PERS. INFORMATION

CLUB HISTORY

• Newington FC | Youth
• Linfield FC | Youth
• Larne FC | Youth
• Aberdeen FC | Youth – …
• Elgin City FC | 2025 – 2026 (loan)

INTERVIEW

Introduce yourself…

Hello I’m Noah McDonnell I’m center back who is preferably plays on the right side but can play on the left.

What type of centre-back do you see yourself as?

I see myself as a aggressive with a bit of nastiness in my play but also very composed on the ball.

Looking back at your time at Newington FC, what are the first football memories that come to mind?

My first football memories was with Newington and that was just the local team for me where I went and just played free and made some of the best mates to this day at Newington.

Moving to Linfield FC is a big step for any young player, how did that experience change you?

Moving to Linfield was a huge step for me personally as I didn’t want to move club I was happy at Newington as I was comfortable with all the lads I had become really good mates with but after a chat with my dad my dad explained it’s time for you to push on and the only way your going to push on is by playing with and against the better players and that’s all I wanted was to get better I then ended up loving the couple of years I was at Linfield, definitely loved every single minute of it.

How important was your time at Larne FC in preparing you for a move across to Scotland?

The move to Larne me and my family thought would’ve been more beneficial for me as I was playing up the older age groups and being tested more physically which was a big reason on why I joined again really really enjoyed Larne that’s when I first heard about Aberdeen were interested and as any young footballer would be I couldn’t believe it as that’s all young footballers dream about these days first thing I did was ring my dad after the game and told him what and who was interested and ever since that day it was mostly focusing on my performance every week to try and make sure I got signed and luckily enough I did.

Can you remember the moment you heard Aberdeen were interested in signing you? What was that like for you?

It definitely was a surprise from the level and intensity as back home you go from training 2 nights a week with your club while across the water it’s everyday none stop keeping standards high everyday, now I was very lucky as I was up in the NI JD academy which up there we trained everyday so that itself was preparation for then if you were to go across the water as me and a lot of other boys stayed up there 5 days a week so getting you ready for that home sickness to you might experience while being away and training with a top level of players everyday.

Did anything surprise you about the level or intensity? And what’s the biggest lesson you’ve learned in academy football so far?

So yes the there was a surprise in the intensity and the level over in Scotland being pushed to our limits everyday boys arguing with boys everyday and as the more you see it just the more normal it becomes as this is what we’re all here to do compete against each other but just that feeling of being in the full time football for the first time was incredible getting to see what the Aberdeen first team players do how they prepare for games and training. Everything about it was always high intensity and I loved that.

How valuable has the loan spell at Elgin City FC been for your development?

My loan spell at Elgin I think was very valuable as now the most important thing is playing against the men and having to deal with the physicality and as a young defender like myself I knew I definitely needed it and not going to lie but at the start was a big shock just these huge men coming in with elbows leaving the boot in on you all those sneaky things just made it uncomfortable to play against but the more I played against and with them you start to be able to handle it and become more aggressive so for me it definitely, definitely was a very valuable experience which helped my game massively also for Elgin got to play against a few top sides and my first cup game for them was against St Johnstone at their pitch and they had a decent crowd which and as a young footballer I just tried to enjoy and love every second of that game.