Games weekend 17th/18th June

[sbgawa]

Premier Division

Friday 17th (all 19:45)

Bohemians v Shelbourne
Dundalk v Shamrock Rovers
St Pats v UCD
Derry v Drogheda

Saturday 18th

Sligo v Finn Harps

First Division

Friday 17th (All 19:45)

Cobh v Wexford
Bray v Galway
Treaty v Athlone

Saturday 18th

Longford v Cork 19:30

[sbgawa]

Dundalk have the chance to close the gap to 5 points with a game in hand.
Alternatively Rovers have a chance to go 11 clear of them with a win (and a game more played)
After drawing Malteese opposition Rovers should be facing into 8 weeks of European games which will give Dundalk a big advantage in the league.
This game is vital IMO and a game Rovers need to win to give themselves a cushion.

Bohs v Shels is another huge game for 008 but he will surely be left at it for a while now after making a few signings.
Hard to know what to expect from Derry.
Big game in the first division is Cork away to Longford.
Galway kicking their heals instead of playing SRFC 11

[El-Pietro]

Galway kicking their heals instead of playing SRFC 11

Galway are playing Bray.

[sbgawa]

Galway are playing Bray.


Doh ;)
I meant WATERFORD are kicking their heals instead of playing SRFC11.

[oriel]

Really looking forward to the Rovers game tomorrow night, should be an absolute cracker with a big crowd in. Amazing how confidence and momentum builds a team, 2 months ago I'd have been happy with a draw (even though should beaten Rovers in 92nd min in the first round, Hoban skyed it), this time I`ll be looking to win the game.

Might be a bold prediction, but sure what the hell, why not go for it.

[Nesta99]

So back to business this evening. Can we put the squeeze on Rovers with European game on the horizon, I hope so but I dont think so. Its big game for both clubs, Dundalk it builds confidence, continues momentum and will bode well for the target of European qualification. For Rovers a healthy gap is important, breathing room, so players can be rested domestically for the regular 2 games and maybe occasionally 3 per week during European season and the travelling that goes with. Of any club Rovers can field practically 2 first 11s that can hold the fort. It is a grind though when you need to play the best 11 in Europe and also in the league to keep clubs at arms length. I dont think Dundalk can sustain a title challenge but if we get within 2 points and exploit Rovers (and Derrys) schedule well ye never know if we get luck with injuries, strikers really start firing, keeping loanees, maybe strengthen and get the old cliché of winning becoming a habit. I wont be staking anything on it though!

[sbgawa]

Bradser has rarely played our "best 11" he seems determined to rotate since the beginning of the season with a view to having two decent 11's for when we hit Europe.
I've found it frustrating as a bad european draw and all this tinkering could be worthless.
We have a very winnable tie so his policy may yet pay off.
This is a vital game though so it should be a best 11 and go and get the cushion we need.
Manus
Finn, Gannon, Pico, Grace, Lyons
O Neill
Byrne Watts Mandroiu
Gaffney

Burke, Aidemo, Towell, Farrugia and Kavanagh to come off the bench as needed.
We need to win to get a cushion and be able to play without pressure on the weekends of European games (assuming we beat Hibs which we should , no excuses).

[Calcio Jack]

Bradser has rarely played our "best 11" he seems determined to rotate since the beginning of the season with a view to having two decent 11's for when we hit Europe.
I've found it frustrating as a bad european draw and all this tinkering could be worthless.
We have a very winnable tie so his policy may yet pay off.
This is a vital game though so it should be a best 11 and go and get the cushion we need.
Manus
Finn, Gannon, Pico, Grace, Lyons
O Neill
Byrne Watts Mandroiu
Gaffney

Burke, Aidemo, Towell, Farrugia and Kavanagh to come off the bench as needed.
We need to win to get a cushion and be able to play without pressure on the weekends of European games (assuming we beat Hibs which we should , no excuses).

Both Byrne and Burke doubtful for this evening

[oriel]

Even if Dundalk win (long shot, but possible) I would not consider us to be in a title race, simple fact and as many above have stated, just look at the Rovers squad depth, and who they can call off the bench for remaining games.

For example they could field a top xi, and have likes of Burke (when fit), Aidemo, Towell, Farrugia and Kavanagh as sbgawa said to come in, and that's not counting when Jack B back. I don't see any side matching that.

For Dundalk nothing changes, the goal is to qualify for europe, any result tonight is one another point(s) towards achieving that, even a defeat will mean its still 34 points and possibly down to 3rd, 1 or 2 points behind with a game in hand, and still well placed for euro spot at the halfway stage.

[pineapple stu]

Couple of nice games for Sligo and Derry this weekend too to try get some form into them ahead of the European games - Harps and Drogheda at home (and Drogheda after losing a couple of players too it seems, as loans have finished)

If they can't win those, they'll be in trouble in a couple of weeks (with all due respect to Harps/Drogheda of course - I'd say the same if Derry can't beat us next week)

[sbgawa]

Even if Dundalk win (long shot, but possible) I would not consider us to be in a title race, simple fact and as many above have stated, just look at the Rovers squad depth, and who they can call off the bench for remaining games.

For example they could field a top xi, and have likes of Burke (when fit), Aidemo, Towell, Farrugia and Kavanagh as sbgawa said to come in, and that's not counting when Jack B back. I don't see any side matching that.

For Dundalk nothing changes, the goal is to qualify for europe, any result tonight is one another point(s) towards achieving that, even a defeat will mean its still 34 points and possibly down to 3rd, 1 or 2 points behind with a game in hand, and still well placed for euro spot at the halfway stage.


If you win tonight and win your game in hand you are 2 points behind with over half the season gone.
Yes our squad is better but could well be in Europe for the next 8 weeks minimum which evens that up.
I can tell you i will be a happy man if we win tonight

[DCSIL]

Any live RTE games tonight?

[ForzaForth]

Nothing on RTE tonight

[DCSIL]

Hard to know what to expect from Derry.

Probably go a goal down and rescue the game with a 93rd minute equaliser from a Subsitute.

[The Bowler]

Great to be back in action. Looking forward to some nice warm evening Sumner football. Not expecting too much at Richmond Park for our students tonight, but with the worst Harps team in a long time to aim at, we could leapfrog them soon into the playoff spot. Just seen the team, and no Kerrigan, and UCD unable to field their full compliment of subs. Surely they could have brought up a few 19s, that's embarrassing.

[sbgawa]

No jack Byrne, no Burke and lyons starts on the bench. This rotation is doing my head in

[pineapple stu]

Great to be back in action. Looking forward to some nice warm evening Sumner football. Not expecting too much at Richmond Park for our students tonight, but with the worst Harps team in a long time to aim at, we could leapfrog them soon into the playoff spot. Just seen the team, and no Kerrigan, and UCD unable to field their full compliment of subs. Surely they could have brought up a few 19s, that's embarrassing.

Kerrigan is on the bench; may have picked up a knock on international duty.

Keaney and Ryan the only two regulars I see are missing at a quick glance but don't know if they're injured/suspended

U19s likely to have other things on their mind in Leaving Cert week and wouldn't expect them to be brought along to make up numbers in fairness

[placid casual]

No jack Byrne, no Burke and lyons starts on the bench. This rotation is doing my head in
It's not rotation if theyre injured.

[joey B]

Pretty quiet night so far for both keepers at Oriel …

[pineapple stu]

Decent game at Richmond; both sides have gone close, though Pat's have done it more often. Good save by Anang right on halftime to keep it scoreless.

[The Bowler]

Kerrigan is on the bench; may have picked up a knock on international duty.

Keaney and Ryan the only two regulars I see are missing at a quick glance but don't know if they're injured/suspended

U19s likely to have other things on their mind in Leaving Cert week and wouldn't expect them to be brought along to make up numbers in fairness that's fair re the LC, and actually two of that bench are 19s

[pineapple stu]

Ho hum. Harmless cross/shot bounces off Eóin Doyle's chest and loops over the keeper and in.

Then a yellow card for Pat's for a professional foul

[pineapple stu]

Ref gives Pat's a free for a clean tackle.

Abuse from the UCD bench sees both manager and assistant sent off.

It's entertaining anyway, if very annoying

[The Bowler]

For the second game in a row, Yoro watches a ball drift into the net without throwing a bicycle kick at it, at least throw an effort at it. Then Myler and assistant both sent off, comedy central. Myler is an embarrassment to the club with his antics.

[joey B]

Dundalk 1 up,Benson with the goal but Macari's outstanding pass/cross made it.....

[pineapple stu]

Jaysus - Dundalk beating Rovers. How they're doing so well I've no idea. Rovers down to ten too

And Bray 4-1 down at home to Galway. The town may burn tonight.

Drogheda (who've just lost their two (?) best players whose loans have ended) have equalised in Derry, who are evidently going to do ****e in Europe

Edit - Bray 5-1 down now

[Calcio Jack]

Dundalk 1 up,Benson with the goal but Macari's outstanding pass/cross made it.....

Utter muck from Rovers even allowing for Byrne & Burke being missing …. As for Finn never thought I’d ever call him an idiot but his red was beyond dumb

[joey B]

Dundalk right in the mix for the league….

[sbgawa]

Dundalk to lose from here

[Jd2793]

pats will need a miracle in europe because they are a turgid watch. any time i watch them i come away wondering what the hell it is clancy is trying to do

[ontheotherhand]

Dundalk the better side tonight so no complaints there. Ref did have a bit of a stinker but he called a few wrong on both sides. Finns first yellow looked really soft but he was foolish going in for the second one. Overall it was even enough on chances but Dundalk's midfield took control after 60mins or so and they scored a great goal right after Gary O'Neill really should have at least made Sheppard work at the other end. Benson is some player.

[ger121]

Dundalk to lose from here

Lincoln might be feeling mighty relieved tonight.

[DCSIL]

Couldn't finish a game off again, but where did they find that Referee.

[Nesta99]

]Jaysus - Dundalk beating Rovers. How they're doing so well I've no idea.[/B] Rovers down to ten too

And Bray 4-1 down at home to Galway. The town may burn tonight.

Drogheda (who've just lost their two (?) best players whose loans have ended) have equalised in Derry, who are evidently going to do ****e in Europe

Edit - Bray 5-1 down now

We have only really been bad twice, v Drogheda and dropping 2 points from 2 in front v UCD. Tonights game has been fascinating with both sides creating but in a real arm wrestle to use a cliche. Well organised, graft with some quality ike Macari's ball in for the goal, but gernerally there is a nice balance to the team, 1st choice 11 certainly. Couple of good heading opportunities spurned in the first half and did enough to discourage Rovers from raiding forward. Gaffney gave Boyle a tough night and Leahy is struggling for his best form. Other than that Rovers havent performed to their billing but a lot of that was down to Dundalk probably. There looked to be a lack of urgency at times yet bar Hoban were obviously physically superior in the 50/50s. Thoroughly enjoyed the game bar the last 10 + injury time as suddenly the win is on if we dont buckle. I didnt see Finn's high boot, we were still talking about Macari and how effective Benson is, but Finn walking was enjoyed by plenty in Oriel. Few pints now to soothe a sore throat from all the shouting.

5 wins, Shels away next while the Dublin Derby the same night. Cnt be sure how derry will do but if the form guide sticks and win another Rovers cant really afford to slip up. Whens the game in hand to be played?

[joey B]

pats will need a miracle in europe because they are a turgid watch. any time i watch them i come away wondering what the hell it is clancy is trying to do

Are we trusting any team in Europe? Rovers were shocking tonight aswell..

[D24Saint]

pats will need a miracle in europe because they are a turgid watch. any time i watch them i come away wondering what the hell it is clancy is trying to do

Im hoping to travel with something to play for tbh. That will do. The mix of travel, drink and unplaced optimism is the most that can be wished for.

[Calcio Jack]

We have only really been bad twice, v Drogheda and dropping 2 points from 2 in front v UCD. Tonights game has been fascinating with both sides creating but in a real arm wrestle to use a cliche. Well organised, graft with some quality ike Macari's ball in for the goal, but gernerally there is a nice balance to the team, 1st choice 11 certainly. Couple of good heading opportunities spurned in the first half and did enough to discourage Rovers from raiding forward. Gaffney gave Boyle a tough night and Leahy is struggling for his best form. Other than that Rovers havent performed to their billing but a lot of that was down to Dundalk probably. There looked to be a lack of urgency at times yet bar Hoban were obviously physically superior in the 50/50s. Thoroughly enjoyed the game bar the last 10 + injury time as suddenly the win is on if we dont buckle. I didnt see Finn's high boot, we were still talking about Macari and how effective Benson is, but Finn walking was enjoyed by plenty in Oriel. Few pints now to soothe a sore throat from all the shouting.

5 wins, Shels away next while the Dublin Derby the same night. Cnt be sure how derry will do but if the form guide sticks and win another Rovers cant really afford to slip up. Whens the game in hand to be played?

You were also dreadful in Tallaght when we recently beat you and you looked like a completely different team this evening- as for tonight despite being muck by our standards we were worth a draw

Still you got the win and we now have Bohs ( who despite being poor will as usual raise their game against us) and Pats away - you play your back game early July against UCD so you may be top by mid July

[SeanDrog]

Couldn't finish a game off again, but where did they find that Referee.


First half you should have been three up - second half Derry seemed to really take the foot off the peddle with some real aimless play but I do agree that 2mins extra time was nonsense given the penalty subs and injuries. I did not think there was any peno at the end despite the crowds pleas and tbh I think Derry supporters should look at some of the players b4 the ref in terms of blame, poor finishing and in second half some very poor play. Not knocking Derry, just my observations as Drogs were very under strength and I was expecting a tough night.

Delighted with the point, every point is so vital to us staying up this year.

Good chance next week for you guys to get back on track vs UCD.

[Nesta99]

Yeah true, and didnt start any of our strikers that night and Gartland played a full 90 for the first time in 7 or 8 months, it was 1 nil so maybe not as bad as v drogs or ucd. We had to rotate and as much as I hated it we gave up 3 points to gain more - I cant argue with how O'Donnell has managed the load on the small squad considering the run of form since.

So Rovers were muck but deserved a draw? just so vastly superior that a muck performance was equal to opposition and worthy of a point - your standards may be slipping Calcio. St Pats were worth a draw before the break as they battered us looking for the equaliser. Rovers could have gotten a point tonight but overall Dundalk were better and hence got the 3 points deservedly. I cant recall much more than a few half chances though McCabe should have done better with his chance. I was genuinely surprised at how little we needed to scramble to keep Rovers at bay.

[ontheotherhand]

Dundalk look a proper side now. No real surprise I suppose. So much talent and experience in the team. And a solid goalkeeper makes a world of a difference. Comparing the two 11s tonight there wasn't much in them and we didn't use our bench to any great effect. Not sure what was going on there. Leaving Lyons on the bench when Finn was on a yellow and fading was a bit bizarre. I assume Bradley was involved in the decisions even without being there but I was struggling to make sense of them.

[Nesta99]

Dundalk look a proper side now. No real surprise I suppose. So much talent and experience in the team. And a solid goalkeeper makes a world of a difference. Comparing the two 11s tonight there wasn't much in them and we didn't use our bench to any great effect. Not sure what was going on there. Leaving Lyons on the bench when Finn was on a yellow and fading was a bit bizarre. I assume Bradley was involved in the decisions even without being there but I was struggling to make sense of them.

Maybe that is what played in to our hands!

[Calcio Jack]

Yeah true, and didnt start any of our strikers that night and Gartland played a full 90 for the first time in 7 or 8 months, it was 1 nil so maybe not as bad as v drogs or ucd. We had to rotate and as much as I hated it we gave up 3 points to gain more - I cant argue with how O'Donnell has managed the load on the small squad considering the run of form since.

So Rovers were muck but deserved a draw? just so vastly superior that a muck performance was equal to opposition and worthy of a point - your standards may be slipping Calcio. St Pats were worth a draw before the break as they battered us looking for the equaliser. Rovers could have gotten a point tonight but overall Dundalk were better and hence got the 3 points deservedly. I cant recall much more than a few half chances though McCabe should have done better with his chance. I was genuinely surprised at how little we needed to scramble to keep Rovers at bay.

What I said was that by our standards we were muck -so despite that over the 90 mins we were worth a draw , the two statements are compatible

[Nesta99]

What I said was that by our standards we were muck -so despite that over the 90 mins we were worth a draw , the two statements are compatible

Thats fine, I just disagree! It was a muck performance by Rovers standards and a muck performance in general, hence the game was lost or won depending on the perspective.

[Calcio Jack]

Thats fine, I just disagree! It was a muck performance by Rovers standards and a muck performance in general, hence the game was lost or won depending on the perspective.

The game was won by a piece of quality by Macari- aside from that nothing between the teams- anyway enjoy the moment ; it’s results/night like that we all live for

[mcgonigle]

Jaysus - Dundalk beating Rovers. How they're doing so well I've no idea.

You should watch us more and you'd understand.

Delighted with that. Rovers very poor, if the quick ball over the top to Mandroiu doesn't work then they are out of ideas and with the players they have is pretty unbelievable. Lucky they got a gimme in Europe or they could have been in trouble.

We are very solid which is the foundation of good teams, can't remember Sheps having a save to make. Brilliant goal as well. We'll never challenge but always nice to beat Rovers and 3 points closer to Europe.

[ontheotherhand]

You should watch us more and you'd understand.

Delighted with that. Rovers very poor, if the quick ball over the top to Mandroiu doesn't work then they are out of ideas and with the players they have is pretty unbelievable. Lucky they got a gimme in Europe or they could have been in trouble.

We are very solid which is the foundation of good teams, can't remember Sheps having a save to make. Brilliant goal as well. We'll never challenge but always nice to beat Rovers and 3 points closer to Europe.

Burke is our (joint) top scorer.

[Nesta99]

Looking at Derry's GD - if it wasnt for the 7 against UCD and even the 4 v St Pats, it indicates a chronic shortage of goals in the side which you wouldnt have expected with the players they have. They are not closing out games if in front or have picked up a number of last gasp points at panic stations. But is the main issue that they are not scoring very much - needs a change to formation, philosophy, another striker in july?? I also think Rovers seem to plod through periods in the league, even if its enough to win the league, with not having a prolific striker who is not injury prone, then mediocre performance could still be wins,

[mcgonigle]

Burke is our (joint) top scorer.

OK but Rovers have played the same way each time we've played, worked in Tallaght but failed miserably tonight. If I remember correctly Burke didn't play/start in either of the two previous games? Was he injured?

[ontheotherhand]

OK but Rovers have played the same way each time we've played, worked in Tallaght but failed miserably tonight. If I remember correctly Burke didn't play/start in either of the two previous games? Was he injured?

Yeah fair enough although I thought Gaffney had our better chances tonight. We were very limited in ideas though and should have come up with something better. Makes it even stranger than Lyons wasnt sprung as he offers a better outlet going forward than Finn or Kavanagh.

Burke is carrying a knock. Very worrying to have himself and Jack not up to speed with Europe around the corner.

Enjoy your night anyway.

[Yossarian]

Great win for Dundalk tonight and overall we probably deserved it.
If Rovers want to do anything in Europe they’re going to have to up it a few notches. I know they’d a couple missing tonight but the game plan seemed to be just to hit it long and try and outpace our centre halves.
For us we’re keeping the gap to Pats and we’ve increased the gap to Derry so the main goal of European qualification is well on track.