Tommy Lonergan has returned to St Patrick's Athletic on a multi-year contract.The 18-year-old attacker spent the season with UCD, scoring the winning goal against Waterford in the Premier Division promotion/relegation play-off.Lonergan scored 12 times in 25 appearances for UCD in league and cup last season and was reportedly on Dundalk's radar.He was at St Pat's academy for three years, winning the league and cup double with the Saint's U-15s in 2019.He also played for their U-17s and U-19s, finishing top scorer in the U-19 EA Sports National League in 2021 and featuring in the UEFA Youth League against Red Star Belgrade.The Ireland underage international made his first team debut for St Pat's in a 6-0 FAI Cup win against Bray Wanderers in July 2021, and now returns to Inchicore desperate to make a big impact."It's great to be back and I feel at home already," Lonergan said. "I've been chatting to [manager] Tim Clancy and he convinced me to come back.
I know St Pat's inside out and I feel it is a great place for me to progress and to continue my career."Keith Ward has penned a new deal with Dundalk.The 32-year-old attacker returned to Oriel Park for a third spell last December and was an important member of Stephen O'Donnell’s squad this season, making a total of 34 appearances."I met the gaffer at the end of the season and we had a good chat about how things went and about what I can bring to the team again next year," he said."I think this season went well, both individually and from a team point of view, and I really enjoyed it.
Coming from Bohemians, I knew it would be a big change but the chance to work with the gaffer was a challenge I really wanted and I’m looking forward to another season now."Ward bagged six