Growing Irish talent pool is a market Dons are keen to tap into

The Irish market has been a fruitful one for MK Dons this summer, and one full of potential according to Liam Sweeting.

Dons added four Republic of Ireland U21 internationals in the form of Conor Grant, Darragh Burns, Dawson Devoy and Josh Kayode in the summer transfer window, with Warren O’Hora signing a contract extension, while Troy Parrott and Conor Coventry were at the club last season too.

Sweeting, the club’s Sporting Director, spent a lot of time watching both Burns and Devoy, who he was eager to sign in January too, and said there is a lot of talent in the top flight over the Irish Sea.

And it is a market Dons may delve into again in the future.

“It's a level that is improving quickly,” he said. “I've been over a lot, obviously, to see these players. Young guys are getting international recognition already.

“It just so happens that a couple have come from Ireland, as well as Conor Grant and Josh Kayode, and we've ended up with quite a few.

“But it's just another sector of the market we've taken advantage of in this window. We look to find opportunities in markets that fit us and I think we've already seen qualities in Darragh and Dawson.”

Head coach Liam Manning added: “It's a strong league, with a good history of players coming through, coming over to England and being successful at all levels. It's a market that is extremely exciting with some of the players coming through at such young ages.

“It's a place we look for exciting talents. We'd been tracking the boys for a while, it wasn't a last-minute reaction. We put a lot of time and resource into getting them.”