Mark Dempsey (footballer)
Encyclopedia
Mark Anthony Peter Dempsey (born 10 December 1972 in Dublin) was an Irish
association football player during the 1990s and 2000s. He was a defender or midfielder who appeared for Gillingham
, Leyton Orient
, Shrewsbury Town
, Barry Town
, Bohemians
(2 spells), Shelbourne
and Drogheda United during his career.
and his promise was noted by then-Football League Cup
holders Oxford United
, who brought him over for a trial. He impressed them enough to be taken on as a trainee for 18 months. He was a regular for the reserve team
but never made the breakthrough to the first team so when his contract expired, he moved to Gillingham
under the management of Damien Richardson
.
He spent close to five years at Gillingham before moving on to Leyton Orient
. He then spent three seasons at Shrewsbury Town
under the management of Fred Davis and then Jake King. He had a falling out with King and moved on to Barry Town
, where he won the domestic treble and played UEFA Champions League
qualifiers against a Dynamo Kiev side including the likes of Andrei Shevchenko and Sergei Rebrov.
He returned to Ireland in the summer of 1999 and was made captain of Roddy Collins
' Bohemian
revolution. He got injured during the second half of that season but returned in time to play in the FAI Cup
Final as Bohs lost to Shelbourne
in a replay. In just the third league game of the following season, he broke his ankle and was to miss the rest of the season as Bohs went on to win both the League of Ireland
and FAI Cup.
His contract was up so he left to join Shelbourne, however he struggled to get regular first team football and within months had returned to Bohemians where he stayed until the end of the season when he moved north to Drogheda United.
He was capped five times for the Irish under-21
team, scoring one goal.
He was assistant manager at Shamrock Rovers
during the 2006 and 2007 seasons.
Republic of Ireland
Ireland , described as the Republic of Ireland , is a sovereign state in Europe occupying approximately five-sixths of the island of the same name. Its capital is Dublin. Ireland, which had a population of 4.58 million in 2011, is a constitutional republic governed as a parliamentary democracy,...
association football player during the 1990s and 2000s. He was a defender or midfielder who appeared for Gillingham
Gillingham F.C.
Gillingham Football Club is an English professional football club based in the town of Gillingham, Kent. The only Kent-based club in the Football League, they play their home matches at the Priestfield Stadium...
, Leyton Orient
Leyton Orient F.C.
Leyton Orient F.C. are an English professional football club in East London. They currently play in Football League One and are known to their fans as the O's.Leyton Orient have spent one season in the top flight of English football, in 1962–63...
, Shrewsbury Town
Shrewsbury Town F.C.
Shrewsbury Town Football Club is an English Association football club based in Shrewsbury, Shropshire, who play in League Two, the fourth tier of English football. The club was formed in 1886 and has played in all the bottom three divisions in various guises since being elected into the Football...
, Barry Town
Barry Town F.C.
Barry Town FC are a football team based in Barry. They dominated the League of Wales during the 1990s, but finished bottom in 2003-04 and were relegated...
, Bohemians
Bohemian F.C.
Bohemian F.C. , more commonly referred to as Bohemians, is a professional football club from Dublin, Ireland. Bohemians compete in the Premier Division of the League of Ireland and are the third most successful club in League of Ireland football history, having won the League of Ireland title 11...
(2 spells), Shelbourne
Shelbourne F.C.
Shelbourne Football Club is an Irish professional football club based in the Drumcondra area of Dublin, currently playing in the League of Ireland Premier Division....
and Drogheda United during his career.
Career
He played his schoolboy football at Cherry Orchard F.C.Cherry Orchard F.C.
Cherry Orchard Football Club is an Irish football club founded in 1957 known locally as "the Orchard." The club is one of the biggest producers of talent in Ireland. They are linked with Manchester City. Their main rival is Crumlin United, for whom Robbie Keane played at schoolboy level. The club...
and his promise was noted by then-Football League Cup
Football League Cup
The Football League Cup, commonly known as the League Cup or, from current sponsorship, the Carling Cup, is an English association football competition. Like the FA Cup, it is played on a knockout basis...
holders Oxford United
Oxford United F.C.
Oxford United Football Club is an English association football club based in Oxford, Oxfordshire. The club play in League Two, following promotion from the Conference National in May 2010. The club had been a non-League side since their relegation from the Football League in the 2005–06 season. The...
, who brought him over for a trial. He impressed them enough to be taken on as a trainee for 18 months. He was a regular for the reserve team
Reserve team
Large professional sports clubs often have far more players under contract than could possibly play in a match. As a result, many of these clubs create second teams composed of players who need playing time, but have little hope of playing on the first team. The players on this second team are...
but never made the breakthrough to the first team so when his contract expired, he moved to Gillingham
Gillingham F.C.
Gillingham Football Club is an English professional football club based in the town of Gillingham, Kent. The only Kent-based club in the Football League, they play their home matches at the Priestfield Stadium...
under the management of Damien Richardson
Damien Richardson
Damien John Richardson is an Irish football manager and former player. He currently has no club attachments, having left Cork City at the end of the 2007 season. Richardson formerly managed Gillingham in England and Cobh Ramblers, Shelbourne and Shamrock Rovers in Ireland.Richardson's father...
.
He spent close to five years at Gillingham before moving on to Leyton Orient
Leyton Orient F.C.
Leyton Orient F.C. are an English professional football club in East London. They currently play in Football League One and are known to their fans as the O's.Leyton Orient have spent one season in the top flight of English football, in 1962–63...
. He then spent three seasons at Shrewsbury Town
Shrewsbury Town F.C.
Shrewsbury Town Football Club is an English Association football club based in Shrewsbury, Shropshire, who play in League Two, the fourth tier of English football. The club was formed in 1886 and has played in all the bottom three divisions in various guises since being elected into the Football...
under the management of Fred Davis and then Jake King. He had a falling out with King and moved on to Barry Town
Barry Town F.C.
Barry Town FC are a football team based in Barry. They dominated the League of Wales during the 1990s, but finished bottom in 2003-04 and were relegated...
, where he won the domestic treble and played UEFA Champions League
UEFA Champions League
The UEFA Champions League, known simply the Champions League and originally known as the European Champion Clubs' Cup or European Cup, is an annual international club football competition organised by the Union of European Football Associations since 1955 for the top football clubs in Europe. It...
qualifiers against a Dynamo Kiev side including the likes of Andrei Shevchenko and Sergei Rebrov.
He returned to Ireland in the summer of 1999 and was made captain of Roddy Collins
Roddy Collins
Roderick 'Roddy' Collins , is a Irish former professional football player and current manager of Monaghan United. He has also worked as a television pundit, and is the brother of acclaimed former boxer, Steve Collins....
' Bohemian
Bohemian F.C.
Bohemian F.C. , more commonly referred to as Bohemians, is a professional football club from Dublin, Ireland. Bohemians compete in the Premier Division of the League of Ireland and are the third most successful club in League of Ireland football history, having won the League of Ireland title 11...
revolution. He got injured during the second half of that season but returned in time to play in the FAI Cup
FAI Cup
The Football Association of Ireland Challenge Cup, known as the FAI Ford Cup for sponsorship reasons, is a knock-out association football competition contested annually by teams from the Republic of Ireland...
Final as Bohs lost to Shelbourne
Shelbourne F.C.
Shelbourne Football Club is an Irish professional football club based in the Drumcondra area of Dublin, currently playing in the League of Ireland Premier Division....
in a replay. In just the third league game of the following season, he broke his ankle and was to miss the rest of the season as Bohs went on to win both the League of Ireland
League of Ireland
The League of Ireland is the national association football league of the Republic of Ireland. Founded in 1921, as a league of eight clubs, it has expanded over time into a two-tiered league of 22 clubs. It is currently split into the League of Ireland Premier Division and the League of Ireland...
and FAI Cup.
His contract was up so he left to join Shelbourne, however he struggled to get regular first team football and within months had returned to Bohemians where he stayed until the end of the season when he moved north to Drogheda United.
He was capped five times for the Irish under-21
Republic of Ireland national under-21 football team
The Republic of Ireland national under-21 football team, is the national under-21 football team of the Republic of Ireland and is controlled by the Football Association of Ireland and competes in the biennial European Under-21 Football Championship and has competed since 1978.-Competition...
team, scoring one goal.
He was assistant manager at Shamrock Rovers
Shamrock Rovers F.C.
Shamrock Rovers Football Club are a professional football club from Dublin, Ireland. They compete in the Premier Division of the League of Ireland and are the most successful club in Irish football history. The club have won the League of Ireland title a record 17 times and the FAI Cup a record 24...
during the 2006 and 2007 seasons.