Shamrock Rovers sign former Down footballer John McGovern

Shamrock Rovers have allayed concerns at centre forward by signing former Down footballer John McGovern from Dungannon Swifts for an undisclosed fee.

McGovern, who scored 20 goals in all competitions for Swifts last season, will be available for Rovers from July 1st.

The 22-year-old, who represented Northern Ireland at under-21 level, played for the Down senior football in 2024.

“We tried quite a bit over the last year to get him, but it wasn’t possible,” said Rovers manager Stephen Bradley. “John was at university and Dungannon weren’t ready to sell at that moment in time.

Brentford agree potential £18m deal to sign Caoimhín Kelleher from Liverpool

Manchester United confirm agreement to sign Matheus Cunha from Wolves

Champions League final: Two dead and more than 500 arrested during PSG celebrations

“We could have moved in on other players in the previous window, but we wanted to wait for John as he was someone we’d monitored for quite some time. He fits the group and we really like what he’s about.”

Rovers have been searching for a striker to replace Johnny Kenny, who scored 20 goals last year on loan from Celtic.

Sixteen-year-old Michael Noonan has impressed with five goals this season while competing with Aaron Greene and Rory Gaffney for game time.

“John will give us real depth in that area of the pitch and he gives us another dimension,” Bradley added.