JON DALY has queried Stephen Kenny’s view of the St Pat’s squad – claiming he was expected to challenge for the title with it.
Daly was officially unveiled as Dundalk’s new manager yesterday, although he was in the dugout for Friday’s defeat to Galway United having met his players just hours beforehand.
On Friday, Dundalk host Derry City but eyes will then immediately turn to a return trip for Daly to Richmond Park.
It will see Stephen manage against his 18-year-old son Eoin, who has made six league appearances for Dundalk this term, for the first time.
It will also see Daly come up against the club which decided to dispense with his services just four weeks earlier, after only a year in charge in which he won the FAI Cup.
And the 41-year has questioned why his replacement Kenny– who has taken one point from his three games in charge – immediately wrote off any prospect of his team being in title contention this season.
Daly said: “When I was there I was getting stick for not challenging for the league with the same squad.
“It’s funny how narratives can change and all of a sudden the squad’s not good enough, and when I was there it is good enough.
“They have a good squad as do we.”
Dundalk have taken just two points on the road – compared to 10 at home – and Daly admitted that going to Inchicore with the visiting side will be a strange sensation.
He said: “You’re going back to a club that you have literally just left. There are a lot of people there that I’m very fond of at the club but I want to come back up the road with the three points.
“It will be strange walking in and I’ll have to concentrate that I don’t go to the wrong side, the wrong changing room.
“It’s a game we’re looking forward to but first and foremost Derry is the main focus.”
TOUGHEST LEAGUE IN THE WORLD
Although Dundalk are rooted to the foot of the table, they have drawn with leaders Shelbourne and defeated defending champions Shamrock Rovers.
And Daly – who has yet to decide on new additions to his coaching staff – said: “It is one of the most difficult leagues in world football at the moment. Everyone is capable of beating each other and that includes ourselves.
“Obviously it’s not guaranteed but we’ll work as tirelessly as we can and as hard as we can to try to get out of the position we’re in.
“I don’t think I’d have jumped straight back in if I wasn’t confident.”
Daly admitted that his decision to take the Dundalk job was not well received by his wife and teenage daughters settled in Scotland, where he spent much of his playing career.
He said: “It went down like a lead balloon. I’ve lived away from them for the last three-and-a-half years. That’s the life of a football player, manager and coach.
“The biggest thing was we’d booked a holiday for this Thursday, to Turkey, I’m obviously not going. But if my wife and kids were not supportive, I genuinely wouldn’t be here.
“They were huge St Pat’s fans and now they are Dundalk fans, I’ll need to get them the jerseys and all the Pat’s stuff will go in the bin.”
There could be similar upheaval in the Dundalk squad if loan players Zak Bradshaw, Zak Johnson and Ciaran McGuckin join the injured Scott High in returning to their parent clubs as planned.
He said: “The last thing you want to lose is good players, it means you’re in a situation where you need to bring the same level of player or better in.
“There might be another couple that move that we have to replace as well. We are very light with the squad, we know that, the club have been fully supportive.”
Keeper George Shelvey also has seven of a 10-match ban remaining with Ross Munro struggling to convince between the posts.
Daly said: “We have Ross and young Sean Molloy, we are very limited in that area, it’s a problem but not something we can magically fix now. We need to persevere until we can.”