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Ben McCormack
Personal information
Date of birth (2003-04-04) 4 April 2003 (age 21)
Place of birth Dublin, Republic of Ireland
Height 1.80 m (5 ft 11 in)
Position(s) Midfielder
Team information
Current team
 Waterford
Number 7
Youth career
–2017 Belvedere
2017–2022 St Patrick's Athletic
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2019–2023 St Patrick's Athletic 64 (3)
2024– Waterford 27 (2)
International career‡
2018 Republic of Ireland U15 4 (0)
2018–2019 Republic of Ireland U16 7 (2)
2019–2020 Republic of Ireland U17 5 (3)
2021 Republic of Ireland U19 2 (0)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 21:59, 18 October 2024 (UTC)
‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 23:11, 13 August 2023 (UTC)

Ben McCormack (born 4 April 2003) is an Irish professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for League of Ireland Premier Division club Waterford, having previously played for St Patrick's Athletic, where he started his career.

Club career

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Youth career

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A native of Harmonstown, Dublin, McCormack started out with top Dublin academy Belvedere, where he earned the opportunity to play for the DDSL representative side at the prestigious Kennedy Cup in 2017, in which he played a starring role in the final as his side won the competition.[1] He moved to the academy of League of Ireland club St Patrick's Athletic in November 2017.[2] His first season with the club saw him winning the league and cup double with the under 15 side.[3] In October 2019, he was part of the under 17 team that won the 2019 league title, beating Bohemians 4–0 in the final at Dalymount Park with McCormack scoring twice at Dalymount Park.[4] On 22 December 2020, he played in the League of Ireland U19 Division Final, in a 2–1 win over Bohemians after extra time at the UCD Bowl to secure a UEFA Youth League spot for the club.[5] McCormack made his UEFA Youth League debut on 29 September 2021, scoring his side's goal in a 2–1 loss to Serbian side Crvena Zvezda.[6] He was part of the side that won the League of Ireland U19 Division in 2022.[7]

St Patrick's Athletic

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2019 season

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He made his senior debut for St Patrick's Athletic on 1 November 2019 in a Leinster Senior Cup Semi-Final tie away to Sheriff YC, with McCormack in the starting 11 of a game in which a Pats team made up of academy players won 3–1 after extra time.[8] On 21 December 2019, McCormack signed his first professional contract with the club, signing a 2-year contract until the end of 2021.[9][10]

2020 season

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On 26 September 2020, McCormack made his League of Ireland Premier Division debut when he replaced Darragh Markey from the bench in the 75th minute of a 2–0 win over Shelbourne.[11] With the season shortened due to COVID-19, his only other appearance of the season came on 28 October 2020, coming off the bench for a late cameo in a 3–2 loss away to Finn Harps.[12]

2021 season

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The 2021 season proved to be his breakthrough season in senior football, starting his first senior game for the club on 20 April 2021 in a 1–0 win over Waterford at Richmond Park.[13] On 6 July 2021, McCormack signed a long-term contract extension with the club, alongside teammate Darragh Burns.[14] His first goal in senior football came on 22 July 2021, when he headed home an Ian Bermingham cross to put his side 3 goals up in an eventual 6–0 win over Bray Wanderers in the first round of the FAI Cup.[15] With McCormack proving to be a key player off the bench for his club, making 26 appearances in all competitions over the season, he damaged his ankle ligaments playing for the Republic of Ireland U19's in October 2021,[16] which ultimately resulted in him missing the 2021 FAI Cup Final which his side won on penalties against Bohemians at the Aviva Stadium on 28 November 2021.[17]

2022 season

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McCormack's progress stalled at the beginning of the 2022 season under new manager Tim Clancy, having to wait until 1 April 2022 for his first appearance for the first team, while returning to play games with the club's under 19 side.[18] On 18 April 2022, McCormack replaced Jason McClelland from the bench in the 72nd minute away to UCD with his side trailing by a goal, he scored the equaliser 3 minutes later before assisting the winning goal with a cross from a corner in the 89th minute of a 2–1 victory.[19] On 6 November 2022, he scored the final goal in a 4–0 win over Shelbourne in the last game of the season.[20]

2023 season

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Having made just 4 appearances in the club's first 11 games of the season under Tim Clancy, McCormack regained his place in the team under newly appointed manager Jon Daly and on 15 May 2023, he scored his first goal of the season, scoring an 84th-minute equaliser 11 minutes after entering the pitch in a 3–2 loss to Shamrock Rovers at Tallaght Stadium.[21] On 2 June 2023, he picked up 3 assists in the same game, all coming from corner kick deliveries, in a 3–1 win away to UCD at the UCD Bowl.[22] His form under Daly saw him among the nominees for the League of Ireland Player of the Month award for June 2023, although he eventually lost out to Patrick Hoban.[23] On 12 July 2023, McCormack made his first appearance in European competition in a 2–1 loss against F91 Dudelange in the first qualifying round of the UEFA Europa Conference League at the Stade Jos Nosbaum.[24] On 12 November 2023, McCormack was part of the squad for the 2023 FAI Cup Final, as his side produced a 3–1 win over Bohemians in front of a record breaking FAI Cup Final crowd of 43,881 at the Aviva Stadium.[25] He struggled for consistent game time, featuring in 22 of the club's 36 league games, with just 8 of those coming in the starting team and only 1 start in the second half of the season. This lack of minutes saw him linked with a move to Dundalk.[26]

Waterford

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On 29 December 2023, it was announced that McCormack had signed for newly promoted Waterford for an undisclosed fee.[27]

International career

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McCormack has represented the Republic of Ireland at U15, U16, U17 and U19 level.[3] He made his debut for the Republic of Ireland U15 team on 6 March 2018, in a 2–0 win over Cyprus U15 in a friendly at Oriel Park.[28] He scored on his debut for the Republic of Ireland U16 team on 11 September 2018, opening the scoring in a 4–2 win away to Bulgaria U16 in Sofia.[29] He was part of the U16 squad that took part in the 2018 Victory Shield in November 2018.[30] He was voted the Under-16 International Player of the Year for 2019 at the FAI International Football Awards.[31] McCormack scored on his debut for the Republic of Ireland U17s in a 2–0 win over Russia U17 at the Estadi Olímpic Camilo Cano in Spain.[32] His debut for the U19s came in a 2–2 draw with Sweden U19.[33]

Career statistics

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As of match played on 18 October 2024[34]
Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
Club Season League National Cup Europe Other Total
Division Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
St Patrick's Athletic 2019 LOI Premier Division 0 0 0 0 0[a] 0 1[b] 0 1 0
2020 2 0 0 0 — — 2 0
2021 23 0 3 1 — — 26 1
2022 17 2 0 0 0[c] 0 0[d] 0 17 2
2023 22 1 2 0 2[c] 0 0[b] 0 26 1
Total 64 3 5 1 2 0 1 0 72 4
Waterford 2024 LOI Premier Division 27 2 2 0 — 2[e] 2 31 4
Career total 91 5 7 1 2 0 3 2 103 8
  1. ^ Appearances in the UEFA Europa League
  2. ^ a b Appearance in the Leinster Senior Cup
  3. ^ a b Appearances in the UEFA Europa Conference League
  4. ^ Appearance in the President of Ireland's Cup
  5. ^ Appearances in the Munster Senior Cup

Honours

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St Patrick's Athletic
Waterford
Individual

References

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  1. ^ "SFAI Umbro Kennedy Cup: DDSL retain title | Football Association of Ireland". www.fai.ie.
  2. ^ "Ben McCormack | Stats | History | Career Details | Images | extratime.com - The Home of Irish Football - Extratime.com". www.extratime.com.
  3. ^ a b "Ben Mccormack". www.stpatsfc.com.
  4. ^ Donnelly, Dave. "U17 National League Final Report: St Patrick's Athletic 4 - 0 Bohemians". extratime.com.
  5. ^ Fallon, John (22 December 2020). "Darragh Burns hits the winner as Saints claim U19 League of Ireland crown". Irish Examiner.
  6. ^ Donnelly, Dave (29 September 2021). "St Pat's rally from two goals down but fall just short in Uefa Youth League first leg". The42.
  7. ^ "U19s Clinch League Title". www.stpatsfc.com.
  8. ^ "Leinster Senior Cup Report: Sheriff YC 1 -3 St Patrick's Athletic AET". extratime.com.
  9. ^ "McCormack Signs Professional Contract". www.stpatsfc.com.
  10. ^ Dempsey, Andrew. "Ben McCormack signs two-year professional deal with St Patrick's Athletic". extratime.com.
  11. ^ "League Report: St Patrick's Athletic 2 - 0 Shelbourne". extratime.com.
  12. ^ "League Report: Finn Harps 3 - 2 St Patrick's Athletic". extratime.com.
  13. ^ "League Report: St. Patrick's Athletic 1 - 0 Waterford". extratime.com.
  14. ^ "Burns & McCormack Sign New Contracts". www.stpatsfc.com.
  15. ^ MacNamara, Rónán. "FAI Cup Report: St Patrick's Athletic 6 - 0 Bray Wanderers". extratime.com.
  16. ^ "REPORT | Ireland MU19 1-1 Sweden MU19 | Football Association of Ireland". www.fai.ie.
  17. ^ O'Hehir, Paul (3 November 2021). "St Pat's ace Ben McCormack winning FAI Cup final fitness race". Irish Mirror.
  18. ^ O'Hehir, Paul (21 April 2022). "Ben McCormack pushing for more prominent role at St Pat's". Irish Mirror.
  19. ^ by Paul Buttner, Eamon Doggett (18 April 2022). "Ben McCormack stars for St Pat's in comeback win over UCD". Irish Mirror.
  20. ^ "Saint Ian Bermingham says farewell as Damien Duff's Shelbourne are put to the sword". Independent.ie. 7 November 2022.
  21. ^ Fallon, John (15 May 2023). "Late Richie Towell pen hands Shamrock Rovers derby bragging rights". Irish Examiner.
  22. ^ Buttner, Paul (2 June 2023). "Lewis hits brace as in-form Pat's breeze past UCD" – via www.rte.ie.
  23. ^ GBFM, Sport (12 July 2023). "SOCCER: Patrick Hoban of Dundalk FC Named SSE Airtricity/SWI Player of the Month for June".
  24. ^ "Mark Doyle's late strike keeps struggling Saints alive in Conference qualifier". Independent.ie. 13 July 2023.
  25. ^ Fenton, James (12 November 2023). "FAI Cup final recap: Bohemians 1-3 St Pat's" – via www.rte.ie.
  26. ^ "Dundalk FC linked with move for St Patrick's Athletic midfielder Ben McCormack". Independent.ie. 5 December 2023.
  27. ^ "McCormack Becomes A Blue". Waterford FC.
  28. ^ "Ireland U15: Second-half goals help defeat Cyprus | Football Association of Ireland". www.fai.ie.
  29. ^ "Ireland U16: Louie Barry double helps defeat Bulgaria | Football Association of Ireland". www.fai.ie.
  30. ^ "IrelandU16: McCormack looks to cap off huge year; Football Association of Ireland". www.fai.ie.
  31. ^ "U16 International Player of the Year | Football Association of Ireland". www.fai.ie.
  32. ^ "Republic of Ireland 2 - 0 Russia | 2019 - U17 Mens Friendlies | 999945937 | Football Association of Ireland". www.fai.ie.
  33. ^ "REPORT | MU19 2-2 Sweden | Football Association of Ireland". www.fai.ie.
  34. ^ "Republic of Ireland - B. McCormack - Profile with news, career statistics and history - Soccerway". int.soccerway.com.
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