Brandon Kavanagh

Brandon Kavanagh (born 21 September 2000) is an Irish professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for League of Ireland Premier Division club Drogheda United. His previous clubs are Shamrock Rovers, Bray Wanderers, Derry City and St Patrick's Athletic.

Career Youth career A native of Crumlin, Dublin, Kavanagh grew up as a St Patrick's Athletic fan and attended games with his Grandad. He began playing with local side Crumlin United, before moving on to St Francis, St Joseph's Boys, Bray Wanderers, Bohemians and finally Shamrock Rovers. While at St Joseph's Boys, he was part of a formidable side that included fellow future professional footballers Joe Redmond, Aaron Bolger, Jonathan Afolabi, Andy Lyons, Promise Omochere, Ryan Burke and Max Murphy among others. He had trials with Birmingham City, Southampton, Brighton & Hove Albion and Sheffield United as a youth player, none of which materialised in a move. On 16 April 2018, he made his league debut for the club, replacing Sean Kavanagh from the bench in the 73rd minute of a 1–0 defeat away to Bray Wanderers at the Carlisle Grounds. He made 19 appearances in all competitions in his first season at senior level with the club. On 18 October 2019, Kavanagh scored his first career League of Ireland Premier Division goal, netting in a 3–0 win away to UCD, which saw the home side's relegation confirmed. He made 24 appearances in all competitions in the 2019 season With first team involvement limited in 2020, Kavanagh mainly featured for the club's reserve side Shamrock Rovers II in the League of Ireland First Division, scoring 9 goals in 16 appearances which saw him named in the PFAI First Division Team of the Year. In December 2020, he was linked with a move to Premier League side Crystal Palace.

Bray Wanderers loan On 19 January 2021, he joined League of Ireland First Division side Bray Wanderers on a season long loan. Kavanagh's 7 goals in 31 games in all competitions over the season, saw him named in the PFAI First Division Team of the Year for the second year running.

Derry City On 7 December 2021, it was announced that Derry City had signed Kavanagh from Shamrock Rovers for an undisclosed fee, signing a 3-year contract with the club. He made his first career appearance in European competition on 14 July 2022, in a 2–0 loss away to Riga in the UEFA Europa Conference League. On 13 November 2022, Kavanagh came off the bench in the 2022 FAI Cup Final, in a 4–0 win over Shelbourne at the Aviva Stadium, a record Cup Final scoreline margin. His first season with the club saw him score 2 goals in 37 appearances in all competitions. He scored 6 goals in 36 appearances in all competitions in 2023.

St Patrick's Athletic 2024 season On 21 November 2023, it was announced that Kavanagh had signed a multi-year contract with his boyhood club St Patrick's Athletic for an undisclosed fee. He made his debut for the club on 3 February 2024, scoring the final goal of the game in a 3–1 win away to UCD in the Leinster Senior Cup. His first league goal for the club came on 19 April 2024, when he scored the equaliser in a 1–1 draw with Waterford at Richmond Park. On 13 June 2024, he came off the bench in the 90th minute before heading home the winning goal in the 96th minute of a 2–1 win at home to rivals Shamrock Rovers. On 4 August 2024, Kavanagh came off the bench in the 60th minute at home to Sligo Rovers and 5 minutes later scored an equaliser from 30 yards before scoring again in the 10th minute of injury time from the penalty spot to secure a 3–2 win for his side. Kavanagh's goal and assist in the derby away to rivals Shelbourne on 30 September 2024 helped his side to a 3–2 win. On 24 October 2024, Kavanagh scored the only goal of the game as his side defeated his old club Derry City at Richmond Park in a crucial win in the hunt for European football for the following season. He finished the season with the most assists and goal contributions of any player in the league, with 6 league goals and 14 league assists over the season.

2025 season On 24 January 2025, Kavanagh scored his first goals of the season, scoring a Hat-trick in a 3–3 draw away to Athlone Town in the Leinster Senior Cup. On 28 March 2025, he scored his first league goal of the season in a 2–1 win away to Waterford at the RSC, finding the top corner with a 90th minute free kick to win the game, having assisted the equaliser 2 minutes earlier. On 11 April 2025, Kavanagh found the bottom right corner from 30 yards out to seal a 2–0 victory away to Cork City at Turners Cross. On 20 July 2025, he scored the second goal in an 8–0 win at home to UCC in the FAI Cup.

Drogheda United On 21 November 2025, it was announced that Kavanagh had signed for League of Ireland Premier Division club Drogheda United on a two-year-contract for an undisclosed fee. He scored his first league goal for the club on 27 February 2026, opening the scoring in a 2–1 defeat at home to Shelbourne.

International career Kavanagh was named as part of the squad for the Republic of Ireland U17 team's 2017 UEFA European Under-17 Championship in Croatia. He was also part of the squad for the Republic of Ireland U19 side's 2019 UEFA European Under-19 Championship in Armenia.

On 6 February 2019, he scored the only goal of the game in a 1–0 win for the Republic of Ireland U21 side over the Republic of Ireland Amateur squad. In March 2019 he was called into the Republic of Ireland U21 squad for the first time for a competitive fixture. He made his competitive debut at U21 level on 24 March 2019, in a 3–0 win over Luxembourg U21 at Tallaght Stadium.

Career statistics

Honours Club Shamrock Rovers League of Ireland Premier Division (1): 2020 FAI Cup (1): 2019

Derry City FAI Cup (1): 2022 President of Ireland's Cup (1): 2023

St Patrick's Athletic Leinster Senior Cup (1): 2023–24

Individual PFAI First Division Team of the Year (2): 2020, 2021