just didn't materialise, so to get them to sign now, they'll be great additions to the club. Equally, I'm delighted to bring in young Lee Desmond as he's a great player with a bright future ahead of him as he has proven with his recent call-up to the Republic of Ireland U21 squad.”



Speaking to stpatsfc.com, Saints' new striker Kilduff declared his delight at securing a move to Inchicore, citing the influence of Liam Buckley as a key factor in his decision to join the club.



“I'm delighted to be signing for a big club like St Pat's. I've been talking to Liam quite a bit lately and he's tried to sign me in the past so to sign for him now is great. After the success of the last few years with Pat's winning the league and cup in the past two years, it's great to join the club now.”



For 19 year old defender Desmond, a former youth at local side Cherry Orchard and English Premier League side Newcastle United, the opportunity to sign for the FAI Cup champions was one he was happy to take – one which pairs him up with another recent Republic of Ireland U21 international call-up, Sean Hoare.



“Having played in the FAI Cup for Shelbourne, I knew what a good footballing side Pat's are so it's great to join the club,” Desmond told stpatsfc.com. “I'd seen the team play a bit during the year, so when Liam [Buckley] spoke to me and told me that there's a good group of lads here, I knew I wanted to sign so I'm really looking forward to next season now.”



For fellow former Shamrock Rovers player Jason McGuinness, the chance to join Pat's was one he felt he couldn't refuse, the defender telling stpatsfc.com that he already “can't wait to get going” for the 2015 season.



“I'm really thrilled at the opportunity to join a good club like St Pat's. When Liam [Buckley] talked to me about the plans for the future, I just wanted to sign. I have to say that I haven't looked forward to a season as much as this in a long time, and the season gone by is only over two weeks.”



“I'm really excited now looking ahead to pre-season, getting the hard work done and competing for a place in the team with the other great players at the club.”



For all the latest news in relation to St Patrick's Athletic, visit stpatsfc.com, or follow @stpatsfc on Twitter and Facebook