Noel King on Dundalk FC’s win over Bohemians – ‘The opening 45 minutes was blistering’

The 67-year-old was a shock appointment last week to replace Stephen O’Donnell having not managed in the League of Ireland for 20 years.

However, he got off to a dream start as first half goals by Scott High and Robbie Benson saw the bottom of the table side claim their first victory since the final day of last season.

While the Co Louth outfit remain bottom of the table, King is hoping that first win can prove a springboard for a drive up the table but the former Irish U21 boss said he played very little part in making it happen.

“Not at all,” he said when asked how much of it was down to him.

“The two lads were doing the training all week, Liam Burns and Brian Gartland. The sessions were very good. The mood is very good and they were coming off the back of a good draw last weekend.

“Everyone was geared for it and everybody wanted it and I was just glad to see the two boys co-ordinating it and working with it again and it was a great victory.”

Asked what he had added, King simply replied: “I’m very lucky.”

King took a watching brief on the night with previous interim bosses Gartland and Burns patrolling the touchline and he felt it was the right thing to do regardless of the end result.

“There’s lads’ names I’m mixing up and if I’m roaring and shouting it could be at the wrong person so it doesn’t make sense for me to be up there,” he said.

“I just wanted to see the way the lads operated as well on the bench and they were fine. They got messages across. The players could hear them and that was very positive.”

King said he would weigh up whether to retain that watching brief ahead of the visit of top of the table Shelbourne to Oriel Park this Friday.

“It’s whatever is best for the team and whatever is the best chance of getting a victory. It’s not about me. It’s about the players, it’s about performances and it’s about points.”

King added he would possibly look to add to his backroom team over the coming weeks but admitted the victory over Bohs had given some breathing space in that regard.

“Well there might be one or two but we’re not in a mad rush now,” he said.

“This has been a great three points and if we do it we’d like to do it right.

“If you’re in the dressing room there you’d probably see what it means but it doesn’t stop at this. It can’t stop at this. The performance was very good but we at the very least must match it and we must try to rise our standard again and see can we take Dundalk back to where they belong. That’s a big, big task because there’s loads of good teams now in the upper end of the league particularly.”

King didn’t hide the fact that he loved the buzz in Oriel Park on the night, with Michael Duffy playing ‘King of the Road’ in his honour as the players celebrated the first win with fans at full-time.

“I never lost the buzz but it’s a while since I’ve seen this.

“The last places I was, well with Shelbourne women, there wouldn’t have been an atmosphere or crowds like this but when you get to a final and things, it is still very intense. When you take the thing serious, it’ll always be intense.

“The opening 45 minutes was blistering, really blistering and we should have got more than two and that would have been another match altogether.

“I didn’t see it coming, no, but I was fairly confident that they’d put in a performance. I wasn’t confident we’d win, you never can be, but it’s very enjoyable when you do,” he said.