LOI Fixtures May 26th +

[ToberonaTornado]

Friday:

Premier Division -

Bray Wanderers v Sligo Rovers
Cork City v Shamrock Rovers
Drogheda United v Derry City
Galway United v Bohemian
Saint Pats Ath v Dundalk FC
Finn Harps v Limerick FC - 8PM

Tuesday:

Shamrock Rovers v Bray Wanderers - 8pm

First Division -

Friday:

Athlone Town v UCD
Shelbourne FC v Cabinteeley FC

Saturday:

Cobh Ramblers v Waterford FC - 7:15PM
Longford Town v Wexford FC - 7:30PM

Thursday:

Cabinteeley FC v UCD

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Refs: http://www.extratime.ie/articles/19009/match-officials-appointed---week-14/
Suspensions: http://www.extratime.ie/articles/19005/suspension-list---week-14/
Coupon: http://www.paddypower.com/football/football-matches/ireland

[nigel-harps1954]

Delighted we've got Irish League refs for this one again. LOI refs have gone beyond a joke and the last set of IL refs we got earlier in the season were excellent.

Hoping for at least treble the crowd we got on Monday night though. The result should do no harm and Mickey Funstons last home game for Harps should attract a few people out to say good luck to him.

[Nesta99]

How does that work with refs from a different jurisdiction coming in to ref. I know they are all licenced supposedly to the same standards with UEFA but is there an agreement or process for this to happen, is it informal and as long as they are licenced appropriately the FAI can appoint them to oversee the game. Do LoI refs head north or what would those in Windsor Ave have to say? If the assessor has any issues who do they report things to etc. All questions lol but with the Scottish Challange Cup participation is this happening as a tester so to speak - hopefully we will see the refereeing panel increase where officials can and will come in from Wales/NI/Scotland. Wasnt it the done thing in days of yore for Cup semis and finals and big league clashes to bring referees over from the UK?

[nigel-harps1954]

Referee exchange programme so I believe the LOI refs have gone up north this year too yeah. Welsh referees gone a game or two over here last season.

[Ezeikial]

Maybe it's about giving a boost to the mileage claims?

[Ezeikial]

You could hardly describe Stephen Bradley as a master of the mind games. Here is an abject lesson in how not to gain a psychological advantage going into tonight's game against Cork.

Giving the opposition something to be pi$$ed off about does not tend to work well



Cork aren't a patch on Dundalk's three-in-a-row team, says Shamrock Rovers boss Stephen Bradley

Shamrock Rovers take on Cork City at Turner's Cross on Friday night


http://www.irishmirror.ie/sport/socc...three-10484129 (http://www.irishmirror.ie/sport/soccer/soccer-news/cork-arent-patch-dundalks-three-10484129)

Go batter them Bradser!

[sbgawa]

Thanks for keeping us up to date on Rovers !

[El-Pietro]

You could hardly describe Stephen Bradley as a master of the mind games. Here is an abject lesson in how not to gain a psychological advantage going into tonight's game against Cork.

Giving the opposition something to be pi$$ed off about does not tend to work well



http://www.irishmirror.ie/sport/socc...three-10484129 (http://www.irishmirror.ie/sport/soccer/soccer-news/cork-arent-patch-dundalks-three-10484129)

Go batter them Bradser!

Miele and McPhail coming out with similar comments, plus the usual "we battered them" comments.

[patrickccfc]

This is our cup final, or is it theirs??

As if we needed any extra motivation to beat rovers

[wonder88]

Refs from the North and Wales would really help the league if they could be brought in more often. My game will be the visit of Bohs to Galway; game up in Dublin was sort of ruined by the sending off coupled with a strong wind, so hope for good soccer and a home win, but more likely a draw.
Strong words from the Shamrock R camp. I remember the Dub football team go down to pairc uí Choimh and really batter the locals in an All-Ireland semi-final replay on a hot August Sunday years ago. Could Bradley's boys follow and do the same?
Big game in Athlone also with the return of Roddy.

[sbgawa]

Our lads don't like this sunny weather. Used to the wind and rain in tallaght. :)
Bohs galway is going to be interesting could go either way and 3 points would make a huge difference to either team.

[brendy_éire]

United Park certainly holding the title for worst bogs in the league. Hot weather is really not helping matters.

[Nesta99]

United Park certainly holding the title for worst bogs in the league. Hot weather is really not helping matters.

General issue in Drogheda tbh - the Boyne is one big sewer beyond the bridge of peace.

[refjohn]

The truth on this one (cross border ref)- is those 4 officials have an upcoming U-21 match and with irish League over needed a game to maintain match fitness. Last year one of the LOI assistant refs got several Irish League games in close season to keep him match fit as he was doing European games with Scottish colleagues and same need for match fitness applied. Think the referee departments North and South work closely now to help each other.

15 months ago LOI refs went up and did several top of the table clashes in the North.

All assessor reports go in as usual and copy gets sent cross-jurisdiction.

[osarusan]

Harps 3-1 Limerick at HT.

Very disappointing.

[pineapple stu]

Editorial in the Athlone programme touches on the match-rigging allegations and the break-in.

Those who are allergic to bad punctuation may want to give this one a miss though.

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/DAxdOzZXsAA1SfX.jpg

[outspoken]

Editorial in the Athlone programme touches on the match-rigging allegations and the break-in.

Those who are allergic to bad punctuation may want to give this one a miss though.

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/DAxdOzZXsAA1SfX.jpg

Incredible

[osarusan]

Finn Harps 3-2 Limerick FT.

[patrickccfc]

We weren't great in that first half, so the equalizer before the break was crucial. All went out way in the second half with the sending off.

[SeanDrog]

Draw fair result in Utd park- strange thinking Derry beat us 4-0 earlier this year as they were tame tonight tbh. But a solid point and another clean sheet for us (which is a big improvement).

Always nice to play Derry and I wish them the best for the rest of the season.

[micls]

Hahahaha, Bradley's face as he walked off the pitch to the shed singing 'We want you to stay'. Him and his team need to learn to hold their tongues. Their ridiculously over the top celebrations of the first goal only handed more incentive to our players. Great atmosphere, great win.

[Real ale Madrid]

Rovers can't defend set pieces - scored form 3 tonight and had 2 more cleared off the line from free headers. Can't understand how Rovers are keeping with this guy. I get the feeling a decent manager could turn them around quickly - they have good players but they need to get defense right first.

A cracking atmosphere tonight.

[micls]

Was very impressed with Rovers left back. He won everything against Shep and read the game brilliantly. They closed us down well down the wings, and kept Seani quiet enough, but the set pieces killed them. 3 goals between our two centre halves.

[Sam_Heggy]

Harps started well, deservedly went in front then conceed a stupid soft goal and Limerick take over for 10 minutes.
Harps added 2 great goals after and were comfortable at half time.
Obviously an attempted park the bus job by us 2nd half invited alot of pressure from Limerick and they deservedly got one back. Very nervous ending especially after a harsh sending off for Morrissey.

Brilliant week for Harps. Badly needed.

[Crosshead]

Shamrock Rovers came for a smash and grab and had no plan B - other than to kick and pull at City players all game. Gary Shaw could have had about 4 yellow cards instead of the one he received before being subbed off for his own good.

Agree with what was said above - there are some decent players in that team but no organisation or game plan.

[bluewhitearmy]

Harps started well, deservedly went in front then conceed a stupid soft goal and Limerick take over for 10 minutes.
Harps added 2 great goals after and were comfortable at half time.
Obviously an attempted park the bus job by us 2nd half invited alot of pressure from Limerick and they deservedly got one back. Very nervous ending especially after a harsh sending off for Morrissey.

Brilliant week for Harps. Badly needed.

Think you are being kind tbh we deserved nothing.

[ToberonaTornado]

Worst Pats side i've seen in a lonnnnnnnng time.Made Dundalk look like superstars at times! Bucks has his work cut out there make no mistake about that.
We got the job done easily and only for O'Malley in the Pats nets we could have rattled in another 5 or 6 without really trying.Duffy's free kick to give us the lead was a belter and Dave McMillans daisy cutter for the second wasn't a bad effort either.Some cheer from our supporters when that went in(relief more than anything)

Pats will have to spend the bucks in the transfer window if they're to remain in the division and no pun intended.

[Nesta99]

Pats now bottom of the heap. As long as we tick over in 2nd - EL places all the action is bottom of the table.

[nigel-harps1954]

Thought Limerick were very poor tonight. Harps were well worth the win though for the first half performance.

Unfortunate to concede from Limericks first, just deceived everyone and sneaked in from a long range free kick.

Two absolute crackers from Harps for 2-1 and 3-1 though, Caolan McAleer played a huge part with a sublime volley assist for the second and an even better finish for the third which is goal of the month material.

Same as Monday night though, took the pedal off the gas for the second half and allowed Limerick back into it but did enough to hang on for the win.

Delighted with the win to be honest. Didn't expect us to score six goals in two games following 7 games with one goal.

[Yossarian]

I'd be concerned if I was a Pats fan. We reallly should have been 2 or 3 up at half time. We cut through Pats easy enough at times but lacked a cutting edge like most games this season. I thought our defence did well enough, good having Gannon back and Vemmelund looked much more at home at centre half.
Pats didn't really cause us many problems though their one positive was Markey in the playmaker role. He's a quality player and anything Pats did well was through him.

[White Horse]

Pats had a couple of good spells in the game and played some nice football at times. I thought they lacked a cutting edge up front. They were relying on Dundalk defenders making a mistake to get through on goal.

Dundalk's decision making was poor. They really should have converted more opportunities into goals.

Nice game, but I had to sit in front of a gobsh1te Dundalk fan who spent the game abusing McEleney. Some people should be banned from going to games on the grounds of profound stupidity.

[ToberonaTornado]

For the 1st 10 mins after the break they had a bit of pep in them but Dundalk's defence held well and that put paid to that.They obviously had the words of LB still ringing in their ears following h/t at that stage.
Whatever he said didn't hold to long - unfortunately for them .... and him :D

[El-Pietro]

Hahahaha, Bradley's face as he walked off the pitch to the shed singing 'We want you to stay'. Him and his team need to learn to hold their tongues. Their ridiculously over the top celebrations of the first goal only handed more incentive to our players. Great atmosphere, great win.

Obsessed with Rovers you are!

[Charlie Darwin]

Rovers can't defend set pieces - scored form 3 tonight and had 2 more cleared off the line from free headers. Can't understand how Rovers are keeping with this guy. I get the feeling a decent manager could turn them around quickly - they have good players but they need to get defense right first.

A cracking atmosphere tonight.
We haven't been able to defend set pieces all year. It was an issue in the Bohs game second day of the season and has been ever since. Even on the opening day it was and we didn't get punished. We've dropped a ton of points purely by conceding set piece goals.

Still, decent match and thought we were comfortable until the goal, and even after the red card I thought if anything we became more aggressive in attack, just as we did when Burke was sent off in Dundalk. Cork were clinical which is what I'd expect with every time I've seen them this season. We're not clinical and we have a soft centre and it really hurt us again tonight.

[Charlie Darwin]

Nice game, but I had to sit in front of a gobsh1te Dundalk fan who spent the game abusing McEleney. Some people should be banned from going to games on the grounds of profound stupidity.
Was it that Live at Oriel fella?

[El-Pietro]

We are having the most incredible season. I don't know if we are the best LOI team ever but you'd be hard pressed to find a more dominant side. We're trying to work out when we would win the league if we win all our games and Dundalk/Bray won the rest and I think we would win it sometime in early September (Rovers in Tallaght or Dundalk at home) assuming we play all league games scheduled by then (Europe will change that of course). We need 37 more points. Win next week and that drops to 31. With the form Dundalk Bray Derry Rovers and Bray are showing its not unrealistic to think we could bdo it in August. Oh and Limerick exist as a thing Rovers fans.

While I'm here. Stephen Bradley is amazing and I hope he and his 45 points from his first 33 games stick around a loooooooong time

[Charlie Darwin]

You'll win the league earlier than probably any team since Nutsy's Bohs team a decade or so ago, and probably quicker.

Bradley has his flaws but he wasn't the reason we lost tonight so not sure why Cork fans are focusing on him. Dave McAllister, who has been excellent, lost us the game by getting sent off with half the game left. Bradley, tactically, did it right.

[El-Pietro]

You'll win the league earlier than probably any team since Nutsy's Bohs team a decade or so ago, and probably quicker.

Bradley has his flaws but he wasn't the reason we lost tonight so not sure why Cork fans are focusing on him. Dave McAllister, who has been excellent, lost us the game by getting sent off with half the game left. Bradley, tactically, did it right.

You are probably right but Bradley does himself no favours when he spends so much time talking about us. He appears to have rubbed off on your team. Your goal was a beauty and your team made sure to make the most of it and celebrate every moment of it as they are entitled to but all that was gonna do was annoy our fans and probably our team. I have no idea if we would have win without the celebration but it can't have helped.
As for Bohs that was a great side but surely the gap to everyone else was smaller

[El-Pietro]

Oh and that challenge from McAllister was disgusting but I learned some additional detail to the laws of the game as a result so not all bad

[sbgawa]

Pity about the sending off was a good game up to that point . Clarke still our best player. Cork were good and good to see shep doing well. Europe and the cups still to play for for the rest of the league.

[sbgawa]

Pity about the sending off was a good game up to that point . Clarke still our best player. Cork were good and good to see shep doing well. Europe and the cups still to play for for the rest of the league.

[Jd2793]

Couldn't really see how bad the tackle was from where I was sat. Reaction from some of the players said enough though.Clarke is some player for Rovers caused the defence all sorts of problems. Rovers defending from set pieces was shocking aswell we could have had 4 or 5 alone from corners.

[sbgawa]

Will be surprised if we still have him at the end of the season. As ollie would say on set pieces we need to WORK WORK WORK :)

[desaintsno.12]

Surprised at some of the Dundalk comments. We are blunt up front because of Fagans form, but JJ and Markey were tearing strips off some of the dundalk lads at times.
Both Dundalk goals stemmed from Pats mistakes and not as a result of any great Dundalk play. FTR...Dundalk were better but got some luck too.

We are in trouble and also getting no luck/breaks. We'll be fine though.

[Nah Nah Nah Nah]

I would be surprised if Clarke is still here after July. The stand out player in the league for me this season even with Corks total dominance.

[Nah Nah Nah Nah]

Good game in Bray last night. Bray caused us all sorts of problems in the first half with their runners from midfield but once we sorted that out at half time we were the better team in the second half. Nearly gave away a comical own goal right at the end mind.

3 huge games coming up for us next. Harps, Galway and Bohs.

[JC_GUFC]

A very typical Galway United game last night. For the 14th time in 16 League games we conceded the first goal. (One 0-0 draw and we took the lead v Sligo in a 1-1 draw). With that record it's amazing we're not tailed off at the bottom.
However again we performed strongly in the 2nd half got an early goal back but just couldn't get the equaliser. If we had a confident striker to score goals I think we'd be fine.
Bohs for their part played on the break after taking the lead early on and Lorcan Fitz scored a beautiful volley on the run for the 2nd goal. I wasn't overly impressed by them, though Keith Ward was busy and Dinny Corcoran is the type of player we need (or just get Vinny Faherty confident again).
Like the Pat's fan I'd be confident in us staying up but we need to stop conceding first in games.

[Nah Nah Nah Nah]

Is there anyone who thinks their team is going to get relegated?!

3 teams are going to go but everyone down there seems to be capable of doing something. Strange not seeing someone marooned off the bottom.

[TonyD]

Is there anyone who thinks their team is going to get relegated?!
.


Course not, that's why we're supporters:). Eternal optimists.

I am worried though. Not so much by last night, better teams than us will lose to Dundalk this season, it the likes of Mondays result up in Finn Harps that has us seriously in the doo doo.

[Yossarian]

Nice game, but I had to sit in front of a gobsh1te Dundalk fan who spent the game abusing McEleney. Some people should be banned from going to games on the grounds of profound stupidity.

I'm guessing I was sitting close to you then because there was an oul fella across from me roaring abuse at McEleney all game and giving a continuous commentary on the game. It got very annoying very quickly.