Premier Division
Friday 5th (all 19:45)
Bohemians v Waterford
Drogheda v Shelbourne
St Pats v Shamrock Rovers
Derry v Dundalk
Saturday 6th 19:45
Sligo v Galway
First Division
Friday 5th (all 19:45)
Bray v Athlone
Cork v Cobh
Finn Harps v UCD
Kerry v Longford
Wexford v Treaty
Rovers have with 3 wins dragged themselves back up the table but a win at Pats would solidify things nicely. Its so tight that a win or two can bring you hurtling up or down the table (unless you are the champions elect Shelbourne of course)
Dundalk A v Dundalk B should be an interesting one with both managers under some sort of pressure.
Kerry v Longford is a big match and a win for Kerry could start them dreaming about qualifying for the playoffs on the back of what would be a 6 game unbeaten run.
It's mad looking at the table how close everything is. Just on Derry whats going on there? Are they a good team or a bad one? Like they are 2 points ahead of Bohs but ask any Bohs fan and they would be relatively unhappy with how the season is going so far with a tinge of optimism now that a new manager is in place. Given the resources and players available in Derry are they underperforming or do they have some injury issues that are flying under the radar? Can't say I was impressed on their visit to Dalymount.
On Bohs v Waterford could be an interesting game. sbgawa joked that it's Dundalk a vs b but looking at the Waterford squad and bench you could argue its Bohs a vs b there as well. Hopefully we see the same commitment we saw against Galway and early on vs Rovers. I think long term Bohs will need to add more experienced players to the squad to stop collapses like what happened vs Rovers because it seems the smallest bumps derail a game for us at the moment and that's mentality not a skill issue.
There is a lot of discontent beginning to creep into our fanbase. The style of football has been brutal to watch the last few years under Higgins. Both the Galway game and Shelbourne game brought 'booing' at the end of the game. Never seen the Brandywell empty so quickly for the Galway game and with the Shels game people where calling for his head. Never seen our away fanbase so deflated as we are now. There wasnt many who could wait to get home after speaking to them in the Applegreen on the M1 on the way back up the road. Shels arent a great side but we are so easy to play against with the possession based game we try to implement, ball doesnt get moved quick enough and we seem incapable of breaking in behind the lines.
People will tell you Derry are underperforming but I genuinely dont think we are. Too many players with big reputations who are past their sell by date and a manager who has no plan B. He will tell you that he has injury woes and I get that with Fats, Dummigan, Diallo, Doherty, Whelan, Hoban (Now struggling) all out it will have an impact on any first team but you build a squad to win games and they simply arent good enough.
Higgins is under real pressure and to be honest if he doesnt get a result against Dundalk then the writing could be on the wall for him. He mentioned a 3year plan when he took over the job, he is now in his 3rd full season and fans wont watch those drab performances for much longer.
If Higgins goes who do you get in? I don't think Kenny is ready to jump back into the LOI management pool just yet. At least that's the impression I heard after Bohs failed to bring him in. Is there anyone being mentioned locally as a candidate? Looking at your squad I would say you are underperforming even if some of your players are past it there are still good LOI players in there they just seem a bit toothless or directionless in the attacking third.
Its like the league has gone full cycle in terms of styles of play, possession and attacking is being pushed back by physicality and defence minded sides eeking out wins in a fairly old fashioned manner. Its a results based game so its not an issue that Shels are clear at the top without trying to swashbuckle their way through games, Duff has taken the pragmatic, moany and feisty Mourhino playbook. Derry have a very talented squad but are too easily nullified by spoiling at best and bullied at worst and dont seem capable of scrapping when needing to. Last season they looked more comfortable in Europe against arguably better sides than domestically - the suited to European football type observation said about technically good players. If Shels can maintain their efficient start then even Rovers may rue a sluggish start. Dundalk are not quite 2012 bad I think but maybe thats denial but were back talking about no goals (and why our best hatstand was let go), where change can happen and maybe financial issues on the horizon. We could even talk about injury lists and artificial ptches as a bit of a throwback with the Derry sick list or how there could be a manager merry-go-round starting to form, the crop of new young managers are now battle scarred and wracking up former clubs manageed. Ive felt that progress on s+c has stalled or gone in a wrong direction with things from persistant/longterm injuries, over bulked less mobile players, obvious signs of fatigue in the last 1/4 of games.
I was watching the Cliftonville v Larne game on BBC 2 last night. I was surprised by the game and particularly how much of a passing game Larne tried to play. It seems that the North is improving and we are in a slight decline in the styles of play adopted.
Would wager that LOI sides are largely waiting for the upturn in weather and pitch conditions before getting the ball down and playing a bit of football again. Majority of pitches will have suffered from the brutal weather this past number of months, so a spell of good weather and good growth and they'll improve again, capable of hosting a decent style of football.
Makes a welcome change for there to be something riding on Friday's result - last season, the local press were prepared to largely write the season off due to inexperience, then a quiet appreciation of the current improvement, whereas now if not impatience, then a sense that the breakthrough must come soon, if it is to happen.Originally Posted by sbgawa
Bit of a disaster for Harps
https://finnharps.ie/harps-v-ucd-earlier-kick-off/
Harps v UCD moved to 5pm Friday evening, due to floodlight issues at Finn Park.
It's not been an easy year for Harps, in maintaining Finn Park, floodlights have become a serious issue, and there's been huge efforts to try and get them sorted, but the old bulbs are near impossible to come by now.
Saturday was explored, but couldn't work for both clubs. A total nightmare for supporters, but it is what it is.
Far from ideal of course but UCD are probably the best team to be hosting in this scenario given there will be less than a handful of away fans affected rather than more against pretty much every other team
Paaatrick's Agletic
It's also upsetting my OCD. I've been quietly enjoying the fact that all ten matches were kicking off at 19:45 Nice and tidy. Rarely happens. I'm off to line up the cans in my presses.
It’s not the away fans that are the problem,Donegal is a big county and people just won’t go if it’s at 5pm ,will have a big affect on the attendance….
Irish by birth ,Harps by the grace of god.
I know that, a 5pm attendance will obviously affect the home attendance but in terms of away support it’s the best opponent to be facing in terms of least away fans affected by this last minute time change
Paaatrick's Agletic
Away crowds are minuscule in FP for first division matches tbf so makes no odds that way
It's upsetting my OCD thinking you spelled UCD wrong...
It's upsetting my UCD.
Would it really affect away fans that much. Surely most attending would already have a day off work/half day/no work anyway so just leave a few hours earlier.
I wouldn’t dream of going home the same night from Harps. The Villa Rose or Jackson’s aren’t that expensive by todays hotel prices standards if you have two people to share. It’s a slog of a drive up.
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