Celtic Towell started his career at
Crumlin United and in 2007 moved to
Celtic. In November 2010, he made his professional debut coming on as a
substitute for
Jos Hooiveld in the 57th minute of Celtic's 2–2 draw against
Inverness, he provided an assist for
Paddy McCourt.
Hibernian (loans) On 25 January 2011, he joined
Hibernian on loan until the end of the 2010–11 season. Towell made his debut a day later, in a 2–0 loss to
Rangers. He was at fault for the concession of the second Rangers goal, as a misplaced pass allowed
Nikica Jelavić a clear chance to score. Towell said in April 2011 that he received abuse from
Hearts supporters in
Edinburgh derby matches because he was Catholic. However, he also said that this made him more determined to play better. Towell returned to Celtic at the end of the season, having made 15 starting appearances for Hibs. He played the first match of his second loan spell only 3 days later, starting as Hibs lost 2–0 to
Edinburgh derby rivals Hearts. Towell started to find first-team opportunities limited after new manager
Pat Fenlon made several signings in the January transfer window. Two right backs and two central midfielders came in with one other right back going out. However, Fenlon said that once Towell had got his fitness levels up he would be back in the first team picture.
Dundalk Towell was signed by
Stephen Kenny for
Dundalk in December 2012, ahead of the 2013 Airtricity Premier Division season. Towell made his League of Ireland debut against Shamrock Rovers on the opening night of the 2013 season and was hugely influential in Dundalk's second-placed finish that year, scoring seven times in 31 league appearances. He also picked up the
PFAI Young Player of the Year award. He won back to back league titles with Dundalk in 2014 and 2015 scoring 11 and 25 goals in the respective seasons, and got his first taste of
UEFA Champions League football with the
League of Ireland champions. He scored in the
2014–15 UEFA Europa League at
Jeunesse Esch Jeunesse Esch-Dundalk 2015 History | UEFA Europa League.
2015 season On 9 October, Towell scored an 85th minute equalising penalty against Shamrock Rovers to win Dundalk their second consecutive league title, and followed this by scoring the only goal of the game in extra time in the
FAI Cup Final against
Cork City.
Brighton & Hove Albion Towell signed for
Brighton & Hove Albion on 30 November 2015. Towell made his debut for the Sussex club in the third round of the
2015–16 FA Cup on 9 January 2016 away against
Hull City where The Seagulls lost 1–0 to a
Robert Snodgrass penalty. Despite not playing a single league game in the
2015–16 Football League Championship season Towell made an appearance in the
2016 Championship play-offs as a substitute away against
Sheffield Wednesday where Brighton were beaten 2-0 and 3–1 on aggregate. Towell scored his first goal for The Albion in a 3-1
FA Cup loss away to then
National League side
Lincoln on 28 January 2017. Towell's only league game with The Seagulls came against his then future loan club
Rotherham United on 7 March 2017 where he came on as a substitute where Brighton won 2–0 at the
New York Stadium. At the end of the season Brighton & Hove Albion were promoted to the
Premier League. In May 2017, following Brighton's promotion to the
Premier League, Towell signed a deal to keep him at the club until 2019.
Rotherham (loans) On 31 August 2017, he signed for
League One's Rotherham on a season-long loan where he helped them regain their Championship status, winning the
2018 EFL League One play-offs. On 31 August 2018 he returned to Rotherham United for a second season-long loan spell. He made 34 Championship appearances scoring 4 times as Rotherham were relegated back to League One.
Salford City On 31 May 2019 Towell joined
Salford City on a two-year contract. He made his début on the opening day of the
2019–20 season, a 2–0 victory against
Stevenage. On Boxing Day, Towell opened the scoring with a "thunderbolt" in a 2–1 win over
Crewe Alexandra on Boxing Day, helping Salford to their first victory in five games. On 19 January 2020, he was sent off in a 2–1 away victory against
Forest Green Rovers after committing two bookable offences. He scored Salford's second in a 2–0 win against
Macclesfield Town on 29 February.
Shamrock Rovers At the end of the
2020–21 season, it was announced that Towell would be leaving the club to return to Ireland and join
Shamrock Rovers. He scored his first goal against
ŠK Slovan Bratislava in
UEFA Champions League first qualifying round, but Rovers were eliminated 3–2 on aggregate. ==International career==