Dion Donohue rejoins Caernarfon Town

Much-travelled former Football League ace Dion Donohue has rejoined a North Wales club where he previously enjoyed some memorable successes.

Donohue, 27, has re-signed for Caernarfon Town, where he was a key part of Lee Dixon’s treble-winning squad of 2012-13.

The Anglesey midfielder/defender has made a total of 117 Football League appearances across spells with Chesterfield, Portsmouth, Mansfield Town, Swindon Town and Barrow.

Now he is set for his first experience of Cymru Premier football with the Canaries.

In 2012-13, the Bodedern man helped the Cofis win the Welsh Alliance League title, FAW Trophy and Cookson Cup. He scored in the 6-0 Trophy final caning of Kilvey Fords.

He remained with The Oval club the following season before setting off on a long journey across the English pyramid.

Dion, who began his career at Bodedern, was with Everton’s youth academy for six years.

He was unable to secure a professional contract and returned to North Wales, where he had spells with Bodedern, Porthmadog, Holyhead Hotspur and Caernarfon.

In 2011-12, he was part of Hotspur’s treble-winning squad which lifted the Welsh Alliance League title, Cookson Cup and Barritt Cup.

The following season he celebrated another triple with Caernarfon.

Next up was a switch to England with Sutton Coldfield Town, where he made 37 appearances in the 2014-15 season, helping the club rise from NPL Division One South, the eighth-tier of English football, into the tier-seven Premier.

Donohue signed his first professional contract with Chesterfield in 2015 and made his Football League debut against Colchester in September of that year.

At the end of the 2016/17 season, he was awarded the Players’ Player of the Year.

In 2017, Donohue moved south to Portsmouth on a two-year-deal for an undisclosed fee and was part of the squad that won the EFL Trophy.

Following the end of his contract at Fratton Park, Donohue joined Mansfield Town, but left in August 2019.

He signed a new one-year contract with Swindon in September 2020 after initially joining the club in the truncated 2019-20 season and he played a part in helping the Robins secure the Sky Bet League Two title on a points-per-game basis. However, by December 2020, he had left the club.

On 28 January 2021, Dion joined Barrow on a short-term deal until the end of the season, but was blighted by injuries and made just four appearances.

There was talk of him joining another Football League club this summer and he has been building up match-fitness playing in friendlies for former side Bodedern.

A former pupil of Ysgol Uwchradd Bodedern, as a youngster Dion represented the Wales U-18 team and turned out for the successful Welsh Colleges side, as well as representing Ynys Môn at the Island Games.

Dion Donohue – career record
Born: August 26, 1993

2011-12: Holyhead Hotspur (Welsh Alliance League) League apps 12 Goals 3
2012-13: Caernarfon Town (Welsh Alliance League) League apps 36 Goals 4
2013-14: Caernarfon Town (Cymru Alliance) League apps 24 Goals 8
2014-15: Sutton Coldfield Town (NPL Division One South): League apps 37 Goals 1
2015-16: Chesterfield Town (League One): League apps 17 Goals 0
2016-17: Chesterfield Town (League One): League apps 37 Goals 1
2017-18: Chesterfield Town (League Two): League apps 2 Goals 0
2017-18: Portsmouth (League One): League apps 32 Goals 0
2018-19: Portsmouth (League One): League apps 10 Goals 0
2019-20: Mansfield Town (League Two): League apps 0
2019-20: Swindon Town (League Two): League apps 5 Goals 0
2020-21: Swindon Town (League One): League apps 10 Goals 0
2020-21: Barrow (League Two): League apps 4