Buncrana’s William O’Connor guides UCD to Premier Division return

UCD manager William O'Connor (right) and goalkeeping coach Ger Barron celebrate after the SSE Airtricity Men's Premier Division promotion/relegation play-off match between UCD and Drogheda United at Tallaght Stadium in Dublin | Stephen McCarthy/Sportsfile

placeholder image — UCD manager William O'Connor (right) and goalkeeping coach Ger Barron celebrate after the SSE Airtricity Men's Premier Division promotion/relegation play-off match between UCD and Drogheda United at Tallaght Stadium in Dublin | Stephen McCarthy/Sportsfile

O’Connor has guided the club back to the Premier Division at the third try

William O’Connor defied the odds to lead UCD back to the League of Ireland Premier Division for the first time in three years with a promotion/relegation play-off victory over Drogheda United.

The Dublin University side trailed by a goal against the Louth men as Mark Doyle opened the scoring, but Ciaran Behan levelled things just after the half-hour mark in Tallaght Stadium.

And Louis Dignam’s goal on 66 minutes would end up being the winner, as the Buncrana man has brought them back to the top of Irish football.

UCD finished second in the league and defeated Longford Town 4-0 on aggregate in the play-offs, before a 3-1 win over Bray Wanderers in Tolka Park to set up the meeting with Drogheda, who won the FAI Cup in 2024.

O’Connor had been assistant manager at the club for three seasons before taking over from Andy Myler for the start of the 2024 season.

They finished second in his first year in charge, before a fourth-place finish in 2025.

O’Connor is a former Finn Harps coach who played with Cockhill Celtic in the Ulster Senior League and was manager of the Shelbourne Under-19s before moving to UCD.