Colm Whelan (born 29 June 2000) 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 striker 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

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 ...

. His previous clubs are

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 ...

, UCD and Derry City.

Career

Youth career

A native of Thomastown,

County Kilkenny County Kilkenny () is a Counties of Ireland, county in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster and is part of the Southern Region, Ireland, Southern Region. It is named after the City status in Ir ...

, Whelan began playing with his local club Thomastown United, before moving to the academy of

in 2016, where he played for the under 17 side for two seasons before making his first team debut.

Waterford

On 7 October 2017, Whelan made his senior debut for

in the final game of the season in a 2–1 loss away to

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 ...

as his side won the

2017 League of Ireland First Division The 2017 League of Ireland First Division season is the 33rd season of the League of Ireland First Division. The league began on 24 February 2017 and concludes on 7 October 2017. The 2017 season had no promotion/relegation play-off system like t ...

title to gain promotion. The club's promotion to the

proved to be a hindrance to Whelan's game time, as he only made 2 appearance in 2018, a 1–0 loss away to

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 ...

and a 3–0 loss to

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 ...

, before making 1 final appearance for the club in 2019, in a 3–1 win over Heart of Midlothian Colts in the

Scottish Challenge Cup The Scottish Professional Football League Challenge Cup,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 ...

club UCD ahead of the 2020 season and scored on his debut on 16 February 2020 in a 1–1 draw away to

Wexford Wexford ( ; archaic Yola dialect, Yola: ''Weiseforthe'') is the county town of County Wexford, Republic of Ireland, Ireland. Wexford lies on the south side of Wexford Harbour, the estuary of the River Slaney near the southeastern corner of the ...

Ferrycarrig Park Ferrycarrig Park has been the home of League of Ireland side Wexford Football Club since joining the league in 2007. The building works for the new stadium and facilities, at Newcastle, Crossabeg, have been ongoing since 2003. Spectator facil ...

. Whelan had an impressive first full season at senior level, scoring 15 goals in 21 appearances in all competitions. The 2021 season proved to be even more impressive, both individually and collectively, as scored 25 goals in 31 games in all competitions, culminating on 26 November 2021 with Whelan scoring the winner in a 2–1 victory over his former club

in the League of Ireland Promotion/Relegation Playoff 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 ...

. Whelan was named

League of Ireland Player of the Month The League of Ireland Player of the Month is awarded monthly to the best player in the League of Ireland. The winners are selected by Soccer Writers' Ireland, commonly known as the SWI (formerly known as Soccer Writers' Association of Ireland). Wi ...

for November 2021. On 21 December 2021, following the club's promotion, Whelan turned down offers from elsewhere within the league, to sign a new contract with UCD in order to complete his degree at the college. Whelan scored 4 goals in 15 games in the first half of the 2022 season, with his performances attracting interest of several English clubs including Lincoln City, but an

Anterior cruciate ligament The anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) is one of a pair of cruciate ligaments (the other being the posterior cruciate ligament) in the human knee. The two ligaments are called "cruciform" ligaments, as they are arranged in a crossed formation. In ...

injury suffered in a 1–0 win away to

Finn Harps Finn Harps Football Club is an Irish football club that play in the First Division of the League of Ireland, as of 2023. The club was founded in 1954 and elected to the league in 1969. They hail from Ballybofey, County Donegal and play their ho ...

on 13 May 2022 scuppered any move for the striker in the short term.

Derry City

On 30 November 2022, Whelan signed for

club Derry City on a 2-year contract. Still injured upon signing, he had to wait until 21 April 2023 for his debut, which came in a 3–1 win away to

in which Whelan scored his side's third goal of the game. Having also scored on his second appearance for the club in a 2–0 win at home to

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 ...

, disaster struck again on 1 May 2023, when Whelan suffered a second

injury in the space of 12 months in a 2–0 loss to

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 ...

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 ...

, in just his third appearance for the club. Whelan made his return from injury on 28 June 2024, in a 5–1 win over

Drogheda United Drogheda United Football Club is a professional Irish association football club based in Drogheda, County Louth playing in the League of Ireland Premier Division. They play their home matches at Sullivan & Lambe Park. The current club is the ...

. On 10 November 2024, Whelan came off the bench in the

2024 FAI Cup final The 2024 FAI Cup Final, known as the 2024 Sports Direct FAI Cup Final for sponsorship reasons, was the final match of the 2024 FAI Cup, the national association football cup of the Republic of Ireland. The match took place on Sunday 10 November 2 ...

in a 2–0 defeat to

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 ...

in what turned out to be his final game for the club.

Bohemians

On 13 November 2024, Whelan signed a multi-year contract with

ahead of their 2025 season. He made his debut for the club against

, replacing

Lys Mousset Lys Émilien Mousset (born 8 February 1996) is a French professional footballer who plays as a forward. Club career Le Havre Mousset joined the Le Havre academy in 2006, after playing for local clubs Soquence Graville and Havre Caucriauville. ...

from the bench in a 1–0 win at the

on 16 February 2025. On 7 March 2025, he scored his first goals for the club in a 3–0 win away to

, in which he scored

hat-trick A hat-trick or hat trick is the achievement of a generally positive feat three times in a match, or another achievement based on the number three. Origin The term first appeared in 1858 in cricket, to describe H. H. Stephenson taking three Wick ...

against his former club, including 2 penalties.

International career

Whelan received his first call up to the Republic of Ireland U21 team in May 2021. He made his debut for the side on 9 September 2021, scoring in a 1–1 draw away to Luxembourg U21. On 12 November 2021, his third and final appearance for the side was his first start at international level, in a 2–0 loss at home to Italy U21.

Career statistics

Honours

Club

;Waterford *

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 ...

(1):

2017 2017 was designated as the International Year of Sustainable Tourism for Development by the United Nations General Assembly. Events January * January 1 – Istanbul nightclub shooting: A gunman dressed as Santa Claus opens fire at the ...

;Derry City *

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 ...

Individual

* PFAI First Division Team of the Year (2):

2020 The year 2020 was heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to global Social impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, social and Economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, economic disruption, mass cancellations and postponements of even ...

2021 Like the year 2020, 2021 was also heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, due to the emergence of multiple Variants of SARS-CoV-2, COVID-19 variants. The major global rollout of COVID-19 vaccines, which began at the end of 2020, continued ...

* League of Ireland First Division Top Goalscorer:

(18 goals) *

(1): November 2021

References

External links

Colm Whelan Extratime.com Profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Whelan, Colm 2000 births Living people Republic of Ireland men's association footballers Waterford F.C. players University College Dublin A.F.C. players Derry City F.C. players Bohemian F.C. players League of Ireland players Men's association football forwards Association footballers from County Kilkenny 21st-century Irish sportsmen Republic of Ireland men's youth international footballers Republic of Ireland men's under-21 international footballers