General
- Wednesday December 20th, 2017 @ 11:58
Kevin Toner Signs For Saints
St Patrick's Athletic are pleased to announce the signing of Republic of Ireland underage international defender Kevin Toner ahead of the 2018 SSE Airtricity League season.
Defender Toner (21) joins the Saints from Aston Villa for whom he made four senior appearances as well as having loan spells at English league sides Stevenage, Kidderminster Harriers, Walsall and Bradford City.
Speaking to stpatsfc.com about the addition of the former Home Farm youth, Pat's manager Liam Buckley believes the Saints have pulled off a coup in signing the highly rated youngster.
"We're all delighted to get Kevin's signature here at Pat's. Kevin is a top talent and proved himself at Aston Villa by making appearances at the highest level in the Premier League. He is one of a number of young talents in our squad and we believe he can develop as a footballer here and progress in his career."
"I believe Kevin can fit in with the group we are building for the season ahead and can play a big role for us during the 2018 season."
On joining the Saints, Ashbourne born Toner admitted his delight at signing for the Supersaints, following in the footsteps of the likes of Paul McGrath to have played for both Pat's and Aston Villa.
"I am delighted to join St Pat's and I am really excited about the future ahead here. I got the call from Liam and after having a good chat with him and his plans, I knew I wanted to sign for the club. Playing for Villa and a few clubs in England was a great experience, but having the opportunity to come back home and play football was something I wanted to do so I am delighted to sign with the club."
February 16th sees the Saints open their 2018 SSE Airtricity League campaign and Toner admitted that he was relishing the prospect of potentially making his début against league champions Cork City.
"It's a big game to start the season so it's something I am really looking forward to. I am buzzing for pre-season in January and that game against Cork is the one we'll all be building up towards and focusing on."
