Jason McClelland (born 5 March 1997) is an Irish professional footballer who plays for

League of Ireland Premier Division The League of Ireland Premier Division ( ga, Príomhroinn Sraith na hÉireann), also known as the SSE Airtricity League Premier Division for sponsorship reasons, is the top level division in both the League of Ireland and the Republic of Ireland ...

club,

St Patrick's Athletic St Patrick's Athletic Football Club ( ga, Cumann Peile Lúthchleas Phádraig Naofa) is a professional Irish association football club based in Inchicore, Dublin, that plays in the Irish Premier Division. Founded in May 1929, they played origina ...

, having previously played for UCD for 5 seasons.

Club career

Early career

McClelland started off playing football with

Shamrock Rovers Shamrock Rovers Football Club ( ga, Cumann Peile Ruagairí na Seamróige) is an Irish association football club based in Tallaght, South Dublin. The club's senior team competes in the League of Ireland Premier Division and it is the most su ...

at an early age. He moved on to Templeogue United and also enjoyed spells at

Peamount United Peamount United Football Club () is an Irish association football club based in Newcastle, South Dublin. The club is best known for its senior women's team who in 2011–12 became founder members and inaugural champions of the Women's National ...

Crumlin United Crumlin United Football Club is an Irish association football club based in Crumlin, Dublin. Founded in 1967, the club is one of the biggest producers of football talent in Ireland. They are linked with Nottingham Forest. Their main rival is C ...

before returning to

where he played with their Under 19's side in the 2014–15 season. He made his first senior appearance on 28 April 2015 when he came off the bench for the final 5 minutes of a 3–1 win away to

Athlone Town Athlone Town Association Football Club () is an Irish football club from Athlone who are playing in the League of Ireland. The club is the oldest in the League as it was founded in 1887. First elected to the League of Ireland in 1922, they pl ...

in the Leinster Senior Cup. That proved to be his only senior appearance for Rovers as he moved on to UCD in July 2015, playing for their Under 19's side.

UCD

McClelland made his first senior appearance for UCD on 19 July 2015 in a friendly against

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at the

UCD Bowl UCD can refer to: Education *University College Dublin, Irish university ** University College Dublin A.F.C., the university's association football club ** University College Dublin RFC, the university's rugby union club ** UCD GAA, the universit ...

. With the UCD first team fatigued following their

UEFA Europa League The UEFA Europa League (abbreviated as UEL, or sometimes, UEFA EL), formerly the UEFA Cup, is an annual football club competition organised since 1971 by the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) for eligible European football clubs. ...

campaign, it allowed McClelland a chance to make his first career senior appearance in a league game on 31 July 2015 when he came off the bench in a 3–0 win away to

Cabinteely Cabinteely () is a suburb of Dublin's southside. It is in Dún Laoghaire–Rathdown, County Dublin, Ireland. Geography Cabinteely lies around the crossroads of Johnstown Road / Brennanstown Road and the Old Bray Road, and on either side of th ...

. He was an unused substitute in 7 other first team games that season as he continued to play with the under 19's. The 2016 season was McClelland's first season as a full first team player. His first career goal came on 3 June 2016 when he scored a 64th-minute goal in a 2–0 win at home to Shelbourne. He would again be the enemy of Shelbourne the following month when he scored an 84th-minute winner in a 2–1 win for UCD at

Tolka Park Tolka Park ( ga, Páirc na Tulchann) is an Irish football ground located in the north Dublin suburb of Drumcondra, on the northern banks of the River Tolka. It is currently the home ground of League of Ireland club Shelbourne. The stadium ...

. His final goal of the season came on 30 September 2016 when he scored in an 8–1 demolition of

Waterford "Waterford remains the untaken city" , mapsize = 220px , pushpin_map = Ireland#Europe , pushpin_map_caption = Location within Ireland##Location within Europe , pushpin_relief = 1 , coordinates ...

at the

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. He finished the season with 20 appearances and 3 goals. The 2017 season saw UCD finish in third place in the league, with McClelland appearing 28 times in all competitions, scoring 7 goals. He was part of the side that won the

Collingwood Cup The Collingwood Cup is an association football cup competition featuring university teams from the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland. It is organised by the Irish Universities Football Union, and is the oldest surviving all Ireland assoc ...

, beating QUB in the final in February 2018. On 7 May 2018, he scored his first career hat-trick as his side thumped

Wexford Wexford () is the county town of County Wexford, Ireland. Wexford lies on the south side of Wexford Harbour, the estuary of the River Slaney near the southeastern corner of the island of Ireland. The town is linked to Dublin by the M11/N1 ...

8–0 at

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. Currently specta ...

. On 28 September 2018, he played the full 90 minutes away to League of Ireland Premier Division Champions

Dundalk Dundalk ( ; ga, Dún Dealgan ), meaning "the fort of Dealgan", is the county town (the administrative centre) of County Louth, Ireland. The town is on the Castletown River, which flows into Dundalk Bay on the east coast of Ireland. It is hal ...

in the FAI Cup Semi Finals as his side were denied a place in the

Aviva Stadium Aviva Stadium (also known as Lansdowne Road) is a sports stadium located in Dublin, Ireland, with a capacity for 51,700 spectators (all seated). It is built on the site of the former Lansdowne Road Stadium, which was demolished in 2007, and re ...

by a narrow 1–0 scoreline. That was the club's final game of the season in a year which saw McClelland score 10 goals in 32 appearances in all competitions and also receive the first silverware of his career as his side gained promotion by winning the

2018 League of Ireland First Division The 2018 League of Ireland First Division season was the 34th season of the League of Ireland First Division. The league began on 23 February 2018 and concluded on 22 September 2018. Contrary to the previous editions, this tournament had 10 team ...

. 2019 saw McClelland's first taste of

action. On 5 July he scored the winner in a crucial 1–0 victory over relegation fighting rivals

Finn Harps Finn Harps Football Club ( ga, Cumann Peile Chláirsigh na Finne) are 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. However, it was t ...

. The season proved to be a difficult one for UCD as they finished bottom of the league and were relegated back to the First Division. The season did however provide a lot of experience at top tier level for McClelland, as he made 42 appearances in all competitions, scoring 4 goals.

St Patrick's Athletic

On 8 November 2019 it was announced that McClelland had signed for

, becoming manager Stephen O'Donnell's first ever signing for the club. Upon signing, he spoke of his excitement at signing his first professional contract and his ambitions for the season ahead being to help the club get back to

qualification. He made his competitive debut on 14 February 2020, making the starting eleven as his side lost 1–0 against

in the opening game of the season at

Richmond Park Richmond Park, in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames, is the largest of London's Royal Parks, and is of national and international importance for wildlife conservation. It was created by Charles I in the 17th century as a deer pa ...

. He played in 16 of the club's 19 league and cup games over the course of the shortened season due to the

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, as his side missed out on European football on the final day of the season, finishing in 6th place. McClelland's first goal for the club came on 2 July 2021, scoring from 25 yards in a 3–2 loss to

Bohemians Bohemian or Bohemians may refer to: *Anything of or relating to Bohemia Beer * National Bohemian, a brand brewed by Pabst * Bohemian, a brand of beer brewed by Molson Coors Culture and arts * Bohemianism, an unconventional lifestyle, origi ...

Dalymount Park Dalymount Park ( Irish: ''Páirc Cnocán Uí Dhálaigh'') is a football stadium in Phibsborough on the Northside of Dublin, Ireland. It is the home of Bohemian F.C., who have played there since the early 20th century. Affectionately known ...

with his side down to 9 men at the time. His first home goal at

for the club came in a 6–0 win over

Bray Wanderers Bray Wanderers Football Club ( ga, Cumann Peile Fánaithe Bhré) are an Irish association football club playing in the League of Ireland First Division. The club in its present form was founded in 1942 in Bray, and was known until 2010 as ''B ...

in the

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

on 23 July 2021, scoring a diving header to give his side a 2 goal lead going into half-time. On 1 November 2021, McClelland scored his first home league goal for the club when he finished a

Jak Hickman Jak Anthony Hickman (born 11 September 1998) is an English professional footballer who plays as a defender for Halesowen Town. Career Hickman started his career in the youth system at West Bromwich Albion, where he played for 8 years before ...

cross from 5 yards to double his side's lead in the Dublin City derby against

on 1 November 2021. On 28 November 2021 McClelland scored his penalty in the

2021 FAI Cup Final The 2021 FAI Cup Final, known as the 2021 Extra.ie FAI Cup Final for sponsorship reasons, was the final match of the 2021 FAI Cup, the national association football cup of the Republic of Ireland. The match took place on Sunday 28 November at the ...

penalty shootout, as his side defeated rivals

4–3 on penalties following a 1–1 draw after extra time in front of a record

Final crowd of 37,126 at the

. On 18 December 2021, McClelland signed a new contract with the club for the 2022 season. On 11 February 2022, he made came off the bench in the

2022 President of Ireland's Cup The 2022 President's Cup was the eight President's Cup contested for. The match was played on 11 February between the champions of the 2021 League of Ireland Premier Division and the 2021 FAI Cup winners, Shamrock Rovers and St Patrick's Athletic. ...

against

Tallaght Stadium Tallaght Stadium ( ga, Staid Thamhlachta) is an association football stadium in the Republic of Ireland based in Tallaght, South Dublin. The club Shamrock Rovers originally announced details of the stadium in July, 1996. The stadium is now ow ...

, as his side lost 5–4 on penalties after a 1–1 draw. On 18 February 2022, he scored his side's third goal in a 3–0 win away to Shelbourne in the first league game of the season. On 12 November 2023, McClelland came off the bench in the

2023 FAI Cup Final The 2023 FAI Cup Final, known as the 2023 Sports Direct FAI Cup Final for sponsorship reasons, was the final match of the 2023 FAI Cup, the national association football cup of the Republic of Ireland. The match took place on Sunday 12 November ...

, in a 3–1 win over

in front of a record breaking

Final crowd of 43,881 at the

. On 27 November 2023, it was announced that McClelland has signed a contract extension with Pats, taking him into a 5th season with the club.

International career

McClelland received his first cap at international level on 15 November 2015 in a friendly for Republic of Ireland U19 against Latvia U19. His first competitive appearance came 3 days later when he played against Scotland U19 in a

UEFA European Under-19 Championship The UEFA European Under-19 Championship, or simply UEFA Under-19 Championship or the UEFA Euro U-19, is an annual football competition contested by the European men's under-19 national teams of the member associations of UEFA. Spain and Englan ...

qualifier.

Career statistics

Honours

UCD *

League of Ireland First Division The League of Ireland First Division ( ga, Céad Roinn Sraith na hÉireann), also known as the SSE Airtricity League First Division, is the second level division in both the League of Ireland and the Republic of Ireland football league system. ...

(1):

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(1):

St Patrick's Athletic *

(2):

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2023 Events Predicted and scheduled events * January 1 ** In the United States, books, films, and other works published in 1927 will enter the public domain, assuming there are no changes made to copyright law. ** Croatia will adopt the eu ...

References

External links

* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:McClelland, Jason 1997 births Living people Association footballers from Dublin (city) Crumlin United F.C. players Peamount United F.C. (men) players Shamrock Rovers F.C. players University College Dublin A.F.C. players St Patrick's Athletic F.C. players League of Ireland players Men's association football midfielders Republic of Ireland men's association footballers Association footballers from County Dublin Republic of Ireland men's youth international footballers