Athlone (Away) 30th March 2012

**Shannonsider** · 27/03/2012, 11:06 AM

I'm going for a 2-1 win for Limerick with Denis Behan to get his first goal of the season.

Who's going? Should be a good crowd from Limerick.

**Jofspring** · 27/03/2012, 2:55 PM

Heading up myself with a few more. I'd be expecting a decent support if this match last year is anything to go by. Handy trip up the road and hopefully nice weather for it.

Have heard their pitch isn't in the greatest nick but hopefully we try keep it on the deck. Presuming both UCD and Drogheda tried to play football it just goes to show what kind of damage a decent team can do.

The local lads playing up there will always make it tough for us but i'll go for a 2-0 win with about 100 traveling up.

**bluewhitearmy** · 27/03/2012, 4:15 PM

Originally Posted by Jofspring

Heading up myself with a few more. I'd be expecting a decent support if this match last year is anything to go by. Handy trip up the road and hopefully nice weather for it.

Have heard their pitch isn't in the greatest nick but hopefully we try keep it on the deck. Presuming both UCD and Drogheda tried to play football it just goes to show what kind of damage a decent team can do.

The local lads playing up there will always make it tough for us but i'll go for a 2-0 win with about 100 traveling up.

Actually exactly what i said to someone yesterday.

If we stick with the 442 we will be fine would love to watch another performance like last Friday....Can see Gaffney having a very good game up against Broughall.

**CraftyToePoke** · 27/03/2012, 4:22 PM

I'd expect a tight game, they have had a 2-1 win, a 2-1 reverse Vs Longford, a 2-0 and a 1-0 win also. Scored in every game and kept two clean sheets so three points would be a good result there. Would set the Longford game up nicely for the following week too.

1-0 to Limerick would do fine.

**sadloserkid** · 28/03/2012, 10:39 AM

Originally Posted by CraftyToePoke

1-0 to Limerick would do fine.

Seconded!

**Minesapint** · 29/03/2012, 1:57 PM

I am suprised with the posts thinking that it will be a close game 3 nil to limerick for me , hughes who wouldnt get any where near limericks side, barrett great servent passed hes best days,broughall is very poor .

**donnrua** · 30/03/2012, 9:22 AM

stick with 4-4-2 and we should win this one. Broughall, McCarthy, Barrett, Hughes wouldn't make our bench these days but knowing Scully he'll probably make 3 or 4 changes and adopt another of his ridiculous so called tactical formations that usually results in hoof-ball and claims of playing brilliantly!

**thomas72** · 30/03/2012, 10:01 AM

I agree we need to play two up front tonight and never mind this one up front because we are away from home we have the best squad of players by a mile In this division other teams should be playing one up front against us not the other way around get the ball down and pass it around.

WHat time would be ok to leave for athlone was thinking 4:30ish??

**sadloserkid** · 30/03/2012, 10:27 AM

4.30 would still leave you plenty of time Thomas.

We should definitely stick with 4-4-2 though I'm pretty sure that there are doubts over Foley tonight. You can see that the rest of the division is half afraid of us and teams keep it tight, when we do the same it makes it very difficult for ourselves. Tonight and next week will set the tone for the early season, two wins and we're well placed to push on and make it our division... fingers crossed!

**Lim till i die** · 30/03/2012, 10:35 AM

4.30 would be loads of time bog road should have you in athlone in under two hours

pretty sure dom is out so whether scully moves gaffney into the centre (which id like just one look at personally!) or brings paudie back in remains to be seen

edit: slk beat me to it stupid slow playstation!

**Jofspring** · 30/03/2012, 11:31 AM

Will be leaving at 5:30 myself and still expect to make it with time to spare.

I used to always go the bog road way but went Limerick - Gort - Loughrea - Athlone the last time and made it in 1hr 20mins. You have Motorway to Gort, country road to Loughrea but Motorway again to Athlone from there. Where as the other way you only have Mortorway to Nenagh and back roads from there. Only catch is a toll between Loughrea and Athlone.

Will be a huge pity if Dom is out but I still think we should stick with 4-4-2. If Quinn starts then it won't be 4-4-2 so maybe as LTID says Gaffney up there. The main thing I want us to do is keep it on the deck. If we pump in long balls McCarthy and Danahar or Barrett will eat it up as most centre backs in this division are very comfortable with it.

**abbeyvale** · 30/03/2012, 11:09 PM

1 Longford Town 5 4 1 0 9 5 13
2 Limerick FC 5 4 0 1 9 5 12
3 Wexford Youths 5 3 1 1 11 3 10
4 Athlone Town 5 3 0 2 6 4 9
5 Waterford United 4 2 0 2 6 10 6
6 Finn Harps 4 1 0 3 5 8 3
7 SD Galway 5 0 2 3 3 8 2
8 Mervue United 5 0 0 5 4 10 0

Athlone 0-1 LFC

Next two league games are massive for LFC (Home v Longford & Away v Wexford Youths), if they can get 4pts from those, they'll be well on their way

**thomas72** · 30/03/2012, 11:25 PM

EXcellent 3pts sets up next weeks visit of longford nicely I reckon over a thousand in the gate for next week good Friday and all big crowd v a title contender let's hope the trend changes and we don't bottle it.

AS for tonights game we got the points but and I hate posting the same thing but the football we are playing is shocking athlones centre halfs tommy barrett and Brian mcCartey are excellent in the air but very slow on the ground what did Limerick do hoof long ball after long ball to paudie Quinn who was marked by 6f 5 mcCarthy its just mind boggling tactics. OK the pitch was poor but athlone were the ones popping the ball around on the goal a good move good knock down from gaffney to behan who squared it to gamble who took a touch and slot it home. Quinn hit a screamer from 30yrs off under side of the bar behan also missed one on one late on just dragged it wide

**Jofspring** · 30/03/2012, 11:35 PM

Poor performance but delighted with the 3 points.

With Foley out I was delighted to see that line up and the team playing 4-4-2. It's a pity we had to lose Derek after 15 minutes and Corie at HT meaning we only had one sub left with two out of scullys hands.

The pitch was a beach tonight and very bobbly which didn't allow for too much ball to be played. We still over did the long ball and for the whole of the first half we played into athlones hands. We started to play some bit of ball in the second half but not much. Gamble took his goal well after a nice knock down from Gaffney. Behan should have had a goal from a Paudie Quinn cross and also from a one on one. Paudie also rattled the crossbar with a shot from outside the box. Barr that we created nothing.

O'Leary did vey well in the second half and got a bit more stuck in. Bradley did ok when he came on in a more attacking role. Behan was outplayed by Barrett in the first half but it was a total role reversal in the second as tommy tired.

Athlone where young but a decent enough outfit, out playing us on the deck for good periods but lacked anything in the final 3rd. They could have snatched a draw but we held out well. Hopefully we don't get too carried away doing that though.

Big game next week and the performance needs to be upped a lot. We have been playing poor enough but barr the Waterford match have been still getting results.

**CraftyToePoke** · 31/03/2012, 2:04 AM

Wasn't at this so can't comment on the substance of the performance, but I think Athlone may have set up with one striker on a surface not ideal for playing the beautiful game. The result is a good one, we were never going to go there and hammer them, their results up to this game suggested that, they haven't conceded many. Three away points, clean sheet. Lovely.

As said above, it would be nice to win with a little more style at home next week to Longford, big game.

**bluewhitearmy** · 31/03/2012, 11:21 AM

I think it would have been hard to play football all night on that absolute disgrace of a pitch you could see at times they were trying to pass it along the floor and it wasn't working,at one stage Gaffney tried and the ball just got stuck in the sand.
I dont think it helps matters when both right and left back are awful on the ball and usually end up just kicking it away anywhere though.
Derek O Brien needs to be given a fitness programme or something its ridiculous how many times he has missed games or come off injured so early in the season.
Denis Behan desperately needs a goal it looks like he is really struggling for confidence.

Away from home to a team doing well and unbeaten at home so far we stopped them creating anything really and got the win with a well worked goal ill take that.
Cant wait for next week now hope Foley is back.