Finn Harps Questioned Over Odd Premier League Deal For Donegal Teen

At a time when League of Ireland clubs are doing more to ensure that they are fairly compensated for the sale of their best young players, a deal involving a Finn Harps youngster's move from Donegal to the Premier League has raised some eyebrows.

In years gone by, it was commonplace for Irish clubs to receive minuscule transfer fees when their players move to England. That has slowly been changing, with the League of Ireland transfer record having been broken twice in recent times.

The first move involved Mason Melia being sold from St Pat's to Spurs, a move that is set to go through in 2026. Shamrock Rovers would then go on to eclipse that mark by selling Victor Ozhianvuna to Arsenal, with the youngster set to join the English club for €2million in 2027.

With that in mind, it is understandable why questions are being asked of Finn Harps on the back of local player Oisín Cooney's move to Burnley.

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Finn Harps Questioned Over Premier League Deal For Donegal Teen

Donegal native Oisín Cooney has made 18 appearances for Finn Harps over the last two seasons, having also lined out for Ireland up to U19 level.

He has now joined Premier League side Burnley, although one aspect of the transfer has confused some. When announcing the deal on their club website, Finn Harps would confirm that they had not received a transfer fee for the teenager:

Finn Harps FC can confirm that goalkeeper Oisín Cooney has completed a move to English Premier League side Burnley FC. The deal, which does not involve an upfront transfer fee, includes a series of performance-related clauses linked to first-team appearances, along with a future sell-on percentage.

While future clauses are commonplace in such deals, to not receive a transfer fee of any kind is rather remarkable. It is made all the more strange when you consider that Finn Harps only this week said they 'quickly' needed to raise funds to pay off a €90,000 compensation bill from FIFA.

In the club statement, club Chairperson Ian Harkin said that 'the structure of the deal also ensures Finn Harps will benefit from Oisín’s future success'.

Of course, given the nature of professional football in England, there is no guarantee that Cooney's time at Burnley will prove to be a success. As a result, the decision to base the fee solely on add-ons is a strange one.

This is the type of deal that has thankfully become less common in Irish football in recent times. Considering the riches at their disposal as a Premier League club, Burnley have negotiated quite the bargain for the Donegal teenager here.

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