6 hours Ago
New Shelbourne signing Ellis Chapman admits the Damien Duff factor convinced him to shelve plans to return to England after his successful stint at Sligo Rovers. Chapman made a big impression at The Showgrounds last term, narrowly missing out on inclusion in the PFAI Premier Division team of the year after seamlessly adapting to the league but a one-year deal allowed him to pursue Plan A which was going back to Birmingham to be closer to his partner and family. However, Shelbourne were hopeful Chapman would change his mind and a combination of persistence from sporting director Luke Byrne and the persuasive powers of Duff convinced the 24-year-old to stay in the league.
Chapman was born and raised in Lincoln and initially broke through there at senior level before relocating to Cheltenham Town. A turning point at Sligo Rovers was an unplanned transition to an attacking midfield role under John Russell which yielded nine goals across the year. He expects to be used in that department by Duff.
“Being honest, I did want to go back to England, only because of all the important stuff like my family and partner being back home,” says Chapman. “Ultimately, it was my first year away from England last year and I didn’t know I would enjoy it as much as I did. I loved my time over here and all the games were really competitive, and I basically fell in love with the league.
Once I spoke to the gaffer and Lukey, it was a no-brainer for me to do at least another year here. “I had information that Shels were interested [earlier in year], I completed the season, spoke to Luke Byrne quite a bit and had a meeting with the gaffer and it all came through that,” says Chapman, who opened up on how Duff followed up on their opening chat. “It was pretty straightforward as he wanted to get me in, but after that he might FaceTime me out of the blue and catch me by surprise.
I was obviously a little bit nervous because it’s Damien Duff but no, it all went well and it was straightforward about what we wanted to do together. “I think it’s just the experience that Damien Duff has and being a player himself and what he’s been through and how he can improve me,” continues Chapman, explaining his rationale with Europe another attraction. “Before I came to Sligo, I have always played as a holding midfielder and at Sligo I was playing more of a No 10 role and striker role.
“Our first pre-season friendly [at Sligo], we played Derry at home, I was playing in the holding position and it wasn’t working so he [Russell] ended up swapping me into the No 10 position and I ended up scoring a hat-trick in about 20 minutes! “Now I feel like I have a new position. There are still loads of things for me to improve on and it’s just about learning for me. I’ve just turned 24 so I still feel like I have a lot of years ahead of me so I want to keep improving and try get to the top level.
“I had such a great season last year from playing in that position so I feel for myself it would be a waste not to use me in them kind of positions. Hopefully I can score more goals this year.”.
