| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | John Anthony James O'Sullivan[1] | ||
| Date of birth | (1993-09-18)18 September 1993 (age 32) | ||
| Place of birth | Dublin, Ireland[2] | ||
| Height | 5 ft 11 in (1.81 m)[3] | ||
| Position | Attacking midfielder | ||
| Team information | |||
Current team | Shelbourne | ||
| Number | 16 | ||
| Youth career | |||
| –2009 | Belvedere[4] | ||
| 2009–2013 | Blackburn Rovers | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2013–2017 | Blackburn Rovers | 6 | (0) |
| 2014 | →Southport (loan) | 21 | (5) |
| 2014 | →Accrington Stanley (loan) | 13 | (4) |
| 2015 | →Barnsley (loan) | 8 | (0) |
| 2015–2016 | →Rochdale (loan) | 3 | (0) |
| 2016 | →Bury (loan) | 19 | (0) |
| 2016–2017 | →Accrington Stanley (loan) | 19 | (3) |
| 2017–2018 | Carlisle United | 35 | (4) |
| 2018–2019 | Blackpool | 13 | (0) |
| 2019 | →Dundee (loan) | 11 | (0) |
| 2019–2021 | Morecambe | 72 | (7) |
| 2021–2022 | Accrington Stanley | 25 | (2) |
| 2022–2023 | Bohemians | 27 | (2) |
| 2024– | Shelbourne | 36 | (1) |
| International career‡ | |||
| 2011–2012 | Republic of Ireland U19 | 13 | (1) |
| 2012–2013 | Republic of Ireland U21 | 4 | (0) |
| * Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 22:00, 4 July 2025 (UTC) ‡ National team caps and goals as of 10:19, 21 August 2016 (UTC) | |||
John Anthony James O'Sullivan (born 18 September 1993) is an Irish professionalfootballer who plays as anattacking midfielder forShelbourne.
In the summer of 2009, O'Sullivan, aged 15, joinedPremier League sideBlackburn Rovers from Dublin-basedBelvedere, a youth club that's well known for its youth system which has successfully produced dozens of players who have gone on to play football throughout the United Kingdom and Ireland.
Working his way through the ranks at Rovers, from the Academy to the Reserves, O'Sullivan begun to be featured in match day squads as an unused substitute during the2012–13 Football League Championship campaign, the club's first season return in the second tier of English football having been relegated from the Premier League in May 2012.
On 4 May 2013, O'Sullivan made his senior professional debut for Rovers in their final game of the season, coming on as a second-half substitute againstBirmingham City.[5]
On 9 January 2014, O'Sullivan joinedConference Premier sideSouthport on a one-month loan deal.[6] On 2 February, the loan was extended until the end of the season.[7] He scored his first goal for Southport on 22 February 2014 in a 3–1 away defeat againstForest Green Rovers.[8]
On 19 September 2014, O'Sullivan joinedLeague Two outfitAccrington Stanley on a one-month loan deal.[9] On 20 October 2014, the loan was extended until 20 December 2014.[10] O'Sullivan scored 4 goals in 13 appearances.[11]
He joinedLeague One clubBarnsley on a one-month loan deal on 19 February 2015,[12] and made 8 appearances on loan at the club.[11]
On 26 November 2015, O'Sullivan joinedRochdale on loan until 3 January.[13] He made 3 appearances while on loan at Rochdale, including being shown a straight red card in the 12th minute of his final game for the club, a 2–1 defeat toSwindon Town on 12 December.[14][15] On 15 January 2016, he joinedBury on a 28-day loan.[16] He made his debut for the club the following day as a 37th-minute substitute in a 3–2 defeat at home toWalsall.[17] His loan was extended until the end of the season on 1 February, having already made three appearances for the club.[18] He made 19 appearances for Bury across his loan spell at the club.[19]
On 8 August 2016, he returned to Accrington Stanley on a six-month loan deal.[20] He scored once in 25 matches across all competitions during this loan.[21]
In January 2017, it was announced that O'Sullivan and Blackburn Rovers had agreed to mutually terminate the player's contract, ending his eight-year association with the Lancashire outfit. In total, O'Sullivan made six first-team appearances for Rovers, having spent a majority of his last three-years with the club out on-loan at Southport, Accrington Stanley,Barnsley,Rochdale andBury.[22]
In the same month, following his release from Blackburn Rovers, O'Sullivan signed for League Two sideCarlisle United on an 18-month-deal.[23] He was released by Carlisle at the end of the 2017-18 season, having made 35 league appearances for the Cumbrian club, finding the net on two occasions.[24]
In June 2018, O'Sullivan linked up once again with former Rovers academy and first-team managerGary Bowyer atLeague OneBlackpool, signing a one-year deal with the Tangerines.[25]
On 4 September, O'Sullivan scored his first goal for Blackpool in a 3-3 draw againstMacclesfield Town in theEFL Trophy.[26]
In late January 2019, O'Sullivan, joinedScottish Premiership clubDundee on loan until the end-of-the-season.[27] He left Blackpool at the end of the season, following the expiration of his contract with the Seasiders. Blackpool had opted against activating the clause in O'Sullivan's contract to extend his stay by a further year.[28]
On 2 July 2019, O'Sullivan joined League Two outfitMorecambe, agreeing to a two-year deal with the side.[29]
On 17 June 2021, it was announced that O'Sullivan had agreed to join League One side Accrington Stanley on a three-year deal upon the expiration of his contract with newly promoted Morecambe, having turned down an offer from Morecambe to join rivals Stanley. It meant that the move was to be the first time O'Sullivan had linked up with Stanley on a permanent basis, having previously had two loan-spells with the club.[30]
On 10 June 2022, John returned home toDublin to sign forLeague of Ireland Premier Division sideBohemians.[31]
On 8 December 2023, O'Sullivan would join Bohemian's rivalsShelbourne for the2024 season.[32] O'Sullivan would win theLeague of Ireland Premier Division with theShels at the end of the 2024 season.[33][34]
O'Sullivan made his debut for the Ireland national under 15 team in 2008, he won international u16 player of the year. He has been called up at all age groups to theRepublic of Ireland U21s. In 2011, he featured in all the games for Ireland u19 team that reached the semi-final of the euro finals.
| Club | Season | League | National Cup | League Cup | Other | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Blackburn Rovers | 2012–13[35] | Championship | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 2013–14[36] | Championship | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| 2014–15[11] | Championship | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | |
| 2015–16[19] | Championship | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | |
| Total | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 0 | ||
| Southport (loan) | 2013–14[36] | Conference Premier | 21 | 3 | 0 | 0 | – | 0 | 0 | 21 | 3 | |
| Accrington Stanley (loan) | 2014–15[11] | League Two | 13 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 13 | 4 |
| Barnsley (loan) | 2014–15[11] | League One | 8 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 0 |
| Rochdale (loan) | 2015–16[19] | League One | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 |
| Bury (loan) | 2015–16[19] | League One | 19 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 19 | 0 |
| Accrington Stanley (loan) | 2016–17[21] | League Two | 19 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 1[a] | 0 | 25 | 2 |
| Carlisle United | 2016–17[21] | League Two | 17 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2[b] | 2 | 19 | 3 |
| 2017–18[37] | League Two | 18 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1[a] | 0 | 23 | 1 | |
| Total | 35 | 2 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 2 | 42 | 4 | ||
| Blackpool | 2018–19[38] | League One | 13 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 3[a] | 1 | 22 | 1 |
| Dundee | 2018–19[38] | Scottish Premiership | 11 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 11 | 0 |
| Morecambe | 2019–20[39] | League Two | 34 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 3[a] | 0 | 39 | 3 |
| 2020–21[40] | League Two | 38 | 4 | 3 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 3[c] | 0 | 47 | 5 | |
| Total | 72 | 7 | 4 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 86 | 8 | ||
| Accrington Stanley | 2021–22[41] | League One | 24 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1[a] | 1 | 26 | 3 |
| Bohemians | 2022[42] | LOI Premier Division | 8 | 1 | 3 | 0 | – | – | 11 | 1 | ||
| 2023[43] | LOI Premier Division | 19 | 1 | 5 | 0 | – | 2[d] | 1 | 26 | 2 | ||
| Total | 27 | 2 | 8 | 0 | – | 2 | 1 | 37 | 3 | |||
| Shelbourne | 2024[44] | LOI Premier Division | 24 | 1 | 2 | 0 | – | 3[e] | 0 | 29 | 1 | |
| 2025[45] | LOI Premier Division | 12 | 0 | 1 | 0 | – | 1[f] | 0 | 14 | 0 | ||
| Total | 36 | 1 | 3 | 0 | – | 4 | 0 | 43 | 1 | |||
| Career total | 305 | 22 | 25 | 2 | 12 | 0 | 20 | 5 | 362 | 29 | ||
Morecambe
Bohemians
Shelbourne
