Callum O'Dowda

Callum O'Dowda
Personal information
Full name Callum Joshua Ryan O'Dowda[1]
Date of birth (1995-04-23) 23 April 1995[2]
Place of birth Kidlington, England
Height 1.83 m (6 ft 0 in)[2]
Playing position Left winger
Club information
Current team
 Bristol City
Number 11
Youth career
0000–2013 Oxford United
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2013–2016 Oxford United 87 (12)
2016– Bristol City 14 (0)
National team‡
2015– Republic of Ireland U21 9 (1)
2016– Republic of Ireland 3 (0)

* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 18:26, 3 December 2016 (UTC).

‡ National team caps and goals correct as of 23:59, 9 October 2016 (UTC)

Callum Joshua Ryan O'Dowda (born 23 April 1995) is an Irish professional footballer who plays as a left winger for Bristol City and the Republic of Ireland national team. His main strengths are his pace, skill and crossing.[3]

Career

Oxford United

O'Dowda is a product of the Oxford United youth academy, which he joined when he was nine.[4] His performances for the academy in the 2012–13 season led him being awarded a Young Player of the Year award,[5] after which he was offered his first professional contract with the club, keeping him for two years with a further one-year option.[6][7]

After making an impression in a pre-season friendly,[8] O'Dowda made his professional debut on 6 August 2013 in a League Cup first-round tie against Charlton Athletic.[9] His league debut came as a substitute versus Southend United in a League Two fixture on 6 October 2013.[10] In his first season at Oxford United, O'Dowda made 13 appearances for the club in all competitions.

The 2014–15 season proved to be a breakthrough for O'Dowda, with his first-team opportunities increased by new manager Michael Appleton.[11] He scored his first league goal for Oxford United against Exeter City on 13 September 2014,[12] a goal that was nominated for Goal of the Season.[13] Between 17 January 2015 and 31 January 2015, he scored two goals in three games, against Southend United[14] and Stevenage respectively.[15] O'Dowda signed a three-year contract with the club in February.[16][17] A few weeks later, he scored his third goal, in a 1–0 win over Bury on 7 March 2015.[18] O'Dowda finished the 2014–15 season having made 39 league appearances and scoring four times.

O'Dowda made a promising start to the 2015–16 season, scoring twice in his first five league appearances, against Notts County[19] and Yeovil Town.[20] He began to attract interest from other clubs, though no bid was received.[21] O'Dowda scored two more goals at the end of 2015, against Accrington Stanley in the league[22] and Yeovil Town in the Football League Trophy.[23] He scored three more goals in the second half of the season, the first against Notts County[24] and then twice against Barnet.[25] On 3 April 2016 he scored Oxford's first goal in the final of the Football League Trophy at Wembley Stadium, though Oxford ultimately lost 3–2 to Barnsley.[26] Nine days later, he scored his seventh league goal of the season, in a 5–1 win over Crawley Town.[27] O'Dowda scored the final goal in a 3–0 victory against Wycombe Wanderers on 7 May 2016 that secured Oxford United's promotion to League One.[28] Despite international commitments and injuries,[29] O'Dowda finished the season with 38 league appearances (20 as a substitute) and 8 league goals.

Bristol City

On 14 July 2016, O'Dowda signed for Football League Championship side Bristol City for an undisclosed fee of around £1.25 million, potentially rising to £1.6 million depending on incentives. He signed on a three-year contract.[30] Upon signing for Bristol City, O'Dowda said that had been a difficult decision to leave his hometown club.[31]

International career

In March 2015, O'Dowda was called up by Republic of Ireland U21 after becoming eligible for the national team through his late grandfather,[32] Brendan O'Dowda,[33] a famous Irish tenor who was born in Dundalk. O'Dowda told the club's website "I am very proud and very excited to have the call up. It is a privilege to be included. I was approached a few weeks ago to see if I would be interested because of my family’s Irish background. I jumped at the chance and can’t wait to be involved."[34]

O'Dowda made his Ireland U21 debut on 26 March 2015, playing 90 minutes, in a 1–0 win over Andorra U21.[35] He scored his first goal for the U21s in a qualifying match for the 2017 U21 European Championships on 28 March 2016, the only Irish goal in a 3–1 defeat to Slovenia.[36][37]

On 12 May 2016, he received his first call up to the Republic of Ireland senior squad.[38] He made his début for Ireland on 31 May, coming on as a second-half substitute in a 2–1 defeat to Belarus.[39] However, on 31 May 2016, O'Dowda was among few players to be cut from the UEFA Euro 2016 squads.[40]

On 9 October 2016, he made his competitive debut in a World Cup qualifier in Moldova, coming on as a second-half substitute for Shane Long.[41] As a result, he is tied to Ireland and no longer eligible for England.

Career statistics

As of 6 August 2016[42]
Club statistics
Club Season League FA Cup League Cup Other Total
AppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoals
Oxford United 2013–14 100101010130
2014–15 394300010434
2015–16 3885020525010
Total 871290307210614
Bristol City2016–17 11000000010
Career total 981290307210714

References

  1. ↑ "Professional Retain List & Free Transfers 2012/13" (PDF). The Football League. 3 June 2013. Archived from the original (PDF) on 12 October 2013. Retrieved 29 September 2013.
  2. 1 2 "Callum O'Dowda". 11v11. Retrieved 1 December 2015.
  3. ↑ "Callum O'Dowda Profile". Oxford United F.C. Archived from the original on 24 April 2015. Retrieved 24 April 2015.
  4. ↑ "Callum O'Dowda lands award". Oxford Mail. 11 March 2010. Retrieved 24 April 2015.
  5. ↑ "Mr Wright". Oxford United F.C. 20 April 2013. Archived from the original on 24 April 2015. Retrieved 24 April 2015.
  6. ↑ "Oxford United sign academy trio". BBC Sport. 22 April 2013. Retrieved 24 April 2015.
  7. ↑ "U's give young trio a chance". Sky Sports. 12 June 2013. Retrieved 24 April 2015.
  8. ↑ "O'Dowda delivers as Oxford United are held". Oxford Mail. 29 July 2013. Retrieved 24 April 2015.
  9. ↑ "Charlton 4–0 Oxford Utd". BBC Sport. 5 August 2013. Retrieved 6 August 2013.
  10. ↑ "Oxford United 0–2 Southend United". BBC Sport. 5 October 2013. Retrieved 6 October 2013.
  11. ↑ "xford United: Callum O'Dowda hails 'incredible' breakthrough". BBC Sport. 25 September 2014. Retrieved 24 April 2015.
  12. ↑ "Exeter City 1–1 Oxford United". BBC Sport. 13 September 2014. Retrieved 13 September 2014.
  13. ↑ "Goal of the Season". Oxford United F.C. 15 April 2015. Archived from the original on 24 April 2015. Retrieved 24 April 2015.
  14. ↑ "Oxford United 2–3 Southend United". BBC Sport. 17 January 2015. Retrieved 24 April 2015.
  15. ↑ "Stevenage 0–2 Oxford United". BBC Sport. 31 January 2015. Retrieved 24 April 2015.
  16. ↑ "Callum O'Dowda Signs New Deal With Oxford United". Oxford United F.C. 25 February 2015. Archived from the original on 24 April 2015. Retrieved 24 April 2015.
  17. ↑ "Jeremy Balmy: Oxford United sign French striker on short-term deal". BBC Sport. 9 February 2015. Retrieved 24 April 2015.
  18. ↑ "Bury 0 – 1 Oxford United". BBC Sport. 7 March 2015. Retrieved 24 April 2015.
  19. ↑ "Oxford United 3 – 1 Notts County". BBC Sport. 18 August 2015. Retrieved 15 July 2016.
  20. ↑ "Oxford United 2 – 0 Yeovil Town". BBC Sport. 29 August 2015. Retrieved 15 July 2016.
  21. ↑ "No moves for Callum O'Dowda, says Oxford United chief executive". Oxford Mail. 1 September 2015. Retrieved 15 July 2016.
  22. ↑ "Accrington 1–3 Oxford: Sercombe brace sinks Stanley". Sky Sports. 3 October 2015. Retrieved 15 July 2016.
  23. ↑ "Oxford 3–2 Yeovil: United reach Johnstone's Paint Trophy area final". Sky Sports. 8 December 2015. Retrieved 15 July 2016.
  24. ↑ "Notts County 2 – 4 Oxford United". BBC Sport. 2 January 2016. Retrieved 15 July 2016.
  25. ↑ "Two-goal Callum O'Dowda: Oxford United fans made win at Barnet feel like a home game". Oxford Mail. 26 March 2016. Retrieved 15 July 2016.
  26. ↑ Cartwright, Phil (3 April 2016). "Barnsley 3–2 Oxford United". BBC Sport. Retrieved 3 April 2016.
  27. ↑ "REPORT Crawley Town 1 Oxford United 5". Oxford United F.C. 9 April 2016. Archived from the original on 9 April 2016. Retrieved 15 July 2016.
  28. ↑ "Oxford Utd 3 Wycombe Wanderers 0". BBC Sport. 7 May 2016. Retrieved 15 May 2016.
  29. ↑ "MacDonald and O'Dowda Return to Training". Oxford United. 21 April 2016. Archived from the original on 15 July 2016. Retrieved 15 July 2016.
  30. ↑ "Callum O'Dowda: Bristol City sign Oxford United and Republic of Ireland winger". BBC Sport. 14 July 2016. Retrieved 14 July 2016.
  31. ↑ "Callum O'Dowda: 'It was a hard decision to leave Oxford United'". Oxford Mail. 14 July 2016. Retrieved 15 July 2016.
  32. ↑ Gill, Kieran (17 January 2016). "Derby's £1million move for Oxford United winger Callum O'Dowda held up over 20-year-old's £10,000-a-week wage demands". Daily Mail. Retrieved 12 May 2016.
  33. ↑ "O'Dowda proud of U21 call-up". Sky Sports. 10 March 2015. Retrieved 24 April 2015.
  34. ↑ "Callum Called Up for Republic". Oxford United F.C. 10 March 2015. Archived from the original on 24 April 2015. Retrieved 24 April 2015.
  35. ↑ Dalton, Dan (26 March 2015). "Republic of Ireland U21 1–0 Andorra U21: Connolly strike spares blushes". Goal.com. Retrieved 14 May 2016.
  36. ↑ "VIDEO: Callum O'Dowda's goal for Ireland Under 21s". Oxford Mail. 29 March 2016. Retrieved 14 May 2016.
  37. ↑ Murphy, Ronan (28 March 2016). "Slovenia U21 3–1 Republic of Ireland U21: Boys in Green edge closer to Euro exit". Goal.com. Retrieved 14 May 2016.
  38. ↑ "Callum O'Dowda: Oxford United midfielder handed Republic of Ireland call-up". BBC Sport. 12 May 2016. Retrieved 12 May 2016.
  39. ↑ "Belarus spoil Ireland's Euro 2016 send-off in Cork". The42.ie. 31 May 2016. Retrieved 31 May 2016.
  40. ↑ "Oxford United's Callum O'Dowda: It's been a dream season for club and country". Oxford Mail. 2 June 2016. Retrieved 15 July 2016.
  41. ↑ Malone, Emmet (9 October 2016). "James McClean's double wipes away Moldova challenge". The Irish Times. Irish Times Trust. Retrieved 9 October 2016.
  42. ↑ Callum O'Dowda career statistics at Soccerbase
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