Spurs loanee looking to bring scoring form for Luton away on international duty
Midfielder netted three times in October
Luton Town loanee Jamie Donley is hoping to take his goalscoring form from October into his international duty with Northern Ireland this weekend.
The 21-year-old opened his account for the Hatters on just his third start after arriving on a season-long deal from Premier League outfit Tottenham Hotspur, netting against his old side Leyton Orient, whom he had impressed for during a similar transfer back in the 2024-25 campaign.
He then went away with his country and started all four of their Nations League group stage matches against Georgia twice, Hungary and Ukraine, as although Northern Ireland picked up an excellent eight points from a possible 12, beating Georgia 1-0 and Ukraine 3-0, while earning a goalless draw in their rematch against Georgia, as well as their trip to Hungary too, Donley himself wasn't on the scoresheet once.
On returning to Kenilworth Road, he did find the in Luton’s 4-1 victory at Wycombe Wanderers, curling a quite stunning effort from outside the box into the very top corner to make it 2-0. He then added a clinical second half brace in the 3-1 success over Doncaster, with two more finishes of unerring quality with his trusty left foot.
Although he has been playing in a slightly deeper role under Town boss Jack Wilshere, it was enough to see him nominated for the PFA Select Car Leasing League One Fans' Player of the Month. Since pledging his allegiance to Northern Ireland in March 2025, Donley has two goals from 14 caps, scoring the winner in a 1-0 triumph over Luxembourg in November of last year and then again as Northern Ireland drew 1-1 at Wales in March.
He should get further chances to add to that tally when his country host Ukraine on Saturday and then travel to Budapest to face Hungary on Tuesday evening, as speaking to the Belfast News Letter regarding his desire to score goals, he said: “I’d say it’s a bit of personal pride. I’m at Luton now and I look to the striker to score the goals, not all the goals, but to be the one to lead the line and I guess that’s my job as a striker, to put the ball in the back of the net.
“I think Michael gives me that trust. I know he doesn’t necessarily put a lot of pressure on me to score. That gives me a lot of confidence to play my own game. I’m not going to go into these games telling myself that I have to score, but obviously if I get the chance, I’ll take it. The first game back was against Wycombe and when I scored, Michael O’Neill texted me, and I texted back and said ‘I can score!’ I got two against Doncaster, two good finishes as well, so I’ve got self-confidence in front of goal and hopefully I can show it on the international stage.”
On just how he will attempt to become a regular on the scoresheet at international level, Donley added: “There’s a load of different things (I can improve on). My movement in the box, knowing each other’s roles, how we cross the ball, how we try to get more numbers in the box, so it creates more space for me, maybe takes a defender away from me. Obviously if I’m the highest player, I’m always going to have one or two defenders on me. Maybe it’s not about working on my instincts or finishing ability, it’s about trying to make sure I’m in the right spaces.”