Shelbourne defender Gavin Molloy off to Aberdeen as Damien Duff takes swipe at agents

There was surprise in the Shelbourne fanbase today when the departure of Molloy to the Scottish top flight club was announced.

Molloy had a clause in his contract that facilitated a move from abroad with Aberdeen making a decisive move for his services for an undisclosed fee – it’s understood the clause was in the region of £75,000.

Duff had previously criticised the practice of agents pushing for release clauses and said that no player in his dressing room had one – but Molloy was an exception to that rule.

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His exit is a major blow for Shels given that he has played a significant part in their title charge.

“Speaking on behalf of everyone, I want to wish Gavin the best of luck, he’s a fabulous boy, a class act and he never gave me a moment of trouble,” said Duff, with respect to a player who flourished under his watch.

“Don’t ever think this club is lacking ambition. This is the way of the world now in the League of Ireland. Agents don’t always have the best interests of the player at heart. There’s clauses you can’t get around. If it was up to me, I’d lock Gav in Tolka Park for the next ten years. But there’s an out, there’s a clause. He’s going.

“The club will move on and we’ll do business and adapt as we’ve always done. We have top defenders in the building, ie Paddy Barrett, for as good as Gav has been, Paddy Barrett has probably been the best defender in the league this season, not the best defender in the club, the best defender in the league and if he was 10, 15 years younger and didn’t have 100 kids, it would possibly be Paddy going to Aberdeen.”

The Shels statement also referenced the prospect of new signings in the July window.

A top target is Harry Wood, the Hull midfielder who starred for Shels last term on his loan move from the Championship club after their Turkish owners took over at Tolka Park, although that takeover was short lived following a fractious end to the season.

He went to Grimsby on loan in January, making ten appearances for the League Two club, even though Shels were keen to bring him back. St Patrick’s Athletic also made a winter move. But Duff never gave up hope of a reunion with Wood and it’s believed Shels have made good progress in that regard.

Despite the end of the Hull partnership, Jarvis returned to Shels in January on a season long loan and has been outstanding in terms of end product, scoring the winner in Waterford last night that keeps them two clear of Derry City at the top with 14 games remaining – and the Reds have a game in hand.

The sparkling form of the winger has raised questions about whether other English clubs might try and make a summer move – it’s understood that his performances in Ireland have not gone unnoticed elsewhere in the UK ladder.

Duff is certain he will stay – adding that the player has no desire to go anywhere else at this point.

“He’s scheduled to stay for the rest of the season, I never read the small print in contracts or agreements but we obviously don’t want him to go,” said Duff.

“Will doesn’t want to go because he adores it here, he adores the club, he adores the players, he adores Dublin and I don’t think Hull are going to want to take him back either.

“Regardless of what people say, we’ve still got a really positive relationship with Hull and what’s best for Will? He’s playing for a team that he’s impacting in a massive way, playing top of the table football, still in the cup – obviously we haven’t played a game yet – and playing in Europe. So I do think it’s the best place for him regardless.

“He’s obviously in people’s eyelines because he is doing so well. He did really well last season and we were the front runners in taking him, Nothing is going to change. He’s playing for a massive Dublin club, he’s adored here and sometimes the grass isn’t always greener. I don’t see how or why he would go.

“He got a little bit of a rant off me at half-time (on Thursday) but what I love about Will is that he dusts himself down, he takes it, and he probably sticks two fingers back up at me by doing what he did.

“The way he dribbles, it’s back foot dribbling, I think it’s unplayable at any level – he’s a right footer dribbling on the left, the ball is always that extra bit of distance away from the defender, it’s unplayable. So outside of the goals, and affecting games, he’s a wonderful player and as long as I’m here, I want Will to stay as well.”

Meanwhile, Duff says that Shelbourne still play ‘second fiddle’ to champions Shamrock Rovers in every department – even though they hold a 12-point lead over the Hoops heading into the mid-season break.

The Shelbourne manager admitted that it’s an unexpected gap given that Bradley’s side are four in a row champions, before turning to the bigger picture.

“Of course it’s a surprise, but listen Shamrock Rovers have the best manager in the country, the best stadium, the best training ground, the best players, the best coaching staff, they are better than us than everything so we play second fiddle in everything,” said Duff, whose team have just 14 games remaining,

“I know and we know where we are in the breadline but that’s never bothered me. I just work hard, keep the head down, and get onto the next game.”