Dundalk FC is delighted to announce the signing of Archie Davies from Aldershot Town.
The 24-year-old right-back, who trained with his new teammates on Thursday, has signed a multi-year contract with the club.
A graduate of the Brighton & Hove Albion academy, where he featured in a number of Premier League 2 and U18 Premier League games, Davies had his first taste of senior football during a loan spell at National League North side Whitehawk in 2017.
He made his only appearance for the Seagulls’ first-team in a League Cup tie against Aston Villa in September 2019 before moving to Crawley Town the following summer. During a two-year stay at the League Two club, he made over 70 appearances.
The Hastings-native joined Vanarama National League side Aldershot Town last June and was a regular this season, making a total of 28 appearances, his last coming against Maidstone United on Tuesday night.
“Things have moved really quickly over the past few days,” Davies told dundalkfc.com after completing his move to Oriel Park on Thursday.
“Yesterday, I was just chilling at home and late last night I was on my way to the airport! It’s a good thing to get it done so quickly and I’m just looking forward to getting started properly now.”
Stephen O’Donnell and Archie Davies. Photo by Ciaran Culligan
Davies shared a dressing room with a number of Irish players during his time and Brighton & Hove Albion and he said he had been leaning on them for advice over the past week.
“I’ve got a few Irish friends,” he said. “A few of the lads at Brighton came from the League of Ireland. From speaking to them over the past week or so, they’ve been telling me about Dundalk and it’s all been good.
“The club is obviously back in Europe this summer and that’s something I’m really excited about. When you take that into account, it was a no-brainer for me to come to Dundalk. It’ll be a first for me, but it’s another challenge I’m really looking forward to.”
“Archie is a full back that is very comfortable on the ball,” said Dundalk FC head coach Stephen O’Donnell. “He gets into good forward areas and delivers good quality. He is a very good footballer with a great age profile and we’re delighted to have him on board.
“He’s really looking forward to the challenge ahead. It’s something new for him and he’s another player that we can develop and is hungry to get better. He’s been at a Premier League club and has also been in the lower leagues in England and, for a 24-year-old, he’s got really good experience.”
Davies is the club’s fifth new acquisition of the year, following the arrivals of Louie Annesley, Hayden Muller, Connor Malley and Cameron Elliott.
“Archie has been one of our targets for quite a while,” said O’Donnell. “As I’ve said before, sometimes these things take a while so we’re delighted to get it done.
“Right-back was a position that we were probably a little light in, even prior to John Mountney’s injury, so he is a great addition.”
