2007 Shelbourne F.C. season

April 2022 April 2022 Shelbourne 2007 Dermot Keely Joe Casey First Division 5th FAI Cup Second Round League Cup Second Round Mark Leech (12) Mark Leech (12) 1,896 vs Dundalk (23 March 2007) 549 vs Finn Harps (12 August 2007) _collarwhite EE0000 EE0000 EE0000 FFFFFF EE0000 _collarwhite FFFFFF FFFFFF FFFFFF 0000CD FFFFFF 2006 Season 2008 Season In the 2007 season, Shelbourne finished 5th in the League of Ireland First Division. Overview After financial problems during the 2006 Shelbourne F.C. season the club was left with just two senior players by January 2007, and the club withdrew from the Setanta Cup. The financial problems began to threaten participation in the Champions' League for 2007. Shelbourne's woes were deepened on 25 January 2007 when owner and general manager, Ollie Byrne, was taken to hospital with a reported brain tumour, most likely, stress-induced. Shelbourne, with no manager and just one remaining senior player by February were said to be massively in debt – some reports putting it at €6 million, and others between even €10 million and €12 million. The fiasco only served to increase the pressures on the FAI, who already had to find two new replacement clubs to participate in the league following the extinction of Dublin City F.C. and Limerick F.C. in 2006. The association decided to set up a review of the awarding of a Premier Division licence to the club and eventually decided that the club should be stripped of the chance to compete in the Premier Division. Shelbourne had their Premier licence revoked and were, instead, considered lucky to be placed in the First Division for the 2007 season. There had been worries that the club would face outright extinction and that the FAI would throw the club out of the league altogether, especially after Limerick, who had less severe problems than Shelbourne, were denied a First Division licence. Liam Moggan, the chairman of the FAI's Licensing Committee resigned in protest after the decision was made to grant Shelbourne a First Division licence as he believed that the club - manager-less, player-less and heavily in the red - did not meet the criteria for the awarding of such a licence, even though its criteria were less strict than those required to pass for a Premier licence. It is probable that the Committee as a whole took an extremely sympathetic view while taking into account the long history of the club and, facing a minimal time-frame for exploring alternatives before the kick-off in March, logistical factors, such as ensuring that the league began with the preferred number of teams, when coming to a final decision to keep Shelbourne in the league. However, the FAI did not specifically announce whether their decision was punishment for continuing off-the-field abuses from 2006, such as failing to pay players their wages, or whether it was a repercussion of Shelbourne failing to meet the requisite criteria for partaking in the 2007 Premier Division (although it is likely that the course of action taken was due to the latter as if it were a punishment for the 2006 season a deduction in points from that season's tally would be the usual penalty, which would have led to the club being stripped of their title in this scenario). If the relegation was indeed due to a failure to meet standards for 2007, the club's off-the-field abuses during 2006 remain to be seen as having been permissible for that season. Meanwhile, Waterford United were invited to take Shelbourne's place in the Premier Division for 2007 as they were the next best-placed First Division club in the Independent Assessment Group's rankings. Waterford United accepted the invitation, while the task of sourcing funds, a manager and squad before the transfer-deadline of 28 February remained at the forefront of the club's worries by mid-February. On 23 February, Shelbourne announced that Dermot Keely had been appointed as their new manager."Shelbourne Statement - Dermot Keely announced as new manager https://web.archive.org/web/20120205013411/http://www.shelbournefc.ie/news.php?id=575 2012-02-05 ", Gareth Penrose, ShelbourneFC.ie, 23 February 2007. The signing of a new squad of players commenced immediately afterward - quite a few of these players being youngsters and loaned players from other clubs, although the club did also manage to entice a number of ripened seniors to Tolka Park for the 2007 season. Club Club information Chairman, DirectorJoseph M Casey Director Andy Byrne Secretary Colm Murphy Commercial Manager Niall Fitzmaurice Ground Tolka Park Commercial partners Title Sponsor Main Sponsor JW Hire Kit, Associate Sponsor Umbro Associate Sponsor Nivea for Men Associate Sponsor Irish Daily Star Associate Sponsor Bus Éireann Associate Sponsor Dulux Coaching and Medical staff Position Name Manager Dermot Keely Assistant manager Colin O'Neill Goalkeeping coach Fred Davis Head physio Tony McCarthy Assistant physio Stephen Weafer Equipment Manager Pat Roche Kit Administrator Johnny Watson Pre-season Exodus This is the squad that completed the 2006 season, winning the Premier Division in the process. 1 Wales GK Steve Williams 2 Republic of Ireland DF Owen Heary (c) 3 Republic of Ireland DF David Crawley 4 England DF Dave Rogers 5 Wales DF Jamie Harris 6 Republic of Ireland MF Jim Crawford 7 Republic of Ireland MF Ollie Cahill 8 Republic of Ireland MF Stuart Byrne 9 Republic of Ireland FW Glen Crowe 10 Republic of Ireland FW Jason Byrne 12 Republic of Ireland MF Greg O'Halloran 14 Republic of Ireland MF Richie Baker 15 Republic of Ireland MF Alan Moore 16 Republic of Ireland FW Gary O'Neill 17 Republic of Ireland MF Bobby Ryan 18 Cameroon MF Joseph Ndo 19 Republic of Ireland DF Colin Hawkins 20 Republic of Ireland GK Dean Delany 22 Republic of Ireland DF Sean Dillon 24 Republic of Ireland MF Liam Kearney The following players were registered to Shelbourne, but had been sent out on loan by the then manager Pat Fenlon. Republic of Ireland MF James Chambers on loan at Waterford United Republic of Ireland MF David Tyrell on loan at Bray Wanderers Republic of Ireland MF Gary Deegan on loan at Kilkenny City Following the ongoing financial problems during the 2006 season, Pat Fenlon resigned and the vast majority of players left. Several of them had reached the end of their contracts, whilst some were sold shortly after the celebrations in November, and others left after being declared free agents in the courts following missed payment of wages. Only 2 senior players remained with the club, the experienced Jim Crawford, and the young James Chambers who had spent 2006 on loan at Premier Division side Waterford United. Withdrawal from the Setanta Cup In February Shelbourne were forced to withdraw from the 2007 Setanta Sports Cup shortly before it was due to commence. The general assumption was that the club would be unable to field a team. St. Patrick's Athletic were invited to fill the vacancy, and they duly accepted. Demotion Before the start of the new league season, the club were demoted to the First Division by the FAI. The FAI issued a First Division licence in place of the Premier Division licence which had been revoked by order of the FAI's First Instance Committee due to the financial situation. Shortly after this, the club's majority shareholder Ollie Byrne suffered a brain tumour and Joe Casey was installed as Chairman. Former manager Dermot Keely was brought in as manager once more and assembled a squad of players in barely 72 hours - just in time for the club to take its place in the 2007 First Division. Withdrawal from Champions League On 30 March 2007, when applications for UEFA licences were nearly due and the clubs' First Division licence was up for review, Shelbourne announced that they would not be applying for a UEFA licence; thus relinquishing the Champions League spot that was rewarded for winning the league in 2006. Part of the statement read: The club feels that following its recent success over the last number of years it would not be of benefit to the club's record to play in this year's Champions League qualifying round. It also felt that it would be of no benefit to the league's co-efficient in Europe. League runners-up Derry City were handed the Champions League place."https://archive.today/20120907202617/http://www.irishfootballonline.com/news_story.php?newsid=6210 Shels pull out of Europe", Irish Football Online, 30 March 2007."Statement from the Board of Management of Shelbourne FC https://web.archive.org/web/20070927184033/http://www.shelbournefc.ie/news.php?id=609 September 27, 2007 ", Gareth Penrose, Shelbourne FC, 29 March 2007."Derry to play in Champions League", BBC Sport Online, 30 March 2007. Players Jim Crawford and James Chambers were the only existing senior players to stay with the club for the 2007 season. Jim was appointed captain by Keely. Goalkeeper Tony O'Dowd signed for Shelbourne, returning to the club with whom he had started his footballing career. Experienced defender Alan Murphy was signed from Longford Town and was appointed vice-captain, whilst a plethora of young players arrived from a host of clubs. Mark Leech signed on a season-long loan from Premier Division club Drogheda United, and new Derry City arrival Kyle Moran did the same. Four players arrived at Shelbourne from Dublin rivals Bohemians; Conor Rafferty and 2006's top scorer for the First Division Davitt Walsh signed on loan deals until the end of July, defenders Aidan Collins and Niall O'Reilly made their moves to Tolka Park permanent. FIFA Regulations: Article 5.3 Two of Shelbourne's new players, Mark Leech and John Brophy, who had already played with two clubs within the year prior to the season's kick-off, were left ineligible to play for the club in competitive action until July at the beginning of the season as FIFA's rules, or, in particular, Article 5.3 of FIFA’s Regulations for the Status and Transfer of Players, stated that no player could play for more than two different clubs between 1 July of one season and 30 June of the following year. Both players were eventually cleared by FIFA, and made their competitive debuts in a 1-1 draw with Kilkenny City at Buckley Park on 30 March 2007. 2007 squad A total of 37 players represented Shelbourne at various stages during the 2007 season. Republic of Ireland GK Tony O'Dowd Republic of Ireland GK James Hussey Republic of Ireland DF Niall O'Reilly Republic of Ireland DF Aidan Collins Republic of Ireland DF Alan Murphy (Vice-captain) Republic of Ireland DF Aaran McEneff Republic of Ireland DF Daniel Ennis Republic of Ireland DF Brian Gartland Scotland DF Stuart Malcolm Republic of Ireland DF Sean L'Estrange Scotland DF Marc McCulloch Republic of Ireland DF Alan Keely Republic of Ireland DF Conor Rafferty was on loan from Bohemians Republic of Ireland MF Jim Crawford (Captain) Republic of Ireland MF Kieran Harte Republic of Ireland MF Glen Lacey Republic of Ireland MF Robbie O'Neill Republic of Ireland MF Mark O'Brien was on loan from Bohemians Republic of Ireland MF Graham Curran Republic of Ireland MF Peter McGlynn Republic of Ireland MF Alan Reilly Republic of Ireland MF Joey O'Neill Republic of Ireland MF Noel Haverty was on loan from St. Patrick's Athletic Republic of Ireland MF James Chambers Republic of Ireland MF Ciarán Ryan Republic of Ireland MF Chris Mulhall Republic of Ireland MF Stephen Doran Republic of Ireland FW Darren McKenna Republic of Ireland FW John Brophy Republic of Ireland FW Mark Leech was on loan from Drogheda United Republic of Ireland FW Anto Flood Republic of Ireland FW Lee Roche Republic of Ireland FW Mark Rooney Republic of Ireland FW Davitt Walsh was on loan from Bohemians Republic of Ireland FW Wayne Byrne Republic of Ireland FW Ciaran Quinn Republic of Ireland FW Kyle Moran was on loan from Derry City Results League of Ireland First Division 9 March 2007 20:00 GMT Shelbourne 2 – 2 Report D Kildare County Brian Gartland 14 Darren McKenna 88 Philip Gorman 4 (pen.) Gary Walsh 28 Tolka Park, Dublin 1,697 Tom Connolly (Dublin) 16 March 2007 19:45 GMT Finn Harps 2 – 1 https://archive.today/20120915112519/http://www.rte.ie/sport/soccer/2007/0316/shelbourne.html Report L Shelbourne Gordon Simms 9 Conor Gethins 90 Davitt Walsh 66 Finn Park, Ballybofey Derek Tomney (Dublin) 23 March 2007 20:00 GMT Shelbourne 0 – 2 https://archive.today/20120911140344/http://www.rte.ie/sport/soccer/2007/0323/shelbourne.html Report L Dundalk Philip Hughes 52 (pen.) Shaun Williams 80 Ben Whelehan 0 70 Tolka Park, Dublin 1,896 Richie Winter (Dublin) 30 March 2007 19:45 GMT Kilkenny City 1 – 1 ReportSeptember 2016 InternetArchiveBot yes D Shelbourne Michael Comerford 41 Andrzej Polewczak 0 12 Mark Leech 12 Buckley Park, Kilkenny Tomasz Superczynski (Dublin) 6 April 2007 20:00 IST Athlone Town 1 – 0 Report W Shelbourne Mark Leech 75 Tolka Park, Dublin Mark Gough (Limerick) 13 April 2007 20:00 IST Shelbourne 1 – 1 Report D Monaghan United James Chambers 67 Peter D'arcy 22 Darren Meenan 0 86 Tolka Park, Dublin 1,011 Pádraig Sutton (Clare) 21 April 2007 19:30 IST Cobh Ramblers 1 – 0 Report L Shelbourne Graham Cummins 90+1 St. Colman's Park, Cobh Derek Tomney (Dublin) 27 April 2007 20:00 IST Limerick 37 1 – 1 Report D Shelbourne Kyle Moran 61 David Wall 46 Whitehall, Dublin 894 Scott MacDonald (Scotland) 4 May 2007 20:00 IST Wexford Youths 1 – 1 Report D Shelbourne Aidan Collins (o.g.) 74 Alan Murphy 45 Ferrycarrig Park, Wexford 1,221 Neil Doyle (Dublin) 12 May 2007 19:30 IST Kildare County 1 – 1 Report D Shelbourne Alan McDermott 50 Alan Byrne 0 48 Darren McKenna 45 Station Road, Newbridge 510 Edwin McNally (Cork) 24 May 2007 19:45 IST Dundalk 3 – 0 Report L Shelbourne David Crawley 2 Cathal O'Connor 65 Philip Hughes 77 Oriel Park, Dundalk Tom Connolly (Dublin) 28 May 2007 19:45 IST Shelbourne 2 – 0 Report W Kilkenny City James Chambers 32 Glen Lacey 76 Davitt Walsh 0 83 Tolka Park, Dublin 563 Tomasz Superczynski (Dublin) 2 June 2007 19:00 IST Athlone Town 1 – 0 Report L Shelbourne Ian Rossiter 50 (pen.) Eric Lavine 0 60 Glen Lacey 0 68 Alan Murphy 0 69 Athlone Town Stadium, Athlone 807 Pádraig Sutton (Clare) 22 June 2007 20:00 IST Monaghan United 4 – 0 Report L Shelbourne Willie Doyle 20 Darren Meenan 26 82 Robbie Farrell 44 Kingspan Century Park, Monaghan Conor Fitzgerald (Dublin) 26 June 2007 20:00 IST Shelbourne 2 – 2 Report D Cobh Ramblers Mark Leech 11 James Chambers 75 (pen.) Brian Gartland 1 (o.g.) Graham Cummins 63 Tolka Park, Dublin 648 Neil Doyle (Dublin) 29 June 2007 19:45 IST Limerick 37 3 – 2 Report L Shelbourne Ross Cosgrove 51 Kevin Waters 77 Paul Danaher 90 Graham Curran 22 Kieran Harte 68 Jackman Park, Limerick 801 Graham Kelly (Cork) 6 July 2007 20:00 IST Shelbourne 1 – 0 Report W Wexford Youths Mark Leech 75 Tolka Park, Dublin 754 Derek Tomney (Dublin) 20 July 2007 20:00 IST Finn Harps 1 – 0 Report L Shelbourne Stephen Parkhouse 17 Mark Leech 0 31 Finn Park, Ballybofey Pat Whelan (Dublin) 27 July 2007 20:00 IST Shelbourne 1 – 0 Report W Dundalk Anto Flood 17 Tolka Park, Dublin 1,186 Pádraig Sutton (Clare) 31 July 2007 19:45 IST Kilkenny City 2 – 5 https://archive.today/20120910133249/http://www.rte.ie/sport/soccer/2007/0731/shelbourne.html Report W Shelbourne Ted O'Connor 32 John McNicholas 79 Anto Flood 35 58 74 Stuart Malcolm 48 James Chambers 80 (pen.) Buckley Park, Kilkenny Graham Kelly (Cork) 3 August 2007 20:00 IST Shelbourne 2 – 0 https://archive.today/20130218073803/http://www.rte.ie/sport/soccer/2007/0803/shelbourne.html Report W Athlone Town James Chambers 34 Anto Flood 68 Tolka Park, Dublin 889 Damien Hancock (Dublin) 10 August 2007 20:00 IST Shelbourne 1 – 1 https://archive.today/20130217200851/http://www.rte.ie/sport/soccer/2007/0810/shelbourne.html Report D Monaghan United Mark Leech 79 Jason McCartney 85 Tolka Park, Dublin 746 Mark Gough (Limerick) 12 August 2007 17:00 IST Shelbourne 0 – 1 Report L Finn Harps Shaun Holmes 90+5 Tolka Park, Dublin 549 Graham Kelly (Cork) 25 August 2007 19:45 IST Cobh Ramblers 1 – 1 https://archive.today/20130217213004/http://www.rte.ie/sport/soccer/2007/0825/cobh.html Report D Shelbourne Davin O'Neill 31 (pen.) Anto Flood 22 Alan Reilly 0 81 St. Colman's Park, Cobh Derek Tomney (Dublin) 1 September 2007 20:00 IST Shelbourne 4 – 0 https://archive.today/20120909211829/http://www.rte.ie/sport/soccer/2007/0901/shelbourne.html Report W Limerick 37 Aidan Collins 10 Mark Leech 24 73 Ciaran Quinn 75 Tolka Park, Dublin 767 Tomasz Superczynski (Dublin) 7 September 2007 20:00 IST Wexford Youths 1 – 2 Report W Shelbourne Johnny Flynn-O'Connor 12 Mark Leech 38 James Chambers 80 Ferrycarrig Park, Wexford Conor Fitzgerald (Dublin) 15 September 2007 19:30 IST Kildare County 1 – 4 https://archive.today/20130217201932/http://www.rte.ie/sport/soccer/2007/0915/kildareshelbourne.html Report W Shelbourne Stephen Cooling 66 James Chambers 12 Mark Leech 45 71 Anto Flood 88 Station Road, Newbridge Hugo Whoriskey (Meath) 21 September 2007 20:00 IST Shelbourne 1 – 2 Report L Finn Harps Alan Keely 9 Shaun McGowan 53 90+1 Tolka Park, Dublin 767 Richie Winter (Dublin) 23 September 2007 16:00 IST Kildare County 2 – 1 https://archive.today/20130217220612/http://www.rte.ie/sport/soccer/2007/0923/shelbournekildare.html Report W Shelbourne Anto Flood 51 Mark Leech 84 Dean Barrett 90+1 Tolka Park, Dublin Richie Winter (Dublin) 27 September 2007 19:45 IST Dundalk 1 – 0 https://archive.today/20130220220007/http://www.rte.ie/sport/soccer/2007/0927/dundalk2.html Report L Shelbourne Robbie Doyle 16 Oriel Park, Dundalk Anthony Buttimer (Cork) 5 October 2007 20:00 IST Shelbourne 0 – 0 Report D Kilkenny City Tolka Park, Dublin 702 Darren Eady (Wales) 12 October 2007 19:45 IST Athlone Town 1 – 4 Report W Shelbourne Noel McGee 73 Anto Flood 35 62 Mark Rooney 36 Mark O'Brien 39 Athlone Town Stadium, Athlone 470 Rob Rogers (Dublin) 19 October 2007 20:00 IST Monaghan United 1 – 0 Report L Shelbourne Darren Meenan 76 Kingspan Century Park, Monaghan Tom Connolly (Dublin) 26 October 2007 20:00 IST Shelbourne 1 – 2 Report L Cobh Ramblers Anto Flood 44 Kieran O'Reilly 49 Graham Cummins 69 Tolka Park, Dublin 714 Hugo Whoriskey (Meath) 2 November 2007 19:45 GMT Limerick 37 2 – 1 Report L Shelbourne Pat Purcell 44 John Tierney 60 (pen.) 88' (pen.) Mark Rooney 52 Stuart Malcolm 0 87 James Chambers 0 87 Jackman Park, Limerick 603 Hugo Whoriskey (Meath) 10 November 2007 19:45 GMT Shelbourne 1 – 3 Report L Wexford Youths Mark Leech 90+2 Johnny Flynn-O'Connor 30 Garrett Larkin 66 Conor Sinnott 73 (pen.) Tolka Park, Dublin 720 Pádraig Sutton (Clare) Final table SHE League results summary 7 6 5 23 18 4 4 10 23 28 10 November 2007 League of Ireland First Division Fixtures February 2012 League Form/Results by Round table b Round Ground H/A/H/A/H/H/A/H/A/A/A/H/A/A/H/A/H/A/H/A/H/H/H/A/H/A/A/H/H/A/H/A/A/H/A/H Result D/L/L/D/W/D/L/D/D/D/L/W/L/L/D/L/W/L/W/W/W/D/L/D/W/W/W/L/W/L/D/W/L/L/L/L Home Away green2 Win yellow2 Draw red2 Loss 10 November 2007 League of Ireland First Division Fixtures February 2012 FAI Ford Cup The draw for the FAI Ford Cup took place on 31 May 2007. Shels, like all League sides, automatically went into the second round. 15 June 2007 20:00 IST Shelbourne 0 – 1 https://archive.today/20130217214710/http://www.rte.ie/sport/soccer/2007/0615/corkcity.html Report L Cork City Roy O'Donovan 7 (pen.) Tolka Park, Dublin 1,002 Richie Winter (Dublin) League of Ireland Cup Shelbourne began the League of Ireland Cup in the Second Round, as the club was officially classed as European entrants when the draws were made. Shelbourne were drawn against Dublin rivals Bohemians, who had begun the 2007 season in the top flight with two of last year's championship winning Shelbourne team, Owen Heary and Glen Crowe. Despite a valiant effort from the young Shelbourne team, the difference in quality eventually told, with Bohemians qualifying for the next round due to 2 late goals from the man who had scored the goal that won Shelbourne the league just a few short months previous, Glen Crowe. 8 May 2007 20:00 IST Shelbourne 0 – 2 Report L Bohemians Glen Crowe 68 80 Tolka Park, Dublin Ian Stokes (Dublin) Friendlies 4 March 2007 11.00 GMT Shelbourne 1 – 0 Report W Waterford United Selection Davitt Walsh 8 Tolka Park, Dublin 7 July 2007 19.30 IST Shelbourne 0 – 2 Report L Leeds United Robbie Blake 30 David Prutton 76 Tolka Park, Dublin Paul Tuite (Dublin) Season overview Shelbourne's 2007 season in the First Division began brightly with a dogged display against Kildare County at Tolka Park less than 2 weeks after their squad was assembled. Darren McKenna's dramatic late equaliser in that game secured a point for Shels giving the Tolka Park side much optimism for the season ahead. Shels next two games against the much fancied promotion favourites Finn Harps and Dundalk brought the young Shels side back to earth with two defeats, including conceding a last minute equaliser to Harps. After a frustrating 1-1 draw against 10 man Kilkenny City at Buckley Park, Shels first victory of the season arrived 5 games in against Athlone Town at Tolka Park courtesy of a Mark Leech header. Shels' generally young and inexperienced side failed to build on their first victory and would draw 4 of their next 5 games, their loss during this five game period came courtesy of conceding another last minute goal this time away to Cobh Ramblers. With injuries to notable players such as Jim Crawford and Aidan Collins, Shels' strength in depth would face a stern test during this period. A heavy 3-0 away defeat to Dundalk in May was countered by an encouraging 2-0 victory at home to Kilkenny City but that game was marred after John Brophy suffered a broken leg after a heavy challenge ruling him out of action for 4 months. Shels inconsistent start to the season was capped with a 1-0 defeat away to Athlone Town leaving Shels far too close to the foot of the First Division table for their liking. Injuries and player departures would take their toll on Shels during June and Shels suffered their heaviest defeat of the season during this period with a 4-0 defeat away to Monaghan United. Despite encouraging displays against Cobh Ramblers (2-2 draw) and another late defeat this time to Limerick 37 (3-2) would not be not enough to prevent numerous changes during the upcoming July transfer window. Shelbourne made significant changes at the start of the July transfer window. A total of 11 players joined Shels during the month of July including Stuart Malcolm, Marc McCulloch, Alan Keely, Anto Flood and Mark Rooney while Mark O'Brien and Noel Haverty joined Shels on loan from rivals Bohemians and St. Patrick's Athletic respectively. The impact of Shels newly assembled squad was felt immediately with a 1-0 victory over Wexford Youths at Tolka Park, only Shels 3rd win of the season. After a 1-0 away defeat to Finn Harps, Shels revitalised themselves with 3 consecutive victories against Dundalk, Kilkenny City and Athlone Town. July's turnaround in Shelbourne's form gave Shels optimism for securing the 3rd place play-off spot. Shels hopes of securing 3rd place were dashed over one weekend at Tolka Park with a 1-1 draw against Monaghan United and a defeat by Finn Harps with yet another last minute goal conceded. Shelbourne Football Club was in mourning during August after the death of Chief Executive Ollie Byrne. The first match after Byrne's death came against Limerick 37 at Tolka Park. In what was an emotional night at Tolka Park, Shelbourne provided one of their most impressive displays of the season with a comprehensive 4-0 victory. Two more victories over Wexford Youths and Kildare County gave Shels much optimism over finishing in 4th place but these ambitions were hit after another defeat to Finn Harps with yet another last minute conceded goal, the third time Shelbourne conceded a last minute winner to Harps this season. With no promotion prospects during the remainder of the season, Shelbourne's form slipped dramatically during the season run in. Despite a comfortable 4-1 win away to Athlone Town, Shels struggled during this period with a defeat to Dundalk and a disappointing home draw to lowly Kilkenny City. Shelbourne's finish to the season was one they would rather forget. 4 defeats in their final 4 matches marked a considerable decline in the Shels form after a new lease of life during the months of July and August. After what was a difficult season both on and off the pitch, Shelbourne finished 5th in the First Division table and Mark Leech finished the club's top goalscorer with 12 league goals. 2007 season statistics Player appearances/goals As of 10 November 2007. First Division FAI Cup League Cup John Brophy IRL FW 12 0 0 0 1 0 Wayne Byrne IRL FW 7 0 0 0 0 0 James Chambers IRL MF 32 7 1 0 1 0 Aidan Collins IRL DF 17 1 0 0 1 0 Jim Crawford IRL MF 17 0 0 0 0 0 Graham Curran IRL MF 2 1 0 0 0 0 Stephen Doran IRL MF 1 0 1 0 0 0 Daniel Ennis IRL DF 1 0 0 0 0 0 Anto Flood IRL FW 16 11 0 0 0 0 Brian Gartland IRL DF 15 1 1 0 0 0 Kieran Harte IRL MF 24 1 1 0 1 0 Noel Haverty IRL MF 8 0 0 0 0 0 James Hussey IRL GK 14 0 1 0 0 0 Alan Keely IRL DF 18 1 0 0 0 0 Sean L'Estrange IRL DF 8 0 0 0 0 0 Glen Lacey IRL MF 26 1 1 0 0 0 Mark Leech IRL FW 30 12 1 0 1 0 Stuart Malcolm SCO DF 17 1 0 0 0 0 Marc McCulloch SCO DF 19 0 0 0 0 0 Aaran McEneff IRL DF 11 0 1 0 1 0 Peter McGlynn IRL MF 6 0 0 0 0 0 Darren McKenna IRL FW 10 2 0 0 1 0 Kyle Moran IRL FW 9 1 0 0 1 0 Chris Mulhall IRL MF 1 0 0 0 0 0 Alan Murphy IRL DF 28 1 1 0 1 0 Mark O'Brien IRL MF 18 1 0 0 0 0 Tony O'Dowd IRL GK 25 0 0 0 1 0 Joey O'Neill IRL MF 1 0 0 0 0 0 Robbie O'Neill IRL MF 5 0 0 0 0 0 Niall O'Reilly IRL DF 13 0 1 0 1 0 Ciaran Quinn IRL FW 8 1 0 0 0 0 Conor Rafferty IRL DF 11 0 1 0 0 0 Alan Reilly IRL MF 7 0 0 0 0 0 Lee Roche IRL FW 5 0 0 0 0 0 Mark Rooney IRL FW 17 2 0 0 0 0 Ciarán Ryan IRL DF 8 0 0 0 1 0 Davitt Walsh IRL FW 12 1 1 0 0 0 |} Top goalscorers PositionGoalscorerTotal GoalsFirst DivisionFAI CupLeague Cup1IRL Mark Leech1212002IRL Anto Flood1111003IRL James Chambers77004IRL Darren McKenna2200IRL Mark Rooney22006IRL Aidan Collins1100IRL Graham Curran1100IRL Brian Gartland1100IRL Kieran Harte1100IRL Alan Keely1100IRL Glen Lacey1100SCO Stuart Malcolm1100IRL Kyle Moran1100IRL Alan Murphy1100IRL Mark O'Brien1100IRL Ciaran Quinn1100IRL Davitt Walsh1100 Notes References Category:Shelbourne F.C. seasons Shelbourne Shelbourne