Cian Kavanagh (born 3 January 2003) is an Irish professional

footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby lea ...

who plays as a

forward Forward is a relative direction, the opposite of backward. Forward may also refer to: People *Forward (surname) Sports * Forward (association football) * Forward (basketball), including: ** Point forward ** Power forward (basketball) ** Smal ...

for

League of Ireland Premier Division The League of Ireland Men's Premier Division (), also known as the SSE Airtricity Men's Premier Division for sponsorship reasons, is a professional association football league in the Republic of Ireland and the highest level of the Republic of I ...

club

Sligo Rovers Sligo Rovers Football Club is an Irish professional association football, football club playing in the Premier Division of the League of Ireland. The club is based in Sligo in the west of Ireland. The club was founded in 1928 and have been in ...

. His previous clubs are

St Patrick's Athletic St Patrick's Athletic Football Club, commonly known as Pat's or The Athletic, is a professional List of association football clubs in the Republic of Ireland, Irish association football club based in Inchicore, Dublin, that plays in the League ...

(where he spent 2 spells), Heart of Midlothian,

Cowdenbeath Cowdenbeath () is a town and burgh in west Fife, Scotland. It is north-east of Dunfermline and north of the capital, Edinburgh. The town grew up around the extensive coalfields of the area and became a police burgh in 1890. According to a 20 ...

Waterford Waterford ( ) is a City status in Ireland, city in County Waterford in the South-East Region, Ireland, south-east of Ireland. It is located within the Provinces of Ireland, province of Munster. The city is situated at the head of Waterford H ...

and Derry City.

Career

Youth career

A native of

Baldoyle Baldoyle () is a coastal suburb of Dublin, Ireland, it was developed from a former fishing village. Baldoyle is also a civil parish in the barony of Coolock within the traditional County Dublin. Location and access Baldoyle is located northe ...

Dublin Dublin is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. Situated on Dublin Bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, and is bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, pa ...

, Kavanagh came through the academy of

side

whom he signed for in 2017, where he featured for the under 15, under 17 and under 19s sides. In October 2018, he scored twice in a 4–0 win over

Cork City Cork ( ; from , meaning 'marsh') is the second-largest city in Republic of Ireland, Ireland, the county town of County Cork, the largest city in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Munster and the List of settlements on the island of Ireland ...

in the National Under 15 Cup Final at

Richmond Park Richmond Park, in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames, is the largest of Royal Parks of London, London's Royal Parks and is of national and international importance for wildlife conservation. It was created by Charles I of England, Cha ...

St Patrick's Athletic

He was included in the first team by manager Harry Kenny ahead of the

2019 season Nineteen or 19 may refer to: * 19 (number) * One of the years 19 BC, AD 19, 1919, 2019 Films * ''19'' (film), a 2001 Japanese film * ''Nineteen'' (1987 film), a 1987 science fiction film * '' 19-Nineteen'', a 2009 South Korean film * '' Dici ...

, aged 16. He made his first appearance with the

first team on 19 January 2019, in a 4–1 win over

Cobh Ramblers Cobh Ramblers Football Club (CRFC) is an Irish football club. The club, founded in 1922 and elected to the League of Ireland in 1985, hails from Cobh, County Cork and play their home matches at St. Colman's Park. The club's colours are clare ...

in a pre-season friendly. On 13 July 2019, he was an unused substitute in a friendly against

UEFA Europa League The UEFA Europa League (UEL), usually known simply as the Europa League, is an annual association football, football club competition organised since 1971 by the UEFA, Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) for eligible European footb ...

holders Chelsea.

Heart of Midlothian

Kavanagh signed a 3-year contract with Heart of Midlothian on 30 August 2019. He failed to make a first team appearance and departed the club in September 2020 in search of first team opportunities.

Cowdenbeath

In September 2020, he signed for

Scottish League Two The Scottish League Two, known as William Hill (bookmaker), William Hill League Two for sponsorship reasons, is the fourth tier of the Scottish Professional Football League, the league competition for men's professional association football, foo ...

side

. On 28 November 2020, he scored the first senior goal of his career, in a 5–2 defeat away to Elgin City. In February 2021, the club agreed to release Kavanagh with immediate affect to allow him to return home to Ireland as the squad were on

furlough A furlough (; from , "leave of absence") is a temporary cessation of paid employment that is intended to address the special needs of a company or employer; these needs may be due to economic conditions that affect a specific employer, or to thos ...

and unable to train or play matches due to the

COVID-19 Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by the coronavirus SARS-CoV-2. In January 2020, the disease spread worldwide, resulting in the COVID-19 pandemic. The symptoms of COVID‑19 can vary but often include fever ...

restrictions in Scotland. He scored 1 goal in 9 appearances in all competitions during his short spell with the club.

Waterford

On 23 February 2021, Kavanagh signed for

side

. On 26 March 2021, he scored his first goal for the club, opening the scoring in a 2–1 defeat against

. On 18 July 2021, he scored from 25 yards to secure a 1–0 win for his side at home to

. He scored twice in a 4–1 win over

Longford Town Longford () is the county town of County Longford in Ireland. It had a population of 10,952 at the 2022 census. It is the biggest town in the county and about one third of the county's population lives there. Longford lies at the meeting of I ...

at the

RSC RSC may refer to: Arts * Royal Shakespeare Company, a British theatre company * Reduced Shakespeare Company, a touring American acting troupe * Richmondshire Subscription Concerts, a music society in Richmond, North Yorkshire, England * Rock Ste ...

on 20 August 2021. He would only feature once more that season due to injury however, and his 4 goals in 14 league appearances wasn't enough to help the club avoid relegation to the

League of Ireland First Division The League of Ireland First Division, also known as the SSE Airtricity League First Division for sponsorship reasons, is the second-highest division in both the League of Ireland and the Republic of Ireland football league system. The division w ...

. He started off the 2022 season off well, scoring 5 goals in 17 games by July, which drew attention from

clubs.

Derry City

On 29 July 2022, it was announced that Kavanagh had signed for

side Derry City for an undisclosed fee, on an 18-month deal. On 30 September 2022, he came off the bench away to

to score the winner in an important 1–0 victory for his side. On 13 November 2022, Kavanagh was part of the squad in the 2022 FAI Cup Final, which resulted in a 4–0 win over Shelbourne at the

Aviva Stadium Aviva Stadium, also known as Lansdowne Road (, ) or Dublin Arena (during UEFA competitions), is a List of stadiums in Ireland by capacity, sports stadium located in Dublin, Republic of Ireland, Ireland, with a capacity for 51,711 spectators ...

, a record Cup Final scoreline margin. On 10 February 2023, he started in the 2023 President of Ireland's Cup, as his side defeated

Shamrock Rovers Shamrock Rovers Football Club is an Irish professional Association football, football club based in Tallaght, South Dublin. The club's senior team competes in the League of Ireland Premier Division and it is List of football clubs by competit ...

2–0 at the

Ryan McBride Brandywell Stadium The Ryan McBride Brandywell Stadium () is a municipal football stadium in Derry, Northern Ireland. It is the home ground of League of Ireland team Derry City F.C., (temporarily) NIFL Championship team Institute, and also to NIWFA Championshi ...

to win the trophy. He scored an equaliser in a 2–2 draw away to

Dundalk Dundalk ( ; ) is the county town of County Louth, Ireland. The town is situated on the Castletown River, which flows into Dundalk Bay on the north-east coast of Ireland, and is halfway between Dublin and Belfast, close to and south of the bor ...

on 16 April 2023 at

Oriel Park Oriel Park is a UEFA Category 2 football stadium located on the Carrickmacross Road in Dundalk, Ireland. The stadium is the home ground of Dundalk Football Club and is owned and operated by the club on land that has been leased from the Casey ...

. On 5 June 2023, he scored a consolation goal in a 4–1 defeat to

. His second season with Derry saw him feature in 4 of the 6 games in their

UEFA Europa Conference League The UEFA Conference League (UECL), usually known simply as the Conference League, is an annual association football, football competition organised since 2021 by the UEFA, Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) for eligible European foot ...

campaign, playing and scoring both home and away against

KuPS Kuopion Palloseura, commonly referred to as KuPS, is a Finnish professional football club based in Kuopio. KuPS competes in Veikkausliiga, the top flight of Finnish football. The team plays its home matches at Kuopio Football Stadium. KuPS ha ...

of Finland. He also featured in both legs against

Tobol The Tobol (, ) is a river in Western Siberia (in Kazakhstan and Russia) and the main (left) tributary of the Irtysh. Its length is , and the area of its drainage basin is . History The Tobol River was one of the four important rivers of the S ...

Kazakhstan Kazakhstan, officially the Republic of Kazakhstan, is a landlocked country primarily in Central Asia, with a European Kazakhstan, small portion in Eastern Europe. It borders Russia to the Kazakhstan–Russia border, north and west, China to th ...

, against whom he scored in the penalty shootout in the second leg at

Tallaght Stadium Tallaght Stadium () is an List of association football stadiums in the Republic of Ireland, association football stadium in Ireland based in Tallaght, South Dublin. The club Shamrock Rovers F.C., Shamrock Rovers originally announced details of ...

, as his side were defeated 6–5 on penalties. It was announced in November 2023 that Kavanagh would be let go by the club following the end of his contract after scoring 5 goals in 40 appearances in his time with the club.

St Patrick's Athletic

On 22 November 2023, it was announced that Kavanagh had signed a contract with his first senior club,

. He made his debut for the club on 22 January in a Leinster Senior Cup game away to Usher Celtic and scored a penalty that he won himself less than a minute after coming on as a half time substitute. Kavanagh's first league goal for the club came on 24 May 2024, in a 2–2 draw away to

Bohemians Bohemian or Bohemians may refer to: *Anything of or relating to Bohemia Culture and arts * Bohemianism, an unconventional lifestyle, originally practised by 19th–20th century European and American artists and writers. * Bohemian style, a f ...

Dalymount Park Dalymount Park (Irish language, Irish: ''Páirc Chnocán Uí Dhálaigh'') is a Association football, football stadium in Phibsborough on the Northside Dublin, Northside of Dublin, Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is the home of Bohemian F.C., ...

after he had replaced

Ruairí Keating Ruairí Thomas Keating (born 16 July 1995) is an Irish professional footballer who plays as a forward for League of Ireland Premier Division club Cork City. His previous clubs are Sligo Rovers, Finn Harps, Galway United, Torquay United, Gateshea ...

from the bench early on following a concussion he suffered in the first action of the game. On 8 October 2024, Kavanagh was part of the Pats side that defeated St Mochta's 2–1 in the final of the

2023–24 Leinster Senior Cup The 2024 PTSB Leinster Senior Cup was the 120th edition of the Leinster Football Association's primary competition. It included all Leinster based League of Ireland clubs from the Premier Division and First Division, as well as a selection of ...

. On 29 November 2024, it was announced that Kavanagh had departed the club by mutual consent.

Sligo Rovers

On 29 November 2024, Kavanagh signed a 2-year contract with

club

. On 14 February 2025, Kavanagh missed a penalty on his debut, with

going straight up the other end and scoring what turned out to be the winning goal of the game in a 3–2 defeat at The Showgrounds. He scored his first goals for the club on 28 February 2025, when he scored a brace and also missed a penalty in a 4–3 defeat away to his former club

International career

In October 2021, Kavanagh was called up for the Republic of Ireland U21 side for an away game against Montenegro U21.

Career statistics

Honours

;Derry City *

FAI Cup The Football Association of Ireland Senior Challenge Cup (FAI Cup), known as the Sports Direct FAI Cup for sponsorship reasons, is a knock-out association football competition contested annually by teams from the Republic of Ireland (as well as D ...

(1):

2022 The year began with another wave in the COVID-19 pandemic, with SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant, Omicron spreading rapidly and becoming the dominant variant of the SARS-CoV-2 virus worldwide. Tracking a decrease in cases and deaths, 2022 saw ...

President of Ireland's Cup The President of Ireland's Cup, also known simply as the President's Cup, is an association football super cup featuring clubs from the Republic of Ireland football league system. It is a one-off match between the winners of the previous season's ...

(1):

2023 Catastrophic natural disasters in 2023 included the Lists of 21st-century earthquakes, 5th-deadliest earthquake of the 21st century 2023 Turkey–Syria earthquakes, striking Turkey and Syria, leaving up to 62,000 people dead; Cyclone Freddy ...

;St Patrick's Athletic * Leinster Senior Cup (1): 2023–24

References

External links

Cian Kavanagh Extratime.com Profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kavanagh, Cian 2003 births Living people Republic of Ireland men's association footballers St Patrick's Athletic F.C. players Heart of Midlothian F.C. players Cowdenbeath F.C. players Waterford F.C. players Derry City F.C. players Sligo Rovers F.C. players Scottish Professional Football League players League of Ireland players Men's association football forwards Association footballers from County Dublin 21st-century Irish sportsmen