Shamrock Rovers have officially offered their star player Jack Byrne a new contract, according to the club’s manager, Stephen Bradley.
The Rovers boss had hinted that the club was ‘in the process’ of putting a deal together for the 26-year-old midfielder last weekend. That has since materialised into a concrete offer, as Byrne’s current deal expires in November. MLS club, Charlotte, had a bid rejected for Byrne last week.
Bradley said: “It was a difficult week last week for everyone, especially Jack who was in the middle of it. I was delighted with how he handled it on Friday against St Pat’s in terms of his maturity in the game.
“We know interest is there, we know it’s not going to go away, and that’s fine, he’s a top player playing at a high level but this week has been a lot calmer for everyone.
“Right up until (last) Friday morning, it was still going on. I’m sure Jack is getting ten phone calls telling him what to do.
“We had a lot of conversations with a lot of people but he showed great maturity. Younger players that haven’t played at the level he’s played at and seen what he’s seen in the football world probably could have sulked, but Jack showed real experience and respect for everyone’s position. I thought that was key.”
Bradley insisted the deal was never close to going through.
“Not on our end, no,” he said. “Our position at the start was very clear to Charlotte. That Jack wasn’t for sale.
“We have offered him a deal. But these things take time. Jack, I’m sure, will look over it with his representatives and family and get back to the club. But that could be tomorrow, next week, it’s really hard to put a time on it.”
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