2022 Predictions list

[PartySaint]

Party Saint, has your account been hacked, Snake FC (loved that from another Pats fan last week on here) in 4th and higher than Pats?

Bohs 3rd..................brave.


I think Bohs have done some good business in the off season and the pressure is off them this year whereas last season they were the ones expected to challenge Rovers and I don't think Long could handle the pressure.. I can see them having a really good season. Mallon back after a bad injury will be like a new signing for them as well.

As for Dunadlk 4th/Pats 5th. We've lost the spine of or team and our manager from last season and I don't think we've strengthened with the players or manager that we've brought in bar Eoin Doyle.

[Jd2793]

I think Bohs have done some good business in the off season and the pressure is off them this year whereas last season they were the ones expected to challenge Rovers and I don't think Long could handle the pressure.. I can see them having a really good season. Mallon back after a bad injury will be like a new signing for them as well.

As for Dunadlk 4th/Pats 5th. We've lost the spine of or team and our manager from last season and I don't think we've strengthened with the players or manager that we've brought in bar Eoin Doyle.

it was only the presidents cup but Pats looked better than i expected Friday. Mark Doyle looks a great pick up added to likes of burns forrestor and E.Doyle. All depends on the keeper for Pats and how he bounces back from Friday. I think they'll be challenging if hes in any way average at all

[Olander]

1. Shamrock Rovers
2. Derry City
3. St. Patrick's Athletic
4. Sligo Rovers
5. Dundalk
6. Bohemians
7. Shelbourne
8. U.C.D
9. Drogheda United
10. Finn Harps


1. Waterford
2. Galway United
3. Cork City
4. Bray Wanderers
5. Treaty United
6. Wexford
7. Longford Town
8. Cobh Ramblers
9. Athlone Town

My main takeaways - Shamrock Rovers have retained almost everyone and added Jack Byrne, they should be too strong.

Derry City have added a lot of players, and there will be a period of bedding in for them, but once they get going, they should kick into gear and clinch second with a really strong squad.

Pats should finish in the top three, they've lost a few quality players, but they've also added a few, none more important than Eoin Doyle. Goals win games. I'd be way about their GK though, he would not fill me with confidence.

Positions 4-7 could change around a bit, a lot will depend on injuries. I feel O'Donnell has signed well, but his squad is paper thin in areas and if he picks up a few injuries, Dundalk could struggle. Damien Duff has made some really shrewd additions, however it will be a learning curve for his players (And him of course), but I think they'll have too much to be pulled into the bottom two. I worry about the amount of players Bohemians have brought in on loan, they've lost a few decent players and I'm not sure they're strong enough to break into the top 4/5. Sligo Rovers look to have gone backwards a bit, they're another team that has lost significant quality and the players they've brought in to replace them are largely unknown quantities, but they have a strong spine, and if their signings click, they should be in the push for Europe.

At the ass end of the table, I think Ollie Horgan has finally run out of lives. The turnover in his squad has been ridiculous, I think Finn Harps have lost 11 players in the off-season. Ollie has had to gamble on a lot of players and the biggest problem I see is he's signed several players with injury issues (Hery, Donelon, Slevin to name a few), if a few of them are missing for a spell, Harps will really struggle.

Drogheda United and Finn Harps will duke it out for bottom I think, I don't expect too much from Kevin Doherty/Daire Doyle this year, I don't really rate either too highly. They've signed a lot of players of new players, including a good few journeyman types, IMO it will be a long season for them.

I fancy UCD to surprise people and survive. They play a lovely brand of football as most UCD's sides tend to, but they've got a lot of quality players, they won't change how they play and they'll probably get a few tankings, but they'll be brave and pinch a few results too. If they lose Kerrigan/Whelan in the Summer as is rumoured, that will be a huge blow, but my gut feeling is they will do enough to survive.

First Division, it's Waterford's title to lose it seems. I think it will be a three horse race for the title with Galway United contending with Cork City, but both look a bit short of quality compared to Waterford. Galway United's recruitment in particular has been questionable, and a lot will have to go in their favour to win the First Division.

Wexford could pip someone like Bray to the play-offs, that wouldn't surprise me, but Rob Manley and Kurtis Byrne should score enough goals to get a top 5 spot, even if their squad is overloaded with Cabinteely players. Treaty United have recruited well once again and I fancy them to repeat the act and squeak into the play-offs. The bottom two looks fairly set and I really don't expect too much from Longford this season.

[Jd2793]

I fancy UCD to surprise people and survive. They play a lovely brand of football as most UCD's sides tend to, but they've got a lot of quality players, they won't change how they play and they'll probably get a few tankings, but they'll be brave and pinch a few results too. If they lose Kerrigan/Whelan in the Summer as is rumoured, that will be a huge blow, but my gut feeling is they will do enough to survive.

First Division, it's Waterford's title to lose it seems. I think it will be a three horse race for the title with Galway United contending with Cork City, but both look a bit short of quality compared to Waterford. Galway United's recruitment in particular has been questionable, and a lot will have to go in their favour to win the First Division.

Wexford could pip someone like Bray to the play-offs, that wouldn't surprise me, but Rob Manley and Kurtis Byrne should score enough goals to get a top 5 spot, even if their squad is overloaded with Cabinteely players. Treaty United have recruited well once again and I fancy them to repeat the act and squeak into the play-offs. The bottom two looks fairly set and I really don't expect too much from Longford this season.

its interesting that you think ucd play a good brand of football, galway done a number on them in their meetings last season imo. limited them to very little. in all their meetings with (a poor) cork there was very little between the teams too with ucd being the better side in the game down here for sure, the other 2 not so much. i'll keep a keen eye on them for kerrigan whelan and keaney but i have to say i was really underwhelmed by them last season. there is scope for improvement with them all due to their age but for me they are a good bit off the 2019 side.
Was going to ask what Galway fans made of their recruitment , seems poor to me. JC wont change for anyone but he could really do with adding a bit of nous in the middle and some real pace out wide in that galway side. Hurley is a player i think but the other 2 in the middle dont inspire me much if youre in the game of retaining the ball and playing teams off the park for 90. Keating has looked pretty good in my 2 sightings of him with Cork i have to say, hes playing as a no9 down here not a winger mind you. Right back will hurt us this season with walkers injury, kargbo isnt good enough and we've no other cover there. A real sickener to lose Walker like that. Massive question marks over GKs too , not convinced by harrington or corcoran which only leaves OAP Nulty who has been done with a few years.

[Knocklyonhoop]

1.Rovers
2.Derry
3.Dundalk
4.Pats
5.Bohs
6.Sligo
7.Shels
8.Drogheda
9.Harps
10.UCD

First Division:

1.Waterford
2.Galway
3.Cork
4.Bray
5.Treaty
6.Longford
7.wexford
8.Cobh
9.Athlone

Top scorer:Jamie McGonigle
FAI Cup:Derry
First manager gone:Duff

[Bohs11]

I think Bohs have done some good business in the off season and the pressure is off them this year whereas last season they were the ones expected to challenge Rovers and I don't think Long could handle the pressure.. I can see them having a really good season. Mallon back after a bad injury will be like a new signing for them as well.

As for Dunadlk 4th/Pats 5th. We've lost the spine of or team and our manager from last season and I don't think we've strengthened with the players or manager that we've brought in bar Eoin Doyle.
We took the joint seventh worst defence in the league and replaced them with the lads who were stuck on the bench. With our back four, we're likely to be closer to the bottom three than the top three.

[patsdad]

I think Bohs have done some good business in the off season and the pressure is off them this year whereas last season they were the ones expected to challenge Rovers and I don't think Long could handle the pressure.. I can see them having a really good season. Mallon back after a bad injury will be like a new signing for them as well.

As for Dunadlk 4th/Pats 5th. We've lost the spine of or team and our manager from last season and I don't think we've strengthened with the players or manager that we've brought in bar Eoin Doyle.

I suspect that as the season unfolds we will realise that we have in fact strengthened in the manager department

[PartySaint]

I suspect that as the season unfolds we will realise that we have in fact strengthened in the manager department

If Clancy does better than second and winning the Cup I would be extremely impressed.

[Olander]

its interesting that you think ucd play a good brand of football, galway done a number on them in their meetings last season imo. limited them to very little. in all their meetings with (a poor) cork there was very little between the teams too with ucd being the better side in the game down here for sure, the other 2 not so much. i'll keep a keen eye on them for kerrigan whelan and keaney but i have to say i was really underwhelmed by them last season. there is scope for improvement with them all due to their age but for me they are a good bit off the 2019 side.
Was going to ask what Galway fans made of their recruitment , seems poor to me. JC wont change for anyone but he could really do with adding a bit of nous in the middle and some real pace out wide in that galway side. Hurley is a player i think but the other 2 in the middle dont inspire me much if youre in the game of retaining the ball and playing teams off the park for 90. Keating has looked pretty good in my 2 sightings of him with Cork i have to say, hes playing as a no9 down here not a winger mind you. Right back will hurt us this season with walkers injury, kargbo isnt good enough and we've no other cover there. A real sickener to lose Walker like that. Massive question marks over GKs too , not convinced by harrington or corcoran which only leaves OAP Nulty who has been done with a few years.
They do play a good brand in fairness, and yes you're right, we did beat them well in Terryland and our best performance of the season was probably when we beat them easily in Belfield, but at the end of the day, they went up. They absolutely dismantled Waterford in the final after a shaky start, and came through against a Bray Wanderers team that we somehow failed to score against over 180 minutes of football. They've kept all their best players. They'll definitely be on the end of a few rough results in the coming season but I fancy them to just stay up.

I wouldn't say it would be a shock if ourselves or Cork City won the First Division, like Waterford aren't huge favourites, but they seem the strongest. A lot will have to click for us to win it I feel. We've taken a chance bringing in two Spanish players, they'll have to hit the ground running. In fairness to JC, last year in ways, we were unlucky. Ronan Manning tore his ACL after only a few weeks and another promising player, Francely Lomboto, broke his leg in our final pre-season game, they both missed the entire season. Hurley will be a key player for us this year, last season he was used mostly as an attacking midfielder and he seemed like a fish out of water, he seems to have been restored to a deeper role now and looks much more at home. Our gameplan will never revolve around retaining the ball, that's not JC's style, it's going to go forward, and then we have to hope the attackers he has brought in adapt to how he wants to play.

Hopefully Waterford being a bit of a basketcase of a club rears its ugly head again this season and we can take advantage of that.

[pineapple stu]

Galway definitely have had a bit of a hex over us the last two years - haven't beaten them once. Galway needed late equalisers to claim 2-2 draws twice, and we were beaten 2-0, 3-0 and 4-1 in the other meetings.

It's strange as I'm sure even Galway fans will agree they underachieved in those two years, but then turned it on against us, which seems a bit unfair.

I do worry a bit that a full season in a big boys' league will be a problem, but I guess we markedly improved from 2020 (when we took one point off the top half of the First Division) to 2021, and have more or less the same squad going into 2022, so if this is the peak of our cycle, that gives us a sporting chance of being pummeled throughout 2023.

[RealJohn91]

I worry about the amount of players Bohemians have brought in on loan, they've lost a few decent players and I'm not sure they're strong enough to break into the top 4/5
Dundalk and Pat's have the exact same amount of players on loan. Abankwah is one of the Pat's loans to be fair but still.

[nr637]

Looking at the squads, players in/out, and where the money seems to be, obviously Shams, Derry and St.Pats have to be the leaders in those stakes!

I'd go with Shams to retain their title, St.Pats for second based on last year form and Derry pushing both close if their new signings and squad click and hit the ground running!

[El-Pietro]

They do play a good brand in fairness, and yes you're right, we did beat them well in Terryland and our best performance of the season was probably when we beat them easily in Belfield, but at the end of the day, they went up. They absolutely dismantled Waterford in the final after a shaky start, and came through against a Bray Wanderers team that we somehow failed to score against over 180 minutes of football. They've kept all their best players. They'll definitely be on the end of a few rough results in the coming season but I fancy them to just stay up.

I wouldn't say it would be a shock if ourselves or Cork City won the First Division, like Waterford aren't huge favourites, but they seem the strongest. A lot will have to click for us to win it I feel. We've taken a chance bringing in two Spanish players, they'll have to hit the ground running. In fairness to JC, last year in ways, we were unlucky. Ronan Manning tore his ACL after only a few weeks and another promising player, Francely Lomboto, broke his leg in our final pre-season game, they both missed the entire season. Hurley will be a key player for us this year, last season he was used mostly as an attacking midfielder and he seemed like a fish out of water, he seems to have been restored to a deeper role now and looks much more at home. Our gameplan will never revolve around retaining the ball, that's not JC's style, it's going to go forward, and then we have to hope the attackers he has brought in adapt to how he wants to play.

Hopefully Waterford being a bit of a basketcase of a club rears its ugly head again this season and we can take advantage of that.

I think on paper Waterford have to be huge favourites, but your last line is key. They have had a tendency to self destruct in recent years. If they don't win the division it will be because they have torn themselves apart again, or one of the other teams unearths an unexpected gem who scores 25+ and propels them through the season. I don't think we have that player so will be hoping we can maximize what we do have and make the playoffs, or Waterford implode.

[Shinkicker]

Dundalk and Pat's have the exact same amount of players on loan. Abankwah is one of the Pat's loans to be fair but still.
Shambolics
Stroke city
St Patricias
Gypsies
Dab o red.
Dalymount Co Tennants
St Pats Co Louth
Drogba
Finnula Harpes
Pupils

[Shinkicker]

Shambolics
Stroke city
St Patricias
Fan Owned Club
ST Pats Co Louth
Dab of pink
Droghbas
Dalymount Co Tennants
Finnula harpes
Pupils

[sulywaterfordfc]

Hopefully Waterford being a bit of a basketcase of a club rears its ugly head again this season and we can take advantage of that.

Other then sacking the manager last year - which nobody is aware of what happened. What exactly has the owner down to suggest things will go pear shaped this year? If there’s anything Galway and Cork should be concerned is the owner putting his hand in his pocket in the summer again. In fairness to him he messed up last year but he went and ensured we’d the best possible chance this year.

The fact it’s the first time in years we’ve managed to keep most of squad and the better young players is a huge positive.

[Candystripe]

Shamrock Rovers still 4/6 to win the league. After the first set of games it looks like most people are on track with their predictions.
Derry might push Rovers more than people thought though.

[ontheotherhand]

Shamrock Rovers still 4/6 to win the league. After the first set of games it looks like most people are on track with their predictions.
Derry might push Rovers more than people thought though.

I hope mine is on track but Jack still has a ways to go to get up to speed and Derry have taken off even quicker than I thought.

I was way off on UCD. Really thought Whelan would score goals but it looks like Kerrigan has adapted to the higher level more easily.

[Kiki Balboa]

1. Rovers
2. Derry

(Title race between two. Seems like Rovers by a mile. Duffy and Fats are great signings if Fats is not injured. If Patching and Dummigan are the same players for Derry as Dundalk, I wouldnt expect too much).

3-6 Dundalk/ Sligo/ Pats/ Bohs...

(All weaker from last year. A lot of changes at Dundalk and Pats and Bohs. Sligo losing Mahon and Kenny is difficult.)

7-9 Shels- Drogheda- Harps
(Havent been to impressed with Shels payers brought in, Drogheda had some intresting signings, but lost so much. Harps I think will be weaker from last year).

10. UCD

(finshed 3 in last years first and added no players. And might lose some in the summer (when they normally get better)).



Really all teams apart from Rovers and UCD have changed too much to really know anything at this time.

Top Scorer: Hoban
FAI Cup: Dundalk
First Manager: Duff or Buckley


The groups are all roughly accurate, just Derry above Rovers is the only real mistake (others can change within a game). But really, it is one group from 3rd to 8th, only 3 points separting those 5 positions.

It will be interesting how the league continues to develop. Rovers have seemed to have picked up some form, definitly wouldnt write them off (actually personally still expect them to win). UCD are already 8 points away from full safety.

[ontheotherhand]

1. Rovers - If jack is the player he was pre his covid and back issues I don't see us being caught this year at least. Derry will lead for a while though until injuries take their toll.

2. Derry - they should be able to turn the Brandywell into a bit of a fortress with the local lads and buzz about the place. Suppose that could go the other way with the pressure getting to them but I thought they'd do well under Higgins even without the signings they've made so....they could really challenge.

3. Pats - they may have an even better manager now than before...and I rate O'Donnell. Doyle is a phenomenal signing. Just think Benson and Desmond are huge losses.

4. Dundalk - got rid of the ****e. Added Benson and kept Hoban. They'll be strong enough for me even without Duffy.

5. Sligo - have enough about the place to not fall into the dogfight but losing Mahon and Kenny is huge

I think it will be close between the rest with a lot of movement but.....I'll go with:

6. Bohs - Kelly kept them out of the relegation battle last year and I think they'll figured out a way to do it again but will have to spread the goals out a bit. Big year for Devoy.

7. Shels

8. Drogs

9. UCD - Whelans goals to have them in the race for Europe while those around them struggle to find the net.... until he leaves to join Rovers and pushes us over the edge in a battle with Derry. UCD to slide from there but just about stay above the bottom.

10. Harps - probably not but the signings are risky and they lost some good players. Coyle in particular was really impressive and Hery ain't no replacement.

Top scorer - Doyle
Cup - Pats
First manager gone - Higgins.....to replace whoever replaces Barry for Ireland when the replacement inevitably leaves in 6 months.

Eoin Doyle really let me down here and I got Derry's home and away form mixed up.

[oriel]

Premier Division:

1. Shamrock Rovers
2. Derry City
3. Dundalk
4. St. Patrick's Athletic
5. Sligo Rovers
6. Bohemians
7. Drogheda United
8. Finn Harps
9. Shelbourne
10. UCD


First Division:

1. Waterford
2. Cork City
3. Bray Wanderers
4. Galway United
5. Longford Town
6. Treaty United
7. Wexford
8. Athlone Town
9. Cobh Ramblers


FAI Cup Winners: Shamrock Rovers
Top Scorer (PD): Pat Hoban
First Manager to leave (PD): None
First Manager to leave (FD): John Caulfield

I think Shamrock Rovers should romp home again, could be close between 2nd to 6th and then another gap with 7th to 10th all close battling for relegation

Top 6 spot on here TH!