Eoin Doyle completed his move to St Patrick's Athletic on Friday ending a successful stint at Bolton Wanderers.
The wiley number nine played a crucial role in the Trotters' promotion from League Two last season and contributed to their successful acclimatisation to the third tier this term. Bolton were able to bring in Northern Irishman Dion Charles from Accrington Stanley at the beginning of the transfer window which increased the chances of an exit for Doyle, in a difficult last few months the 33-year-old's commitment to the cause cannot be questioned and he will be fondly remembered at The UniBol.
Ian Evatt offered his best wishes and a public farewell message when he spoke to the club's media team.
He said: "It was always his wish to finish his career in Ireland. I've had a personal relationship with him for a long time. We had honest conversations before his departure and we wish him and his family all the best."
Doyle left the club with respectable figures of 27 goals in 73 appearances and with Charles arriving this month it feels like the natural order of things for him to take centre stage and to move the 33-year-old on. Amadou Bakayoko had been preferred to Doyle up top at times this season so it feels like his Bolton adventure had run its course.
The Verdict
It was an excellent piece of business at the perfect time when Bolton signed Doyle from Swindon Town in the summer of 2020. The journeyman striker has had some very memorable moments in the EFL and put together back-to-back outstanding seasons in 2019/20 and 2020/21. The Irishman was the central figure and even upstaged current Blackpool striker Jerry Yates as the Robins claimed the fourth tier title in the curtailed 2019/20 season. Doyle plundered an incredible 25 goals in just 28 league games that campaign and backed it up with 19 in his debut season with the Trotters.
Bolton's loss is St Patrick's Athletic's gain as they look to close the gap between themselves and Shamrock Rovers at the summit of the Irish top-flight in the coming months.