| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Date of birth | 27 February 2003 | ||
| Place of birth | Dublin, Ireland | ||
| Height | 1.74 m (5 ft 9 in) [1] | ||
| Position(s) | Midfielder | ||
| Team information | |||
Current team | Shelbourne | ||
| Number | 27 | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 2018–2021 | Shamrock Rovers | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2021–2022 | UCD | 44 | (4) |
| 2023– | Shelbourne | 94 | (8) |
| International career‡ | |||
| 2021–2022 | Republic of Ireland U19 | 6 | (2) |
| *Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 08:40, 3 July 2025 ‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 08:40, 3 July 2025 | |||
Evan Caffrey (born 27 February 2003) is an Irish professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for League of Ireland Premier Division club Shelbourne.
A native of Tallaght, Dublin, Caffrey came through the underage system at Shamrock Rovers, captaining their U15s under Damien Duff in 2018, and playing for their U17s in 2019. [2] [3]
In 2021 Caffrey joined League of Ireland First Division club UCD and scored on his debut for them in a 2-1 win over Wexford at the Belfield Bowl on 9 July 2021. He made league 8 appearances in his first season as UCD gained promotion via the play-offs. Irish broadcaster, RTÉ, highlighted Caffrey as UCD's young player to watch for the 2022 Premier Division season. [4] He scored a goal of the season contender to give UCD the victory over Finn Harps in a relegation six-pointer in August 2022. [5] Caffrey featured in every league game and scored 2 league goals for UCD in 2022, as they defeated Waterford in a play-off to retain their Premier Division status. [2]
Caffrey signed for Shelbourne in November 2022, reuniting with his former underage manager Damien Duff. [2] In his first season with Shelbourne he made 36 league appearances and scored 2 goals. In November 2023 he penned a fresh two-year deal until the end of the 2025 season. [6] Caffrey scored a 96th minute winner in a league game against St Patrick's Athletic in May 2024, as Shelbourne and Caffrey went on to be crowned Premier Division champions that season. [7] Caffrey made 34 appearances and scored 3 goals in their title-winning campaign. He extended his contract again in February 2025. [8] His manager, Duff, noted that "he has a lot of brilliant qualities and can play many positions which is gold dust." [9] Duff again hailed his character as Caffrey made his 100th appearance for Shelbourne in May 2025, joking that he would "jump off the top of Tolka for the cause". [10]
Caffrey's maternal grandfather was former Shelbourne captain Theo Dunne. He is the cousin of fellow professional footballers Richard Dunne and Gavin Molloy. [2] [7] Caffrey attended Old Bawn Community School in Tallaght. [11] He grew up supporting Shamrock Rovers. [7]
| Club | Season | League | National cup [a] | Europe | Other | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| UCD | 2021 | LOI First Division | 8 | 2 | 0 | 0 | — | 2 [b] | 0 | 10 | 2 | |
| 2022 | LOI Premier Division | 36 | 2 | 3 | 0 | — | 1 [c] | 0 | 40 | 2 | ||
| Total | 44 | 4 | 3 | 0 | — | 3 | 0 | 50 | 4 | |||
| Shelbourne | 2023 | LOI Premier Division | 36 | 2 | 1 | 0 | — | 3 [d] | 1 | 40 | 3 | |
| 2024 | 34 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 4 [e] | 0 | 0 [d] | 0 | 41 | 3 | ||
| 2025 | 24 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 [f] | 0 | 1 [g] | 0 | 25 | 3 | ||
| Total | 94 | 8 | 4 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 4 | 1 | 106 | 9 | ||
| Career total | 138 | 12 | 7 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 7 | 1 | 156 | 13 | ||
Shelbourne