Aaron Martin Donnelly (born 8 June 2003) is a Northern 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 le ...
who plays for club
Dundee
Dundee (; sco, Dundee; gd, Dùn Dè or ) is Scotland's fourth-largest city and the 51st-most-populous built-up area in the United Kingdom. The mid-year population estimate for 2016 was , giving Dundee a population density of 2,478/km2 or ...
, on loan from club
Nottingham Forest
Nottingham Forest Football Club is an association football club based in West Bridgford, Nottinghamshire, England. Nottingham Forest was founded in 1865 and have been playing their home games at the City Ground, on the banks of the River Tren ...
. He turned professional at Nottingham Forest in August 2021. He spent the second half of the 2022–23 season on
loan
In finance, a loan is the lending of money by one or more individuals, organizations, or other entities to other individuals, organizations, etc. The recipient (i.e., the borrower) incurs a debt and is usually liable to pay interest on that d ...
at
Port Vale
Port Vale Football Club are a professional football club based in Burslem, Stoke-on-Trent, England, which compete in . Vale are the only English Football League club not to be named after a place; their name being a reference to the valley o ...
and was loaned out to Dundee for the 2023–24 season.
Early and personal life
Aaron Martin Donnelly was born on 8 June 2003 in
Magherafelt
Magherafelt (, mˠaxəɾʲəˈfʲiːlt̪ˠə is a small town and civil parish in County Londonderry, Northern Ireland. It had a population of 8,805 at the 2011 Census. It is the biggest town in the south of the county and is the social, econo ...
to Noel and Martina.
He has family from Newcastle upon Tyne
Newcastle upon Tyne ( RP: , ), or simply Newcastle, is a city and metropolitan borough in Tyne and Wear, England. The city is located on the River Tyne's northern bank and forms the largest part of the Tyneside built-up area. Newcastle is ...
and is related to Dec Donnelly. He played gaelic football
Gaelic football ( ga, Peil Ghaelach; short name '), commonly known as simply Gaelic, GAA or Football is an Irish team sport. It is played between two teams of 15 players on a rectangular grass pitch. The objective of the sport is to score by kic ...
as a forward growing up.
Club career
Nottingham Forest
In June 2019, Donnelly signed a deal with English side Nottingham Forest
Nottingham Forest Football Club is an association football club based in West Bridgford, Nottinghamshire, England. Nottingham Forest was founded in 1865 and have been playing their home games at the City Ground, on the banks of the River Tren ...
from Dungannon Swifts
Dungannon Swifts Football Club is a Northern Irish, semi-professional football club playing in the NIFL Premiership. The club, founded in 1949, has risen from the Mid-Ulster league to the top tier in Northern Ireland since its election to the ...
, who he had played for since he was twelve. He had been scouted by Gary Brazil
Gary Nicholas Brazil (born 19 September 1962) is an English former professional footballer and football manager, who is now academy manager at Nottingham Forest. He scored 160 goals in 658 league and cup games in an 18-year professional career.
...
and Bob Shaw whilst playing in the Victory Shield
The Victory Shield is an annual football tournament competed for by the under-16 teams of Scotland, Republic of Ireland, Northern Ireland and Wales. The Victory Shield had traditionally been competed for by the four Home Nations, but the Football A ...
. In August 2021, Donnelly signed his first professional contract
A contract is a legally enforceable agreement between two or more parties that creates, defines, and governs mutual rights and obligations between them. A contract typically involves the transfer of goods, services, money, or a promise to tran ...
with Forest. That deal was extended at the end of the 2021–22 season when Forest gained promotion
Promotion may refer to:
Marketing
* Promotion (marketing), one of the four marketing mix elements, comprising any type of marketing communication used to inform or persuade target audiences of the relative merits of a product, service, brand or i ...
to the Premier League
The Premier League (legal name: The Football Association Premier League Limited) is the highest level of the men's English football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the English Foo ...
. He made his professional debut for Forest on 23 August 2022, when manager
Management (or managing) is the administration of an organization, whether it is a business, a nonprofit organization, or a government body. It is the art and science of managing resources of the business.
Management includes the activities o ...
Steve Cooper started him in a 3–0 EFL Cup
The EFL Cup (referred to historically, and colloquially, as the League Cup), currently known as the Carabao Cup for sponsorship reasons, is an annual knockout competition and major trophy in men's domestic football in England. Organised by the ...
win over Grimsby Town
Grimsby Town Football Club is a professional football club based in Cleethorpes, North East Lincolnshire, England, that in the 2022–23 season will compete in , the fourth tier of the English football league system, following the victory in ...
. In December 2022, Donnelly had extended his contract with Forest.
On 23 January 2023, Donnelly joined EFL League One
The English Football League One (often referred to as League One for short or Sky Bet League One for sponsorship purposes, and known as the Football League One from 2004 until 2016) is the second-highest division of the English Football Leag ...
side Port Vale
Port Vale Football Club are a professional football club based in Burslem, Stoke-on-Trent, England, which compete in . Vale are the only English Football League club not to be named after a place; their name being a reference to the valley o ...
on loan
In finance, a loan is the lending of money by one or more individuals, organizations, or other entities to other individuals, organizations, etc. The recipient (i.e., the borrower) incurs a debt and is usually liable to pay interest on that d ...
for the remainder of the 2022–23
The dash is a punctuation mark consisting of a long horizontal line. It is similar in appearance to the hyphen but is longer and sometimes higher from the baseline. The most common versions are the endash , generally longer than the hyphen b ...
season. Manager Darrell Clarke
Darrell James Clarke (born 16 December 1977) is an English professional football manager and former player who played in the English Football League. He is the manager of club Port Vale.
A box-to-box midfielder, Clarke began his career with ...
said that Donnelly would provide competition on the left-side of defence following the departure of Connor Hall earlier in the month and noted that assistant manager Andy Crosby
Andrew Keith Crosby (born 3 March 1973) is an English professional football manager and former player who is interim manager at club Port Vale.
A defender during his playing days, he began his career at Leeds United, but made his debut in th ...
had coached the player with the Northern Ireland under-21s. Donnelly made his debut in the English Football League
The English Football League (EFL) is a league of professional football clubs from England and Wales. Founded in 1888 as the Football League, the league is the oldest such competition in the world. It was the top-level football league in Engl ...
on 28 January, playing on the left-side of a back three alongside Nathan Smith and Lewis Cass
Lewis Cass (October 9, 1782June 17, 1866) was an American military officer, politician, and statesman. He represented Michigan in the United States Senate and served in the Cabinets of two U.S. Presidents, Andrew Jackson and James Buchanan. He w ...
as the Vale kept a clean sheet
In team sports, a shutout ( US) or clean sheet ( UK) is a game in which one team prevents the other from scoring any points. While possible in most major sports, they are highly improbable in some sports, such as basketball.
Shutouts are usuall ...
in a 0–0 draw at Cheltenham Town
Cheltenham Town Football Club is a professional association football club based in the town of Cheltenham, Gloucestershire, England. From the 2021–22 season, the club compete in League One, the third tier of the English football league syst ...
. On 4 March, he scored his first career goal to secure a 1–0 win over Milton Keynes Dons
Milton Keynes Dons Football Club (), usually abbreviated to MK Dons, is a professional association football club based in Milton Keynes, Buckinghamshire, England. The team competes in , the third tier of the English football league system. The ...
at Vale Park
Vale Park is a football stadium in Stoke-on-Trent, England. It has been the home ground of Port Vale F.C. since 1950.
The ground has seen its capacity go up and down, its peak being 42,000 in 1954 against Blackpool, although a club record 49, ...
, and dedicated the goal to a deceased supporter whose memory was being honoured with a minute's applause as Donnelly's volley hit the back of the net.
On 24 July 2023, Donnelly joined Scottish Premiership
The Scottish Premiership, known as the cinch Premiership for sponsorship reasons, is the top division of the Scottish Professional Football League (SPFL), the league competition for men's professional football clubs in Scotland. The Scottish ...
club Dundee
Dundee (; sco, Dundee; gd, Dùn Dè or ) is Scotland's fourth-largest city and the 51st-most-populous built-up area in the United Kingdom. The mid-year population estimate for 2016 was , giving Dundee a population density of 2,478/km2 or ...
on a season-long loan. Donnelly would suffer an injury in training shortly after, with Dundee manager Tony Docherty
Tony Docherty (born 24 January 1971 in East Kilbride) is a Scottish football player and coach.
Career
Docherty's short career began in 1987 with Dunfermline Athletic before moving to English side Cambridge United. In the early 1990s, Dochert ...
saying Donnelly "will be out for a while", and returned to Nottingham for treatment. He returned to Dundee ahead of schedule in September. He made his debut for the Dee on 28 October, starting in a 2–0 league victory away at Livingston
Livingston may refer to:
Businesses
* Livingston Energy Flight, an Italian airline (2003–2010)
* Livingston Compagnia Aerea, an Italian airline (2011–2014), also known as Livingston Airline
* Livingston International, a North American custom ...
.
International career
Donnelly has competed with the Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland ( ga, Tuaisceart Éireann ; sco, label= Ulster-Scots, Norlin Airlann) is a part of the United Kingdom, situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, that is variously described as a country, province or region. Nort ...
national team at under-17 and under-21 level. He received his first call-up to the senior side in June 2023.
Style of play
Donnelly is a left-sided defender who is aggressive in both defence and attack, providing crosses going forward, along with overlaps and underlaps.
Career statistics
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Donnelly, Aaron
2003 births
Living people
Sportspeople from Magherafelt
Men's association football defenders
Association footballers from County Londonderry
Men's association footballers from Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland men's under-21 international footballers
Dungannon Swifts F.C. players
Nottingham Forest F.C. players
Port Vale F.C. players
Dundee F.C. players
English Football League players
Scottish Professional Football League players