Conor Glynn Shaughnessy (born 30 June 1996) 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 le ...
who plays as a
central defender
In the sport of association football, a defender is an outfield position whose primary role is to stop attacks during the game and prevent the opposition from scoring.
Centre-backs are usually positioned in pairs, with one full-back on either s ...
for club
Portsmouth
Portsmouth ( ) is a port and city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. The city of Portsmouth has been a unitary authority since 1 April 1997 and is administered by Portsmouth City Council.
Portsmouth is the most dens ...
.
He is also able to operate as a
central midfielder
A midfielder is an outfield position in association football.
Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in that case known as defensive midfielders. As central midfielders often go across boundarie ...
. He has represented the
Republic of Ireland national football team
, FIFA Trigramme = IRL
, Name = Republic of Ireland
, Association = Football Association of Ireland (FAI)
, Confederation = UEFA (Europe)
, website fai.ie, Coach = Stephen Kenny (foot ...
at U15 through to U21 level.
Club career
Reading
Shaughnessy started his career at English club
Reading
Reading is the process of taking in the sense or meaning of Letter (alphabet), letters, symbols, etc., especially by Visual perception, sight or Somatosensory system, touch.
For educators and researchers, reading is a multifaceted process invo ...
, joining in 2012 after a successful trial and signing his first professional contract in the summer of 2013. He was a regular for the Reading U18 and U21 teams; however, he never played competitively for the club and was released in May 2016.
Leeds United
Following a successful trial, Shaughnessy was given a one-year contract with the Leeds United development squad in September 2016. He did not make any first team appearances during the 2016-2017 season. His contract was extended by a year in May 2017, and he made his professional debut in a 3–2 away victory over
Bolton Wanderers
Bolton Wanderers Football Club () is a professional football club based in Horwich, Bolton, Greater Manchester, England, which competes in . The club played at Burnden Park for 102 years from 1895 after moving from their original home at Pike's ...
on 6 August 2017, replacing injured teammate Matthew Pennington at centre back in the 66th minute and promptly giving away a penalty. He made his first start in the following game, on 9 August 2017 in a 4–1 League Cup victory against
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 ...
at
Elland Road
Elland Road is a football stadium in Beeston, Leeds, West Yorkshire, England, which has been the home of Premier League club Leeds United since the club's formation in 1919. The stadium is the 14th largest football stadium in England.
The g ...
, and first League start six days later against
Fulham
Fulham () is an area of the London Borough of Hammersmith & Fulham in West London, England, southwest of Charing Cross. It lies on the north bank of the River Thames, bordering Hammersmith, Kensington and Chelsea. The area faces Wandsworth ...
. He signed a new four-year contract with Leeds the following month. On 7 January 2018, Shaughnessy scored an own goal in Leeds' 2–1 shock defeat to Newport County in the
FA Cup
The Football Association Challenge Cup, more commonly known as the FA Cup, is an annual knockout football competition in men's domestic English football. First played during the 1871–72 season, it is the oldest national football competi ...
.
Shaughnessy picked up a serious ankle injury when he started in Leeds' 0-0 draw against Hull City on 30 January 2018, with head coach Thomas Christiansen revealing Shaughnessy could spend several weeks/months out injured. The injury ultimately ruled Shaughnessy out for the remainder of the season.
On 14 August 2018, Shaughnessy returned to a match-day squad for the first time, when he was named on the bench for Leeds in the
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 ...
fixture against
Bolton Wanderers
Bolton Wanderers Football Club () is a professional football club based in Horwich, Bolton, Greater Manchester, England, which competes in . The club played at Burnden Park for 102 years from 1895 after moving from their original home at Pike's ...
. He made his first appearance after injury when he started against
Preston North End
Preston North End Football Club, commonly referred to as Preston, North End or PNE, is a professional football club in Preston, Lancashire, England, who currently play in the EFL Championship, the second tier of the English football league syste ...
on 28 August 2018. The return to form - and from injury - of Leeds' back line limited Shaughnessy's playing time with the first team, but an interview in September 2018 indicated that Head Coach Marcelo Bielsa had firm plans for the youngster in the 2018-19 campaign and beyond.
Hearts loan
On 7 January 2019, Shaughnessy joined Hearts on a 6 month loan deal. He made his debut on 20 January starting for Hearts in a 1-0 win against
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 ...
in the
Scottish FA Cup
The Scottish Football Association Challenge Cup,SPL
SPL may refer to:
Association football
* Saudi Professional League
* Scottish Premier League
* SportPesa Premier League, Kenya
* Singapore Premier League
* RoboCup Standard Platform League, matches between autonomous robots
Computing Program ...
against
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 25 May 2019, Shaughnessy received a
2018–19 Scottish Cup
The 2018–19 Scottish Cup was the 134th season of Scotland's most prestigious football knockout competition. The tournament was sponsored by bookmaker William Hill in what was the eighth season of a nine-year partnership, after contract negotia ...
Runners Up medal after being named on the bench for the
Scottish Cup
The Scottish Football Association Challenge Cup,Hampden Park
Hampden Park (Scottish Gaelic: ''Pàirc Hampden''), often referred to as Hampden, is a football stadium in the Mount Florida area of Glasgow, Scotland. The -capacity venue serves as the national stadium of football in Scotland. It is the no ...
after losing 1-2 in the final against
Celtic
Celtic, Celtics or Keltic may refer to:
Language and ethnicity
*pertaining to Celts, a collection of Indo-European peoples in Europe and Anatolia
**Celts (modern)
*Celtic languages
**Proto-Celtic language
* Celtic music
*Celtic nations
Sports Fo ...
. In total he made 11 appearances for Hearts in all competitions.
Mansfield Town loan
On 2 September 2019, Shaughnessy joined
League Two
The English Football League Two (often referred to as League Two for short or Sky Bet League Two for sponsorship purposes, and known as the Football League Two from 2004 until 2016) is the third and lowest division of the English Football Lea ...
side
Mansfield Town
Mansfield Town Football Club is a professional association football, football club based in the town of Mansfield, Nottinghamshire, England. The team competes in , the fourth tier of the English football league system. Nicknamed 'The Stags', they ...
on a season-long loan after failing to fit into
Bielsa
Bielsa is a municipality located in the province of Huesca, Aragon, Spain. According to the 2004 census (INE), the municipality has a population of 463 inhabitants.
The Bielsa tunnel under the Pyrenean mountains connects Bielsa and Aragnouet in ...
's immediate plans.
Burton Albion loan
After his loan at Mansfield was ended early, Shaughnessy signed on loan for League One club Burton Albion on 13 January 2020 for the rest of the 2019–20 season.
Rochdale
On 1 February 2021, Shaughnessy joined
Rochdale
Rochdale ( ) is a large town in Greater Manchester, England, at the foothills of the South Pennines in the dale on the River Roch, northwest of Oldham and northeast of Manchester. It is the administrative centre of the Metropolitan Borough ...
on an 18 month contract.
Burton Albion
Shaughnessy left Rochdale during the 2021 summer window and made a permanent move to Burton Albion where he made 43 appearances for The Brewers during the 2021-22 season, including three league goals in his 38 League One outings.
Early in the 2022-23 season, the defender was injured in a 0-1 loss to
Ipswich Town
Ipswich Town Football Club is a professional association football club based in Ipswich, Suffolk, England. They play in League One, the third tier of the English football league system.
The club was founded in 1878 but did not turn profession ...
, following a fifth-minute collision with the Ipswich upright and was out for the remainder of August, all of September and October.
Portsmouth
Portsmouth ( ) is a port and city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. The city of Portsmouth has been a unitary authority since 1 April 1997 and is administered by Portsmouth City Council.
Portsmouth is the most dens ...
signed Shaugnessy to a two-year contract, with an option of a third year.
International career
Shaughnessy has represented Ireland at U15, U16, U17, U18 and U21 level. After his loan move to Hearts he expressed his hopes that he would get a senior international call up similar to fellow Irish under 21 centre back
Jimmy Dunne
James Dunne (3 September 1905 – 14 November 1949) was an Irish footballer who played for, among others, Shamrock Rovers, Sheffield United, Arsenal and Southampton. Dunne was also a dual internationalist and played for both Ireland teams: th ...
whom he replaced at Tynecastle.
Personal life
Shaughnessy's elder brother
Joe
Joe or JOE may refer to:
Arts
Film and television
* ''Joe'' (1970 film), starring Peter Boyle
* ''Joe'' (2013 film), starring Nicolas Cage
* ''Joe'' (TV series), a British TV series airing from 1966 to 1971
* ''Joe'', a 2002 Canadian animated ...
is also a professional footballer who currently plays for
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 ...
side
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 ...
.
Honours
Player
;Hearts
*
Scottish Cup
The Scottish Football Association Challenge Cup,2018–19: Runner Up