‘We’ll have the best training ground in the league’ – Stephen Kenny confident of attracting top talent to St Pat’s

Kenny views his project with St Pat’s as a long term one and while there will be some changes to his squad in July, the Dubliner has indicated that events next winter will have more impact on his long-term vision.

In the aftermath of his first win at Richmond Park, a hard-fought success over Galway United that could easily have swung in the other direction, Kenny revealed there have already been positive conversations with prospective targets.

“The big thing for me is planning for the future and I’ve been doing that,” said Kenny, whose team train at the Sport Ireland campus in Abbotstown – which sits next to his old base at FAI HQ. He suggested that they will be getting access to additional facilities that are on the site.

“Going toward the end of the year and next year, I think we’ll have the best training ground in the league, a lot of the Sport Ireland facilities,” said Kenny.

“We want to get it because a lot of things aren’t right around it at the club and we have to get that right. We will have the best facilities and speaking to a lot of players, they want to come here and they understand what we’re going to do.

“I’ve been speaking to a few players and they want to come here. It might be the end of the season or whatever, but a lot of players want to come here as they know we’re going to build something with really top class training facilities, a good working environment and we want to build something.

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“In the meantime, we have to get results as we’re well down the table,” continued Kenny, who challenged his existing players to prove they should be a part of his grander plan.

“We have it all to do. You wouldn’t envisage big changes in July, you’re talking a few. It’s up to players now to want to be part of the club, to know that it’s going to be a vibrant club and to want to be part of it, and put in performances to justify that.”

After back to back injury time concessions in his previous two games, Kenny was happy for his group to experience different emotions after Alex Nolan came off the bench to bag a late winner. Kenny acknowledged it was hard work.

“The players themselves needed that win,” he said. “When you concede in the 97th and 92nd minute it can be hard as they deserved points in the games that they didn’t get. Tonight wasn’t for the faint hearted. It wasn’t a classic and we had to dig in and show our qualities. We have work to do. We are a work in progress.”